Obergurgl: Snowstorm and Christmas Eve

3rd day in the Austrian Alps…

We woke up daily to freshly fallen snow during our stay in Obergurgl.  But that morning was different.  The snow looked furious and it was coming down hard.  Visibility was low and the eerie sound from the howling winds followed by blaring sirens confirmed our suspicion.  There was a snow storm.  The slopes were a no-go.  Avalanche warnings filled the village, there would be no snowboarding for our boys that day.

Here’s our home video of that morning as we walked through the village amidst the bleak weather. 🙂

The snow started to die down around midday.  When we saw signs of the grey clouds retreating, we were out of the door in an instant and heading down to the meadow.

We went for a walk.  It felt wonderful and scary at the same time to step on the soft, deep snow and create fresh tracks.  We had to be cautious though as there were small streams, like cracks with fast flowing water, coming out of nowhere.

“Right after the storm is apparently the best time to do snow angels,” quipped our teen in between the flapping of his wings.

“And sledding would be epic!” added the little one.

“Let’s bury mum!” they both agreed.

“I’ll race you, dad!” and off they go, speeding down the hill on their sleds.

These would seem trivial to those who experience snow yearly, but to us who hail from a country in perpetual summer (not that it’s bad), playing in the snow makes for some unforgettable memories.

The other nice things we did after the storm was to thaw in the warm pool in our chalet, and eat warm bread, pasta and mussels at the nearby Pizzeria Belmonte.

That stormy day in the Alps was Christmas Eve.  We planned to attend the evening mass but we agreed that at -14 degree Celcius and with residual winds from the storm, walking to the church would be punishing. And so we just visited the church hours before the mass to say our own prayers.

After some rest in the apartment, we were ready again. First, to socialise at the Christmas Eve gathering organised by our chalet owner, and second, for our family dinner at Steakhouse Salz & Pfeffer.

We did our traditional exchange-gifts once we got back to the apartment.  Each item should be meaningful, not more than 50 euros and has to be picked up along the way during our holiday.  The thoughtful gifts from that night – a soap dish 🙂 ,  a beanie, a small wooden rosary, a Holy Family snow globe, an Iphone carrier, a BMW fridge magnet, pairs of ski socks, a pair of ski goggles, and a balaclava. 🙂

At 1930m above sea level, in a remote village in the Austrian Alps, we got the Christmas that we hoped for – traditional, solemn and prayer-filled.

–xoxo–

(We were extremely lucky because the storm that day was mild.  The storms that followed the week after claimed the life of a teen in another Austrian ski resort and a few more in Salzburg and Germany.)

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Here are the other blogs on our Bavaria and Austria Holiday:

1. 1. Munich: Start of our family’s tales from last winter
   2. Munich: Viktualienmarkt Biergarten
   3. Munich: BMW Museum and BMW Welt
   4. Munich: Theatine Church and Odeonplatz
   5. Munich: Christmas Markets
   6. Munich: Hofbrauhaus Beer Hall
   7. Munich: City Aparthotel München
   8. Salzburg: Birthplace of Mozart and Silent Night
   9. Salzburg: Hohensalzburg Fortress 
   10. Salzburg: Residenzplatz Christmas Market
   11. Salzburg: Salzburg Cathedral
   12. Salzburg: Silent Night 200 at Salzburg Museum
   13. Salzburg: Silent Night Tour by Bob’s Special Tour
   14. Salzburg: Silent Night at Oberndorf and Laufen
   15. Salzkammergut: Road Trip to Hallstatt
   16. Salzkammergut: Christmas Market at St Wolfgang
   17. Salzburg: Krampus Run at Hellbrunn Palace
   18. Salzburg: Imlauer Hotel Pitter Salzburg
   19. Obergurgl: A Week in the Austrian Alps
   20. Obergurgl: Chalet Obergurgl Luxury Apartments
   21. Obergurgl: Hohe Mut Alm Mountain Restaurant
   22. Obergurgl: Snowstorm on Christmas Eve
   23. Obergurgl: Day After the Storm
   24. Obergurgl: Snowshoeing
   25. Hochgurgl: Tobogganing
   26. Hochgurgl: Hochgurgl Cable Car Ride
   27. Vienna: First Impressions
   28. Vienna: Hofburgkapelle and Imperial Armoury
   29. Vienna: Schönbrunn Palace
   30. Vienna: Imperial Treasury and Hofburg
   31. Vienna: Prater
   32. Vienna: New Year’s Eve Fireworks and Waltz
   33. Vienna: Hilton Vienna Plaza
   34. Stuttgart: The Mercedes-Benz Museum
   35. Stuttgart: The Porsche Museum