A ski season Down Under in Thredbo

View from BlackBear

I know I haven’t written anything in a while, it turns out that life Down Under is pretty busy. I’ve almost been here two months now and I’ve eased quickly into the Aussie way of life. Most people don’t know that Australia gets snow, never mind that you can ski here, which is what I’m doing for the winter, a ski season in the Snowy Mountains.

25 hours of flying found me, somewhat tired in Sydney International Airport. From there I caught a bus to Canberra where my sister, her partner and my adorable nephew picked me up. It was a bit bizarre coming from the British summer, to a warmer autumn in Australia. The trees were turning brown and red and the grass was no longer fresh and green. The further we ventured into the mountains towards Thredbo the cooler it got until we could see snow peaked mountains and finally we had arrived.

As you can imaging village life in the mountains is a major change from the hustle and bustle of London – one that I’m thoroughly enjoying – and time is totally different, so it feels like I’ve been here a lot longer than just two months.

BlackBear Inn

When I left Ireland after university I swore I would never go back to waitressing and working in hospitality. That vow lasted a few years and now I’m back working as a waitress and I have to say it’s a very welcome change for now from a 9 to 5 desk job. I’m currently  living and working in BlackBear Inn, a lodge, restaurant and bar in Thredbo. It’s located up a pretty steep hill, which when it’s snowy and icy is the cause of a lot of stacks and cars driving into walls, it also ensures that I’m kept in pretty good shape. It’s a great little place; amazing food, great people and a fun bar which is filled with locals in the evening, there is always plenty of company to chat to

BlackBear possum

and have a few drinks and shots with after work. We also have a resident possum at BlackBear – actually there are two of them but they look exactly the same – who come during dinner every evening in hope of some food. They are a real attraction with the guests, in particular the children.

Skiing

So far it’s been a slow season, only recently we had a proper few days on end of snow and it transformed the mountain, which now looks amazing and skiing is so much better. But more snow also means that we get busier in the restaurant and I have more hours to work. Despite that I still get plenty of time in the afternoon

Thredbo ski runs

to go up the hill for a few runs before my next shift. Having only skied once before when I was 16, I pretty much started from scratch again and two months into the season, I’m doing pretty good, at least I think so!

As for food, Thredbo has lots to offer but so far aside from my sister’s kitchen, BlackBear and the local pub I haven’t eaten out much. Being German/Austrian in origin, our best selling dish at BlackBear is the trio of schnitzel served on mash with coleslaw and cranberry sauce, it’s pretty epic and tastes great. The lodge next door does raclette and cheese fondue, proper European snow dishes which I’m dying to try out one evening. And being in Australia and in the snow, beer flows in abundance as do the shots, most of which come from the local Wildbrumby Schnapps Distillery, which makes amazing schnapps.

There will be more frequent blogs in the coming weeks I promise but for now this is a brief download of life in the snow in Australia.