Alvaro had come up with something special for the next day. When everyone was awake and he and Mia were putting a few things in the dishwasher after breakfast, he said, "I would like to take you to a small mountain village near here. Below is supposed to be a beautiful lake, which is definitely with the ice and snow looks very nice and I've read that it's a good place to go for a walk. "
Mia was enthusiastic about the idea and took him in her arms.
"Maybe we will come to the slopes after, depending on how long we are there," he said to the others.
They started at the same time as the skiers and got into the car. The streets were clear again in the meantime, it should snow in the evening, but by then they should be home again.
The drive to the village was nice, in many places you had a great view of the mountains, which looked particularly great in the sun. Meadows covered in deep snow lay on both sides of the road. When the lake came into view, Mia said, "Please stop here, I want to see this properly"
ALvaro had to grin and parked the car. They got out and went down a narrow icy staircase to the lake. It was frozen thick and everything around it was covered in snow.
"Please don't go on the ice," Alvaro said with a laugh.
"Oh no, that won't happen to me again," laughed Mia. They had startled a bird that threw snow from the tree when it was flying away. Mia got a bit on her shoulders and laughed. They walked along a small path that led to an area. Alvaro suspected a meadow underneath the snow in the summer. "Let's build a snowman," he said.
Mia formed a ball and rolled it through the snow. Since the snow was no longer fresh and powdery, she quickly rolled up a large ball. Alvaro did the same, he made his ball a little bigger. Then he put Mia's smaller one on top of the larger one, while Mia formed another smaller one. She put it on top. Icicles hung down from the railing on the stairs, Alvaro took one off and stuck it in the snowman's face as a nose. Mia found two small pine cones that she took as eyes and the mouth was drawn in the face with her finger. Both were enthusiastic about their work and Alvaro took Mia in his arms. He also drew Mia and Alvaro in the snow in front of the snowman and the current date. Both laughed.
They walked a little longer, but then went back to the car. Again they went in the direction of the village. It was a quaint little village, lots of little houses and a church. There was a small general store right at the entrance to the village. Mia wanted to see the church.
They walked hand in hand along the path and Alvaro carefully opened the heavy door and put his arm around Mia's shoulders. It was a beautiful church. They walked slowly and quietly to the front of the first row of seats. They looked around and lit a candle.
When they came out, the sun was initially very bright; it had been cool in the church, the air outside in the sun was warmer.
They walked a bit until they came to a sign pointing in the direction of a viewing platform.
"That's why I only became aware of the village in the first place," said Alvaro. He had seen pictures on the Internet.
Together they trudged up the mountain through the snow. They were rewarded, from the platform because they had a great view over the valleys and the snow-covered mountains. They stood there for a long time and looked out over the landscape.
"This is where we build our house" laughed Alvaro and Mia nodded
. "But here we are far from the sea"
"Right. Ok, we can't have everything," Alvaro laughed.
There were several benches and Alvaro freed one of the snow, sat down and pulled Mia onto his lap. She leaned against him and took a deep breath. "It's so quiet and peaceful here," she said softly.
"Yes, and because of the snow, I think it all has a special effect." He hugged Mia. He enjoyed it. that they were traveling alone today.
They stayed there for a while, then Mia said "There was an ice cream parlor in the village, should we have a hot drink and an ice cream and then go back?"
Alvaro nodded. They went back down the path and came to the cafe. It looked cozy and was open too.
They both ordered a cocoa and a small ice cream and let the warm air warm through their bodys. They sat at a table with a window and could see the village street. Alvaro reached across the table for Mia's hand. "I haven't told you today that I love you"
Mia's eyes shone. She squeezed his outstretched hand and said softly "I love you too. And even if you don't tell me, I see it in your eyes every day"
He smiled at her. They loosened their hands as their order was brought to the table.
