Going downhill fast 9 February, 2010

Slipping into something cooler

As promised yesterday, some shots of our makeshift downhill ‘toboggan’ run. 60 cents worth of plastic bags, and a clear run underneath the T-bars of the dormant ski lift, and we were away.

“Who agrees that was the best thing we’ve done in a very long time?” asked Joel (bruised elbow, blisters).

“That was great – we went so fast,” agreed Kira (ice burn on back, lost contact with toes).

On the way back we enjoyed the artistry of some snowman (and snowwoman) makers who clearly have an eye for anatomy. One, which we can’t really show you, was outstanding in more than one way. This one (below) was also unlikely to feature in any children’s cartoons soon.

OK girls, don't point it out

Snow on Troodos 8 February, 2010

Shall we apply another coat?

After a lifetime in Africa, the children’s first experience of ice and snow was on a glacier near Geneva. This week they got to see their first freshly-fallen snow, though they still have to experience snow actually falling.

We joined throngs of Cypriots and visitors on Mount Olympos, the snow-decked peak of the Troodos mountains, and walked, sledged, snowballed (a little) and enjoyed other people’s rather rude snowmen (and girls) – these latter being rather restricted activities as no-one had gloves, or had remembered where they put their gloves.

Cypricicle

We were going to walk the 7km Artemis trail, but fortunately had a couple of false starts and then decided not to bother. Just as well, as we’d missed lunch and it became quite cold once the sun disappeared.

We did find one of the four ski runs on the mountain, though it was only being employed by people with sleds and snowboards. Much more fun for us were the large plastic bags that Jane bought from a local store for 20 cents each, and with which the kids (and Jane, once) created their own downhill course, navigating natural hazards like rocks and ice-burn along the way.

Tomorrow: shots from the downhill event, and the quote, “Who else thinks this is the best thing we’ve done for a very long time?”

British decorative work on the highest point in Cyprus. Tasteful.

Holiday in Switzerland (2): Ice 26 July, 2008

The second complete day of our holiday, and Philippe and Julie drive us to the southern end of Lake Geneva, then up an Alpine mountain road to Les Diablarets.  From there it’s two 30-person cable car rides to the mountain top, then a ski-lift to the glacier … and, with the excited participation of Stefan and Ian (and perhaps also the adults), our children’s first experience of snow.
We make a short walk across the ice. To be honest, there’s probably quite a long walk on the ice, but we don’t get too far because we find piles of snow that have been amassed by a snow plough and the children stop to make snowballs.

This quickly turns into an artillery war, with the boys making an emplacement across a slushy river and the adults trying to dislodge them with high-altitude ordnance. The girls, inevitably, change sides whenever they see a clear shot at anyone else.

After a while we fulfil another years-long ambition by making snowmen, though a short lifetime of reading books about the snow means we are in default because we haven’t brought carrots.

Snowman; cool, and armless

After an hour of this jollity we head back, but become distracted by the ‘summer toboggan’, a metal track that snakes down a precipitate slope and on which two-person cars can race down at quite alarming speeds.

We all have a go on this – two goes, in the boys’ and Anisa’s case – before taking the cable cars back down the mountain for the beautiful drive back through the valley and to the lake-shore autoroute.

More pictures here.

Send in the snowy artillery