Skiing in July?

So, the southern hemisphere is ski country in July, and New Zealand hosts some great destination resorts. The cosmopolitan resort town of Queenstown offers a "lively apres ski culture" and the skiing is said to be pretty good too. The write up at http://www.newzealand.com/travel/about-nz/features/ski-new-zealand/index.cfm sounded like a perfect break from the wretched heat of the northeast U.S. this year so I decided to plan a visit.

Thinking I could take a week's vacation I decided to go from next Sunday, 7/25, through the following weekend to return on Monday, August 2. A KAYAK travel search found the best fare-- the trip would cost $1,803 (and 29 cents) and take 2 days each way. For me, the travel time was worse news than the travel cost! Covering 9,280 miles in 24 hours would be a feat to marvel at, but would eat up those precious vacation days very quickly. A week off might yield only 3 days of skiing! The payoff was fun to imagine, but this municipal servant will stay closer to home this July.

Warm days in ski country are not all bad. I found myself in Stowe, Vermont last month. I didn't miss the cozy winter fireplace while savoring an outdoor meal on the shaded patio of a lovely inn, eavesdropping on the comments of the couple and her parents at the table next to me as they sampled dishes from the chef in order to make informed decisions about the food to be served at next summer's wedding. And while the snowy mountains near Montreal and environs in winter provide glimpses of heaven, a sailboat on lake Memphremagog or a bicycle ride along her shores can't be done on the ice covered skating track of winter fame.

So, I won't ski this July. I will wait. Patiently. Actively. For these sultry months to pass so real life can begin again!