Finally the story from the ski trip to Blue Mountain last weekend - what a wonderfully kickass awesome weekend!! It causes me some pain & tiredness for a day or two after (ok, a lot of tiredness, and quite a bit of pain!) but it was worth it! I'll warn ya - it's long, but I think enjoyable!
The characters in the story (ie the people on the trip) include Glen, Grace, Archie, Kevin Ba, Kevin Br, Neil, Amber, Dan, Stan, Brendan & myself.
Friday afternoon I leave & go to London, where Glen drives his car from there. We hit Waterloo to pick up Kevin Ba, Grace & Archie. When we get to Grace & Archie's place, we put their stuff in the car, then Grace realizes she can't find her keys. They're not in their house, nor in the parking lot. Her roommates try to get into her room, and Glen says to her "Grace, I know this is going to sound retarded, but are they in your pockets?" She says no. So we determine she's either locked them in her room, or they're in her bag (which is packed in the trunk) It takes us about 45 minutes before we leave, which was a little annoying. We grab a bite to eat at Wendy's, then afterwards, Grace & I are in the bathroom, when she finds her keys in her hoodie pocket! Oy vey.
We got to our chalet around 10pm, to find a not-too-happy Amber who had driven herself up, and got there almost 2 hours beforehand. Luckily she was able to get into the one room. We got into our chalet, which was very very nice - we had too suites between 11 of us - each one had 2 double beds & a sofa (plus Neil brought an air mattress that Dan slept on), plus there were 2 bathrooms & a kitchen. Our room included the 5 of us who came in Glen's car, and Dan (since he was Grace's friend & didn't know any of the rest of us, but he was a super-awesome guy!) The people who came from Toronto did a big grocery trip before showing up, so we didn't have to eat out every meal - much cheaper! The others showed up a bit after we did, and we all said our hello's & hung out awhile. Dan had brought a 24 of beer (it was some Imported Dutch Lager) and I saw it sitting on the counter, so I was like "What kind of beer is that?" and Dan's like "it's this Dutch beer. Want one?" and I said "I'm not sure if I really want one" and he's like "oh. B/c I'm dying to have one!" So I had one with him - I couldn't let the poor guy go beer-deprived! We eventually went to bed around 12:30-1am.
I shared one of the double beds with Grace, which was fine. When we crawled into bed, others were still up (since we were on the main floor where the tv & kitchen were, so no sleep yet!) However, b/c I knew it would freak her out, I rolled over towards her, and scared her off. Then tried to play footsies with her under the covers, which she didn't like too much. I didn't mean anything by it, but I knew she would be freaked. Yes I'm evil :P
However, I have a tendency to be a very restless sleeper (or just not sleep much at all) when I'm in a new bed, so I rolled around a lot that night. In doing so, I basically somehow got all the blankets off of Grace! Glen apparently came down for a drink of water around 3am, and saw that I had all the blankets, and pulled them over onto Grace. Then in the morning, he woke us all up, and again, I had all the blankets! Funny thing was that I was wearing my warm flannel pajamas, and Grace was sleeping in a tank top & shorts! LOL. I think she was a little cold all night!
So, Glen woke us up on Saturday morning at 6:45am, since the ski rental place opened at 8am, and we feared that we may not get skis. Got up, ate breakfast, and went to rent our skis. Out on the hill by 9:30am! I hadn't skiied in 9 years (and have only done it twice in my life on a much smaller skihill) and Glen's never skiied before. The rest have skiied many more times!
First challenge for us beginners: the skilift. Glen went ahead of us, but didn't know how to get on, so they ended up having to stop the lift for him! I went on with Neil, and made it on, but apparently I grabbed his arm when going on! Then when we got off, I think I shrieked! LOL!
Neil gave Glen & I an initial lesson on how to turn, and how to get up when we fell (which I think both Glen & I became experts on!) Then we headed down the hill, and I think we set a record for the longest time to go down the bunny hill! Once I got the hang of it, all went well. Fell quite a bit, and it tired me out, but it was fun! I should mention that the other 2 times I've gone skiing, it was in grade 7 & 8 with school, and we were limited to the 3 smallest hills at Chicopee in Kitchener. None of those 3 hills come even close in length to the bunny hill at Blue Mountain! We eventually made it to the bottom, and met up with everyone, and I said I needed a nap. Stan's like "she's tired after only 2 runs already" and I'm like "oh no! That was only one run!" Everyone laughed at me! But when you're not used to it, skiing's hard work, using a lot of muscles that I didn't even know I had!
We did a few runs of that easy hill, then tried to do one of the next level of toughness - AppleBowl, which one of the men at the top (he worked there) told me was a nice run, and I would have no problems. The first part of it was easy, then there was a steep part - about a 60degree slope! EEP! It took a little while for Glen & I to get the guts to go down it, then I went a bit, and fell. And didn't get up for a bit. There were a few of the safety guys that thought I was hurt, then practically yelled at me for being on a hill that was over my level. They went down a bit & said they would watch me, so I started going, and fell again, but this time, in such a position that my one ski was sticking out of the snow, and my ankle was twisted & I couldn't move. Luckily some other nice man came along & helped me get the ski off so I could stand & put it back on. At this point, the safety guys gave up on me & left. Jerks. I made it down the hill very slowly...the steep part was scary, then it got better. And Kevin Br was nice enough to come down with me slowly to ensure I was ok :) Apparently that's what you do when you have new skiiers - you help each other out, so I really appreciated that.
We did another run or two on the easy hill, then headed back to the chalet for some lunch. Oh my goodness - it was so nice to take those ski boots off! I think mine were a little too small, so my feet were killing me. We ate, then some people hit the hills, but I waited for a bit longer. And tried to get my ski boots back on - I think my feet had swollen a bit, so it took me probably about 15-20 minutes to put them on!!! Eventually I got them on, and a few of us headed up. Did a run, then another. I think it was that second one that Amber & I were looking at the map at the top (since we were thinking of trying another one) and there was a bit of a ditch in front of it. I'm standing there, and was drifting forward. Amber's like "watch out!" as I fell into the ditch! It was a little embarrassing, but quite funny! I had to take my skis off in order to get out, so I walk over to the rest of the people & put them on, and Stan asks "Yo! Why are your skis off?" Amber says "We had a little entertainment" and I'm just like "uhh...I fell into the ditch!" They all laughed at me!
We ended up going on the easy hill, and then I took a bit of a break. My legs & feet were so sore, and I was dead tired...skiing takes a lot out of you! I did a few more runs, then the last run, Neil, Dan, Grace & I went on one of the tougher blue hills. It started off alright, then went steep. I'm not afraid of heights, however, I am afraid of falling! Plus I think I was PMS-y, so I did not do too well on this hill - it scared the hell outta me (yes, I'm a wimp!) Dan, who's actually a ski instructor, went down with me slowly, and was actually guiding my skis. And Grace & Neil went slowly, and once again, I felt bad. But all 3 of them are nice enough to tell me that it was ok. We actually weren't down the hill yet when the groomers started coming (we were the last group allowed on the hill before the groomers) so Dan & I were made to go to the side & walk down. I told him to ski down if he wanted, and being a sweetheart, he was like "no, why would I do that?" He was the nicest guy, and I felt bad :S
After that run, we were near the bar on the hill, so we went in for a few drinks. I had 2 Grand Marniers (one bought for me by each Grace & Dan, since I didn't think I'd need money on the hill!) But I bought them drinks later on in the night. We chilled there for awhile, then Dan had his car at the hill, so we got a ride back - thank goodness, I don't think my poor feet could have walked! We went back, met up with everyone, and had dinner, which I think we were all VERY READY for! Some people went for the night skiing, but I definitely didn't.
There was also a hot tub at the chalet, which was open till 10pm every night, so after dinner, around 9pm on Saturday night, a bunch of us headed there. It was an outdoor hot tub, and there was also a pool (heated, so it was probably about 25-30oC!) So we went into the hot tub, then I mentioned going into the pool, and Grace called me nuts, so I did it! And it was a lot warmer than expected – didn’t feel cold, which is impressive after coming out of the hot tub! So we went back & forth. Fun times! Dan brought beer down, then he & Archie got caught drinking it, so they chugged the rest b/c the men wanted to take it away.
After the hot tub, we went back, showered, then Glen, Kevin Br, Dan, Archie, Grace & I went to a club (named "Gel") in the village. It was alright, although small & busy, but I had fun, due to a few rye & cokes beforehand. I was feelin good, but not drunk! Drinks there were expensive, and I had to buy Dan & Grace each one, since they bought me some at the bar in the afternoon. But the club was weird – they were playing normal clubbing dance music, then they suddenly played “Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy”, then an AC/DC song, then a Michael Jackson song, then back to the club music! It was a fun night! We went back - Glen & Grace dropped off the rest of us, then I guess they went to Tim Horton's, but the rest of us went & crashed. I didn't even hear Grace come to bed (but I let her keep some blankets on top of her that night!)
In the morning, people got up early to hit the hills when they opened at 9am. I was thinking about going, but I had trouble getting out of bed. Then when I stood up, I determined that my legs didn't want to go skiing. So I decided to pass. We had to be out of the room at 11am, so we ate breakfast, got ready & packed up. We finished that by 11:30am, and all 11 of us chilled for a bit in the lounge-y area near the hill, and had a bit of lunch (ok, it wasn't much after my breakfast, but other people wanted to eat so they could ski for the rest of the afternoon!) 7 out of 11 people went skiing, and Glen decided just to chill in the lounge (where he later fell asleep) So Kevin Br, Grace & I wandered around the village, which is just near the hill and has a bunch of little stores & restaurants - it was also where the club was from the night before. It was fun - there was this super-big chair, so we got this man to take pictures of us. He was so nice & patient, especially since he was carrying a 3-year-old boy. The little boy was so cute - he was well behaved, but his dad asked him "are you going to help me take some pictures?" and the boy said, very bluntly, "no." LOL. There was also the Blue Mountain Bear & Princess walking around, and the bear gave me a big hug, and Grace & I took pictures with them! I felt like I was 5 again! :D
We went into a few shops and looked around. There was a maple shop, which advertised "Maple Taffy on Snow." Basically the woman had this maple taffy boiling on the stove, then when you asked for some, she took the hot liquid outside to where she had a large shallow rectangular pot of snow, where she poured a strip of the taffy, let it harden a bit, then twirled it around a tongue depressor. It was SO GOOD, but very very sweet! The 3 of us split one, and that was enough for Kevin & I!
At 2pm, Dan said he would meet us at Starbucks for a coffee, so we did that for awhile. Afterwards, Grace wanted more taffy, so she talked Dan into splitting one, so they did. However, Dan couldn't finish his half (the lady split their's into 2 sticks) so I ended up finishing it. Too much taffy - so sweet! Dan went back skiing, and we walked back along the hill, where I took several pictures of the hill & people skiing/snowboarding. One funny occurrence - Kevin was wearing his Waterloo Engineering jacket, and we walk by these 2 guys just lying on the snow, and the one yells "Woo Waterloo!" and I'm like "yea!" and he's like "Water! Water! Water!" And we don't respond. But we laughed at the randomness! Then we went back to the lodge where Glen was, and waited for people to finish skiing (since their day passes only went till 4:30pm) People started gathering, and we got our skis organized, and took them back to the ski rental shop. Afterwards, headed to the Village where we all wanted to get Beaver Tails. We did, went inside of Starbucks to eat them & some last bit of chat. They were SO DAMN GOOD (as beavertails usually are!) We then all said our good-byes, and headed in our respective vehicles. It was the end of a fantastic weekend. Ok, maybe not quite the end, since we still had a few hours of driving, but you understand what I mean!
However, the drive home turned out to be much longer than expected. We got on the road around 5:15pm, and I should have been back in Sarnia by 9:30-10pm, but we had a few issues getting home. Basically involving Archie directing us in the not-as-direct route. Then we had to find highway 12, but couldn’t, so a few people thought Road 12 (just past Arthur) was the one we wanted, but that was a county road, so we went to turn around, and ended up in the ditch! Got out about 15 minutes later! Then we went back to Arthur to ask at Tim Horton’s about how to get home, and changed our route – so we headed towards Fergus, then were going to catch highway 18, which goes right into Waterloo. So, Kevin’s map was not great, and apparently hwy 18 comes into Fergus, then joins up with the road we were on (I think hwy 22 or something like that?) and then goes the other way to Orangeville. However, some of this detail (ie when 18 meets up with 22) was under the dot on the map! And, Fergus was missing some road signs, so we missed 18 to Waterloo, and went on the only road that said hwy 18, then 30 minutes later, we were in Orangeville! There were 5 very frustrated people in the car!! Plus having 3 of us in the backseat of a Civic was a little squishy :S By the time we got back to Waterloo, dropped the 3 of them off, used the bathroom at Kevin’s place, etc, we left there just after 9:30. Made good time to London, then I moved my stuff to my car, got gas (it’s cheap in London – I paid about 78.3c/L!) and was on my way. Made good timing to Sarnia (then again, I was going about 130-140kph most of the way!) Got home at 11:45pm, and after showering/unpacking/email checking/making lunch for Monday, got to bed around 12:45am. I tell ya, 6:15am came really really early on Monday :S But it was worth such a great weekend!
