27 Dec 2010, 5:00pm
Colorado Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride:
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Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

Santa Skis Telluride

Santa Skis Telluride

The weather outside is not exactly frightful. At least not in Telluride today. In fact, temperatures here over the weekend rose to spring-like conditions, prompting people to peel off layers throughout Christmas Day. Although we didn’t get as much of the fluffy white stuff as was forecasted, Santa was still able to find some nice powder stashes on the mountain during his annual visit.

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15 Dec 2010, 12:23pm
Being Green Shopping:
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Online Boutique Recommendations: Holidays 2010

Marmot Skier from Alpen Schatz

Marmot Skier from Alpen Schatz

Are you overwhelmed yet? You know, about all the holiday hoopla. I try to keep it as simple as possible and still, I sometimes feel myself stressing about the handful of items scratched onto my holiday to-do list. This year poses even more of a challenge—for me and other Americans—since many of us are more cost conscious and environmentally aware than ever before.

I’ve always been an advocate of buying quality, not quantity. Call it the French way, if you want. It’s also very European to be green and it’s great to see Americans implementing that approach into their lifestyle—especially their shopping habits—more and more. We all know about bringing our own bags with us when we shop, but what approach should we use for online shopping? And is online shopping even green?

I’m not sure how to answer that last question since I’m a huge proponent of shopping local. But let’s face it, you can’t buy everything locally, especially when you live in a remote mountain town like Telluride, Colorado. Plus it’s fun to source speciality items on the Internet from time to time. And what about Aunt Harriet, brother Mike and all the other assorted friends and family members on your gift-giving list—you know, the folks that live a bazillion miles away? I think it’s much easier to turn the packaging and mailing chore over to an online boutique.

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Light and Luminarias in Taos, New Mexico

Taos Mountain from La Posada de Taos

Taos Mountain from La Posada de Taos

New Mexican Light and Luminarias by Day

New Mexican Light and Luminarias by Day

It’s been so unusually grey here in southwestern Colorado lately that I can’t help wondering what it’s like south of us in New Mexico. I love the light in that part of the country-––sort of like America’s Provence-––no wonder so many artists such as Georgia O’Keefe have called this land of enchantment home. The wondrous play of light in the sky and on the raw landscapes and adobe architecture especially enchant us this time of year when the sun is low in the sky. These mystical scenes become even more beguiling at night during the holiday season when luminarias light up the rugged southwestern dwellings like candles on a birthday cake. Today many of these small lights or lanterns have been electrified and bulbs have replaced the candles that were originally set in sand-filled paper bags, but no matter-––the effect is still magical and quintessentially New Mexican.

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Royal Fascination

Windsor Castle

Windsor Castle

I don’t know about you but I can’t get enough of England’s royal family these days. Everywhere you turn there’s another image, clip or sound bite of William and Kate. And the world’s just gearing up since their spring nuptials are nearly five months away. Everyone loves fairy tales, and isn’t that what the House of Windsor provides?

Windsor Castle Norman Gateway

Windsor Castle Norman Gateway

The stories wouldn’t be nearly as interesting if they were about perfect people that lead perfect lives. That’s exactly what makes these royals so real, dare I say so relatable? Of course we poured our hearts out for Princess Diana and all the seemingly insurmountable challenges she faced during her life. And who didn’t shed a tear when she met her tragic demise?

But if you really want to embrace a royal story that you can relate to, go see “The King’s Speech,” a feature film that was released nationwide a week or so ago. I was lucky enough to see it in Telluride over Labor Day weekend when it was shown at the Telluride Film Festival. (Yes, like many other films, it actually came here before the Toronto Film Festival.) It deeply moved me not only for its superb depiction of the royal family (indeed, I love all the accoutrements of such elegant lives) but more importantly, for its gripping portrayal of a flawed man who had to become king. It’s clear that the Duke of York, played by Colin Firth (who received a special tribute at the Telluride Film Festival this year), never wanted to become king. But he was forced to step up to this enormous responsibility when his brother, King Edward VIII, abdicated to marry Wallace Simpson, the American divorcée. Assuming this position would be daunting to even the most carefully prepared heir to the throne, but downright frightening for someone that suffered from stuttering. Remember this was the golden age of the radio and speeches needed to be eloquently delivered. Ah, fairy tales always have their twists and turns.

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Playing in the Rockies: A Great Substitute for Going to the Mall

Gobbling up the Pow-Pow in Aspen on Thanksgiving

Gobbling up the Pow-Pow in Aspen on Thanksgiving

Whoa—what a holiday weekend it turned out to be here in the Rockies. While many of you were planted in front of your T.V.s watching football or trudging about the stores in search of Black Friday bargains, people were hitting the slopes hard all over Colorado. What a great way to burn off holiday indulgences! In Telluride, we had one of the best openings ever; and although only a limited amount of terrain was served up, conditions proved to be delectable. Aspen enjoyed an epic kick off to their season, punctuated by the Women’s World Cup races, an exciting FIS event that brings even more of an international crowd to this tony mountain town.

It seems as though the skiing has been bountiful all over the state and storms have begun to roll in to our part of the country like guests showing up for a holiday party. I’ve been scrambling to transition from travel writer’s mode to a well-prepared ski instructor ready to spend many hours out and about on the slopes with clients, no matter what weather or situation marks the day. It’s challenging but have no fear, the mountain conquers all!

Thank you to Jeremy Swanson for the above image.

18 Nov 2010, 7:41pm
Colorado Denver Hotels & Lodging Mountain Living Travel:
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Travel Lightly: Something to Remember During the Busy Holiday Season and Always

CME:  My Ticket to Ride

CME: My Ticket to Ride

“Travel lightly,” said my dear friend Jane over the phone.

“Oh, I will,” I quickly replied. “I’m not packing much for New York.”

“I’m not talking about traveling lightly in that sense,” she insisted. “I mean be light, as in light of spirit.”

“Oh, of course,” I answered as I pondered the full meaning of her words. “Yes, I will––-I must. Yes, I have to remember to take that approach,” I emphasized as we ended our conversation.

I can’t tell you how much I’ve thought about those two simple words these past ten days. Travel lightly. Travel lightly. This has become my mantra of late. I know that everything begins with intention and how you ease into (or respond to) a situation dictates its outcome. But it’s nice to be reminded of this sort of thing.

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10 Nov 2010, 9:03am
Colorado Pot Pourri Skiing & Snowboarding:
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SKI Magazine and Me

Posing for SKI Magazine in T-ride

Posing for SKI Magazine in T-ride

I’m in upstate New York now where it snowed on Monday. I was happy to see that it has started snowing in Colorado this week as well—indeed, it’s time the fluffy white stuff starts to accumulate. I’m not thinking much about skiing these days, however, since I’m still in writer’s mode. I’m actually headed to New York City to stir up some publishing contacts for “A Tour of the Heart,” a travel memoir/love story I’ve been working on. (This work, which is not surprisingly set in France, explores the juxtaposition of two major themes in my life: European sophistication and self empowerment through sports.) Right now I’m keeping my bags light and am mostly packing accessories (scarves, baubles and tops) along with my MacAir and a handful of papers—it promises to be a busy few days. I feel eons away from the mid-winter days in Telluride when lots of layering and a backpack stuffed to capacity are the norm.

Schussing for SKI Magazine

Schussing for SKI Magazine

Yet skiing is never far from my thoughts. And I’ve had so many people comment on a recent SKI Magazine article that I have to fess up. Yes, that’s me featured in the October issue of SKI Magazine. It’s the gear issue and the story emphasizes how you can improve your technique with the right boot fit, foot beds, canting and other essential equipment adjustments. The piece mentions that I’m a travel writer, ski instructor and shopping consultant, something that might raise eyebrows in anything but a ski publication. (How I love the eclectic lives most of us live in the mountains!) Anyway, if you have this issue in a stack on your coffee table, you may want to check it out. If not, know that I’ll be providing my own tips this season on how to outfit yourself on and off the slopes with both European styling and American know-how. Don’t you think it’s great to mix up your life? As always, I welcome any comments and/or tips you may want to share.

29 Oct 2010, 10:44am
Colorado Mountain Living Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride The Rockies:
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Fall in the Rockies: Pick the Day, Pick the Season

Gondyleaves at Snowmass

Gondyleaves at Snowmass

We were walloped with our first big snowstorm of the season earlier this week. It happened as usual––albeit a little behind schedule––and within twenty-four hours we were catapulted from glorious fall days into the depths of winter. Either way, it looks beautiful here in the Rockies and it seems as though we’ll be spared the bleak, grey days that sometimes occur between falling leaves and snowfall. Hopefully it was just enough to inspire folks around the country to think about booking their ski vacations in Colorado. (The best deals are offered now, so don’t wait.)

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    This blog is a personal blog written and edited by Maribeth Clemente. This blog sometimes accepts forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post may not always be identified as paid or sponsored content. The owner of this blog is sometimes compensated to provide opinion on products, services, Web sites and various other topics. Even though the owner of this blog receives compensation for certain posts or advertisements, she always gives her honest opinions, findings, beliefs or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blogger's own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question. This blog does not contain any content which might present a conflict of interest.
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