Reds, Blues and Blacks

Our last day of skiing and it didn't disappoint! The four of us set off together up the gondola and skied down to the bridge and up the Groste Cable car all the way to there top. James, Heather and Ewan set off to ski the black run up there and I skied using the Boch chairlift, using both the red and blue pistes. The red was hardly any steeper than the blue. The weather was a bit cloudier today but visibility was still good and the snow continued to be excellent. I met the others at the top of the Fortini lift where we had a coffee at Refugio Viviani. The others went to ski another black run, the one that you can see from our hotel, and they said that they found it to be hard going because it was 70% steep! Meanwhile I skied down to the village on my usual blue runs, and got the gondola Cinque Laghi up to Raita Natalia where I met James, Heather and Ewan for lunch. And it was a splendid lunch in the attractive restaurant overlooking the snowy mountains. I had herb flan which was absolutely fantastic. Then off we set again for our last runs of the day; I went down the big zig-zagging blue and the others skied the red. What a great day of skiing it was; I have skied for four days out of five (the lifts were off on Tuesday) and I felt that I ended the week on a high. 

We did the usual end of holiday routines; returned our skis, went for a last drink to our favourite bar, James, Heather and I went to the spa, and we had a final slap up dinner. Mr Positive from the next table told us that he wouldn't come back to Madonna di Campiglio because he doesn't like the village, the night life or the skiing! Everyone is entitled to their opinion but we have loved it here and I would return like a shot! We spent our last evening in the bar chatting about the holiday and playing Jenga, before finishing the last of the brandy in Heather and Ewan's room. 

More sun and more skiing

Today was another beautiful sunny day, and I decided that while the others skied towards Folgarida, I would attempt to book myself another ski lesson. This was slightly complicated because I wanted to book a morning lesson so I needed to stroll down to the Ski School office to book it in person. Luckily this did not take long because Madonna di Campiglia is quite small as well as very pretty, and surprisingly quickly I was at the top of the Pradalago lift where I skied my favourite run number 50 with its nearby variations several times. I decided that I wanted to get my sunglasses so I went back to the hotel briefly, and was still in plenty of time to meet my ski instructor at the bottom of the Fortini lift at midday. It was not Andrea this time, it was Sergio, who was very pleasant and asked me what I wanted to work on. I told him about yesterday’s lesson on balance so we did some more practice on the same lines and it was great. By the end of the lesson my legs felt quite tired and my right knee was twinging a bit, so I headed back to the hotel for a rest and to read my book. I made the mistake of lying down on the bed to read, so of course I fell asleep almost immediately and slept for an hour! Oh well I must have needed it! Meanwhile James, Heather and Ewan were having a great day too; they explored more areas of the resort and skied for 30 kilometres. 
When they returned to the resort we all went for a drink to Bar Dolomiti again, it’s such an attractive wee place. Then James and I went for a companionable stroll around the village before another tasty dinner and fun evening in great company. 

Brilliant Ski Day

Today I felt tip top and so was the weather! It’s the first time this week that we have had proper views of the mountains around Madonna di Campiglio and oh boy they are spectacular! The four of us headed up the mountain, skiing blue runs and enjoying the views of snowy mountains and trees with a backdrop of beautiful blue skies. This is the life! 

We then took the Passo Groste gondola right up to the top, and skied some more lovely blues before the others went to ski to Pinzolo and I made my way back down to the village on the gentle run number 66. A bit too gentle actually; it was pretty flat at the bottom and I had to pole along for a bit. I skied Fortini a couple of times, had a coffee sitting outside in the sunshine at Rifugio Viviani taking in the spectacular views and then went for my ski lesson. I met the very friendly Andrea at the foot of the Fortini lift and after observing me ski he said "You are not too bad!" which thrilled me. The lesson was spent attempting to correct my posture by leaning my upper body towards the valley rather than the mountains. At one point when I got a bit mixed up Andrea said "You think too much!" I said, "My husband says that too!" to which Andrea replied "Of course! It is because you are a woman!" which I thought was very funny. The instruction was slightly different from last year, but its all good and I thoroughly enjoyed the hour. In fact Andrea lost track of the time and we ran a good ten minutes over, at which point he pointed me back towards the hotel and rushed off. 

After drinks in the Bar Dolomiti in the village, Heather and I went for a swim and had a lovely chat while sitting in the jacuzzi area of the pool. Heather was able to find the button to switch on the jets, which I hadn't been able to find last time! Later was another huge and delicious dinner and we had a great laugh over all sorts of ridiculous topics including tv adverts of the 1970s.

Snowy Snowy Snowy

Today all of the lifts in the resort were closed, because of heavy snow and high winds. We were philosophical about this because we all know that it’s the risk you take when you go skiing in January. We have mostly been very lucky whether we have skied at the new year, January or Easter, and even when it has been snowy or misty it has never lasted for the whole week. However I felt a bit out of sorts, nothing to do with lack of skiing; I woke with a headache which didn’t really shift until dinner time. I did some Children’s Panel modules in the morning; I’m a wee bit concerned that the clientele will be too similar in many ways to those I worked with in my former job as a DHT. I will see how I feel after the next training day. After lunch Heather suggested that I might feel better after a walk down through the village so off we set. It was snowy and slushy underfoot, but it was good to get some fresh air and after a nap back at the room I fell much better in the evening, when we had our usual convivial dinner. The snow continued to fall heavily outside, it was really beautiful seeing the big flakes of snow descending past the windows. sunshine is predicted for tomorrow so fingers crossed! 

Back on the pistes, hooray!

Three years ago I skied but lacked confidence; I liked the resort of Lech very much but it had a few supposedly easy runs which were a bit tricky for me. Two years ago I had recently broken my wrist and I chose not to ski at all in Ortisei which was sad but a sensible decision. Last year we skied in Galtur, and I decided to take lessons, which I very much enjoyed, while the others skied in nearby Ishgl. So today was the first time that I have skied with James, Heather and Ewan for three years. The clouds were low and it was snowing on and off but the snow was great; very well pisted and plenty of it! I followed Heather and James down several lovely big blue runs, while Ewan very kindly brought up the rear to make sure that I was ok. And somewhat to my surprise I really was ok! My lessons last year in Galtur must have brushed up my technique because I was very happy on the runs, and I found myself turning with relative ease as well as side-slipping a bit when required. Most of all, it was great fun! Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t that great, but I felt relaxed and enjoyed myself. Since it was the others’ second day of skiing they knew the lie of the land and took me on suitable runs and ultimately showed me the way back to the hotel, which I will need to take by myself on Wednesday after my ski lesson. We finished skiing at lunch time because of the increasing snowfall, and ate huge pizzas at the Hungry Wolf Restaurant just across from out hotel. Later I went to the spa where I met Heather in the relaxation room, and we had a delicious meal and a lovely evening. 

Spa afternoon

It has snowed here in Madonna di Campiglio nearly all day, which didn't stop James, Heather and Ewan from spending a half day skiing despite the limited visibility. I did not accompany them for a couple of reasons. Firstly there was a mix-up when booking which left me without a lift pass. For reasons of tact and discretion I will say no more. And the weather was so snowy and misty that I was content to delay the start of my skiing, so we arranged for my new lift pass to start tomorrow. Instead I went for a wander down through the village which is very picturesque. I managed to find the little supermarket where I stocked up on some snacks, and browsed around a couple of souvenir shops, where the usual display of wooden figurines, red and white checked tablecloths and cushion covers with alpine scenes were on sale. 

Back at the hotel I worked on my Children's Panel preparation for about an hour and then took myself to the small but delightful spa on the ground floor of the hotel. There is a little swimming pool with jacuzzi jets, a sauna, steam room and a "relaxation room" with loungers, which was strangely chilly.

Later I met up with James, Heather and Ewan for drinks in the bar. Our hotel, the Alpen Vidi, is first class, with a cosy bar and really excellent food. Another great choice by Ewan.

Journey to Madonna di Campiglio

It was still quite wet and windy this morning when I went out to do a few errands before our flight. I could see quite a few trees and branches that had been knocked down by the wind onto the pavements; the roads were covered in twigs and leaves. A few fences were down and part of a wall had collapsed in Westcoats Road. If you multiply this all over Glasgow and Lanarkshire, the central belt of Scotland has had a right battering! 

We met Heather and Ewan at Glasgow airport and had a celebratory holiday lunch. Our flight was delayed about 45 minutes but I thought that was not too bad considering the weather yesterday; I had expected that there might be more delay. It was the usual rather long slog to get to our ski resort; after retrieving our luggage the bus trip from Verona into the mountains was 2 hours 45 minutes, along the main roads and then up and up the sharp turns of a zigzag road, and through several tiny villages before arriving at Madonna di Campiglio. Our village looks quaint and pretty, although it was too dark to see much. 

The Alpen Hotel Vidi is lovely and luxurious, and our room is modern and spacious, with a modern alpine wood vibe. It was well past dinner time so we were given platters of cold meat, cheese and vegetables, which we ate in Heather and Ewan’s room and had a pleasant chat. It’s good to be here. 

Storm Éowyn

Storm Éowyn arrived in all of its fury by mid morning. The windows rattled as the rain and wind lashed against them. From time to time we could hear bins crashing over outside, and Davie sent us a photo of their shed upended in their garden. We followed government instructions (having received a red alert on our phones yesterday) and spent the day indoors - although James nipped out early for a quick 4 km walk before the storm got to its peak. All schools in the central belt were closed as were many businesses and restaurants. 

I spent the morning packing for our ski holiday tomorrow, and then I joined James in the lounge where he had lit the fire. When Tom and Floof found out how cosy it was in there they joined us too, so we had a companionable and pleasant time. James read his book and I completed the “Quick Quiz” from my Children’s Panel Day 1 training. I don’t know why it was titled “Quick;” it took me more than two hours. In the evening we watched a film starring Woody Harrelson as a basketball coach who has to do community service with a team of young people who have additional support needs; it was a bit predictable but also quite funny and heart-warming. When we went to bed the wind and rain (in fact sleet) were still blowing horizontally past the windows, but the worst of the storm has passed. 

Much Preparation

My Children’s Panel training has got off to a faltering start. In my defence, I looked at the website before Christmas and did a couple of short pre-training courses, and I assumed that this was the preparation for the first training session of which we had been told. However I didn’t check the website at all in January; I wasn’t well of course but also I just didn’t think about it. I arrived at the training room in the Leonardo Hotel in Glasgow bright and early on Tuesday morning for my first day, only to be pleasantly but firmly turned away because I hadn’t completed the preparation for Day 1 of the training! Oh dear! When I got back home I logged in to the website and sure enough there were the training modules as well as several reminder emails. Mea culpa. 
The kind and efficient admin, Tina, booked me in for the next day’s training and I spent the rest of Tuesday completing the Introductory Preparation. It took ages. I submitted it in the afternoon but found to my horror that until it was assessed I would not be able to access my Session 1 Preparation. I phoned Tina first thing on Wednesday morning to explain and she very understandingly transferred me to the Thursday session. I spent all day Wednesday working on the Session 1 preparation, which included lots of reading, multiple choice assessments and preparing a case study. Wednesday was James’ 63rd birthday and we went out for a nice dinner to Six by Nico, the one in Byres Road. But when we got home I still had about another hour of studying to do. 
By the time I arrived back at the Leonardo Hotel on Thursday morning I felt well prepared, but it was a full on day; there is so much to learn. By the end I was absolutely exhausted and strangely close to tears. James heated up hearty home made bean stew for dinner and we watched the last couple of episodes of the ridiculous Scottish drama The Rig and I felt much better. 

Getting Better

It is taking a long time to get over this chest infection. I’m getting better every day but I’m still wheezy and unfeasibly tired. I have started going out for short walks near to home; one day James and I walked a 5 km round trip to Burnside where we had coffee, and another day I took Vinnie out for a walk around the parks because Rachel and John were at a meeting. It was great to spend some time with Vinnie again, I told him about my grand-dog Whisky but Vinnie was more interested in chasing his ball! Heather and Ewan came for dinner and I made a beef tagine which turned out well; I made myself roasted vegetables using the same spices of cinnamon and ginger. James made his famous crème brûlées for dessert which were perfect, and we served them with pomegranate seeds to give them a middle-eastern twist. I had coffee with Christine in Dunlop and we have had a curry with Davie and Chanel, so I am easing my way back into society! 

Antibiotic Woman

I have just taken my 5th antibiotic tablet and though I don’t feel tip top yet, my ear has stopped hurting and my cough feels less dreadful. I still feel full of cold symptoms but I have high hopes that I’m on the mend. 

We are now back in Cambuslang which is cold and dreich, unlike the beautiful but treacherous snowy streets of Ullapool. Cornel and Heather came to visit us in Ullapool for a couple of days at the weekend and were delightful guests. I put as brave a face on my lurgy as I possibly could and James says that I appeared to be fine apart from a bit of coughing and sneezing. Heather and I went for a walk around the icy streets of the village and we both thought that we were walking at a reasonable pace when two teenage girls just strolled past us much faster! It was very funny! Meanwhile James and Cornel went for a much longer and snowier walk up the valley past Loch Achall and across the hills. We had a lovely dinner at the Caley Bistrot which was the only place open, most restaurants having gone into hibernation for the winter. I really enjoyed Cornel and Heather’s company and we had some great chats but when they left on Sunday morning I kind of virtually collapsed and James had to do all of the driving on the way home. And I have spent the last couple of days resting, mostly in bed, as well as obtaining antibiotics from a very sensible and knowledgeable prescribing pharmacist. Luckily I have had the company of Tom and Flora. Tom has been pulling the cat nip plants out of their wire container; there are bits of leaves and soil all round it. And Flora has been cuddling up to me rather touchingly. 

Even more snow

It’s still snowing in Ullapool and I still have the lurgy. At least I’m warm and cosy, and I think I’m getting a bit better apart from my wheezy, rattling chest and sore ear. The road from Ullapool to Inverness varies between “passable with care” and blocked by snow, but we won’t be heading home until Sunday when it should all be clear. 
James is being particularly pleasant to me as I recover; last night he found a French film on some obscure television channel for me to watch and today he brought in potato scones for lunch. The French film was Maigret Se Trompe and was excellent, one of a series of 1990s Maigret films made for television starring Bruno Cremer. 
The trouble is that I’m currently a bit wary of going outside. You would think that a healthy walk around the village would be beneficial to a chest infection but every time I have done so (about every second day) I feel more wheezy and out of breath when I get back, and my ear gets sorer too. Maybe it’s the cold air - the temperature in the north of Scotland is due to drop to -16 deg tonight!  

Snowy and Lurgy

The weather has continued to be cold, with snow showers and icy pavements. Despite having at least a dozen woolly hats at home in Cambuslang I had neglected to bring even one of them to Ullapool, so today James kindly spent £4 on a sparkly purple beanie hat in the Woollen Mill sale. Despite the name of the shop there is no wool in the beanie; it is 99% polyester and 1% metallic thread so no sheep has been near it! It feels very cosy, and also necessary because I have developed a bad cold which is lingering annoyingly, particularly in my chest which is rattling, my stuffy nose, and strangely my right ear. James also got me a hot water bottle yesterday which I have been holding against my ear. 

So because of this horrible cold I have been having an enforcedly quiet time here in Ullapool. I have encouraged James to enjoy himself, go for walks etc but I feel bad for not joining in. This morning we were surprised to see Calmac’s new ship, the Glen Sannox, sailing along the loch outside our window, heading westwards. This ship is currently nearly seven years late after many problems, both technical and financial, during its build. It is also way over budget (from £97 million to more than £400 million so far) and doesn’t even fit Ardrossan Harbour so it will need to sail from Troon to Brodick instead until Ardrossan Harbour is upgraded - which will be years away. And apparently the liquified natural gas that it runs on (as well as marine gas oil, a low-sulphur type of diesel) is not even as eco friendly as promised. It was up here to conduct crew familiarisation trials before starting to take passengers to Arran, and needless to say more technical issues were found, however I think that they are determined to start service on 13th January.

Pulling Mussels from a Shell

The snow continued during the night and we woke to a winter wonderland, with the village and mountains clothed in a snowy blanket. We walked around the village in the afternoon and enjoyed the snowy views. We watched the seagulls at the harbour to see where they were finding mussels to drop onto the pier to crack open, and realised that they grab them off the wooden legs underneath the pier at low tide. Then they fly around a bit with the mussel in their beak before choosing a good place for the big drop, and swoop down to feast on it. As we walked back to the cottage the sky over the Summer Isles was an amazing dark grey-blue and violet; James said that it looked bruised and I think that’s a very good description. 
In the evening we watched a film called “The Killer” starring Michael Fassbender; it was a sombre but quite compelling thriller and we enjoyed it. The reason that I wanted to watch it was that it was being filmed in Paris when we were there in May 2023 on a street on the Île Saint Louis. I could see that some of it was filmed in a street near the Panthéon but I didn’t really recognise the streets that the main character then raced through on a motorcycle. And I didn’t see any sign of James and I strolling along in the distance! 

The Northern Lights welcome 2025

It has been a delightful start to 2025. I still have a very rattly chest cold but I decided to accompany James on a walk around the village to get some fresh air. The village was very quiet and the few people who were strolling around were all wishing each other a Happy New Year. The weather was sunny, in a window between the rain and sleet that began and ended the day, and the sea was very calm and the mountains looked beautiful, dusted with snow. When we were walking on the pier a Norwegian fisherman on his ship called down a New Year’s greeting to us. We walked along to the creel Christmas tree and then found that the Ceilidh Place was open for lunch (about the only place in the village that was open) so we popped in for coffee and fruit scones before heading home. 

Later on there was a bright pink aurora borealis in the skies above the village which seemed like a rosy welcome to the New Year. And later still the sleet turned to snow for a little while and lay rather prettily on the garden. A good start to the year.