swiss chalet

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I'm not talking about rotisserie chicken, I'm talking about a log house in the Swiss alpes. I've just returned back to Biella after 5 days in Saas Fee/Saas Grund, Switzerland!

The family had invited me to join them on this trip before I even arrived in Italy, meaning I'd been looking forward to this trip since November! Every year, they do a house swap and often they choose mountain destinations, ideal for family ski trips! It's such a fantastic way to travel, as you pay nothing for your accomodation (you just have to trust complete strangers in your home). A lot of families in the house swap community have second homes which they generally use for swapping purposes.

We arrived in the late evening to the coziest little chalet. The fire was already going and dinner just needed heating up! It was such a warm welcome. Early to bed, as we were waking up bright and early for skiing!

We were all surprised to walk out the front door in the morning to the sound and smell of goats. Directly below our chalet lived a family of these cute (but stinky) animals! It really added to the ambiance of this little mountain community. Just adorable!

Day one of snowbaording...success! We skiied at Saas Fee which is quite a large resort. The views from the top of the mountain were absolutely breathtaking. Jacopo and I took the metro alpin, a train that shoots up through tunnels in the mountains to the highest skiable peak of the resort. I really felt like I was on top of the world up there. Seeing beauty like that can easily make you forget any negative thought that ever crossed your mind. The world is such an amazing place! I shredded those mountains like a pro. It really felt good to be me that day 😊

Day two of snowboarding...success...until...EPIC fail! T'was a gorgeous day, temperature above zero. Although it was a smaller resort, it was just as beautiful. Unfortunately warm weather and snow don't make good friends and by the afternoon everything had turned to ice. It was like snowboarding down the side of a giant popsicle. One that's been slobbered all over. Near the bottom of my last run of the day, I had what might have been the most epic fall in snowboarding history, well at least MY snowboarding history. Once I was down, stopping was impossible. I slid down that popsicle on my bum as fast as a racecar, until I was able to dig my snowboard into the ice, do about 5 somersaults, and then slide the rest of the way down the hill on my tummy. Every part of me survived, except my wrist.

Although I was in quite a lot of pain, I was still surprised to hear the doctor say that it was broken. My first broken bone, a right of passage, I guess. At least it happened doing something cool! But $600 for an Xray and cast...thank GOD for insurance. Needless to say, my snowboarding days were over for the rest of the vacation. When I wasn't drugged up on pain killers, I still got to see a parade for carneval and take nice long walks around the village! And to top it all off, we had fondue and raclette for dinner one night. HEAVENLY!

Back to Biella = Back to reality. Well, for everyone but me. My job as family chauffeur must be put on hold until the cast comes off in 4 weeks. It's illegal to drive in Italy with a cast, even though I have full mobility of my fingers. This also means my newly acclaimed social life will also be put on hold (to an extent) since the last bus coming home from the city is at 7pm. I thought Italians knew how to party, but clearly not if they're all coming home at 7...

It seems life is throwing me some lemons, but I'm just going to try and try to make the best lemonade possible!

Ciao for now!

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Photos

Saas Grund
Just the view from the front of the chalet...no biggie!

Comments

[OOE]

Oh my!
Platypuss! You broke your wrist? I can't believe it, you poor beautiful midget! Haha! So what are they going to make you do if you can't drive? I suggest tap dancing lessons. Miss you. Quebec isn't the same without you.

[Mom]

Thanks for the story and pics
It's great to see where you were staying, Ali. I hope your wrist isn't too painful now. Keep smiling! Love, Mom

[Johanna Merth]

ah!
Ali, read the post and that sucks! I hope that the cast coming off went well, lets talk again soon my friend. I love seeing all your photos, you have a way of writing and a good eye!