Axamer Lizum

Today we all went skiing at Axamer Lizum; it is near the town of Axams. It is very near our house, in fact you can see it from here and you can see Oberperfuss and our house from the top of Axamer Lizum. We were up at 1500 meters at the base, and 2350 at the top. It was a sunny day. The snow was good, or as Warren puts it, much better than we ever get in New Hampshire. I am glad yesterday's skiers warned me about how warm it was so I didn't overdress. Think Spring skiing!!! Spring is already here and it is still only January! (Jim's cousin Lisi set the table for our dinner in Bregenz with Snowdrops from her own garden.) I wore my lightest ski jacket today with only a light polypro underneath. No long underwear, and no ski hat! I wore only a headband, and my light cross-country gloves. Just right. I am very happy with my new ski boots. The boot fitter that Penny Pitou recommended to me in Plymouth NH really knows his stuff - Paul Richelson's Feet First, if anyone is up that way and needs a good boot fitter. I skied on rented Atomic skis, I really liked them. First pair of shaped skis that I have really liked. Of course, the skis out-skied me. I just let them go and rode them down the hill. They were slick.

We stopped for lunch at the top of the Olympia Bahn, the very summit of the mountain. The views were awesome, and it was the fanciest ski restaurant I've ever seen. Photos attached. Also, the food was terrific for a ski mountain. It was self-service, but pretty nice. The first thing you see when you walk in the door is the big round table with all the desserts - strudels, cakes, etc. Wow. Hard to resist. There is schnitzel, various sausages and soups, and other main courses, and a beautiful salad bar. Also a fancy European coffee machine with the BEST coffee I have ever had in my life. I had a small salad and a big "Germknödel" with poppy seeds, sugar, and vanilla sauce on it. We all shared that. One of the eccentricities of Austrian food is that it is perfectly acceptable to eat a huge strudel or other sweet thing for lunch or dinner as a main course.