The Ice Man Cometh
Fun fact: we just found out that we have been skiing in "Dolomiti Superski", which is the world's largest ski area! I am not surprised. It is absolutely huge and all interconnected.
We were pretty worn out by skiing the Sellaronda yesterday, so we slept in today, had a late breakfast at the hotel, then fetched the car and drove to Bolzano. From where we're staying, it's about an hour's drive away, down a windy, narrow mountain road.
Once in Bolzano, the challenge was finding a parking spot! But we succeeded and began walking around the town. Right off the bat we found this interesting fountain of Poseidon complete with pigeon friends:
Our reason for going to Bolzano was to visit the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology.
Why, you might ask, were we so interested in the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology? Because that is where the Ice Man resides! Who is the Ice Man? His name is Otzi, and he is the corpse that was discovered by hikers in melting ice and snow in 1991. That discovery happened very near Bolzano, in the mountains near the border of Italy and Austria. This was a fascinating museum! Otzi himself is stored/preserved here, and we were able to see him! Also being preserved and available for viewing are all of the pieces of clothing and other items found with/near him. It is estimated that he lived in 3000 - 3500 BC!
I thought that he had been caught in a blizzard and perished that way, but that's not true. It is evident that he was killed; he was found with an arrowhead lodged in his dislocated shoulder, plus he had a cracked skull. It is truly amazing how well preserved he is, and how many items were found with him. The archaeologists have theorized about how he lived, what he ate, what he may have looked like, and how old he was. We're so glad that we made time to see this museum!
The museum is in a pedestrian zone that was full of shops and wonderful outdoor markets selling fresh vegetables, meats, fruits, flowers, nuts, and spices. Remember, this is January 25th!
We stopped for dessert at an interesting cafe that even had a chocolate Otzi in the window:
Once back in Santa Cristina, we capped off the day with a delicious dinner at a Steakhouse next to our hotel. Then we enjoyed dessert at our hotel. The food at our hotel is good, but they make particularly delicious desserts.
We received this special photo from our friends, Mark and Julie Douglass, of Big Sky, Montana. We hope they are skiing a few of our favorite runs in Big Sky for us! This is a reminder to everyone that if they can take time out of their skiing day to go to church, so can we!
