Skiing in Austria

We met up with the Izu's (Bryan's sister's family) for some skiing in Austria. Such a beautiful area and we were blessed with plenty of snow.  Kate had so much fun playing with her cousins.  They were so cute and gentle with her.   

I made the mistake of thinking I knew how to ski.  I haven't skied since I was ten years old.  Yes, I snowboard.  But skiing is completely different.  I was definitely out of my element.  Bryan was great. He has never lost his touch.  I think next time I will stick to boarding.  Hopefully next winter, Kate can take some ski lessons.  She will do fantastic!

Slovenia

Over the MLK weekend, we packed up our little VW golf and headed to Kranjska Gora, Slovenia.  This is country number 9 for our little Kate.  We were hoping to see more snow so we could go skiing and snowshoeing, but the weather was not cooperative.  Above freezing the whole time, plus rain = slush and ice. We got a little house about 200m from the ski resort, which would have been perfect, but it didn't turn out.  You can never rely on the weather here in Europe. 

 The first day we went snow hiking around Lake Jasna.  We didn't need snowshoes, although they might have prevented us from slipping.

 The second day it rained ALL DAY long, so it was very cold and wet.  We traveled to Lake Bled and toured the castle, the lake, and ate the famous Bled cream cake.  We didn't take the ferry to the island with the church because it just wouldn't have been fun and I heard it's pretty pricey.

Instead, we went to the Vintgar Gorge.  It was closed, but that didn't stop us.  That is until parts of the hand rails and boards were missing from rock and ice slides.  We turned right back around.  Don't worry, there were others there doing the same as us.  Trying to see the waterfall at the end of the gorge.

 The third day we attempted to take the car up Vrsic Pass.  It is a road built for a military purpose during WWI by Russian POWs.  It has 50 cobblestone hairpin turns (24 up and 26 down) through the Julian Alps.  We only made it to turn 15, as the road conditions were a little dangerous.  We reached about 1200 meters and I think the top is 1600 meters. The views were incredible and the mountains are jagged.  Maybe next time, if someone wants to come visit! {hint, hint}

 Bryan and the Julian Alps.

The third day we also went snowshoeing to the beautiful 52 meter waterfall Pericnik. In the summertime you can actually go behind the waterfall.  Another reason to visit Slovenia again!

New Year and Stuttgart

We celebrated the New Year at home and went to bed early.  I am not the biggest fan of staying up late, just to be physically exhausted the next morning.  No matter what time Kate goes to bed, she will still wake up at 7 AM.  Although, we did wake up at midnight to fireworks surrounding our house.  These Germans sure know how to light up the night and party! 

 The next day we went on a hike through our neighboring forest.  The snow was starting to melt, so we didn't really have to wear our snowshoes.  Kate enjoys playing in the snow, as long as her hands stay warm.

 We spent three days in Stuttgart, Germany.  We took Kate iceskating for the first time.  She did fantastic.  They have these little chairs that you can either sit on and be pushed or hold onto the back for balance to skate.  She started to have more confidence by the end saying "Kate do it!"

We also went to the zoo which worked out great because it rained ALL DAY!  The Stuttgart zoo is perfect for rainy weather because you can go inside the building on the other side of the outdoor cage and see all the animals hiding from the rain themselves.  I think the hippopotamus was our favorite.  He would hid in the water and then come up and spray the crowd with dirty water.

Old Town Stuttgart.  One of the buildings in the city is dedicated to Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, the man responsible for attempting to assassinate Hitler.  If you haven't seen the movie Valkyrie, I highly recommend.

 Bryan and Kate in front of the pond at New Castle.