Hintermoos is a ski resort in the middle of the Austrian alps, somewhere between Salzburg and Innsbruck. We were part of a group of ten that shared at duplex right on the mountain. We combined the ski trip with a short visit to Innsbruck to watch our Austrian friend, Astrid, get her doctorate in psychology. I was looking forward to the graduation ceremony, not only in support of our friend, but naturally as a cultural experience. To be sure we got to the 11am ceremony, we hit the road at 5am. Snow was expected, and this plan allowed for 90 minutes of delays. Ninety minutes of cushion wasn’t enough. Just outside of Vienna, as we got on the Autobahn, we found the roads were covered with three inches of snow. Turns out the Autobahn is not plowed during the night. I don’t think you heard me. THE AUSTRIAN AUTOBAHN IS NOT PLOWED AT NIGHT! WTF is that all about? Three inches of snow on the primary east/west highway in Austria! I’d expect such a thing in France, because it makes no sense and the French make no sense to me, but Austria is a country of meticulous road care and order. To make matters worse, there are no streetlights on the Autobahn and it was still dark. Big, pancake-sized snow flakes were actually jarring the windshield on contact. The driving was stressful. After thirty minutes with my hands gripping the wheel until my fingers turned purple, I turned to the Attaché to tell her I couldn’t go for five hours like this. She slept peacefully in her seat. I looked back at the road as I fishtailed across three lanes. I was about to pull off the road and give up until the sun came up, when I spotted the first snow plow. I looked at the clock: 6am. The plows start at 6. Good to know. But by 6:30 they were gone again, presumably their first coffee break. Our 4.5 hour drive took more than 7 hours and we never saw the graduation.

We did go to the the post-graduation lunch. We begged for forgiveness from our friends, then ate a wonderful meal on their dime with minimal guilt. Then, it was off to Hintermoos…