The bombardino got me!

We have all now more or less got our skiing legs back and it is time to start refining our style, well as much as we can, given that there is no way that we will ever look like some of the youngsters going down the slope.  We met Ivan at 09:00 for a two hour lesson on a slope that we haven't been on yet which had one of the cursed button lifts.  Everytime Kirsten and I are on a slope with a button lift our calves are excruciatingly painful, we think it might be a genetic thing because everyone else seems to be perfectly comfortable.

Lessons are difficult because to learn how one should be doing it one has to first unlearn what one is currently doing and then re-learn the correct way and it just isn't easy.  The first and most important lesson is to have your weight over the front of your ski's and it sounds so simple but there is an innate fear built into each of us that as soon as the ski's are pointed downhill a wipe out is coming and to throw one's body into the impending disaster is difficult to overcome.  The thing is that as soon as one does manage to get one's weight forward, after overcoming the psychological barrier, it is so much easier to actually turn and thus keep one's descent under control.  But, as always, so much easier said than done.  The other little gem that the instructor gave me was that the perpendicular bisector of my shoulders should point over the tip of my downhill ski and that my hips must be uphill while my shoulders should be over the ski's.

Ivan our instructor who apparently used to be quite a top notch professional alpine skier.  A pity about the students though, it must be quite exasperating for the instructors to have to deal with people that can barely ski.

As good as the lesson was I was very glad when they ended and we could give my calves a rest and meet up with everyone else for chocolate and coffee while the snow gently fell around us.  I think that this might be the only snow that we are going to get so it was really nice for Anna and Erin to at least experience it.

 Caron was a little shattered after her lesson because the instructor took her up to the top of a red run, the one that the rest of us have been avoiding, and got her to go down it which was no mean feat.  I am so glad it was the instructor and not me that took her up there.

In the afternoon almost everyone other than Kirsten, Anna and myself had a nap and read while the three of us went back to our favourite blue slope which was just about deserted and tried to put into practice what we learnt this morning.  Sometimes I get it right for a few turns or even and entire run but then the next run is just a disaster.  Very frustrating.
 
Rob and Nikki had recommended that we try out "La Grolla" for a meal out and tonight is the night.  They also recommended that we try out a drink called "Bombardino" which I duly ordered but as the waiter was putting the drink down in front of me, I'm not sure what happened, the glass fell over and I was bombardino'd all over my jacket and pants which are now sticky as well as wet.  The others seemed to enjoy their food, and my distress I must add, but my pizza wasn't as good as the other restaurant and more in line with Johannesburg quality food.

After the meal we walked up the pedestrianized road admiring the Christmas lights and checking out all the shops.  I had unfortunately left my camera behind so I will take a photo another night.