Snow and Wienerschnitzel--No Turkey

Instead of staying in for a Turkey feast on thanksgiving, several of us decided to head to Austria for a little early season ski trip. Actually, we've had this little trip planned since the desert, so it wasn't that spontaneous. We went to a place in the Austrian mountains called Hintertux. It was pretty awesome. Good snow for this time of the year and an awesome set-up at the base of the glacier. We worked our butts off the week before and jumped in our cars after a late Wednesday work day. We made it into Hintertux around 1130pm. Our hotel was really cool. It was the whole ski lodge/spa with awesome service....and we got it for a really good deal since we booked so far in advance with a special rate. The first picture posted is of our hotel the "NeuHintertux" and the second is a pic I took sitting at one of the ski huts.....the drink is a traditional german/austrian drink that is the most common you'll see at the base of the slopes. It's called "gluhwein" (pronounced gluvine) and is a spiced sweet wine that is served very hot. Very good and not very strong. Most of you would really like it if you haven't had it before.
I had to cut the trip short since I had a major sortie to prepare for on Monday. The snow really hit us hard on the drive back--but no worries. On a side note, I might be coming back to the states for a long course in late Jan through February called "S.O.S." (Squadron Officer's School). It's an academic course for all officers with the rank of Captain held at Maxwell AFB in Alabama. The class isn't supposed to be fun--but at least I would have the weekends to travel to see everybody in the states.
Well, that's all for now. Hope to hear from you all later.
Ed

Lake Bled

This weekend a few people cruised over to Slovenia to a town called "Bled." It was only about a 2.5 hour drive. Let me tell you: this was amazing. The town is built around this mountain lake that has a tiny island in the middle with an extremely old church built on it. On the far side of the lake is a tall, jagged cliff with an ancient castle that overlooks the whole lake. This town has always been a playground for royalty, presidents, etc. Since we were there in the off-season, we were able to view it from a slightly different perspective. The air was foggy with lots of mist--which gave it a surreal feeling. You can rent these old wooden rowboats and paddle out to the church--which is what we did. The water was crystal clear. The church was amazing. In fact, the Slovenians have a tradition that if someone is married on the island that the groom has to carry the bride up the giant set of steps that leads to the church.
It really was the most picturesque thing that I've seen in Europe so far. A must-see for travelers in Europe/the Adriatic area. To see some other pictures of Bled in the summer click here

Holidays

The flower store in my town is putting out wreaths for the holiday season and for some of the monuments around town (complete with the national colors.)

Devotion

I took this picture on a rainy Sunday here in my little town/village of Budoia. People in Italy walk to church as a family, by themselves or with friends if there is no family left. It always surprises me how dedicated the older people here seem to be. I think this picture in front of the town church speaks for itself.

Devotion:
Ardent, often selfless affection and dedication, as to a person or principle. See Synonyms at love.
Religious ardor or zeal; piety.

An act of religious observance or prayer, especially when private. Often used in the plural.
devotions Prayers or religious texts: a book of devotions.
The act of devoting or the state of being devoted.