• Cheap (one couple are saving for a wedding)
• Easy to get to from Dublin – regular flights and short transfers
• Good for snowboarding (not just skiing)
• Lots of beginner slopes
• No button lifts (okay for skiers, but a pain in the hole for snowboarders, literally)
• English-speaking
• Good night life

So it was looking like we  were going to Livigno because it has most of the above including cheap drink but the transfer from Bergamo is an epic 4hrs or so allegedly. And the thought of that, particularly with a hangover on the way home was putting me off. So I asked around and heard about Kleinwalsertal and by extension, Oberstdorf. It is almost unknown in Ireland but one of the top resorts for anyone in Germany. It’s a little town  nestled in a valley surrounded by three or more mountains in the German Alps on the border with Austria.

Location: http://ypp.ie/ZF (using your pinpoints.com)

My friend were a bit dubious but after reading this thread on boards.ie about Oberstdorf, they were convinced. Ryanair fly Dublin-Memmingen and from there it’s 1:20 on a train to Oberstdorf. Only €28 per ticket (Bayern Ticket) and that covers up to 5 people.  The only thing is the trains are every 2hrs so we killed some time having a sandwich and coke.

We stayed with Stefanie Blattner Ferienwohnungsvermietung which was very handy for picking up the keys just across from the train station but our apartments were about 20min walk from the bus/train station. Carrying snowboards to the bus station every day takes its toll. Next time, we’d pick something more central.  The apartments themselves were ideal – spacious, lots of hot water and comfy couches.

The gear we rented was very disappointing. We reserved online with InterSport Huber and when 9 of us arrived in the shop, it was all too much for them and it was a little chaotic. The most serious complaint we had was that they tried to give a tiny board to one of the girls in our group. It was too short, too narrow and the boots didn’t even fit on properly. As it was 6.30 the doors were closed before we could refuse again  but the next day, we marched back in and got our money back for that board. My board was old and somewhat chipped, another board was peeling a bit and the boots didn’t have the modern fastening systems. It cost €72 approx but I wouldn’t go there again.

The lessons on the other hand worked out really well. One of the girls had booked in with Alpin Skischule Oberstdorf and we all either took a week-long course or two days of advanced lessons.  It turns out that with a 5-day course, snowboard rental would have been just €33 extra. Lesson learned… The lessons took place on the Söllereck which had a lovely beginner slope (with a T-bar lift which is evil but not as bad as a button lift). Getting there was easy – meet at the school’s office at the bus/train station and hop on the (free) bus to the Söllereckbahn. The teacher was fun, well able to speak english and the class was small – 4/5 people depending on the day. After 2 or 3 days, we were ready to go up the gondola lift to the higher slope.  Our more advanced friend started there and were playing about on the fun-park doing jumps of boxes.  By the end of the course, we were turning, carving and small jumps. We had no serious injuries, just aching muscles and on person had a hard landing, a sore hand and took the day off. One of the big advantages of the school is that they have a hut at the mountain to store gear in and we were able to head back to town unencumbered

Heading out in Oberstdorf – the food was awesome. Steaks, pizzas, fish and local specialties were all really tasty. We ended up in the Irish bar on the Monday to see if the Guinness travelled well, stayed in on Tue, headed to the Irish bar on Wed to see the Champions League football and we were there again on Thu for Karaoke! Fri night was a quiet one and guess where we ended up on Sat… But on this occasion, I hauled everyone over to Hörbar which was a proper local disco bar with snowboarders. Beer was something silly like €2.50 and I really liked it.

The next day, the hangover was horrific but I was intent on getting over the border to Austria. That meant lugging the board to the bus station, and it was a fairly long bus-ride to get to the Fellhornbahn (passing our house on the way). It’s an impressive mountain with some long, open blue slopes which I fumbled my way through to get to the 2-country lift. Then I carved my way down the Austrian side towards Riezlern which is right at the base of the slope. Maybe next time we should stay there to cut down on the bus journeys. Then I got the bus back to the Söllereckbahn, caught Tom for lunch and the last trip down the mountain.  It was only on the last day that I spotted free wifi @1400m  in Berghaus Schönblick who also do amazing pizza quattro stagioni, strudel and Kaiserschmarrn.

Some of the guys tried the Nebelhorn which is the highest mountain of the lot and the cable-car runs from the edge of Oberstdorf. But the mountain took its toll on them. It was really high, the snow was hard and the slopes were steep and often straight. It took so long for them to come down, the mountain rescue were heading home and stopped to see if they needed help. The dog running around the snowboards didn’t!

For snowboarding gear, I got a nice jacket in Billabong and a set of breathable pants in Trespass (both in Banbridge Outlet centre). I got some snug base layers in Stockholm and the rest of the kit in Ramblers Way, Mary St, Dublin. I needed googles, gloves, socks, light fleeces and a neck-warmer. Next time, I may invest in a helmet and wrist guards.

Random fact: Wilde Männle is a celtic dance that is around 2000 years old. It is still performed to this day in Oberstdorf, once every 5 years. – http://www.oberstdorf.de/dorf/tradition/der-wilde-maendle-tanz.html

Happy Christmas!

http://www.practicaldiy.com/plumbing/bath_waste/bath_wastes.php and

http://www.victoriaplumb.com/bathroom_DIY/Fitting-a-bath.html

I did this a couple of months ago and still no leaks so happy days!

The ceiling in the Tesco near Castle Court Shopping Centre, Belfast

Some photos from the beach in Ballyb – beyond the men’s beach:

and my feet…which appreciated the salt-water after the soccer/tag rugby the previous weeks:

The poster I first put up…yes, I climbed a pole

Since it will be the first meeting I’ll talk a little bit about setting up the club and what sort of activities the club run (talks, workshops, competitions, etc). Then I’ll open it up to discussion to see what people are interested in getting from a robotics club. All suggestions will be very welcome.

Also, they have snapped up Peter Redmond (he who built RuBot II, a Rubik’s cube solving robot which holds the Guinness World Record for a robot solving the cube in the least amount of time).

He also built two battle robots (Dioitoir and Nemesis) for Robot Wars and another robot for a BBC show called Techno Games, this time an internal combustion powered sprinting robot that set a new world land speed record for petrol powered walking machines. He also built and bravely drove an all-terrain stock car for a Channel 4 TV show called Full Metal Challenge. With a project list including such wonders as a robotic bicycle, micromouse, trebuchet, and an orange cannon his talk is sure to entertain and is not to be missed.

Peter will talk about the world of hobby robotics and happily answer your questions afterwards.

Glad to see things like this getting off the ground.

Use your vote wisely too. The balance of power will be decided by the last seats to be decided. And the last seats are decided by transfers. And everyone is usually eliminated by that time apart from 2 candidates. So no matter how far down the list, a 13 for candidate A is as good as a 1 if candidate B is 14th on the ballot.

Here is a sample Irish ballot paper with instructions from a TCD page

Despite the weather forecast, this afternoon and evening was gorgeous and I took the opportunity to walk on the western pier of Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The first photo is actually of the Commissioners of Irish Lights – the people that look after the lighthouses. There is quite a nice map of the harbour and its walks. It provides the details of the length of each pier, the duration to walk them, the year that each pier, breakwater and building was built and a few more details.