Winter Weekends

I arrived back in Lausanne on the 8th of January, and my first two weekends were spent in the mountains (a place I’d stay all the time if I could, but I’ve got to see other parts of the continent too, and return to my room that just looks onto the mountains..). I’ve enjoyed taking refuge there, deeply breathing in the fresh air, and then losing my breath when I take in the spectacular landscapes that surround me. I had the opportunity to travel to the Matterhorn (Switzerland’s celebrity mountain), and also the Jungfrau region again.
Zermatt and Iglu-Dorf
Weekend One was spent entirely outside, as some friends and I decided to spend the night in an igloo village. I naively accepted this invitation without a second thought, but found it quite a challenge to warm up the cold sleeping bag (a special expedition sub-zero sack they provided) with a chilled body. Nevertheless, the night was a blast; we arrived at the igloo village after wandering around Zermatt for a while (another car-less town, but a hustle-bustle tourist destination, unlike Murren or Gimmelwald). It was a clear, crisp day, and I spent every other second glancing at the Matterhorn behind us framed perfectly by blue skies and wonderfully gracing us with a beautiful backdrop for all the night’s activities. Two guides who worked for the ice hotel/igloo company were in charge of the schedule of events, which was packed full, and perfect for keeping our minds off the cold and to keep us warm. We enjoyed a fondue dinner in the dining area with wood tables and ice benches covered with sheep’s wool, and then after a dip in the hot tub, we set out on a starlit snowshoeing hike in the area. When we returned, the guide asked (as he’s supposed to) if anyone wanted to go on another hike. I, of course, replied with a quick and ecstatic yes, but found that I was a minority in the group. A friend decided to go once more too, and we headed out again, this time to deeper snow, and a more challenging and enjoyable route. Equipped with my headlamp, I was ready to hike all night, but stargazing was still on my must-do list before I turned in for the night, and the guide was tired, so our snowshoeing, although short-lived, was over, but fun.
The stars were the brightest I’d ever seen in my life. Not only were we away from every city light, but we were in a mountain basin, a natural planetarium, sitting in the middle of a perfect demi-sphere chalked full of stars. This description falls far short of the view, and a camera would never be able to capture it either, but, I’d say that after 6 shooting stars, two planet identifications, and several constellation discoveries, I was pretty satisfied. The only sad thing was that it was just too cold to sit still and marvel at the sky all night, and I knew that I needed to get to bed, lest I be ill-prepared for the coming first week of school.
The next day arrived with snow clouds in the distance, and we realized how fortunate we were to have stayed in the igloo on a clear night. The night we chose was perfect because there was no wind, and the Matterhorn and stars were strikingly visible. After being handed little plastic shovels and instructed that breakfast was at the base of a blue squared run, we laughed our way down the hill, getting sprayed in the face as we attempted to control these squirrely little contraptions. This sled ride certainly was a great way to start the day, like an unexpected snow bath. We did survive, although some of my friends did walk away a little beaten up. Following breakfast, we descended the mountain on the Gornergrat-Bahn, and returned to Lausanne, pleased to be back inside, enjoying the radiator and warm duvet covers that night.
(If you would like to stay in an igloo some time if you ever visit Switzerland, the website for Iglu-Dorf is http://www.iglu-dorf.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1; I'd recommend it for a unconventional, "I'd like something out of the ordinary" place to stay)
Interlaken
The activity last weekend was night sledding with a group of 16 people from our Lausanne program. We hopped on the train Friday afternoon all eager to return to the Alps, and see what this night sledding event was all about. People had been talking about it forever, and when we finally reached the top of a mountain called Neiderhorn opposite the Jungfrau range, looking down on Brienzersee and Thunersee, outfitted with sleds (and of course with my headlamp again), we knew that the night was going to be a memorable one. The run itself was well-kept, not as well-lit as one might imagine, and certainly not well-monitored (we were sledding on a ski run with the people in charge only around to take care of the gondola taking us up the hill). After about 5 minutes downhill, I got the hang of steering and braking, a technique only perfected with strong heels and quick reflexes, and then was able to practice my newly honed skills the rest of the way down (total run time: 15 minutes). We had enough time to take one more run, since the gondola only came once every half an hour, but the second time was just as good, if not better, since we knew the trail, and had favorite sections that zipped through thick forests and curved around dim lanterns.

As for pictures, I've got a couple from the igloo, and some from last Friday, but, who goes sledding or snowshoeing with a camera besides my sister? (the bitter cold does a great job convincing you not to take off your gloves to take a picture too...not to mention dead and cold batteries..) Anyway, my photo album still is accessible with the link in the right-hand column on this page.
Well, that’s all for now, I’m on my way to London Thursday, so I’m anticipating a good musical, among other things, but you'll just have to wait for next week's post!