Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring!

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View of Matterhorn - In Zermatt, Switzerland

This winter was a tough one. 

Switzerland experienced a very heavy snow fall back in November and December, the  strongest I had ever seen. Luckily, Switzerland is prepared for these kind of snow attacks - at the time I left to work, streets and walking paths were already cleared! I was amazed to see parents pulling their kids' sledges on the way to the market, or even people taking out their skis to ski in the park. There were people skiing, sledging and snowboarding down Le Petite Chêne (check from minute 1:00 onwards), a very steep pedestrian street in Lausanne. This was, in fact, what encouraged me to take snowboarding lessons this year - I want to be one of those people next time there's the chance to slide down a path!

Then, of course, Switzerland's cold winter wasn't enough for me - I wanted something more extreme and headed over to New York for the snowmageddon this January, where temperatures reached -18ºC. That was the coldest I had ever felt so far and I'm not sure if I could ever stand lower temperatures than than those ones (I'm not quite sure if I want to try out). This turns Winter 2010/2011 into the most extreme winter I've survived so far. This wasn't easy coming from an island where temperatures are around 25ºC all year round. 

Although I've now been in Switzerland for one and a half years, I think I've only learned now how to appreciate and profit from its winter. And I'm going to miss it (did I really just write that?).

What's Spring going to bring to me?

Flower in Tenerife, Canary Islands

I'm obviously also excited about spring. Spring means flowers, bright skies, green fields, and people drinking and eating on terraces. A lot of Switzerland's attractions and hiking trails that will reopen during spring as well and my mission this spring is to get the most out of it. I want to really immerse in the country's culture and enjoy its natural landscapes so, unless weather is very bad, you can expect more posts on Switzerland coming in the next couple of months!

I'll obviously continue with my usual travels around Europe - next stops are Frankfurt and Düsseldorf this upcoming week, and Tenerife in about a month from now, so there will be no time for getting bored!

Do you have any plans for spring? 

What are you specially looking forward to this spring?