Schladming Ski Week

I spent the last week skiing in Schladming with all the other exchange students and I had an amazing time! The Vienna crew bought group tickets which means they are really cheap, but we can only take the really slow trains, and we have to switch trains often. Usually, this leads to a procession of small disasters and we are always late. However this time, being the first time we organized it as Oldies we were determined for everything to run smoothly. And someway, somehow, after almost 8 hours of trains, layovers, and the chaotic shuffling of luggage, we arrived in the Schladming train station with half an hour to spare! Once we got there, excitement started to rise in the air with the arrival of each new train loaded with exchange students. I got the absolute best hug from Crash and continued to receive some much needed hugs through the rest of the afternoon. Two buses hauled us up the mountain to our typical Austrian mountain hotel and I settled into my room with Juliet, Laura, and Sam.  The Oldies get hoodies every year that we designed together, and we all have a nickname on the back. Sam and Laura organized the whole process so we spent a good chunk of the afternoon just making sure everyone had their hoodie. Then I went and rented ski boots and set up all my ski gear to head out in the morning and then finished the day with a tasty dinner with all of my best friends.

The next few days had the same schedule of getting up early, heading out to ski with an instructor in the morning, lunch in a mountain hut, and then free ski in the afternoons. I got placed in the advanced group and had so much fun chasing some really excellent skiers down the mountain! I haven't taken ski lessons since I was a kid, so it was also really nice to re-learn some technique and improve my skills. By the end of the lessons I could tell I improved a lot! Our whole group looked really good and it was so much fun to watch us shred up the mountain! It was pretty cloudy and cold most of the days, and we didn't really get a good view of the surrounding mountains until we got high enough up out of the fog. It was an incredibly profound moment to raise up out of the fog and turn around to see endless mountains floating on a sea of clouds. One day, a group of us skied up to the highest point in Schladming and I was totally astounded. The view took the breath from my lungs and made my knees weak. It was definitely one of those moments where it hits me how truly blessed I am. All I could keep thinking was, "I am standing on top of the Alps right now. I am surrounded by the best of friends, and I am living my dream."

The famous Schladming run

Me, Laura and Juliet

Our hotel on a foggy night

Got a little sun tanning in during a layover

Most of the Oldies

Above the fog

 

Catching a hat on my head to kill time at Linz train station

Some other highlights of the trip included: going to a ski show in Schladming with synchronized skiers, tricks, and fireworks, a group talent show where I sang with Cleo, Laura and Juliet, a disco/Rotary meeting, sledding down a 7 kilometer track, and a sweet powder day in the mountains! More than anything, I enjoyed being in the company of some of my favorite people on this planet, and getting to know each of them better. It was hard saying goodbye this time, as we are all realizing our time is coming to an end. Fortunately, most of us are attending a meeting near Graz on Friday, so we don't even have to go a whole week without seeing each other! We were all getting pretty sentimental on the train ride home though, and I am just a mess torn between feeling so happy and blessed to so sad that we're saying goodbye sooner than I'd like to. But this feeling has set us into planning mode and we are determined to get the things done that we dreamed for ourselves. It's going to be a rediculously bust next 14 weeks!

This week I'll be in school for 4 days, attending a world known concert at Vienna's famous Musikverein, having a picnic with friends, eating a real Chinese dinner at Alyson's house with her Chinese host parents, and then heading to Graz for our meeting! From there I go to Kirchberg for a few days of skiing, and then I'm off to Sweden! I am so excited to soak up every second of it!