w/c 26 February 2007

Sunday 25th - Yes I know it's in the wrong week but that's what happens when you've had an alcohol soaked week skiing! It was off to Toulouse at 7:00 AM to meet the others at the airport. There in plenty of time, it's a pity My-Travel couldn't start the plane. Not much to do at Toulouse airport other than buy an English newspaper & watch the world go by. Still, better than sitting on a plane in Birmingham for 2 hours waiting for someone to find the starting handle. Eventually the other seven arrive and it's off to Andorra we go...again. We've been going skiing as a group now for 7 years and have always ended up somewhere in Andorra, this year it's Soldeu and, as we always like a bargain, the hotel is 'allocation on arrival'. Steve who booked the trip this year has been checking out the tripadvisor website and is not impressed when we're 'allocated' The Austria Hotel Don't know why he was worried;
“Basically, the hotel is tatty and not a great place to stay”
“The hotel is advertised as 3 star, this is stretching the imagination”
“Rooms at the front will be noisy because of the road and at the back they are cupboard sized and the rooms we had were also unbearably hot in spite of us asking for the thermostats to be adjusted”
Can't possible be that bad...can it? It's only a 3 hour coach journey so just enough time to catch up with what's been happening back in the UK and discuss what will happen to Steve if the hotel's not up to our usual high standards. When we arrive the hotel is on the road but that's not a problem, it'll be handy for the ski bus & not miles from anywhere! Paul & I are allocated a room on the front of the hotel that when we enter is like the inside of an oven, you could literally have fried an egg on the radiator. Not to worry, better than being cold. As is normal on these trips it's a quick un-pack and off to check the hotel's facilities. Restaurant, games room, disco (obviously not used since 'disco' was all the rage), internet access (for us anoraks) and, most importantly, a bar. That's where we settle for the traditional first nights entertainment of a 'couple' of drinks. Beers OK if a little expensive at €3.20 a pint (Andorra is a tax free principality where cigs & booze are normally very cheap) but not to worry, we'll have a walk later to one of the other local bars. We get the normal welcome chat from the holiday company rep who is honest enough to confirm that the hotel is 2.5 kilometres from the main part of Soldeu (where all the bars are) and the bus service is unreliable in the extreme. We have a quiet meal in the hotel, food is edible and much as you would expect from a budget hotel, and it's back to the bar for a couple (dozen) more drinks before bed. Snow is in the air so things are looking good for the week ahead.
Monday 26th and the tour company have organised an early bus down to the ski lifts & hire shops. Off at 8:30am but one of the team is suffering from 'jet lag' and decides to 'rest' before the strenuous activities of the rest of the week. Light snow is still falling & being whipped up by a strong wind and it's a real struggle to get our 'ski legs' back and by 1:00 PM we've decided to call it a day and set off to sample the hospitality in a local bar. Our missing team member has recovered enough to join us for lunch. We head back to the hotel for dinner & a 'couple' more drinks with one of our party deciding that tonight water would be his preferred beverage. Paul had asked the hotel to turn the heating down in our room which after having slept with window open last night was a stroke of genius. It's the first time I've slept on the hard shoulder of the M6! The stretch of road outside our room must have been used by the locals as a race track because the noise from the traffic was horrendous. Cars, vans, lorries & coaches were passing all night, none at less than 120MPH!
Tuesday 27th and we're all out there bright & early ready for a good day skiing. Pity the bus isn't, 35 minutes late and it's the same story every day this week. We have a good day on the slopes and by 4:00 are ready for the happy hour at the 'Iceberg' bar. This hour runs for 2 hours & by 6:00 with a BOGOF offer running the decision is made not to bother returning to the hotel just yet. In fact we don't return till much later, so much later in fact that we'll miss the meal & have to get a pizza in Soldeu. Very nice pizza, and with beer & spirits at half price, a good night was had by all.
Wednesday 28th ditto I suppose is the best way to describe today. Only change being the Irish couple who joined us for a pizza. If only they knew what they were letting themselves in for. One of the founding members of our ski club is always at his best after 2 hours of half price drinks and never fails to be good 'entertainment'. If his jokes were repeatable this blog would go on & on (even more than it does now).
Thursday 1st March and it's warming up, not something you want in a ski resort. We'd had no more snow since Monday morning and with the temperature now reaching a balmy 8ºC by lunch time things were getting a little slushy. Good day skiing and for 3 of us it's back to the hotel for supper while the other 5 head for the hotspots of Soldeu. An early night will prepare us for what is normally the last full day on the slopes. I must be getting old. Peace is broken at the hotel about 10:30 PM when the others arrive back and that same founding member of our club decides that it would be a good idea to borrow the electric stun gun some other guests have bought (you wouldn't believe what you can buy in Andorra) and turn it on himself! At least the lads who owned the gun were playing cards, the loser being the one to get zapped.
Friday 2nd and the temperature is climbing and the snow melting. The struggle across to Pas, a neighbouring resort, is worth it and we return having had a full day on the slopes. By now there's plenty of rocks & grass protruding through the snow making things a little difficult. Once again 3 of us decide to remain at the hotel while the others are off to party the night away. Their return to the hotel at about 2:00 AM doesn't go unnoticed and there's a very early morning knock at our door. We'll get our own back.
Saturday 3rd and despite it being our last day two members of the party have had enough skiing (think they'd also had enough of something else) and decide to have a day off. With the weather getting ever warmer, 14ºC at lunch time, and the snow disappearing by the minute I put just half a days skiing in and return to meet our 2 errant skiers early afternoon. We have a quiet end of holiday pint, pick up the duty-free, 200 cigarettes for €20.00 & a litre bottle of Gordons gin for €7.00, return the hired equipment and head for a final meal at The Austria. It's only as we're getting off the bus that one of the group is reminded that he's left his new boots in the lockers that close at 5:00 and that it's now 6:45! The holiday rep says he'll see what he can sort out & is promised a glowing report on the customer satisfaction survey if he manages to rescue the boots. Time to pack up, have a final beer and await the pick-up at 5:05AM in the morning.
Sunday 4th and the bus is only a few minutes late and we settle in for the trip home. Back at Toulouse it's goodbye and see you next year. Feels a bit strange everyone jetting back to the UK and me heading to the car park & the drive home. I stop in St. Antonin-Noble-Val and pick up some bread for dinner. It's a beautiful day and the market's very busy. Back in Najac and the temperature's up to 21ºC by the time I get back about 12:00 so washing out on the line & I head for the house. Hopefully whilst I been away Pierre has taken all the old plaster off in preparation for the 'crepe'. He's done the work as promised & wow! Not only has he exposed all the stone he's 'found' what looks like a sink & a door that has been blocked off some time in the past. The beams he's cleaned up also look great and it's a pity Barbara's not here to see the results of his work. She'll have to look at the pictures I've posted on http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/Airbourneuk/LagarrigueProgress To finish the holiday week off and with the sun beaming down it's time to dust the bike off & go for a ride around the block. And boy can I tell it's been nearly 3 months since I was last on the bike. I'm definitely going to have to do a little more training before I enter the Tour D' France.