The Aborigines live in...Austria

I still remember suggesting in one of my English classes at school that Aborigines live in Austria. Back then I hadn´t realized there was a slight difference between Austria and Australia.


But it´s Austria this post is going to be about, but in some respects it´s just as exotic as you would believe Australia to be - I´m thinking especially about language use here. I was sitting in the lift uphill with two Austrians and tried to understand what they were saying, which proved to be nearly impossible. Apart from a couple of words I had not the faintest hope of following what they talked about. And I remind you: this is supposed to be german, too! Funny world.

Apart from that, Austria is a beautiful country. I just spent a week there skiing with friends over New Year´s eve and for someone coming from the flatlands of Germany (the North, that is), the Alpine Regions are a wonderful yet strange world of its own. I never cease to be amazed by the small mountain rivers in beautiful shades of blue to green, the little villages with church towers sticking out nestled into mountain valleys, the food - Kasspatzn, Speckknödeln, Fladernsuppn, Kaiserschmarrn, that sort of stuff (but I warn you: don´t drink Jagatee. It´s horrendous stuff designed only to make Skiers so drunk that they fall off the mountain, and I´m speaking about my own experience here).- and last but not least the cute but hard to understand language variety they speak.

I have to say, I´m not the greatest skier in the world. Let alone the fact that skiing seems to be the old fashioned thing that old people do while the young and cool learned to snowboard when they started, which leaves me feeling pretty much like the granny on the slopes. But apart from my odd choice of wintersport armament and my lack of skills, I found myself at the very first day already enjoying the sport again. Mind you, I had a total motivation low on the second day when I realized all I did was sliding down the mountain with the technique of a dead snail but I got a grip on myself and soon, I was secure on my skies and having fun again.

I just loved standing on top of a mountain, looking around and you feel like you´re on top of the world. Or just gliding through WinterWonderland, through snowcapped trees and all you hear is the quiet of the forest surrounding you. Have you ever noticed that there´s a special silence in wintry nature?

Oh yeah and there´s of course Aprés Ski!

Wether it´s on some Alm sitting in the sun with a cold beer in your hands (NO Jagatee! I´m serious!) or in the world-famous Goaßnstall with Schlager music and hot chocolate and whipped cream, it´s definitely the second best thing there is to Skiing if you ask me.A must-do.

Oh and of course Ratte and Pimboli were on holidays, too:

Happy New Year everyone! May your New Year resolutions last longer than a day and special support please to Nina whose New Years resolution is to start smoking.
Cheers 2013!