Clicquot in the Snow

There has been so much snow in the northeast its actually getting quite ridiculous. I think all of us up here have entered this weird state of mind where we are still shocked that we get at least 2-4 inches every 2-3 days but at the same time expect this uninvited party guest by this point. This past weekend was quite more, picking up 20 inches where I was. 

Fortunately I was able to escape the slushy, unable to walk around, city and get into the suburbs and buckle down for this big winter storm. With so much snow, I have learned to just embrace it and go with it because we will not be seeing a blade of grass any time soon. 

With Valentine's Day right after the big storm, what better way to celebrate than with a little champagne of course? Well we took advantage of the feet of snow on the ground, a warm fire, pretended we were in Aspen perhaps, and made the best of it. I cannot complain about a little (or a magnum) of Clicquot in the snow!

How did you celebrate?

Down the Slopes

Greetings from Aspen! I am all about trying new things and this week is no exception. I came on this trip having never skied in my life, ever. I could not pass up the opportunity to learn how to ski on the mountains of Aspen. Thus, I booked myself into a 3 day school ski with day 1 already completed.
I chose to ski Buttermilk Mountain which is one of the best beginner mountains out there. My instructor told me about the well groomed and forgiving snow. Buttermilk is also home to the X-Games which will be getting underway in late January. Its pretty awesome skiing next to the half-pipe where Shaun White wins gold medals.
I have to admit, I was a bit nervous when I clipped into my skis and was about to head down the virtually slope-less starting point. My instructor taught me how to properly make turns and I practiced on this very low slope run until I became more comfortable. We then moved to the chair lift and the "powder panda" slope which was a bit larger to continue to work on my turns. Yes, I did fall quite a few times! All in all I fell less than I expected.
By the end of the day, however, I was riding on the chair lift that goes to the top of the mountain and skiing on a green run down the mountain. I couldn't believe it! After only one day and never having skied before, I was at the top of the mountain....I was impressed with myself :)
Is skiing my new calling? Perhaps, but it is definitely something I would like to add to my hobby list!

View from the top of Buttermilk Mountain

Dinner at Gemma

Upon starting school, I developed this huge fear of "freshmen 15." I became so careful of what I ate, mainly sticking to salads, fruits, and vegetarian options. Fortunately for me, I actually lost weight my first year.

You can drive yourself nuts over watching what you eat. Sometimes we just need to indulge a little, and I did just that the other night. Some friends and I went to Gemma at the Bowery Hotel. You may remember a little about the Bowery Hotel from this post a little while back.

Gemma is a classic Italian restaurant. They are famous for their thin crust pizzas, and the pasta is cooked to perfection. The inside has a very inviting rustic feeling with lots of wood and dim chandelier lighting.

I snapped some pictures from our night at Gemma with my Blackberry..hence the poor quality