Cervinia - All you can eat skiing!

Well what a contrast to MG, we have had more or less 6 solid days of sunshine and fantastic snow conditions. Nathan and I picked up Rachel (his wife) and Shamus (an old work colleague of mine) from Turin airport and then we sped up the Aosta valley to one of Italy's best ski resorts; Cervinia.

"If your bag is to speed 13 miles down a mountain with a 7,000 feet vertical drop, then Cervinia is the place for you, baby!" I think it was Austin Powers that said this!

One of the highest ski towns in Europe at 2050m with the possibility to ski down from 3883m on a 13 mile run top to bottom, not only one of the highest commercial ski points in Europe but also one of the longest pisted runs.

Getting out of the lift at the “Klein Matterhorn” you really feel breathless and lightheaded, bending down to tighten your boots is to be done carefully!

In my opinion the most incredible thing about this resort is that it lies in the shadow of the Matterhorn. What an awesome looking mountain, it dominates the skyline more or less everywhere you look in the valley, it is so huge that it even develops its own weather, as the photos on my album will contest. It is not particularly high at 4478m, considering Everest at nearly twice the height at 8848m, but it certainly looks imposing and it is deadly, as many a climber has fallen to their death off this 'cursed' mountain. See the entry on “The Matterhorn and Glacial Exhumation!” for more.

We have had a fantastic week of more or less limitless sunshine, food and snow. Most days were full ski days, we even ventured down into Zermat on the Swiss side for a day and on a few days went over into the smaller linked resort of Valtourneche (a much improved resort thanks to the new high speed lifts.)

I wanted to list all the amazing places we had dinner in true blogjourno style but canbeassed so here are the highlights, Le Blazon (you must have the Chateaubriand) and the Le Vieux Grenier (anything off the menu but ask for the fizzy water with the small bubbles just to wind up the waiters!) both just off the main street in the centre of town.