Snowboarding againI have posted some photos from my lesson today which went really well, got to linking turns and picking up some speed which is awesome. Just not too much or you end up like Alistair, a Saffer friend of mine, with a very broken collarbone at the start of the season. Sorry mate...
And thanks to Mike for taking the the pictures in between correcting my stance, you rock dude:-)
Weekend in ReviewIt was a busy weekend in Aspen, with lots going on at work and at play. It was the women's world cup competition here on Aspen/Ajax Mountain (the ski slope right behind Aspen) so there were a lot of people in town and it was really festive. I unfortunately was holed up at work all day Saturday for orientation and training, and most of Sunday as well, so I hardly got to see any of the dowhill racing at all which was disappointing.
Saturday night made up for it, the
Gin Blossoms performed an awesome gig on a stage set up in the middle of town sponsored by Bud(weiser) Light. Their gig was really professional despite the cold, big up to the guys for performing for over 2 hours in -24 degrees. They said it was the coldest performance they have ever done! Audience members were kind enough to donate various gloves, beanies, a half-jack of Jack Daniels and even a backpack (not too sure about that one) to the lead singer. He promptly wore everything donated, including the backpack, and performed his gig like that while quietly sipping on his Jack. Man after my own heart... They are working on a new album by the way.
The gig was followed by a beautiful fireworks display right over the snowcovered mountain behind Aspen. The white snow reflecting the fireworks made it seem quite surreal. Sunday was a slow day, though had work on the evening shift, delivering a lot of champagne and strawberries to VIP's at the hotel where I work. Check out the hotel website
here, it's pretty smart. We had some Hollywood celebrities staying on the weekend as well which was rather nice.
Monday was admin day - boring. Today I woke up to about 4 inches of fresh snow and more dumping every second which was great because it hasn't snowed since last week. So I took the opportunity to go for another snowboarding lesson today on all the fresh powder, which was just incredible. Slammed into the hill a few more times, but it's all part of the fun! Work again tomorrow...
Oh and I was really useless and forgot my camera again, so I will get some photos from the other people I was with and post them as soon as I can.
Surviving a day on the slopes...I got up early this morning to go to my first snowboarding lesson at Snowmass mountain, which is about a half hour bus ride from Aspen (in good weather). And it was so awesome! I am hooked and can't wait to get better so that I can really start enjoying it properly. I slammed into the hill a good few times as can be expected on one's first day, but nothing too hectic that wrist guards and a helmet (essential items, don't go out without them!) couldn't handle. My posterior is in a lot of pain and so are my knees. It is a full body work out, but so much fun you don't even notice until the end when you relax.
Sorry no pics today, I forgot to take my camera after all that, but probably better anyway, I wouldn't want to break it falling from the board. I promise there will be pics next time:-)
Uber snowboarding championHeh, well not really but it looks good up there! I have bought myself a snowboard and all the kit that goes with it, and have bought myself 3 days in snowboard school so I am on my way to champion form :-) I now have no money to speak of, but at least I can start enjoying these beautiful slopes instead of just staring at them everyday. I will post some photos of tomorrow's class so you can all see what went on. I predict the day (from 10am to 3pm) will consist mainly of a really painful butt, tons of bruises and stiff muscles for a week. I think the class will be quite small though because the season hasn't really started, which is good for more individual attention.
There has been over 40 inches of snow over the last week here, which is incredible for this time of year! It has also been about -25 to -30 deg C here everyday. I have never been this cold in my life. The locals say that this is unsual, and that it is not usually this cold, especially when the sun shines. We had a beautiful blue sky day today though and plenty of fresh powder, here's hoping tomorrow will be similar.
JHB to AspenI have posted a whole load of photos from Aspen on my flickr account, which you can get to on the link up above this, so check them out to see a bit of where I am at. There will be better photos coming once it stops snowing and the sun comes out and I can get up one of these mountains a bit higher.
Ok so, some of the more interesting experiences I have had up until now:
1. Got bumped up to business class on my flight to London, thanks very much to BA who overbooked their plane, and didn't even give me a seat number until I boarded the plane! Made for a very comfortable flight. The flight was also delayed by an hour becuase of all the chaos in the terminal at JHB International.
2. Arrived in London late and had to run to catch my flight to New York. Turns out that the NYC flight got delayed as well because some fool didn't show up for the flight and they had to off load everybody's luggage, search for his, then reload it all. Bought Italian espresso in the airport, not a good idea when you have to keep still on a 10 hour flight.
3. Arrive in New York, surprisingly no trouble with immigration and didn't get searched thank goodness. I obviously don't look threatening. It was cold and rainy, about 35 degrees F. Couldn't work out how to use the phones, eventually got hold of my hotel to ask them to pick me up. Got lost in JFK which is enormous, eventually found my bus pick-up point and then waited for an hour in the cold to get my shuttle. I didn't get to spend any time in Manhatten which really sucks, just didn't have the time in the afternoon before it got dark, also had to organise accomodation etc in Aspen.
4. Nearly miss my flight to Denver from JFK the next morning, because I got so absorbed in my book on the Google story and didnt hear the boarding call. They made me take just about all my clothes off when I went through security, everything down to my base layer, including shoes. They are paranoid. The aeroplane was cool, lots of legroom (fly on Jetblue if you can) and about 40 TV channels on board. There was this guy sitting in front of me that looked like he came out of an MTV hip-hip video, complete with enough bling to keep him firmly on earth should gravity ever go AWOL.
5. Bus from Denver to Aspen. The journey was amazing, we went right over the Rockies, and sometimes through tunnels under it. We passed through this huge canyon on the way which was beautiful. It was pretty hairy at times when the snow was dumping and the road icy. The Rockies are absolutely beautiful mountains.. Also saw snow fall for the first time, I felt like a small child discovering a brand new toy under the Christmas tree!
6. Arrive in Aspen in the dark, check into my hostel after 3 days in transit. Wake up at 4am the next morning because my body clock is stuffed. Spend the whole of the next 2 days searching for a job and a house. It turns out to be really difficult to find both, which is not what I was told before leaving SA, and the days were really stressful.
7. Find a cool job at a very very expensive hotel here, which came with a manager who rocks! He found me a place to stay so now I am chilled out and ready to party! Went out to a couple of bars and a club here, which are pretty cool. I have met some awesome people already including tons of South Africans, from Rhodes as well!!! And lots of Aussies and Brazilians. Now I am ready to shop for a snowboard and get up that mountain and start boarding which is why I am here in the first place!
Arrived at lastWell I have finally arrived at my final winter wonderland destination in Aspen, Colorado in the middle of the Rocky Mountains. It is absolutly stunning here and the snow has been falling quite steadily since I arrived, though it is not that thick yet. The ski season has started here, so people are arriving in droves. There are tons of other South African and Aussie students here, also lots of people from Brazil and Argentina. I am in the middle of desperately hunting for jobs and a place to live, which is proving to be more difficult than anything else. I will post more about my trip here and all the things that have been happening as well as some cool photos of where I am at as soon as I have some more time.
