This is exactly as I had hoped. It took us quite some time this morning working out exactly what we need to wear against the cold (even though it is not quite as cold as it was last week - nearer -4 than -17). Breakfast was interesting with a mix of fresh fruit, bacon, omelette and salad all on one plate to share. We went for tea which was rather a mistake. Heidi said it was black tea but it turned out to be more like a strawberry fruit tea and rather revolting with milk and sugar so we’ll give that a miss tomorrow (especially as we have now stocked up with fresh milk and I bought teabags).
I went for a wander around the hotel with my camera in its warm bag (with hand warmers) and promptly walked into a 3 foot snow drift which I thought was solid - really funny.
We then got the very punctual 11.25am ski bus up to the ski village and watched the skiers and snow boarders. On our walk back down I found a green plastic sledge so I hope we get a chance to try it out before we leave on the childrens' slopes.
I am using different camera settings to usual such as increasing the exposure compensation to brighten the snow and a shade white balance setting to avoid the blue tones. It seems to be working and will save me a lot of time correcting in post production.
As it is Valentine’s Day we ate in at the hotel again as we thought surrounding places could be fully booked. The food is excellent but definitely on the expensive side as we noticed last night. The menu was scallops with air dried ham, pureed cauliflower, fish roe and various bits and bobs. Main course spaghetti carbonara and we finished with tiramisu. I had a glass of sparkling wine as an aperitif but at €98 a bottle for wine we abstained!! However we have found what looks like a really nice place to eat only a 10 minute walk away so we will try that tomorrow.
This is a photograph of the Aurora Estate Hotel where we are staying for 4-nights and I stood at the edge of the frozen lake to take it. I may or may not go in for a plunge before we leave.
