Courmayeur, Italy

Since I surprised Jeff with new Rossignol S7s when I returned to the Netherlands from the US, we decided that we had better squeeze in a ski weekend in the Alps to break them in.  We spent three nights in Courmayeur which is the Italian resort on the south side of Mount Blanc.  They advertise it as the 'sunny side' which makes it less than desirable for a spring ski weekend, but very lovely to stroll around bar hopping.

We did manage to do some skiing on mostly teeny tiny little ice cubes.  The new skis were great!  My brother-in-law, Scott, did all of the hard work of scouting multiple different ski shops in CO and selecting the perfect model and fit for Jeff and the prettiest skis I have ever seen for me.  I decided that living in Europe with the opportunity to ski the Alps for an entire ski season was a pretty darn good reason for both of us to have new skis!

If not for the lack of snow, it would have been a near perfect trip.  The Italians like to start their ski day late, take frequent breaks and spend the afternoon on 'the beach' when the sun is shining.  Here is a picture of Jeff enjoying the local culture.

The village of Courmayeur is largely pedestrian and seems to have grown up around a huge church on the banks of a river.  Jeff said it is like Vail, but real :)  This is the hotel where we stayed.

We intend to ski as much as possible next season, so let us know if you would like to join us somewhere!  Here are a few more pictures to motivate you....