Gstaad, Switzerland

ski503Which is where I learned to ski, if by learning to ski you mean being a 6 year old and having a gruff German-only speaking “instructor” strap some skis on me and shove me down a hill. That started years of terror, frostbite, immersion in beautiful mountain scenery, and even sometimes delight in skiing that hit a crescendo when I off-and-on dated a ski instructor for a while when I was in my 20s, and then it all quickly faded after that. I have a strong urge to go to the mountains but little to no desire to go skiing (downhill, telemark, or cross-country) and I don’t think I could even stand up on a snowboard. So I’m glad I had all those experiences skiing in some of the best places in the world – Aspen & Snowmass, Gstaad, Chamonix/Haute Savoie, Mont Tremblant, Killington/Sugarbush – but that chapter is closed. Except that I still want to go to the mountains, even if in summer, and hope to do so in the next few years.