snowboarding

Building a snowman, making a snow angel, tobogganing (a.k.a. sledding), skiing, skating (click here to read related blog entry regarding skating), and snowboarding are some of the activities that I’ve been looking forward to in this Winter Wonderland.

snowman
building a snowman

snowangel
making a snow angel

tobogganning
tobogganning a.k.a. sledding

Skier
skiing

During the trip to Table Mountain, I enlisted for a snowboarding lesson together with the other VendAsta peepz.  There were more or less a dozen of us in the group and from the looks of it, I was the only one who had difficulty in getting things done the right way.

Hmmm… Either I was a slow learner, or not flexible enough, or a scaredy cat… or all of the above! Sigh… It was sooo frustrating!  Jellybean blames the boots… they wouldn’t stay tight and I guess that makes it hard to control the board?

Below are some of the snapshots of the trip:

Gearing up!

snowboarding 2013- gear up- 002
prepping…

snowboarding Lesson
gingerly trying the snowboard…

snowboarding 2013 -  003
Nathan pushing me with his snowboard…

snowboarding 2013 - bunny hill 007
up the bunny hill where the action begins..

Snowboarding down from the bunny hill

bear-snowboarding
VendAsta bear: “Watch and learn”

snowboarding
how I wish I can snowboard like this

snowboarding 2013 012
slowly going down the bunny hill…

snowboarding 2013
finally… down the bunny hill…

One last pose and… done!

snowboarding 2013 016
at last! after one million years…

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done for the day

After a long and tiring day… I was experiencing all kinds of aches and pains. Snowboarding is fun if you are “light” I guess… I felt like I was too heavy to even stand up with the snowboard on my feet. Or is it maybe because I was so bundled up with all the layers that I have on? Hmmm…

Nevertheless… I’ll be back! Skiing will be the next goal! Hell yeah! Just like Nike’s famous tag line says, “Just do it!”.  😀

snow!

It’s always been my childhood dream to see a real snow and experience the four seasons (Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall).  I lived most of my life in the Philippines and few years in Singapore wherein it’s summer most of the time!

Winter just ended when I went to Europe but I did experience Spring for three months. So, I still have Winter and Fall in my bucket list. Also, I promised myself that when I see a real snow, I will definitely take a pinch and savor the taste. Ha! Pardon my naivety. I am what I am. 😉

Following Big Bro’s master plan, I quietly migrated to North America during Winter time!  It was crazy in a way because there were different timezones in every airport I went to for my connecting flights. Thus, my body clock was in a total chaos and I reached my destination absolutely stressed out… for a moment. :p

Stress was replaced with unconcealed childlike grin and excitement! My cousin picked me up at the airport together with her family. She told me that my “Matrix” coat is for Spring and is not thick enough for the Winter. My “Matrix” look had to wait (sorry Majestic Mom!). 😉

When we arrived at their house, I took a pinch of snow on top of her other car and tasted it. It reminded me of the ice in Chowking’s halo halo (Filipino dessert).  It’s absolutely delicious and refreshing! Wohooo!

snow… in front of the house…

Previously, I never bothered to do it because the season was either sunny or rainy, warm or cold. I always bring small umbrella anyway. That would suffice back then. 😀 In a four season country, I learned that it’s a must to know the weather forecast so that you will know how to plan your outfit (how many layers), what jacket to wear (how thick or thin it is), if you will need mittens, etc.

Time flies… Spring is just around the corner and it will be Summer soon! I’ve noticed that a lot of locals love summer! However, for me, I anticipate Fall, Winter and Spring rather than the Summer.  I’ve had my fair share of Summer in this lifetime, I think. -_-  I was told that I will change my mind in a year or two. We’ll see.

Next winter, I will definitely make my own snow angel and snowman. Yabadabadoo!!!!