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Published: December 11th 2013
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I'm on my way home...well, this if you consider that I'm currently homeless since July, and that we are moving in our new appartment only just before Christmas. But still, I'm on my way home, and the best one, is that Tiffany and Leslie will be back with me for my next blog...coming soon!
I love diving, playing golf...great wine...and yes, skiing too. I have had the chance to ski in the States at Lake Tahoe, Alta and Mt Hood...so a new discovery is awaiting me at Beaver Creek.
You may never have heard of Beaver Creek. When driving from Denver, it's just the next resort after Vail, some people even actually call this Vail area...I'm sure you have heard of Vail!
I landed late in Denver, got a night at an airport hotel for a very short sleep, and by 7am I was in my rental car. They have shuttles to the ski area, but at 170usd per person, it's just a very bad joke, when a rental ca cost 90usd including insurance for 3 days!
The drive should just be over 2 hours...it took me 3 hours
and a half, I have to admit I took my time. Temperature was a good -13 degrees celsius...but more important, it was snowing, big time. I have drived in Iceland in the snow...but here, it would be a good 200km, going from around 5,000 feet (1600 meters) to at some point 10,000ft with the car...yes, that's above 3000 meters. The rental company doesn't provide chains, and no way to buy them on the way at this time of the day. The trucks did had chains, none of the car used them.
The drive was interesting...could have been scary, but the highway is wide...and I simply kept myself to the middle of it...not bothering reaching speeds of 40 miles an hour...and I made it to my hotel...safe and happy...if not a little later than planed!
I'm staying at the Westin Avon. The "resort" often get top reviews by the best travel magazines...and I can tell you, it was pretty amazing. The put me in a huge one bedroom suite with a full equipped kitchen, all this for 159usd plus taxes....before you even start to think I'm blowing any kind of budget...it's dirt cheap for what
it is.
Being currently "homeless", you cannot imagine how happy I am with a proper kitchen...I may be on my own, I don't need to always run after bars or restaurants....there is nothing better than a good home cooked meal...even on my own...still with some nice wine! So I dropped my bags, and went to do some grocery shopping...to prepare a fast brunch...before heading to...the ski slopes!
And what ski slopes...in a day, 50 cm of fresh snow dropped on Beaver Creek...meaning all the groomed slopes look actually as off-track...what a day of skiing...pretty amazing.
If you have heard of Vail and not Beaver Creek, do not believe this is second rating...the fur coats may not be around, but last week they had the Women World Series, and once I got there, it was the turn of the Men World Series....kind of fun to share some chairlifts with team USA, of the Swiss and French team...these guys, obviously...do know how to ski.
Beside the competition crowd, the slopes are actually pretty empty, making the vibe of the place some pretty sensational. The snow may be amazing....but the place
is freezing...never skied in such a slow place. Over three days, we have most of the time temperatures between -13 Celsius...and minus 22...Celsius! And trust me, when you go down full speed, and are not properly equipped...this is cold...solid cold. End result, I discovered what means frost bites...it's like a sun burn...except that this time, it's your skin freezing...and burning...not ideal, but it did disappeared after few days....who care...that snow was amazing!
So great snow, truly fun skiing...some pretty nice food, a gorgeous suite and even some pretty nice wine...but it was already time to drive back to Denver after 3 days of skiing. I had a meeting with one of my fellow travelblogger, Bob...another one of those great travelers...who has been rooming the world. Bob is American, but he is born in Thailand, has lived in Vietnam...and many years in Belgium...how do we say...it's a small world.
Bob brought me for a dinner of bison at Ted's. Bison is pretty cool, and a first for me. Thanks Bob for this wonderful evening.
Next morning, I was up at 5am...for a little commuting...Denver-LAX-Tokyo-Hong Kong...some business to deal with in HK...than on
to Bangkok...for a moment like I truly love them...picking up Leslie and Tiffany at the airport...
More coming pretty soon....
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Home and Away
Bob Carlsen
It was great to meet you...
and thanks for the dinner!