Winter Wonderland Monday 07 March

We are due to meet the horse and carriage man in the car park of the cable car in Reschen , close to the lake.
Our first ride is at 10:00 so we depart the hotel at 09:00. It is a bit cloudy when we leave but you can see the sun beginning to burn it away and by the time we reach Reschen we have a clear blue sky. Bloody cold though!
The car park is busy as we pull in and the horse and carriage pull out!
It is a bit tight squeezing through the cars to our parking space and by the time we reach it the man has gone. I have his number and call him, he is on the lake. I can see him as he is going across to the other side and wonder what is going on.
We manage to understand each other and I ask Brian to bring the coach closer to the lake and we will walk the first group down to the sleigh.
It is strange walking out onto a frozen lake and even stranger joining a horse drawn sleigh. The two horses are a beautiful soft brown colour and are called Cindy and Gina.
There is a wind on the lake and it is absolutely freezing although very sunny.
The first group of ten go off on a tour of the lake, 6km one way and 5km back, and are due back in an hour.
It is quite a sight seeing them ride off amongst the paragliding skiers and skaters. We even see a couple of vans driving across the lake!
Back at the coach we take the rest around the other side of the lake to the small town of Reschen but there is not a lot here apart from a couple of shops and a few cafes. We only stay half an hour before going back to meet the first group back and see the second group off.
They all look frozen as they step down from the carriage but have all had a great time on this unusual trip.
We don’t bother returning to the town and stay parked above the lake where we can watch all the action on the lake.
Some of the group go up in the cable car for what sounded like an impressive ride.
By the time the final group had gone it wasn’t as cold and much more bearable, even Anne Evans took off her hat!
We left here at 13:30 and then went to the Swiss tax free town of Samnaun.This is a trip we normally do in the summer and I am pleasantly surprised that the road is open as it does venture quite high.
There are seven tight hairpin bends before a steady climb up with spectacular views at every turn and once again the weather is showing everything in all its glory.
Two years ago I took a group to Luzern in the February and on one trip we got stuck on a mountain road unable to drive through an avalanche of snow that had fallen across the road. To cut a long story short the police closed the road and we spent about an hour trying to get going which we eventually did.
I have a group on board (you know who you are) who were on that trip and guess what comes next!
Yep, another bloody avalanche!
What luck!
Jonah’s, that’s what they are, Jonah’s!We come to a halt behind a queue of stationary cars with most of the drivers standing outside watching something ahead.
We get out to see workmen with diggers picking up snow and ice that has fallen across the road and sending it tumbling down the mountain with the big blocks of ice rolling down like boulders.
We are not kept waiting too long before continuing on our way to Samnaun.
Samnaun looks as pretty as ever and smells as expensive as ever! Booze, cigarettes, chocolates and fuel are cheap here but clothes, perfume and watches are all at the higher end of the price scale.
We sit down for lunch near to where we have parked the coach and are served by a young man wearing a pair of ladies black tights on his head with the legs hanging down like pigtails!
I’ve got to ask him! It is festival time he said but what kind of festival has folk wearing tights for hats I don’t know!
Our spaghetti is good but not cheap. I ask for the bill in Euro’s and am told it is €33.80. I give the man €40 and ask for a receipt. The cheeky bugger returns with my receipt but no change assuming I had left the rest as a tip. I couldn’t quite believe it but left it as that for his cheek. Maybe he can buy a new pair of tights with it!
As we are sitting there a skier who has obviously just come off the slopes asks cheeky tightshead if he is in Austria!
“No you are in Switzerland!”
“How do I get to Austria?”
“Wait here and I will call the shuttle bus and it will pick you up in 10 minutes.” What serviceThe lost skier orders a mulled wine and pays with his credit card, or rather tries to pay. My cheeky mate returns saying the card doesn’t work, does he have any cash.
Skier shakes his head and points again to card.
Meanwhile the shuttle bus has turned up to take the lost skier back to Austria or somewhere from where he can ski to Austria.
With a dodgy card and no cash the skier is told he can have a free wine and have a safe journey to Austria.
All very nice but I think he should thank me as I have just bought his wine!!
Once the sun has gone down it becomes very cold and the passengers are soon back and we are on our way back to the hotel.
No avalanches this time!
There are two bowling lanes in the basement as well as another bar and tonight is bowling night with prizes!
After dinner we have about half an hour practice before Peter Sellers arrives to take control of the proceedings and divide us into two teams of boys against girls.
I wasn’t really looking forward to tonight but it proves great fun and well organised by our host.
We each have five bowls in both of the two rounds and there we some notable highlights.
“Schnapps for Anna” became a familiar cry from Karl as the delightful Anna missed the pins!
“Schnapps for Brenda” also became familiar but for the opposite reason!
Pat also won some schnapps more for what she was wearing than her bowling skills!
I think the boys scored more overall but the prizes were issued to the best three girls and the best three boys as well as a booby prize to each side.
Brenda was the top girl and Brent the top man, well done to you both.