The Sublime Alpine

In which I consider dropping out to move to the Alps

I spent the last week of February feeling as though I was living inside of a Windows screensaver, and spent my 21st birthday skiing the Swiss Alps. It was our mid-semester break, and the girls and I tagged along with some very gracious parents to Switzerland for the week. It’s been so high on my bucket list to do a ski trip during second semester and this break is the perfect time of year. I had the most incredible week—I’ve concluded that I can label every trip as “the best one yet” simply because they’re all unique and perfect for a myriad of reasons.

We spent our first two nights in Zürich, stumbling into the tail end of a festival that resulted in a twenty-piece band in full costume playing in the square right outside our hotel window at night. We stood out on the balcony in our pajamas and danced. It was less of a good time when they struck up again at 12:30 am, but I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time. The next morning we hoarded free samples from the Lindt factory, and though almost every store was closed on Sunday, we popped in a few, my favorite being a specialty grocery store called Berg und Tal, which stocked everything from locally brewed gin to local coffee beans. I particularly appreciated all of the beautiful Oriel windows in Zürich—I’m not sure if that’s a common architectural design element of the city, but they looked straight out of a movie. That night, we found an unassuming little bar called Marea Cocktailbar, which ended up having the best ambiance and such unique drinks, lots of Amy Winehouse, and the perfect place to play cards.

We made the hour-and-a-half drive to Andermatt the next afternoon, the last fifteen minutes driving up the switchbacks and into the snow like driving into a Bond villain’s lair (I think parts of Goldfinger were filmed there). The Andermatt resort was acquired by Vail and added to the Epic Pass only last year, so while there are already more Americans than normal, it still feels a bit like a ghost town. There were no lift lines, the runs were often wide open, the town was quiet, and it felt like a true locals-only hideaway in the Alps. It was perfect.

New favorite coffee shop, town at night, and happy as a clam.

We spent almost four full days skiing and I was reminded why so many people drop out of college to become ski bums. I grew up skiing, spending my high school ski club in the icy East Coast darkness, taking family trips out west or up to Canada, or else taking day trips with my brother to the small mountains in PA just for fun. Even though I consider myself a pretty decent skier, I think this trip might have been my turning point—maybe it was the empty mountains, but I felt more capable and more willing to play around.

Andermatt is the most expansive resort I’ve ever been to, spanning five mountains. There is also Gemmstock, a separate mountain on the other side of the town, which ended up being my personal favorite. On our second day, a couple of us chose the top of Gemmstock as our first run, stepping out of the gondola onto the literal tip of a mountain, the wind blowing sparkling snow into our eyes. The sun wasn’t yet high enough to crest the ridge but it was a bluebird day, the snow still corduroy and soft drifts; we must have been the second or third group up. And that first run… I rode tiny catwalks under the ridges, coming up on the steep sections and not pausing except to take a deep breath and blink through the bright white, dropping in to carve my way down until I was halfway and then bombing the rest. I could not stop literally grinning from ear to ear and I may or may not have shed a happy tear. It’s kind of completely overwhelming to feel so small in such all-encompassing beauty. I’m going to be thinking about that run for a long, long time.

The remainder of the week was filled with hours of skiing, then going out to our favorite spot, Alt Apothek, for a Hugo Spritz and a card game before dinner in the evening. We ate goldfish on the lifts, fell in the slush, squeezed into the après ski bar car on the train, reveled in the good weather, skied one of the longest runs in Europe maybe too many drinks in, found the coolest coffee bar and ski company called Made In, and Stella and Emma attempted to ski under each other’s legs and failed more than they succeeded and I laughed so hard I almost skied off the run. I had forgotten how much fun it was to ski with friends.

A run in Andermatt. I wish this turned out half as incredible as it looked in person.

I read this article on Andermatt in Travel + Leisure and knew if there was anything I absolutely had to do (besides ski all day every day), it was to pay a visit to the Sockenfenster, a walk-up sock shop, if you can imagine anything more delightful. It does not exist on Google or Maps and you must ring a bell to even be let inside the tiny store, which fits maybe three people, four if you’re not in ski jackets. The owner, an elderly man, does not speak a word of English and only takes cash (we had to Google Translate how to tell him we’d be back with money) and hand-knits everything in the store with merino wool. I bought a pair of socks in beautiful dark navy and they might be one of the best things I’ve ever purchased on a trip. Also, he gives you chocolate when you purchase a pair.

Between socks and skis, birthdays and bars, I’m filled with such gratitude for everything I got to experience this past week. As for the year ahead, I’m looking forward to another year of trying my hardest and coming to realize that things are rarely that big of a deal. Though I look at the progression of my 20s with some trepidation, I think it’s best to approach it like I did that run on Gemmstock: headfirst, and grinning.

My latest for Hearing Aid: A 7-Year-Old Has Better Music Taste Than You, an article on the absolutely genius sound design and music supervision for Big Little Lies’ 6th anniversary.

My latest for ST.ART: Mid-Century Magic: The Stahl House, an article on one of my favorite pieces of architecture and the really neat story behind it.

My catalog of HerCampus articles can be found here—I write fairly often but not on anything particularly earth-shattering, so I don’t usually include them here!

This fabulous interview with New York Times crossword editor Will Shortz. This man is an absolute national treasure—come for the background of a puzzle legend and stay for the crossword toilet paper he keeps in his bathroom. I had no idea what Shortz even looked like before reading this article but I see his name on my NYT crossword app literally every day. This interview is probably my favorite thing I read this month and it is 100% worth reading in its entirety.

I didn’t finish anything that really blew my mind (perhaps I’m still reeling from my completion of Bunny) but I did complete some solid reads. The Circle by Dave Eggers was subtly terrifying—a commentary on what it would be like if tech companies ruled everything and full transparency were implemented (like broadcasting your every move type transparency), it was freaky because it seems genuinely plausible. I love good dystopian/sci-fi, but Eggers’s world was one I am not eager to experience.

A Pulitzer Prize winner, The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Diaz was honestly not what I expected it to be. I’m not sure the style of writing and use of language was my favorite, but it was different and I liked that. Its core theme being family, and focusing on the Dominican American demographic, the majority of the history and lifestyle the author described was completely new to me and I appreciated that a learned a lot of culture and history I hadn’t previously paid much attention to.

I’ve been using an app called Libby where you can link your library card and take out ebooks, and since the SJM books have month-long waits, I started reading the Shadow and Bone series by Leigh Bardugo. I’m not usually a big fan of fantasy sprinkled with romance, and while this wasn’t the best thing I’ve ever read, I finished the trilogy and found it truly entertaining. It’s kind of nice to read alongside my school work, or the heavier stuff I find myself picking up.

I started and finished One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid on the plane home and it might be one of my new favorites by her. I fear this may be because the romance depicted is egregiously unrealistic. This is why I don’t read romance: my standards are already too high. Character-wise, though Sam is practically perfect, it’s Emma’s parents who set the bar so high—their moments were genuinely my favorite to read.

The first night in Zürich we had a late night dinner at Santa Lucia which was right down the street from our hotel, where a post-plane pasta and a spritz were much needed. Franzos Coffee Shop is a sweet French coffee spot where we paused to escape the parade and warm up, and the crepes smelled amazing. Some of the most traditional Swiss food I ate was at the Rheinfelder Bierhalle, whose name should tell you all you need to know. Pork sausage with onion gravy and hashbrowns, schnitzel, and rosti, they had the works and it was all hearty and incredible.

I think the meal we raved about the most in Andermatt was literally the salad we got mid-mountain at one of the cafeterias because they had the most beautiful lettuce at the salad bar. It looked like it had been plucked off the head mere moments before! I don’t know what the place was called specifically, but let it be known that Milez mountain has the best lettuce I’ve had in months. We had pizzas and beers at Spycher, a rustic bar that was also a popular apres spot. Monopol was a great meal one night, as they had an incredible pizza oven and Emma ordered the most incredible saffron risotto that our flat will be recreating ASAP. We ate dinner at Tell on my birthday; the owner is a gem and will wax poetic about how great his wife is, and the menu’s South African influences are so unique. And it wouldn’t be Switzerland without fondue, which we had at Ochesen. I love trying as much authentic or iconic food as possible when in a new country and I think we succeeded on this trip.

Back in our flat, things have been low-key on the food front. We made Shakshuka this month, which is such a fun breakfast and about five million times more simple than I expected it to be. I think we just pulled the first recipe we could find off the internet, adding crumbled feta, herbs, avocado, and toast for embellishment. It’s a simple and unique breakfast or brunch.

It’s so fun to have a special school day breakfast sometimes.

The three of us also hosted the sweetest little Valentine’s Day brunch for about fourteen girls and it was one of the best mornings, everyone loading up on food and coffee and conversation. I made a double batch of cinnamon rolls and everybody brought contributions, so we had a feast with banana bread, every kind of fruit, bacon, homemade bagels, breakfast cake, and mimosas. I don’t remember half of it because I was dulled to about a third of my personality because of cold medication, as I think I had the flu and refused to acknowledge it. Oops.

Seven songs for skiing.

Whole Lotta Love by Led Zeppelin

Don’t Shoot Shotgun by Def Leppard

Highway Tune by Greta Van Fleet

Shoot to Thrill by AC/DC

Rope by Foo Fighters

Running with the Devil by Van Halen

Lay it Down by Ratt

I usually have an earbud in when I ski, so I’ve been listening to a lot of rock and a lot of rap. Def Leppard’s album Hysteria is always my go-to for skiing; every single song on that album bangs. When we took a ski trip to Telluride many years ago it was all I listened to and has become synonymous with an adrenaline rush. I think Def Leppard might be one of my absolute favorite 80s bands—I saw them live in concert with Journey several years ago and it was just too good.

My 90’s hip-hop is usually queued up as well with the classics: 2Pac, Quest, Wu-Tang, Snoop, etc. I am also very partial to my 2014-2016 era of explicit bangers, transporting me back to high school ski club, or the Utah ski trip when I was 16 where I only listened to Flume’s album Skin on repeat (“Smoke & Retribution” will forever make me think of the exact drive from the house to Snowbasin). Most of my skiing music is embarrassing, so I will not elaborate on specifics, but the feeling of hitting a run with Joe Elliot yelling “Gods of War” in my ear is unmatched.

Christophe Robin Purifying Scrub. This is the best scalp scrub. I love to use it in conjunction with my Ouai detox shampoo, so my scalp and hair feel squeaky clean before I go in with my regular shampoo and conditioner. I’ve always found double shampooing to be particularly nice, it just feels like a clean palette before I try to soften and moisturize. A little of this goes such a long way—I’ve had mine for ages.

Le Pens. It appears that I really love my writing implements, as pens have once again made an appearance on MMM. Le Pens are elegant and tiny and come in like four million colors, and I find them best for writing little thank-you notes or adding some color to lists. It’s nice to look down at my grocery sticky note and be greeted by a shock of bright pink.

The artwork of Zoe Young. I discovered Zoe Young on one of my deeper Pinterest dives (curating Pinterest boards is my most useless gift) and was instantly obsessed—the way she captures still life is so imbued with life and whimsical but so elegant. She hails from Australia and grew up traveling far and wide and I love this interview with her in the LM Journal, which describes her art as “casting an alchemy over everyday objects,” which truly is the best way of putting it. She’s an artist whose work I would love to own someday.

Young in her studio, photography by Jasper Glavanics.

Things I acquired in Switzerland.

1. A pair of socks from the Sockenfenster

2. Rock candy that looks like the Swiss flag, from our hotel

3. A classic red Victorinox Swiss Army Knife

4. Striped sugar packets from a coffee shop

5. A four-day ski pass and two bruised shins

6. A dark chocolate Toblerone

7. Three rolls of film, likely just selfies of us on the lifts

8. Too many dark chocolate truffles from the Lindt factory

9. Birthday cards my friends brought over for me

10. A set of beautiful Caran D’Ache Swiss wood pencils that I love and adore

Thank you all for reading this month and apologies for the long delay—with a full travel day on Saturday and two midterms due days later, I didn’t have the time I wanted to dedicate to doing Andermatt literary justice! In that vein, there are undoubtedly more typos than usual, so please pretend they don’t exist.

Sending much love and minimal madness to everyone this March!

I sometimes post on Instagram @gracerobrts!

My Goodreads is here and I am always looking for reading recommendations.

My Apple Music is @gracecroberts, where my playlists are regularly updated and cared for.

If you should need to contact me for any other reason, or just want to say hi, my email is gracecroberts@gmail.com, and my inbox is always in need of some extra love.

See you next month!

Sincerely yours,

Grace