first skiing experience in the ALPS? check.

I woke up around 630 am Saturday morning to begin a day full of new adventures! The entire day was spent out on the slopes of Zell am See, where I enjoyed my first ever snow skiing experience. What better way to begin than in the Alps? As soon as I had put on all my ski equipment, I decided I was in for a LONG, horrendous day on the slopes. Luckily, I picked up on the basics much faster than I had originally thought. Although at times I did have some major balance issues. Within the first hour, I was doing 10x better. Unlike the slopes in America, those in Zell am See contain no trees, are not as well groomed, resulting in more slick ice/snow, and have no beginner/"bunny" slopes. Therefore, the whole day I was on the "blue" trails which are equivalent to intermediate level in America. Given the circumstances, I impressed myself. I fell a few times here and there, but overall managed to do considerably well! My body is still slightly sore, but it was well worth the time, effort, and pain :) After a few hours of skiing, Ricki and I stopped for a lunch break at the bottom of one of the lifts, where we ordered Beef goulash soup. We were able to sit outside the ski bar and enjoy the majestic mountains and the experienced skiers glide (effortlessly) down the slopes!

Arriving back at the house around 4, I took a nice hot shower and was so happy to shed my wet clothing! Next, we enjoyed eating another delicious home-cooked dinner, consisting of mashed potatoes, penne noodles with several types of cheese, and salad...carb overload, anyone? We hung out the rest of the night, talking and playing several rounds of Mafia, which was so much fun! I thoroughly enjoyed getting to spend time with my entire Vienna family this past weekend. It's so crazy to see how far friendships have grown over the past few months, considering most of us went from non-communication, to treating one another like siblings. Despite returning to normalcy once back in America, our bond will never fully fade out, which I am grateful for.

That's a verrryyy concise version of my last Saturday in Europe. If you want more details about my first-time skiing experience, I will be more than happy to entertain you with stories! :)