Snow flakes and sugar crystals

The snowflakes glide gracefully down to the silence of the forests. As we depart from Bolu Mountains, I feel a bit deprived of the alpine spirit, not having been able to hit the slopes. The ski slopes look pathetically unpromising in snow quality; the sun is shining; it is almost spring-like; but they are spraying water up into the air just above the slopes to fall like snow. There are a few early-bird skiers eager to open up the season. Once the skiing season starts, Kartalkaya will be the ultimate skiing venue for keen skiers in Turkey. Midway between Ankara and Istanbul, the area attracts almost only the skiers, never the ones to go to winter resorts to see and to be seen. Until lately, design was not even an issue in Kartalkaya; humble lodging, moderate but abundant food with good slopes and deep snow was more than enough. Now it is changing…

I'm a veteran skier, with several golds, silvers and bronzes both in slalom and cross-country in my past. Being a proud member of the once important skiing team at Middle East Technical University (ODTÜ), I know times when racers had to prepare their own racing grounds. That is a history of almost 35 years ago, and probably 35 kilos away from my present being. With my doctor forbidding me from slipping on my ski boots, I was almost happy to hear that the snow level was a mere 5 cm. As this was true, it was also true that there were quite a number of skiers enjoying the limited accumulated snow by the snow machines.

When I was approaching Kartalkaya, we drove past green pastures; I was expecting a bit of snowflakes falling and a touch of New Year's spirit but the landscape seemed more appropriate for a fall camping holiday. Another feeling I had was nostalgia for my past, decadent ski holidays. In the past...