Vail - Day 6 - Heading Home

 Dec 23,

This morning was all about packing and getting ready to be picked up to drive back to the Denver airport. It is always sad when a vacation ends, but I am ready to get back home to our dogs, our bed, and our pillows.  Besides, it is great that we don't have to rush back to work and school tomorrow, as we usually do during our skiing trip in February. And we get to hang out with family for the next few days. I also know we are extremely privileged to have made this trip once again with everything going on in the world, and for that and much more I am grateful.

Vail - Day 5 - Glass half full

 Dec 22,

Today was our last day of skiing, and our last full day in Vail as tomorrow we travel back home. By 12:30 pm we met Monique for lunch and after that Philippe and Bella quit for the day, but Sofia, Lionel, and I kept going until 3:30. It feels like the girls trade places every other year in terms of confidence skiing, and the desire to be out there all day. This time it was Sofia's turn. I feel like I am usually about the same. 

The best thing about skiing is definitely the views. The worst is having to push yourself when you are slightly uphill, followed by having to carry your skis. 

This time around we didn't get to go all over, because they didn't have enough snow or people to operate all the lifts, but we are still quite lucky to be out here. So no complaints from me.

After we came back from the mountain Bella and I went for a walk while Lionel and Sofia stayed at the hotel. After that it was time to rest and eat once again. When we are on vacation it invariably feels like all we do is eat, which is why I like to walk around and keep moving when I can. 

Vail - Day 4 - Skiing, Walking, Chilling

 Dec 21,

Today we headed out with the goal of taking less breaks, or at least shorter ones than yesterday.  And we kind of, sort of made it.  We skied until noon, but then Bella said she was tired and her stomach was hurting. So Philippe and her went back to the hotel. The rest of us skied until about 1:30, but then Sofia was done. So we came back down. We had a quick lunch and came back to the hotel room. It was a late lunch but it was Ok, because today we have a late dinner as well. After that I went on a walk by myself. It is not that I didn't invite others to join, but rather that they were chilling and did not want to come. 

After the walk I came back to the room and we rested for a while so we could hang in there until dinner time. 7:45 pm is usually not that late for us to eat, but it is late when you spend the day skiing because it completely sucks the energy out of you. Not to mention that with the room being so dry and hot, we haven't slept all that well the last few nights. 

After resting for a while, and before dinner, Bella and I went to the hot tub for a little bit. Since it was later in the day it was pretty empty, which was fine by us. 

Tonight's dinner was not our favorite, at least for the girls and I, but at least the walk back was nice. 

Vail - Day 3 - Second day of skiing

 Dec 20,

Today I woke up at about 6:40 am and, before we had breakfast, I went to the gym area to walk for a little bit. I was literally the first person in that entire section of the hotel. After breakfast we got ready to go skiing - with a few thousand of our closest friends. We were out there until about 3:30 pm, but didn't get to ski as much as usual because there were long lines and our lunch break was a bit log because of the wait beforehand. Still, we got our physical and mental exercise in by going down some black diamonds without falling down. The photo of Sofia on the ground is not because she fell down. She was just taking a break while we decided what to do next.

For dinner we ate at one of the restaurants at the hotel, so there was not much of a walk. But since I always walk after dinner, I once again created my own opportunity for a walk before I called it  day.

Vail - Day 2 - First day of skiing

 Dec 19,

Today was our first day of skiing. It was sunny, and not too cold in the mountain.  There were some long lines, especially since not the entire mountain is open, but I didn't think it was too bad. It could always be worse I guess. One lady that rode the lift with us said that some of the runs were closed not necessarily because of a lack of snow, but rather because of a lack of workers. There are usually hundreds of Argentinian students working here for the season, but with Covid many of them didn't make it because of all the travel uncertainties. I of course couldn't help but to think of this as another clear example of how Latin people keep the economy going - especially since we touch ever aspect of it. 

Sofia's legs were hurting, so Philippe came back with her a little early. Lionel, Bella, and I came back at around 3:15. After resting for a little bit, and Bella and Lionel watching some of the Bengals game, we went to the hot tub for a little bit of relaxation before dinner. 

After dinner Sofia and I took a quick walk around town. After one loop we came back to the hotel, because she was getting cold, but I did one more loop. I always walk after dinner, because otherwise I feel too heavy and uncomfortable, and that walk was just what I needed.

Vail - Day 1 - Travel day

 Dec 18,

Today we made our way to Vail. We got up early and it was a long day, but at least we didn't have any issues or delays getting here like Lionel's parents did.  In the evening, while we were walking around, we got lucky to see an ice skating show featuring some olympians. For dinner we didn't get as lucky as the restaurant had a set menu - Vs the menu they had on their website - and it took a while to get out of there. But when we finally got out of there we power walked back to the hotel (since it was 11 degrees outside) and crashed for the night.