let me skate

i've already mentioned my passion for slovenia in this blog before. for those first readers out there, i confirm it now: i'm in love with that country! so i try to go as often as i can. it's conveniently close to trieste, there're only 11 km from my house to the border, and an extra 10 to reach koper. i regret not having rented a flat in koper by the way. had i known before, i would have liked living in there.

 nice view on koper from the promenade

it's particularly beutiful in the summer. this morning i made my way to the slovene coast to roller skating, the only sporty activity i'm addicted to (apart from swimming of course), which combines a healthy habit to the regenerating feeling of being in slovenia once again.

me, my rollerbladers and the sea

my rollerblading path: koper-izola

i've always liked skating. i was obsessed with the 4 wheels when i was a kid  and skated all through my adolescence. i even took some ice skating lessons at some point, something i had to give up to my big disappointment, because the skating center was in a distant city and i didn't have the benefit of a regular lift. ice skating champions were my heros in the 80's, of course. i knew them all, one by one. 

inline roller skating is something i picked up recently, when i lived in france from 2001 to 2002. i belonged to a skate group there, we went out together once a week and it was so much fun. they have this fantastic 55-km trail that goes through the heart of the vineyards and small towns, it was such a wonderful place to skate in a close contact with the nature. 

i can't describe why i love skating so much. maybe because, like  katarina witt said (my role model at the time), it's a mixture of art and sport. or because it's one of the few sports that you can enjoy alone and a social activity at the same time, if you take it with a group of friends. 

i think watching katarina witt performing the carmen when she won the gold in calgary in 1988 is an experience that will be treasured in my heart for the rest of my life. i watched it over and over again, until obsession. here she is!

it gives me goosebumps still today! 

her interpretation of bad is something i adored too. what a woman!

 

awww, it makes me wanna go skating again. let's gooooooo! :)))))