Skiing under the Matterhorn!

Picture perfect day!

Finally on my fourth trip to Zermatt I got to ski! I absolutely love Zermatt and have waited anxiously for an opportunity to actually ski in one of the most famous places in the Alps. So needless to say I was quite excited when a trip with friends to Zermatt finally fell into place. We both have little ones so we rented a large apartment for the weekend where we could each have a day on our own to ski and one day to watch the kiddos.

In comparison to the eight hour train ride the weekend before to Cinque Terre the three hour train ride to Zermatt was a piece of cake, except for lugging all of our gear. For the most part Steve and I really love taking advantage of all of the great public transportation this country has to offer, but it has become increasingly more work when toting around a small child and everything that goes with her. Although this weekend was more about all of our stuff as we both had skis and boots to bring on top of normal luggage and a babycot! We like to say that dragging around all of our gear makes up for the fact that we don't work out near as often as we once used to...

We were lucky and got in early on Friday evening so we could enjoy a quick walk around town before settling in and getting ready for an early morning on the slopes. Come Saturday morning we were thrilled to see clear skies! Although the forecast had called for sun, we have come to not trust Swiss forecasts and know that sometimes you can never predict what the mountains will cause the weather to do. So after a few tears from Emma as we walked out the door we were excited to make our way up was quickly as possible before any clouds could interfere!

The view from our condo on Saturday morning!

While we were skiing hard, Emma was clearly playing hard too!

Although I wouldn't call Steve or I beginner skiers, neither of us are that great, especially when you are skiing around people who have grown up in the Alps and likely put skis on for the first time about the same time they learned to walk. Nonetheless we enjoyed our day sticking to the blues and reds while letting the pros whiz by us. It was so much to finally be able to ski together, especially to be able to do so in one of the most beautiful places in the world with such amazing weather. It was hard not to stop around every curve we got the opportunity and snatch a photo of the Matterhorn towering above our heads (the photos make it look like it was so far away, whereas we were actually much closer). It was especially cool to be able to ski in such great conditions in April. In Zermatt you can virtually ski on the glacier all year round since it is at such a high altitude.

Couldn't help taking so many photos when the scenery is this stunning!

Our lunch spot at 10,000 feet...

Amazing how warm it can get, maybe we should be working on our tan instead?!

Without a doubt the day went much too fast, but we were happy to get back and enjoy the evening with Emma and our friends just meandering the town. And the next day we were happy to be able to watch Emma and her friend Sienna while our friends' enjoyed a day out on the slopes with their older daughter, Sydney, where they had the fun of watching her get up on skis for the first time!

Practicing with our "adopted kids" as a family of five! I don't think Sienna was happy with Steve holding her...

All in all I would say our weekend was a success. Both Emma and Sienna did great on each of their first days without their parents, and all of us got to enjoy time skiing in one of the most spectacular places in the world. I have always loved Zermatt and now that I finally got to ski there it has definitely climbed the list of one of my favorite places to visit!

By late Saturday afternoon the Matterhorn had disappeared behind the clouds... guess that just means we'll have to go back again so Emma can have her photo with it!

Words just can't describe it!