Ski weekend with the stars.

I went with my friend Joseph and his family to the mountains this weekend. We left on Friday night with 2 trucks packed with food, drinks, ski apparel, and kids. One car had Joseph's sister's family, Joseph and I. The other car had the family of Joseph's sister's friend. (wow! my english is terrible now!) The father of this family was the manager of the ski range and owned the cabin where we would stay for the weekend.

The air was frosty as we approached the top of the mountain and the snow was as hard as ice. On our climb up the mountain, one of the trucks (with me) couldn't climb any further because it didnt have 4 wheel drive. The truck with the other family continued on without us. It was about 12am at the time of our car trouble.

Joseph was asked to jump on the bumper as we drove in reverse in an attempt to soften the snow and help us on our climb. But to no avail. So i held one of his nieces' tight as the two hiked off in the snow to pursue help. We waited and waited as the car shook softly from the heater. We applauded their bravery when they returned in another truck, attached us to their rear bumper with a chain, and dragged us up the mountain to our private cabin.


There was about 15 of us staying in the cabin that weekend. The cabin had tiny bedrooms, one bathroom, and one main room. One room slept a professional ski couple from Spain. The two other rooms slept the manager's kids (6 of them or so), the manager and his wife. The rest of us stayed on the floor of the main room, the same room where we all ate for every meal. So it was cozy alright. But i loved how lively the weekend passed....kids running in and out or playing "Uno"and the adults cracking jokes or sitting around chatting. And we all had plenty of fun in the snow. The cabin served as a public resting ground, to grab a snack or pee before heading back to ski.

Even though I slept terribly every night (due to men snoring), I still had the energy to ski and run around with the kiddos. We skied Saturday and Sunday, and I had many hilarious falls. Often, i would fall when i wasn't even in motion (attempting to mount a ski lift, etc). It never hurt to fall because the mountain had a powdery blanket of snow. It was always funny.

What was special about this ski resort was that it was private so there was only about 100 people skiing on this mountain. Muy tranquilo. There was the Andes in the backdrop, quaint multicolored cabins, beautiful sunshine, and wonderful company. Everyone seemed to know each other. It was like I found a secret ski club in Winter Wonderland.

On Saturday night, we all had a huge barbecue. We drank beer, cooked meat around a fire, and got silly. The kids played in the snow and the adults played ice soccer on the deck. The smell of the food brought out other ski instructors and friends. We all partied under the stars.

The night sky is distinct in the southern hemisphere but i thought, even on this side of the world i can feel a little at home. I recalled the stars of Texas in its vast sky and smiled.

Thanks again to Joseph, his sister's family and Lucho's family (manager) for a wonderful weekend!