Tag Archives: ortisei

An apple a day

19 Jul
19 July 2015. If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, does it count if it’s in your strudel? In the Alto Adige/Südtirol, strudel is as prevalent as Starbucks in Seattle. We have eaten many portions and many types over the course of several trips. This time I documented our not-quite-daily habit. Thank God we were hiking!
It never ceases to amaze me that no matter where we go, we get coffee in a ceramic cup and our food on plates with real flatware, served by nice people who do not expect a tip. Even at the ruins of a castle, in a tiny little village high above the valley, where the cafe was the size of a closet, the lady served our espresso in tiny ceramic cups with stainless spoons that we carried out to a picnic table. And we could have had grappa if we had wanted! Compare that to the typical U.S. coffee-house or what passes for a restaurant in a national park: Styrofoam cups, paper plates, forks that break when you try to use them, self-service, and the expectation of a 20% gratuity.
July 8: Rainy day strudel in Selva. Our first strudel of the trip, while taking shelter in the town. Big apple chunks and a pie-pastry-like crust.
July 8: Rainy day strudel in Selva. Our first strudel of the trip, while taking shelter in the town. Fabulous apple-pie flavor and a light, crust.
July 8: God help us, a two-strudel day! Anna, our landlady, invited us over in the afternoon for strudel hausgemacht. How could we say no?
July 8: God help us, a two-strudel day! Anna, our landlady, invited us over in the afternoon for strudel hausgemacht. How could we say no?
July 9: High-Mountain strudel at Passo Sella. We had a long hike, punctuated by a stop for healthy yogurt, so we indulged in a cinnamon-flavored, raisin-packed variety with a more cake-like crust.
July 9: High-Mountain strudel at Passo Sella. We had a long hike, punctuated by a stop for healthy yogurt, so we indulged in a cinnamon-flavored, raisin-packed variety with a more cake-like crust.
Not a bad view for strudel tasting at Passo Sella.
Not a bad view for strudel tasting at Passo Sella.
July 10: Today, yogurt with fresh berries replaces strudel at 2153 meters above sea level. Berries tasted fresh-picked.
July 10: Today, yogurt with fresh berries replaces strudel at  Rifugio Emilio Comici, 2153 meters above sea level. Berries tasted fresh-picked.
The Rifugio Emilio Comici is perhaps the most amazing mountain "refuge" we've seen.
The Rifugio Emilio Comici is perhaps the most amazing mountain “refuge” we’ve seen.
July 11: Rifugio Rasciesa is always a favorite stop for a snack or for lunch. Big fruit, light crust. Asked for panna but they forgot. :-(
July 11: Rifugio Rasciesa is always a favorite stop for a snack or for lunch. Big fruit, light crust. Asked for panna but they forgot. 😦
July 14: Rifugio Malga Brogules sits beneath the Seceda Plateau, and still the rifugio is at 2045 meters above sea level. And still they serve home-baked strudel, of a more cake-like variety.
July 14: Rifugio Malga Brogules sits beneath the Seceda Plateau, at 2045 meters above sea level. And still they serve home-baked strudel, of a more cake-like variety.
Little Rifugio Malga Brogules, beneath the Seceda Plateau.
Little Rifugio Malga Brogules, beneath the Seceda Plateau.
July 16: Best-in-Trip Award goes to the strudel at Hotel Saltria in the Alpe di Siusi. A mountainous piece served with lots of panna, flaky crust, heaps of fruit, raisins and pine nuts. Although we hiked 2 hours to get here, it ruined the possibility of lunch for the day.
July 16: Best-in-Trip Award goes to the strudel at Hotel Saltria in the Alpe di Siusi. A mountainous piece served with lots of panna, flaky crust, heaps of fruit, raisins and pine nuts. Although we hiked 2 hours to get here, it ruined the possibility of lunch for the day.
Our view while gorging on strudel at Hotel Saltria.
Our view while gorging on strudel at Hotel Saltria.
July 18: Last strudel of the trip, eaten overlooking the same scene we cast our eyes on Christmas Day, Hotel Icaro in the Alpe di Siusi. Surrounded by a cake batter, the fruit was flavorful and the strudel loaded with pine nuts as well. Panna of course1
July 18: Last strudel of the trip, eaten overlooking the same scene we cast our eyes on Christmas Day, Hotel Icaro in the Alpe di Siusi. Surrounded by a cake batter, the fruit was flavorful and the strudel loaded with pine nuts as well. Panna of course!
Looking across the Alpe di Siusi from the terrace at Hotel Icaro. A bit of a change from our Christmas Day scene, below.
Looking across the Alpe di Siusi from the terrace at Hotel Icaro. A bit of a change from our Christmas Day scene, below.
Taken from Hotel Icaro terrace on Dec 25, 2015. We only had cappuccino this time.
Taken from Hotel Icaro terrace on Dec 25, 2015. We only had cappuccino this time.

 

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Land of many languages

11 Jul
The Val Gardena is home to the Ladin people, an ethnic group of the South Tyrol with their own language, culture, and traditions. Repressed under Fascism, the language and culture is now embraced and celebrated in this small region. The language is spoken by an estimated 84% of the people in our favorite town of Ortisei and is spoken in the home as a means of  keeping the language alive. But as one cannot communicate outside the small Ladin region without other languages, almost everyone speaks German and Italian (education is all in Italian), and many people also speak English fluently, which is helpful with the numbers of non-German and non-Italian tourists.
Embracing this linguistic variety can cause confusion among visitors. We have been here five times now, and the other day got into an argument about the name of the main piazza in Ortisei. I said it’s Piazza San’Antonio and Ric said, “No, it is Piazza San Antone.” How could we not know that? Here’s why:
Sign in the piazza: Italian, German and Ladin names for the same piazza in Ortisei.
Sign in the piazza: Italian, German and Ladin names for the same piazza in Ortisei.
Even the town itself has three distinct names. In Ladin, it means “place of nettles.” Luckily we have not encountered any of the stinging variety.
Does trail #9 lead to 3 places? No. All are names for the same cute town.
Does trail #9 lead to 3 places? No. All are names for the same cute town.
Some place names are vastly different. The other day we were taking a trail we had not intended to hike. We were not really lost, just a bit off course. At a junction where we had to make a decision, we saw a couple descending so I waited to see if they could clarify our choice. First try, in Italian I asked, “Parla Italiano o Inglese.” Blank stare, then the man says, “Deutsch.”  “Do you speak English?” I ask. “A little,” he responded. When I asked where they had come from, he answered with “Langkofelhütte.” Luckily I knew that was the German for Rifugio Vicenza and not our destination, that we should take the other path. How can the same place have such wildly different names?
A final note, many signs at restaurants, etc., are in Italian, German and English to help the majority of travelers. But translations being what they are, sometimes they are amusing. At this rifugio (one of the nicest we have seen) the hills were steep, but what we really needed was some coffee.
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Hot!

7 Jul
As I write this it is 82F/27C in Ortisei, in the Val Gardena, Italy. It’s not supposed to be that hot here! We came to cool off, expecting 70F/21C or so.
I told Ric, "Try not to show how much I am sweating." On the trail to Saltria.
I told Ric, “Try not to show how much I am sweating.” On the trail to Saltria.
I know! I know! Roma is worse at 91F/32C, and poor Portland, OR is expecting a wilting 92F/33C and is enduring the longest streak of 90+ days in history.  Even worse, the Alpe di Siusi, elevation >6,000 feet, hit 97F/36C for the second day in a row, the hottest temp ever recorded there, I was told by a local. Compare that to Abu Dhabi, which shows the same exact temperature. (Practically cool, isn’t it Francesco?)
Heat haze building already at 09:00, looking across to the Alpe di Siusi from our pre-hike cappucino stop.
Heat haze building already at 09:00, looking across to the Alpe di Siusi from our pre-hike cappuccino stop.
We can only hope this is an anomaly for Portland and the Val Gardena, that climate change isn’t going to ruin the summers.
In 2012 when we “discovered” the Val Gardena and the Alpe di Siusi for ourselves, we started out one morning at a brisk 44F/7C. Heaven compared to Roma, which was having the hottest summer in over 200 years. Our 2013 trip required starting each day with at least a sweater to ward off the chill, while in 2014 that sweater was topped with a windbreaker and I gave thought to buying a fleece.
Ric on the trail Monday, walking down from Rasciesa, a quad-straining descent of 863 meters/2827 feet.
Ric on the trail Monday, walking down from Rasciesa, a quad-straining descent of 863 meters/2827 feet.
Not so 2015. Still we are hiking, slathering on the sunscreen, gulping water, hugging tree-lined trails where possible. The nights are better, thank God, as air conditioning just does not exist in most lodgings, at least not in our price-range. In the next few days, Portland and Ortisei will cool off while Roma and the Alpe remain hot and Abu Dhabi returns to insufferable.
On a more positive note, this is a big first for us in 31 years of traveling together: we are staying two full weeks in the same place! We’ve been on longer trips, moving around, but never two weeks in exactly the same town/apartment. Truly a vacation. Yeah yeah yeah, I can hear  you now: “You’re retired; you need a job to be on vacation; blah blah blah.” All I can tell you is it is great and we have time. I do have to look at my pill minder to remind me of the day of the week.
We happened upon this carving in the middle of the forest, unsigned, a gift from a local woodcarver.
We happened upon this carving in the middle of the forest, unsigned, a gift from a local woodcarver.
More posts to follow! Aufwiedersehn/Arrivederci/Assudëi from the land of many languages, German, Italian and Ladin. More on that in the future.

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The Whos down in Whoville liked Christmas a lot

27 Dec
When Dr. Seuss wrote “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas” I think he must have had Ortisei in mind. It sits in a steep valley beneath snowy peaks reminding one of the “Whos down in Whoville.” As we descended yesterday from the highest lift station we could just make out the
From up here (in a gondola) Ortisei seems like little Whoville down in the valley.
From up here (in a gondola) Ortisei seems like little Whoville down in the valley.
village far below, and imagined the Grinch careening down the steep slopes to return the Christmas treasures. Instead we saw skiers launching off the mountain and enjoying a run of several kilometers albeit on mostly artificial snow. Ortisei calls itself Il Paese di Natale, and celebrates for 25 days, right up to Epiphany on January 6. They like Christmas a lot.
We spent a lovely Christmas Day in the Alpe di Siusi (if we are Facebook Friends you have already seen a few pictures from that hike), and on Santo Stefano (Dec. 26) we followed a local alpine guide from the Catores group on a hike to the Church of San Giacomo, which turned out to be a pretty good workout of 2 ½ hours roundtrip. I am pleased to say we old timers were not the slowest ones on the uphill stretch.
Dating to the 11th century, far above Ortisei. My Swedish ancestors were still practicing Norsk Mythology at that time, I think.
Dating to the 11th century, far above Ortisei. My Swedish ancestors were still practicing Norsk Mythology at that time, I think.
Fresco on San Giacomo, 15th century! There is also a quaint cemetery with a view to "die" for.
Fresco on San Giacomo, 15th century! There is also a quaint cemetery with a view to “die” for.
We also spent part of the evening in Ortisei to see the activity during the passeggiata and the fairy tale-like village transformed by holiday lights.
The Mercatino di Natale bustles even the night after Christmas.
What some countries call Boxing Day is Santo Stefano in Italy. The crowds are festive!
There are welcome warming fires scattered about.
La piccola chiesa in Ortisei, simply adorned.
There are 4 ice trees. illuminated from within. These are placed in the rushing river that runs through Ortisei.
Luckily we are able to be active (as was the point of this trip) to compensate for the amazing food we are consuming at Hotel Albion.
We are staying at what is for us one of the nicest places we have ever stayed. I would compare it to Salishan Lodge on the Oregon Coast in terms of elegance, although the Albion has a decidedly ski-sport bent versus the golf club sophistication at Salishan.  On a normal trip we stay in B&Bs, apartments and small hotels with a goal of spending no more than EURO 100.00 per night. Usually we are successful at that budget number on an average basis, and sometimes we get breakfast included. In planning this holiday trip, a gift to ourselves in lieu of stuff, we wanted to be a little pampered and stay somewhere special and memorable. I agonized over several choices in Ortisei, and while this one is expensive, it is half the price of the high-end properties here!
Like many European resort hotels, the meals are included in a half-pension plan.  Breakfast and dinner are included and are beyond ample. Breakfast offers almost every kind of fruit, a make-your-own juice bar, several choices of breads, pastries, eggs, sausages, assorted salume from speck to cotto, mortadella and salami, yogurt, muesli, jams, a honey bar (6 options!), a dozen types of cheese, and I would venture at least that many types of butter, flavored and not. This is the Tyrol and the northern influence on cooking brings butter to the forefront. Dinners are five courses including an amazing over-the-top salad buffet and an ever-changing menu of primi and secondi. We’ve enjoyed fish, shellfish, venison, quail, veal and duck as well as beautiful vegetarian dishes. I could go on but I won’t.
The clientele are from all over, although I am certain we are the only Americans on the property and probably the only native English speakers. Christmas morning we enjoyed hearing greetings of Joyeux Noel, Fröhliche Weinachten, and Buon Natale.
There is a shuttle to take us on demand to the lifts or to the village center. There is a spa including outdoor heated pool, which we have not had time to try. The only thing missing was snow, until today (Saturday) when it started during our hike and continued for about 8 hours.
Finally snow to compliment the lights, Hotel Albion.
Steam rises from the infinity pool while snow falls.
Our table at Hotel Albion, overlooking tiny Ortisei.
We took a woodsy walk in lightly falling snow on Saturday. Finally fresh snow!
Ric said I needed to be seen in something not pink. See? I have a blue fleece too.
This is our fourth Christmas in Italy, starting with our 2011 vacation here and now three years as residents. Family and friends, we miss you very much, especially at this time of year. We have traded greetings with many of you and have kept up on Facebook , which has been fun.  We keep ourselves entertained, but truly look forward to your visits here next year and to our planned extended visit to the U.S. in August. (Here we come, Seattle, Portland, and Durango!)
Here you see the plateau we hiked on Dec 24, Rasciesa. The view is from another peak, Seceda. The little black square is the rifugio where we ate lunch. See prior post.
Until the next time I think of something to say, Auguri e Buone Feste from both of us! May you have a blessed Anno Nuovo.

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Looking for a winter wonderland

25 Dec
Remember the scene in the movie “White Christmas” where they get off the train in Vermont and there’s no snow? That’s what it was like to arrive in Ortisei two days ago. Normally Ortisei should be a hotbed of skiing, snowshoeing and sleigh rides. Apparently much of the Alpine region from Switzerland to the Italian Dolomites is like this: cold and dry.
From our room we have a fabulous view to snowy peaks, but the surrounding valley is a dry winterscape.
From our room we have a fabulous view to snowy peaks, but the surrounding valley is a dry winterscape.
We have been to Ortisei three times in the summer and despite the lack of snow we still find it charming. Up high (2100 meters or so) we did manage to find a snowy trail for our Christmas Eve hike. People are here to ski and in the high areas they do so. While having lunch at the rifugio we met a group of Americans planning to ski the Sella-Ronda on Christmas Day. Three of them were Portlanders! Click on any picture for a slide show. 

 

Buon Natale tutti! 

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