Crans-Montana Trip Blog 2017
Friday, February 17th 2017
by The 6th Grade Girls
Today the heavens opened up, and it was very stormy and cold. We got all kitted up and were ready to go to the slopes and hit some runs. We all wanted to make the most of today because it was our last day of skiing and we don’t know when we’ll be able to go again. The slopes were very icy which made it harder to ride.
We had big lunches, with nutella crepes, fries, waffles, and more. We ate a lot of great food because we knew it was our last chance! Whenever you’re skiing in Crans-Montana, try the Teepee lunch place.
But then later in the day it started snowing and it got all fluffy and lovely. It was harder to see, and distracting because we just wanted to stop and play. We fell a lot, and got some bruises but were mostly ok. We finished the day on the slopes with hot chocolate.
When we got back we all flopped on our beds after turning in our heavy equipment, and immediately got attached to our phones. We had room inspections after dinner, and we worked up a sweat. We tried our best to make our room spotless, and thought we had done pretty well, until we saw some of the other rooms, with music and light shows.
We’re off to bed and ready a big day of traveling, birthday wishes, and fun tomorrow. See you back in Copenhagen!
Thursday, February 16th 2017
by Mitch
We started the day by going to the slalom course, twice! Which was my second time doing it. I got my new fastest time of 53 seconds. I'm quite proud of that time. Then, we went to the other side of the mountain to practice carving. I only learned how to do it yesterday, so it was fun trying it out. The instructor told us to look for "sensation," rather than trying to have good "form or technique." This advice was excellent, and I had a lot of fun. We also went to the snowpark, where we practiced doing jumps. I, unfortunately, fell twice. But even though it hurt a little bit, I learnt from my falls so that I can do it better next time. Afterward, I had some fries and a sandwich at a restaurant at the base of the mountain, called Restaurant Arnovo. The fries were a perfect balance of "McDonalds soft" and crispness. If I had more money left, I would try one of their burgers. Due to my calf injury, it was recommended that I cut my day shot, but I think it was for the best. I hope tomorrow to be on those jumps again, including jumping off a high jump into a large airbag. That's going to be exciting!
Wednesday, February 15th 2017
By Merel and Mathilde
As the days get warmer, the snow just gets slushier, but that has not diminished out spirits. We started the stay fresh because we'd just gone swimming in a spa the night before. After breakfast, we made our way up the mountain again, and at the mountain we thought of the day ahead of us. Once we meet our guide, we all took a gondola ride over to the other side of the mountain. There, we practiced some carving, switch turns, and the snowboarders learned how to tripod. Then we went over to a little circular restaurant in the middle of the piste. Sitting on comfy beanbags, and listening to chill lounge music, we indulged in juicy, succulent burgers for lunch. Once lunch ended, we made our way over to the race piste, where we raced each other to see who can finish the slalom the fastest. Merel won with 40s! Afterward, we tried some 180 jumps. Before we knew it, it was time to go back down the mountain and meet the rest of our group. Hopefully, there will be some powdery snow for tomorrow. Regardless, we are looking forward to skiing/snowboarding tomorrow and enjoying the company of our friends and teachers.
Tuesday, February 14th 2017
by Snorre and Hunter
So, today was a nice day with amazing weather and great snow. We started the day with a warmup race on top of the mountain. After that, we went down the hill toward the slalom, where we tried to go as fast as we can around the flags. After that slalom practice, we went to the other side of the mountain and took the gondola up to the glacier. There, we stopped to have a lunch break and ate a really good pizza. The crust was not too crunchy and not too soft, the cheese was really melted, and there was not so much tomato sauce. After lunch, we went up to the altitude to 2,934m to go down the glacier. After the glacier, we practiced in the snow park where we did many jumps and tricks on the ramps. Following the snow park, we went to the half-pipe where we more cool tricks like 180s and jumps. Some people fell because their skis crossed and ended up face planting in the snow. That was funny to watch. Finally, we skied down the bottom of the mountain to find our awesome teachers waiting to take us back to the chalet. Now, we are getting ready for an early dinner and after that we are going to have a great time in the pool. We look forward to having another great day tomorrow.
Monday, February 13th 2017
by Eddie
Monday was a beautiful day on the mountain! Sunny weather, clear skies, and fresh faces made for an excellent day of skiing and snowboarding. Students started the day with a hearty breakfast at our Chalet complex, followed by a quick room cleaning (some more effective than others), and finally gearing up for the day. A quick bus ride to the base of the mountain, and lovely gondola ride to the lifts got us in high spirits before meeting our ski/snowboard instructors. At the end of the day, kids were exhausted but happy! Upon our return, we were greeted by our hosts with hot tea and cake. Following some hot showers, downtime in the chalet, and a delightful chilli dinner, our local guide took our group for a torch-lit evening walk around the lake. The chaperones were both equally excited and terrified at seeing our kids handle fire torches. But the excitement and overall maturity of our kids, laid some of these fears to rest. Are evening ended with some quiet talk in the cabins and lights out at 10pm. Everyone is excited for more mountain activities on Tuesday.
Sunday, February 12 2017
by Dorka
On Saturday, the eleventh of February, students from CIS middle school took two connecting flights to Geneva, Switzerland. The students then took a bus to a ski resort in Crans-Montana. We were quite tired after a long day of traveling, and after a good dinner and an exhausting ski/snowboard fitting, everyone fell fast asleep very quickly.
This morning, we were woken up at 6:30 am, with a very exciting day ahead of us. We were down eating breakfast by 7:00, and were on the bus soon after. All students were then put into ski/snowboarding groups, depending on what level they were at. The different groups then set off to explore the slopes with their instructors until lunch, which was at 1:00. The students got that opportunity to eat their packed lunches, which they made themselves in the morning. After lunch, everybody went back onto the slopes to keep on skiing/snowboarding. Then, we all went back to the resort and put all of our gear away. Everyone had exactly ten minutes to shower and change into fresh clothes.
Then, students and teachers got the chance to go back to their rooms to relax a bit after a long day on the slopes. At 6:30, a delicious dinner of soup and chicken pot pie was served, with a dessert of rice pudding. With full stomachs, we played a movie, ‘Pitch Perfect’, and enjoyed ourselves a lot.
by Emily
As we get to Switzerland, our suitcases actually arrive - I know, it’s crazy exciting. With suitcases in our hands without sitting on a cold airport floor for five hours, we feel truly spoiled this year. An hour and a half bus ride was very enjoyable as people played board games and talked about various children things. Eyes drooping, we got to the ski resort and got comfortable in our rooms before dinner. After a ski/snowboard fitting that meant standing outside for an hour in the freezing cold, we got into our warm beds and fell asleep. Waking up today was very very hard, so we decided to eat breakfast in our pyjamas. That was wonderful. Truly magnificent. Quickly (and by quickly I mean very slowly) we got changed into appropriate clothing, and hit the slopes. After three hours of skiing and snowboarding, our legs hurting and our stomachs growling, we had lunch. Then more skiing and snowboarding and falling over and laughing happened after lunch. Another long day has come and gone. Can’t wait for tomorrow - more skiing and snowboarding awaits us!