Coretta's first Ski Lesson

This morning, Coretta and I dropped Geno off at preschool and headed to Sattel Hochstuckli for a two hour ski lesson. When we arrived (which was a 30 minute car ride with spectacular views) we parked, got our tickets for the gondola/ski lessons. We then had to put the barcode in front of this light to allow us access into the gondola waiting station. If you haven't ever been in a gondola, you must jump in while it is moving. Not hard to do, but when you are trying to get 3 kids and 3 adults in holding bulky ski equipment timing is crucial. Once in the gondola, I enjoyed the views of the mountains and lakes.

Once off the gondola, we proceeded down the hill to where the lessons were taking place. My friend Inge stated that Coretta should not put on her ski boots until she is at the bottom since they are heavy and bulky. Once down, we worked on putting Coretta's ski boots on. This proved to be a daunting task because her foot would just not go in. We kept pushing and pulling, pushing and pulling. Inge believed it was due to the type of socks she was wearing. Inge being the sweetest and most giving person, gave Coretta her socks and sure enough, the boots then slipped right on. Off to buy ski socks later today.

Although her ski instructor only spoke German, Coretta did well following his instructions by mimicking his movements. She learned the snow plow stop, how to change directions going up a mountain, how to walk sideways, and lastly how to push off. Inge has informed me that Coretta will be skiing down the big hill by Friday. I can't wait to see that. She only fell down two times, but her legs are very very sore. Should be interesting to see how she is feeling in the morning. Here is a video of her during her ski lesson. I apologize for the noise in the background.



While Coretta had her ski lesson, Inge, her mother, and I sat outside drinking cappucino and talking. It was a bright sunny day and very relaxing.

On our way back from the ski resort, I realized that we were low on gas, so I stopped at Migrol down the hill to fill the gas tank. I did not forsee this to be a problem because you just park, put the nozzel in, push, and pay. Not so at this particular stop. I thought maybe it was pre-pay, so I put my money in and went to pump the gas. It did nothing. I thought maybe there was a switch, but couldn't find it. I instructed Coretta to enlist the help of the young boy at the building near us, and She said, "Hilfe Bitten." When he came over, I realized that he did not speak English at all. This would prove to be a challenging task with me pantomiming my way through my dilemma and inserting German words sporadically as I went. Seeing that I was not getting very far, with this young gentleman, I ran over to another older man and stated, "Sprachen se English?" in which he responded, "Nein." I again went through my broken English/pantomime gig, and he ended up giving me the money I had deposited into the machine and helped me pump it. He stated that he would take my receipt and get the money back later. The Swiss are certainly helpful and nice especially in Coretta and my time of need.