Randy Olson, Melissa Farlow Photography

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  • Morning fog rises from craggy mountain peaks in the Alps surrounding the Matterhorn. The Alps range formed when two tectonic plates of Africa dn Eurasia slowly collided millions of years ago creating some of highest peaks in Europe.<br />
Rugged Zinalrothorn and Weisshorn in the background.
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  • Dimly lit tunnels through the Alps allow traffic to avoid snow-covered passes.
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  • Colorful buildings line the banks of the Inn River with its source located in the Engadine region of the Swiss Alps. Flowing through Innsbruck, seen here, it eventually enters the Danube  River.
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  • Towns are built in the flat valleys between the mountains of the Alps.
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  • An aerial tramway to Zugspitz, Germany's tallest peak in the Alps.
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  • Glacier Express train in the Swiss Alps between Sedrun and Andermatt.
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  • The Alps near the Matterhorn.
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  • Zugspitz, Germany's tallest peak in the Alps.
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  • Morning fog rises over a summit cross on Zinalrothorn and other mountain peaks in the Alps surrounding the Matterhorn.
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  • The Alps near the Matterhorn.
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  • The Austrian Alps.
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  • Winter snow scene of the French and Italian Alps.
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  • Zugspitz is Germany's tallest peak in the Alps.
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  • Thrill seekers wear dry suits to ice dive in St. Moritz Lake in the Swiss Alps. The Alpine resort town draws visitors year around and is known as a ritzy and glamorous playground for European tourists.
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  • Infrastructure near the Mont Blanc Tunnel connects France and Italy passing 11.6 kilometers under the mountain.<br />
The tunnel connects France and Italy in the Alps and was first opened in 1965. A more than seven mile cut was made through Mont Blanc mountain linking Chamonix with Courmayeur.
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  • Lights blur as traffic in the Mont Blanc Tunnel connects France and Italy in the Alps. First opened in 1965, the more than seven mile cut through Mont Blanc mountain links Chamonix with Courmayeur.
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  • Synthetic blankets cover a Pitztal Glacial ski slope in an attempt to absorb the sun and reduce snow melt.  Such drastic measures to save the Alps' retreating glaciers may prove futile. If current temperatures trends hold according to climate scientists, half the Alpine ice will be gone by 2050 and two thirds melted by 2100.<br />
Loss of alpine glaciers would alter the region’s ecology–not to mention its economy. Workers are hired to cover the snow pack with a fleece blanket seems equivalent to putting a band-aid on a glacier.
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  • Free-roaming goats wander near an alpine restaurant in Austria where tourists hike trails through the Alps green, mountain landscape for a lunch destination.
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  • Evening bright lights illuminate the town of Martigny, winter home of  St. Bernard dogs of Alps fame. Nestled between the snow-capped mountains in the Alps, it is a junction of roads that join Switzerland with Italy and France.
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  • Skiers assemble high atop Aguille du Midi in the French Alps near Mont Blanc. A cable car lift takes tourists one way or round trip from Chamonix for a view of the snow-covered mountain scenery at 3,842 meters. Some skiers ready themselves  for the challenge of a steep, downhill slope.
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  • A farm family heads home after working in the fields in LaVal under the vista of the Dolomites.  The mountain cliffs are so steep that no glaciers formed on them. The Alps thrust up when tectonic plates collided between Africa and Eurasia.  The Ladin people living in the mountain region have a close bond with nature and the outdoors.
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  • Japanese tourists view the Matterhorn and pose for photos with the iconic St. Bernard dogs in the Alps. Around two million tourists visit annually to Switzerland's most popular destination nearby Zermatt.
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  • Mont Blanc rises in the distance behind craggy peaks and ridges. Drifting morning fog lifts revealing the snow-covered White Mountain, the highest in the Alps measuring nearly 16,000 feet. Located in the watershed between valleys in Italy and France, ownership of the summit has been a subject of historical dispute. <br />
The mountain is famous for the emergence of modern alpine mountaineering  after the first ascent in 1786.
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  • Aerial view of morning fog rising from the Dolomites, a mountain range in the northern Italian Alps numbering 18 peaks which rise above 3,000 meters. Jagged ridges  are made of  characteristic rock consisting of fossilized coral reefs formed during the Triassic Period (around 250 million years ago) by organisms and sedimentary matter at the bottom of the ancient tropical Tethys Ocean.
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  • A cross country skier traverses a snowy trail near the train that passes through spectacular Alps scenery negotiating 55 tunnels and 196 bridges.
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  • Sunlight kisses a snow-dusted peak in the Dolomite Mountains. The mountain range in the northern Italian Alps numbers 18 peaks which rise to above 3,000 meters. The striking landscape features vertical walls, sheer cliffs and a high density of narrow, deep and long valleys. The geology is marked by steeples, pinnacles and rock walls, the site also contains glacial landforms and karst systems. The characteristic rock of the Dolomites consists of fossilised coral reefs formed during the Triassic Period (around 250 million years ago) by organisms and sedimentary matter at the bottom of the ancient tropical Tethys Ocean.
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  • Scenic view of the picturesque Ladin village of LaVa in the Italian Dolomite mountains. Perched on the lush green, hillside is 15th century Gothic style Christian Church of Santa Barbara. <br />
The Alps arose as a result of the collision of the African and European tectonic plates, in which the western part of the Tethys Ocean, that was formerly in between the continents, disappeared millions of years ago.
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  • Bird's-eye view of a vineyard and train tracks running through the bustling city of Balzano in the South Tyrol province of northern Italy. Set in a valley amid steep hills, it is a gateway to the Dolomites mountain range in the Italian Alps.
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  • Mont Blanc rises in the distance behind craggy peaks and ridges as drifting morning fog lifts revealing the "White Mountain."  It is the highest in the Alps measuring nearly 16,000 feet. Located in the watershed between valleys in Italy and France, ownership of the summit has been a subject of historical dispute. <br />
It is famous for the emergence of modern alpine mountaineering  after the first ascent in 1786. It is easily accessible because of that, unfortunately claims many climbing deaths annually.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7139_1024115.jpg
  • A blanket is rolled onto the Pitztal Glacier to keep ice from melting and  protect the ski industry in the Alps.<br />
Glacial melts first recorded at the start of the 19th century—a point that also coincides with the start of the industrial age and burning of large amounts of fossil fuels. Since then the glaciers have lost between 30 to 40% of their area and nearly half their volume.  The coverings remind us of little mountains they are creating out of felt.
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  • Aerial view of the Dolomites dusted with snow under a setting full moon at sunrise. The mountain range in the northern Italian Alps numbers 18 peaks that rise above 3,000 meters. The striking landscape features vertical walls, sheer cliffs and a high density of narrow, deep and long valleys. The geology is marked by steeples, pinnacles and rock walls, the site also contains glacial landforms and karst systems.
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  • Monday is laundry day at Val Mustair as nuns fold a flowered sheet in the convent courtyard. The world-famous Benedictine Convent and a UNESCO World Heritage Site is in the Swiss Alps. Founded in the 8th century, the Christian convent is home to Benedictine nuns since the 12th Century. Eleven make their home behind closed walls, living a life of commitment to poverty and celibacy. Each nun has her work and they come together for meals and prayer.
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  • A nun walks through the garden dusted with snow before the planting season begins at Val Mustair, a world-famous Benedictine Convent and a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Swiss Alps.  Founded in the 8th century, it has been home to Benedictine nuns since the 12th Century.
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  • Twilight falls on the quiet, Ladin village of LaVal in the Dolomites where the church stands high on the hillside. The picturesque community in the Alps depends on agriculture and crafts.
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  • View of the iconic Matterhorn and surrounding mountains in the Alps.  First ascent of the 14,692-foot mountain was in 1865 although four climbers died on the descent. <br />
The National Snow and Ice Data Center describes Matterhorn geology in "All About Glaciers." Cirques are rounded hollows or bowl shapes after a glacier has melted away. Aretes are jagged narrow rides created when two glaciers meet eroding on both sides. And horns are created when several cirque glaciers erode until all that is left is a steep, pointed peak with sharp ridge-like Arêtes leading to the top.
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  • Tourists gather to wait for a bus on snow-covered streets in trendy Courmayeur. It is a busy ski season in the area of Mont Blanc on the Italian side of the Alps.
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  • An evening view of the snow-covered resort town of Sestriere, Italy. Olympic alpine skiing competition was held on the slopes in the Alps during the 2006 competition and now draws tourists to the quiet mountain region.
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  • Early morning rays of sunlight peek over jagged peaks in the Dolomite Mountains, a mountain range in the northern Italian Alps numbering 18 peaks which rise to above 3,000 meters. The striking landscape features vertical walls, sheer cliffs and a high density of narrow, deep and long valleys. The geology is marked by steeples, pinnacles and rock walls, the site also contains glacial landforms and karst systems.
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  • Aerial view of some of the 16,000 participants in the Ski Marathon as Nordic skiers trek across frozen upper Engadine valley. The winter event has been hosted since 1969 drawing athletes and tourists to mountain communities around Saint Moritz in the Alps.
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  • Skiers relax in the sun at a ski resort restaurant in the Dolomites. Resorts provide places to stop and rest and enjoy food and drink along a mountain trail in the Alps.
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  • Mer de Glace Glacier in the Alps has lost 1000 meters in 130 years and thinned 150 meters in the last 100.  Children don helmets and clamp on crampons and to run playing on crevices between the last bit of melting ice on the northern slopes of Mont Blanc.
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  • A veil of vehicle exhaust fogs a valley in Passiria which is an increasing problem in villages between the mountains. The air is trapped under clouds in the Alps producing pollution in this idyllic scene.
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  • Each Wednesday these friends gather for skiing and homemade wine away from the trendy ski resorts in the Swiss Alps.
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  • Alternate cover of the February, 2006 National Geographic Magazine.
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  • A farmer herds his cows off the steep hillside back to return to the barn for a morning milking. Some alpine farms attract young people who desire a simple and rustic lifestyle.
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  • A father and son head to an early morning parade for a Carnival type festival celebrated every five years in spring when light wins over darkness in the mountains. Ancient Pagan traditions and festivals such as Schleicherlaufen  are held in the Tyrol where the Savages wear grotesque masks and costumes of moss, representing winter. Men go into the woods nearby Telfs and collect lichen while wives and mothers sew it onto clothing creating "wild ones" for the festival.
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  • Maretesch or Mareccio Castle surrounded by vineyards.
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  • Aerials of the Dolomite Mountain near Austria.
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  • Climbers traverse slopes to reach Austria's second highest mountain.
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  • Snow clouds cover Sassolungo Langrofel, the famous Dolomite mountain.
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  • A nun at Val Mustair, a world-famous Benedictine Convent of St. John.
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  • Two brothers bring goats into the barn.
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  • A farmer walks along a fence to his barn and house.
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  • A farming family travels by horse and sled.
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  • St. Bernards are a tourist attraction at a foundation for their care.
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  • Glaciers of Aiguille du Midi near Mont Blanc.
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  • Aerial view of Valley of Chamonix from a chair lift.
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  • A cable car disappears into the clouds below Aiguille du Midi.
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  • Mont Blanc as seen from Aiguille du Midi.
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  • Birds soar over a lift on Aiguille du Midi.
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  • Para gliding near Mont Blanc in France.
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  • An overlook of Telfs which is located west of Innsbruck.
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  • Men in costume celebrating Schleicherlaufen.
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  • Men in costume celebrating Schleicherlaufen.
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  • Men in suits of tree lichen celebrating Schleicherlaufen.
    MELISSA FARLOW_RF4115_1114480.jpg
  • Men in costume celebrating Schleicherlaufen.
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  • Men in costume celebrating Schleicherlaufen.
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  • A man in costume celebrating Schleicherlaufen.
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  • Men in suits of tree lichen celebrating Schleicherlaufen.
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  • A farmer splits logs for firewood to heat the farm through winter in an Alpine rural village of LaVal in the Dolomite mountains in Italy.
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  • A child carries a torch with the flame lighting the way during a Good Friday procession at the beginning of the Christians' Holy Week. Parishioners wear clothing of Jews and Romans as they walk through the darkened streets in a Christian celebration that dates back the 17th century.
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  • Tourists mug for a friend's photograph on the streets of Zermatt.<br />
Zermatt grows from 5 thousand to 20 thousand people from tourism in high season.  There is a tension between welcoming the tourists, which drives the economy, and yet limiting the impact.  Zermatt bans cars from the street—visitors take a train or tax from a nearby town and the streets are filled mostly with foot traffic except a few buses.
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  • A glacier recedes near the Matterhorn leaving ridges and jagged peaks where there was once ice. Much of the iconic mountain was carved away by glacial erosion. <br />
The National Snow and Ice Data Center describes Matterhorn geology in "All About Glaciers." Cirques are rounded hollows or bowl shapes after a glacier has melted away. Aretes are jagged narrow rides created when two glaciers meet eroding on both sides. And horns are created when several cirque glaciers erode until all that is left is a steep, pointed peak with sharp ridge-like Arêtes leading to the top.
    MELISSA FARLOW_MM7139_1024113.jpg
  • Japanese tourists gather and take pictures from the main plaza in Zermatt  where they can view the famous near-symmetric pyramidal peak, the Matterhorn. It straddles the border between Switzerland and Italy.
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  • A summit cross depicts a Christian crucifix standing high on a peak in the Dolomite Mountains.
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  • Skiers negotiate rocks on the ski runs at Passo Di Sella in the Dolomites where the snow pack melts and annually declines because of warming temperatures. Climate change is warming mountain regions at the lower elevation.
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  • Snowy winter view of King Ludwig II's Schloss Neuschwanstein Castle. The 19th century palace is perched on rugged hill above the village of Hohenschwangau in Bavaria. It was intended as a private residence but the King lived there for only 172 days. It was opened to the public shortly after his death. <br />
It is the dreamy inspiration for Cinderellas's Castle in Sleeping Beauty.
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  • "Wild men" in suits of tree lichen celebrate Schleicherlaufen. It is a similar cultural tradition to Carnival but it is held once every five years in early spring when light wins over darkness of winter. Men collect moss in the woods for weeks before and women in Telfs sew it onto clothing to make the costumes for the parade.
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  • A village farm woman takes a break from raking hay with her nephew on the family farm in the community of ethnic Ladin culture that so isolated, the mountain people speak Italian and German but have retained their own language. Generations remain in LaVal, choosing a simple life for its richness and connection to the land.
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  • Taillights blur as a bus squeezes through building on the narrow streets of the Swiss village of Santa Maria. The charm of the mountain communities draws tourists, but the streets were built long before gas-powered transportation.
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  • Twilight falls on the snow-covered village of Castelrotto which is also known as Kastelruth in German. The tower of a cathedral lights up the northern Italian resort town that serves as a winter destination in the Dolomites. Large distinctive mountains loom over the communities attracting tourists in all seasons.
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  • Twilight falls on the Ladin village of LaVal in the snow-covered Dolomites. Perched on the lush green, mountain hillside is 15th century Gothic style Christian Church of Santa Barbara.
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  • A farm worker drives his pickup truck into the field to herd cows to the barn for morning milking in the rural, northern Austria's Alpine region.
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  • Skiers dressed in fashionable clothing wait in a lift line in St. Moritz which has been referred to as "Europe's winter playground."
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  • Ski lessons in town of Maloja near St. Moritz.
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  • Aiquille Verte and other craggy peaks  with Mont Blanc.
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  • The Matterhorn.
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  • Fresh clouds and snow surround the tip of the Matterhorn.
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  • Skiers ride chairs lifts in slopes around Siusi in the Dolomites.
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  • A farmer travels by horse and sled.
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  • Mont Blanc as seen from Aiguille du Midi.
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  • Hohenschwangau, the summer palace of the Wittelsbach royal family.
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  • A widow living alone near St. Sigmund in the Sellraintal Valley.
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  • An overlook of Telfs which is located west of Innsbruck.
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  • A blanket is rolled onto the Pitztal Glacier to prevent snow from melting. It is a method workers use to combat the effects of climate change and global warming.  Integral to the local economy, ski resorts need protection from higher temperatures that melt the ice.
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  • A busload of Japanese tourists are directed out after they walk into a private home by mistake in Heidi village. They were touring by bus through Heidiland, which gets its name from Johanna Spryri's fictional book titled "Heidi." The collection of statues depicting Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is part of the communities lore.
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  • A Ladin family travels to church in LaVal on a horse-drawn sled. The brothers and sister keep to old traditions that include an ethnic language only spoken in the isolated village in the Dolomites. The Church of Santa Barbara is a 15th century Gothic building.
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  • Two Ladin women dress in traditional clothing that is often worn on Sundays and for ceremonial occasions linked to the ancient customs. Ladins in the small village in the Dolomites divided from other ethnic relatives to the far reaches of the mountains further away from German influences. The people living here speak Italian and German, but Ladin in their first language.
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  • A farmer carries milk cans into the barn twice a day to milk his cows in a Ladin village of LaVal in the Dolomites. Small dairy farms support local economy in mountain regions of northern Italy.
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  • Lined up at the start of a ski marathon, man competes dressed in a colorful feather headdress and costume depicting an native American Indian. The Engadine Valley event attracting over 16,000 skiers began in 1969.
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