Laure and Quarup

I love festivals and Europe has plenty of them. Last year when our friend Dave enthusiastically recapped his experience at the Las Falles festival in Valencia, I was immediately intrigued. He told us about amazing statues that the locals light on fire in the middle of streets packed with spectators and the amazing firework shows at night. I had not heard of Las Falles before. Most websites highlighted the statue burnings on March 19th but showed little about the rest of the festival. We took a leap of faith and planned a 3.5 day trip to Valencia with our friend Peter. In the end, we couldn't have been happier about our decision.

Las Falles is Valancia's largest festival commemorating Saint Joseph. It takes place the week before March 20th, the official start of spring. The festival is famous for its final night of flammable statue burning throughout the city, but it has much more than that, especially during the two days leading up to the burning.

Here's a video provided by Museum of Las Fallas explaining more about the festival.

We flew into Barcelona from Zürich, stopping for a quick lunch break, before heading down the coast by train to Valencia. We arrived at a relatively quiet city. It does not have a party atmosphere like other popular festivals like Pamplona's Running of the Bulls. I started questioning our decision of coming to this festival. But within a few blocks' walk our decision was reassured when we spotted of sculptures, many people, and traditionally dressed Valencians.

A lunch stop in Barcelona for seafood Paella and sangria.

Falla sculpture about the Tomato Fight which takes place in a neighboring town.

I was already amazed with the craftsmanship.

As we got closer to our AirBnB apartment, the crowds thickened. Once we battled through crowds with our bags on cobblestone streets, cut across a parade, and lost ourselves a bit in the narrow streets, we eventually found the apartment in the center of town blocks away from the old cathedral square.

Looks like we can't pass through this part of the parade.

After dropping off our bags at the apartment, we were free to start exploring the city and grab a bite to eat before the evening's fireworks  show. Every restaurant seemed to have tables spilling out on to the narrow streets and many of the intersections or squares hosted a Falla sculpture - a feast for the stomach and eyes.

A common scene throughout the old town.

One of my favorite Falla statues. About 3 stories tall.

The Fallas take a satiric jab at public figures and on current issues. Most Fallas are accompanied with explanations written in the local dialect.

We really enjoyed viewing the artistic craftsmanship, despite not fully understanding the message behind some of the Fallas.

During the four nights leading up to March 19th, Valencia hosts an elaborate firework show in the central park, Paseo de la Alameda, at 1:30AM or 2AM. We caught the third night's firework display - which blew our minds. Peter mentioned how the fireworks halfway through the show matched a typical event's grand finale. We were flabbergasted when the actual grand finale did come.

A teaser of what to expect halfway through the show.

Peter is ready to party - I mean, he's ready for the show.

City Hall's Falla with one of the first explosives going off just beyond.

The sky behind city hall is quickly disappearing. Eventually the smoke completely blocked the sky and sun around the statue.

Later in the afternoon, we once again stumbled upon the parade, now with more time to appreciate it. The parade is called Ofrenda de Flores a la Virgen de los Desamparados and takes place on the 17th and 18th from 4PM until 1AM. Falleras families from all over Valencia State parade together along with their local traditional marching band to the city square, Plaza de la Virgen. The women present an offering of a bouquet of carnations to the Virgin. Flowers are gathered and used to create a large statue of the Virgin. Unlike the Fallas statues, the Virgin does not share the same fiery fate.

Traditional hairstyle worn by every lady...

even the smallest of ladies.

All generations come out for the event...

deep into the night.

To accompany the parade: chocolate-dipped cream-filled churros.

Not too far off the city center is Museum of Las Fallas. Each year, two ninots (small Fallas statues) are elected by popular vote to be saved from the burnings and displayed here. The museum is open year round displaying ninots and posters from the last century. Works are presented in chronological order giving visitors a glimpse of how the style progressed.

One of the many rooms of this simple museum. Worth the time and nominal fee to check out.

Display on the construction of the paper-mâché ninots.

This one deserves a closer look

To no surprise, a lot of our free time was spent aimlessly wandering the streets snapping photos of Fallas. There are supposed to be more then 700 Fallas sculptures throughout the city. Many Casal falles set up tents adjacent to their sculptures selling drinks, creating a mini party that sometimes carries on late into the night.

We didn't stick around long for the last night's firework show. The streets surrounding the central park were too crowded to see much. This was one of the many times we were glad we arrived a few days before the vast majority of the visitors. Instead we walked around the city, chowed down festival food, checked out the street graffiti art and more Falla statues - I'm sure you're shocked with that last one. We also found a lively Casal Falles tent and joined their party. We bought a couple drink tickets and hung out with the locals listening to the DJ.

Valancia has a seemingly never ending supply of Fallas to admire.

Valencians are also artistic in other mediums.

Fresh doughnuts.

Sleep is overrated when fried goodness with chocolate dipping sauce is available.

With each passing day, getting out of bed became harder and harder, especially for Peter who was still recovering from jet lag. The 8AM walk up call didn't make things any easier. Q and I made it out to the day time firework show again - along with the rest of southern Spain. We were shocked by the number of people trying to get into the square - and later trying to get out of the square. Even though a different group put on the show, it was pretty much the same as the day before, just as impressive and loud.

We were pleasantly surprised that most tourists were Spaniards.

Walking around afterwards, we realized the two day creation of the floral Virgin statue was finished and spectators were allowed to have a close-up view and pay their respects.

"Close-up" being a generous word considering the crowds

Impressed or wishing he had slept in?

Thankful for no pollen allergies.

Since the city was now incredibly crowded, we stuck close to our apartment for lunch - which turned out to be our favorite meal. We settled into an outdoor table of a small restaurant on a narrow alley serving a delicious set menu accompanied with sangria. We must have been there for hours enjoying Valencia style paella (using chicken, rabbit, and beans) and indulging on numerous pitchers of sangria.

Our apartment just to the left of the fork and our favorite lunch spot just to the right.

Our favorite meal in Valencia

We spent most of the early evening walking around the city searching for the street light display with no luck. Eventually we gave up and picked a spot close to the end of the fire parade route at Cabalgata del Fuego. This was one of the most unique parades we had ever seen with a grand finale of fireworks at the end point.

We weren't sure what to expect but this wasn't it.

The parade turned out to have lots of people... with fireworks...

and a few parade floats.... with fireworks.

After two full days on our feet, we were pretty burned out and more than happy to park our butts at an outdoor restaurant table where we filled up on tapas and local wine. Considering all the wondering we did, it felt like we didn't have enough time or energy to see everything. The festival ended up being larger than we had anticipated.

Found a perfect place to people watch in Plaza de Doctor Collado and re-energize for the long night.

We had already picked out a few Fallas that we were interested in seeing burned; all close to each other in the old town. Not all statues are burned at once. Burnings are staggered, allowing firefighters time to get to react. It also gives us an opportunity to watch multiple burnings. After getting some tips from the local Casal Falles, we made a rough schedule of which order Falla burnings we would be able to witness.

The first Fallas to be burned are the children's, starting at 10AM. Statues are soaked with gasoline and wrapped in a network of firecrackers. After a short ceremony, fireworks are set off and the children's Fallas are ignited. Within 30 minutes, a year of hard work is gone, making room for the cycle to start again.

Ceremonial lighting for the Fallera children.

But before we light the Falla - you guessed it - fireworks.

The children watch until there is nothing left of their creation.

At midnight the larger Fallas start igniting. Fireworks can be heard from  the distance signifying the start of another burning, which constantly reminded me of how large this festival was. We got lucky and our first burning was unforgettable. The gasoline-soaked statue quickly ignited sending out a wave a heat, forcing spectators to step back. The whole experience was intense.

Setting up the string of firecrackers around the Falla

It begins with fieworks.

Letting it crash and burn to the ground.

We were able to watch two more smaller burnings before catching the grand finale, the Crema. As great as watching the Crema burn, we enjoyed watching the smaller Fallas burn in the narrow streets much more. We felt more connected with the Casal Falles groups; watching the group ignite the Falla and then watching their reactions as their creations disappeared.

Spectators and firemen ready

Here we waited for the third burning of the night. Since no one knows just exactly how the fire will take down this statue, a larger area was cleared for the burning.

Setting up this smaller burning. "Smaller" being around 30 feet high.

Falleros admiring their creation one last time.

And the crowd goes wild.

Burned down to the structure.

And finally, the Crema. The crowd was so dense that we couldn't get close to the burning. In fact, we were lucky to even get into Plaza del Mercado where the Falla was set up.

Entering the plaza to see this massive sculpture and crowd

A little midnight snack before the finial fire.

Even if you're too short to see the burning, you can watch it later on your phone.

The enormous fire sent flaming ashes into the crowds

The next morning we set out by train to Barcelona, where we caught our flight back to Zürich. Most of the fire debris was cleaned up during the night and Valencia had already fallen back into the rhythm of a normal Thursday.

We stopped for an Après Ski drink of Glühwein. The leis were a nice touch, but it was not quite Hawaiian weather.

Breaking 1,000 meters at the Mattjisch Horn

The following weekend, we tackled Mattjisch Horn. The weather was cold and gray, and the snow was wind scoured. But it was Laure's first climb over a thousand meters in a single tour (1,183 to be exact). This was a good enough reason to celebrate!

Pirigin, the last town at the tree line.

Much of the tour above the tree line is a boring monotonous slope.

The tiny white sign at the bottom says "Mattjisch Horn 2461 m". The yellow signs show the distance to nearby towns and huts in number of hiking hours.

Our first European hut experience at Lötschental

On the following weekend, we joined a trip with a Meetup group called Swiss Alpine Adventure. They set up tours led by professional mountain guides that knows the area well. Unfortunately, the visibility was terrible on the first day. The howling winds quickly stripped the heat off our bodies near the ridges. Even so, we were able to get some nice runs before heading over to the hut.

Some snowboarders from one of the other groups were struggling badly while touring in low visibility on wind scoured snow. Our guide decided to have us accompany the other group in case they needed help in an emergency -- a solid prudent decision. We were very glad when we arrived at the warm hut, which was the first one Laure and I visited for an overnight stay in Europe!

Our arrival at the hut during the not so pleasant conditions.

Up until this point, the only alpine hut Laure and I had stayed was Refugio Frey in Argentina, where they provided basic services including a restroom without running water located in a separate building. Other than that, we had only snow camped.

This was way more comfortable. As we learned, the Alps contain hundreds of huts, many of which are as comfortable and clean as a nice hostel in a regular city. The standard half-board price includes a delicious family style dinner plus a basic breakfast. You will not find a better deal in Switzerland!

Well-heated dormitory style bedrooms.

Sharing a well-earned meal with our new friends.

Delicious pasta and pork to fuel us for the next day.

Next day, we made our way down to a nearby village. Luckily, the wind came down a bit and the visibility improved. My favorite part was crossing a tiny image perfect Swiss alpine village on our way to pick up a bus back to the original ski area.

Notice the little village near the horizon. We sighted a few of these tiny villages scattered on the mountains.

At the end of the run, we crossed through this tiny quaint village with smell of farm animals.

After getting back to the original ski area, we waited out the bad weather and practiced avalanche rescue drills. Eventually the clouds cleared and we spent the last few hours skiing off-piste with the aid of ski lifts -- this is what Europeans call "free riding".

Hard to beat the views.

Skiing over to Italy -- Rifugio Maria Luisa

Our next adventure started in the southern region of the Swiss alps named Ticino, which received record high snowfall this season. We started at the little Swiss town of All'Acqua and toured across the border to Italy to stay overnight at Rifugio Maria Luisa.

Snow levels reminded us of the West Coast.

Beautiful weather, although the skin track felt like a hiking trail.

We came across several other groups; although most people stayed in the Swiss side of the border.

Since most people stayed in the Swiss side, Laure and I ended up breaking our own trail after a certain point. As we had low resolution topography maps, we ended up taking a very non-direct 12 kilometer route through the undulating terrain. Fortunately, the weather was amazing.

Our destination was a hut built to house construction workers of the nearby dam many years ago. In recent times, the hut has become a lodge for ski tourers in the winter and hikers in the summer.

The dam at Lago Toggia. The peak in the back is Kastelhorn. The pass on the left is Kastellücke.

Finally in sight of the hut!

Even a remote Italian hut provides good espresso.

Another awesome meal among new friends.

At the hut, we got a lot of tips from the locals. Many of them had detailed maps with all the nearby ski touring routes including descriptions and difficulty ratings. The map even shows which routes are snowboard-friendly. This is when I realized how much time we would have saved by studying this map earlier. Although Laure and I already had some of these ski touring maps for other regions, this experience convinced us to get them for every new region we explored.

Detailed ski touring map with route descriptions and difficulty levels.

I made notes of the recommended routes from others' maps.

What did the fox say?

Many people in the hut decided to wake up at around 5am to summit the tallest peak in the region -- Basòdino. Laure and I were not so ambitious and decided to slowly make our way back to All'Acqua. Unfortunately the terrain was very undulating, which made traveling a bit of a slog for us snowboarders. Although it would have been possible to summit a small nearby peak, Laure and I decided instead to get a tiramisu at a nearby restaurant that our friend Ralf recommended.

Shadows show the jaggedness of Swiss Alp peaks

Laure's Rooster Tail.

We were well rewarded for ending our tour early.

In hindsight our tour would have been more enjoyable if done in three days instead of two days. That would have given us a full day to play around the surrounding peaks without stress. Since we traveled slowly between the town and the hut, we did not get enough time to enjoy much actual skiing. We'll keep this in mind for next time.

Visiting the "local" peak Mutteristock

Mutteristock is the peak where many people from Zürich visit for a quick climb, since the trailhead is only an hour away by car. We hooked up with our friend Eleanor, whom we had met from the Swiss Alpine Adventure club. Frankly, we had planned to climb a neighboring peak, Redertenstock, but we missed the fork on the trail since most people were going to Mutteristock. Oops.

Getting ready at the trailhead.

The lower parts were tree covered. We had to walk our stuff in sections with too little snow.

Eleanor writing our story in the "guestbook" at the top of the mountain. Many mountains in the Alps have crosses at the peaks.

Redertenstock.

Since the visibility and snow were pretty terrible near the peak, we decided to take the safest way down, which was invariably the way we had climbed. In the lower parts, we came down some open fields, some of which seemed to have more rocks than snow.

Are we skiing or mountain biking?

I look forward to going back on a season with more snow.

Joining James Bonds at the Schilthorn

We joined another trip with the Swiss Alpine Adventure to explore the Bernese Oberland area. We started by a few trams up to the top of Schilthorn, which is where part of the James Bond movie "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" was shot. From there, we hiked on a formidable ridge westward in search of some nice north-facing powder.

My name is Bond. James Bond.

Setting out westward from the Schilthorn.

One of several rock scrambles on the ridge.

Coming down the top section was not the most pleasant thing in the world.

Surreal.

Our friend Esty ripping some turns.

That's my wife.

Upon reaching the valley floor, we toured back to civilization. We moved slowly as it was someone's first tour, but we made it back alright. Towards the end of the day, we hit some terrible breakable crust snow like I had never experienced before. It is crazy to think about how drastically the conditions can change at different elevations and times of day in the Alps.

Map

The actual GPS tracks can be found here.

The culture of ski touring

One of the benefits of ski touring in Switzerland has been the ubiquity of the transportation system even in remote mountainous regions.

Trains have a special section for storing skis and snowboards. Notice these are all touring skis -- most of them with super lightweight Dynafit bindings. The two lonely snowboards on the right are Laure's and mine.

Ski touring truly seems like a national sport in Switzerland. It is popular among both genders from ages 20 and up, whereas in most other places it is primarily popular among 25 to 35 year old males. We come across women in their 50s climbing mountains to earn their turns. And if you talk to any Swiss people about ski touring, you can assume they know exactly what you are talking about.

Laure was excited to finally tour with other spiltboarding ladies in Bernese Oberland.

Stay tuned: Ortler

In some ways, much of our ski touring this winter was in preparation for a big trip with our friend Peter in Ortler, which is in the Italian region of South Tyrol. That deserves a blog post of its own.