Scenic Andorra



The country is mountainous.  With mountains comes skiing.  The country used to have the reputation of a laid back low cost ski holiday for the English and Europeans.  Part of the cost appeal was cheap lift tickets and budget self catering accommodations.  Then about a decade and a half go things changed.

Upscale condos appeared along with 4 and 5 star hotels.  Luxury spas followed.  Andorra's smaller ski areas were merged together and massive investments made in improvements until there were only two ski areas in the whole country.  One of them, Grandvalira, is the world's 30th largest ski resort with more than 120 miles of compacted snow trails.  Its 66 lifts, which include 20 high-speed detachable quad and six-seater chairlifts, along with three gondolas, give a combined uplift of more than 100,000 skiers per hour – a combination of speed and capacity matched by less than a dozen resorts worldwide.

 Here are several photos from Soldeu which hosted the 2012 Women's World Cup races.




With buildable land at such a premium
it's not uncommon to see buildings perched like this



At times it appears that buildings sit atop each other




But there is plenty of rural scenery to be appreciated as you drive throughout the country.


Changing gears a bit, Bryna asked why there weren't any food and wine pictures.  Part of the reason is that I am trying to lose weight.  Lugging  25 or so extra pounds up a mountain trail compounds the difficulty of getting to the top and at times my heart and lungs complain to no end.  My solution for the better part of the month has been to stay in apartments where I can cook, mostly vegetarian.

 Having said that, 'man cannot live by bread alone'.  Witness an impromptu tapas out of the fridge with different olives, jamon crudo, goat and brie cheese, and of course some baguette, all to be washed down with a glass or two  of lusty red.


Then there was a dinner to celebrate my 6 mile hike at 6,000 feet.  It took place at one of the top ten Andorran steak houses who dry age their prime beef. 

Finally, a whimsical note.  This is a display in the lobby of one of the Soldeu 4 star hotels.  Whoever put this together must have had a 'Kermit' fixation.




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