Krimmler Wasserfälle

Today was very warm, which annoyed me because I want it to snow so that there will be better conditions on the slopes.
Warm weather does make for a lovely breakfast on our balcony though.

After some discussion we decided that we would drive to Krimml and see the waterfall.

Research on the website indicated that access might be a problem for the winter. This is one minor annoyance I have living in Austria. "Winter" lasts from October through April, so many of the natural attractions are closed for 7 months out of the year. We learned that "closed" just meant that you did not have to pay to use the walkway.
The waterfall is a 380 meter drop and is Europe's highest waterfall. It consists of a "ground" level fall,

a "middle" fall,
and a "high" fall.

We hiked up to the middle fall and took a picture of the highest level fall. It is also part of the Hohe Tauern National Park system.

Happy me, the waterfall is on the southern side of the valley and therefore was not as exposed to so much sun (as opposed to the north side of the valley where the snow is already melting so much). It still felt much like a winter wonderland to me!
Amen!

Happy Birthday Mommy! (belated)

So I realize that this post is VERY late. Your birthday was on the 10th, and I did make an attempt to go out on your birthday and get Kaffee und Kuchen, but I went to the local Konditerei and the best cakes were almost gone, the server was rude, and I was all by myself!


I recruited Jason to come with me to have Kaffee und Kuchen in honor of your birthday! I had no idea what kind of cake I was ordering, but it ended up delicious! Mine was a coffee flavored whipped cream and caramel cake and Jason had something that tasted like it was made with rum and lady fingers! YUM!

Tiefschnee!!

So this last weekend Jason and I did some winter hiking nearby. We went to the neighboring town of Saalfelden and hiked a nature trail, although there was not much nature to see except for beautiful snow!

We did find a cave with some stalagmites made from ice!

Jason did some impressive flips into the equally impressive deep snow.

Anu from India went skiing!

Anu is a 6th grade student at Pardada pardadi Educational Society. She is my friend and she is learning about different parts of the world. Today she went 2000 meters above sea level and went skiing. She also learned that unlike India, which is large and has 28 states, Austria is small, with only 8 states.

Pardada Pardadi seeks to educate and inspire school aged girls from rural india. By providing free schooling and vocational training it seeks to meet the goals of its mission statement by empowering girls from the poorest areas of India.

Please visit:
http://pardada-pardadi.blogspot.com/
http://education4change.org/

Nostalgic Skiers

Every year on the Schmittenhöhe has a different type of race.


The racers wear actual antique wooden skis and the traditional, historic attire to match.


This particular day was quite foggy. A cloud was hovering on the Schmittenhöhe. It seemed eerie in a way and played with one's imagination.


Almost as if ski-ghosts from the past, who had perished on the slopes, had risen from the fog to participate in this event.


Come back to haunt the slopes.


With subtle reminders of what might have done them in.


A distillery on a sled....


...and a little mingling with the present.



Who says ghosts don't party.

300 KM downhill and counting....

The mountain is my new best friend. It's name is the Schmittenhöhe. Here is where I spend most of my day.


Above the clouds it is quiet and peaceful.


The mountain doesn't argue, it just listens.


It is a reminder that there are things much bigger then me and that everything is in God's hands.