Enjoy the slide show

As I breathe in the fresh morning air, all the skiing groups assemble for their classes.

The white plane, padded with layers of snow, gleams in the sun and sparkles silver under a bright blue sky. Spring has just kissed the mountains.

Cosmopolitan feel

Nestled on the border between France and Spain, tiny Andorra offers some of the best and biggest skiing slopes in the Pyrenees.

With a superb English-speaking ski school, Soldeu el Tarter — probably Andorra's best-known resort with a young cosmopolitan atmosphere — is ideally suited for beginners and improving intermediates.

The white powdery terrains are sprinkled with dots of flying colours — skiers zigzagging, rushing down, dangling from chairlifts.

Three hours of ski school for five days, and I've learnt how to snow plough, slow down and how to traverse the slopes.

There is more to learn, but once the basic techniques are in control, the snow and the slopes become my territory.

A steaming cup of rich hot chocolate after classes serves as a treat and having a pizza on the mountain tops is a warming delight.

With all this activity on skis, some retail therapy never goes astray in this tax-free haven — just half an hour away.

Adrenalin rush

Though it requires no skill, the biggest adrenalin rush comes as I bomb straight down the slope — with no turns and no slowing down.

I feel my face cutting through the fresh, numbing air at a ferocious speed — my heart is in my mouth.

Before I can absorb my surroundings, I return to flat ground with a propelling momentum.

While I ramble on about the magic and fun of skiing, I forget that I am actually petrified of heights.

However, my instructor stays with the most fearful in the group to build confidence — especially on the most pulse-quickening slopes.

“Right,'' he says on the last day, “today we are skiing down the whole mountain.'' His cheerful smile is met with a few “no's'' and “can't do that'', but we are somewhat relieved when he tells us it is all green and blue slopes.

Stunning views

The cable cars that take us up look daunting but reveal a unique aerial view. Suspended from a long rope, we are transported to the mountain peaks where the snow is soft and cushion-like — a perfect, bright powder.

The speed with which we come down one slope takes us right to the top of the next. We cruise down in a single line, enjoying the stunning views.

Skiing becomes an addiction, a thrill that will make me keep coming back.

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Meera Manek is a UK-based freelance writer