For a second year the Kirkbride family returned to the fabulous mountain resort town just south of Salzburg. How could we not when Santa arrives by sled while the parents are fed spiked apple cider, it has a 4 story indoor water-slide, a kids play area (and added a bowling alley), 4 different family run restaurants, ski in/out options and its own rental shop and ski school, sledding runs, and adult only (clothing prohibited) spa. It was almost the vacation not to be as we were stopped at the Serbian border (of the 5 countries we needed to drive through over 2 days to get there) for over 2 hours as they claimed that our VAT exempt plates would not be allowed in the country (even though we did it 2 years earlier and been in every other neighboring Balkan and European country. We a ton of pleading and sweet legal talking in Serbian (go Pranvera) we were finally granted permission to remove our plates and insert the temporary Serbian ones (since they don't recognized Kosovo), Quite a nail bitter start to a 'rest-full' holiday.
For a week Stacey and dad joined us for a wonderful Christmas with plenty of gifts hand carried or shipped from Amazon Germany. Plenty of apt. cooked meals along with a ridiculously long 3.5 hour Christmas Eve dinner (the hotel has drastically expanded since our experience 2 years ago). The wonderful Austrian hunting lodge restaurant served a traditional fondue meal and several bars and lobby always had a nice holiday drink on hand.
I spent 4 days hitting all the black runs with my Board and Adi was at ski school for 3 with Rea trying out a couple classes on skis for the first time. She says she is now done and can't do it again till she is a big girl. Well Stacey even had to enjoy our private lessons Xmas present to get on the skis first time in 13 years. Adi is definitely loving it and hitting intermediate hills already and hard to keep up with as Boarders have to cut more often than skiers to take the speed off (which Adi loves). Had one day of fresh powder but with high winds and snow coming down, visibility made the runs feel like you were floating in clouds of whiteness.
We took a day off to drive to Salzburg and tour the Christmas markets and castle. Nice break for the feet from skiing and get some site-seeing and shopping along the way. On the 2 day drive back, my dad squeezed into the car and we stopped for lunch in Ljubljana, Slovenia and made it to Belgrade Serbia for dinner, touring their New Years markets and sleeping before finally making back to Kosovo (he's been playing with kids for the week they still remain off school). As we arrived back home on New Years eve we made a nice meal and crashed early only to wake up at midnight and see the sky peppered with dozens of firework shows and gun fire filling the air.
Happy New Year to all! And a wonderful 2018 to come.
3 Kirkbride generations back in Pristina Kosovo.
