Tuesday, 31 January 2012

Snowboarding... Finally!

So as one of the presents for Luke's birthday (and a bit of a present for myself)- We finally went to the ski fields. Yay!

2010.12.18 OPEN!!
(View from the top of the mountain...)

Wonderfully so, it only too a little over 10mins to drive there, which in itself was very scenic (Unfortunately my camera ran out of batteries on the drive there). It was winding through the mountains, past little towns and houses before finally going through a cavern of snow (the snow had been pushed up on the side of the road so high it almost make a tunnel).

The runs themselves were average for Japan, given the fact that this was just a smaller resort. The conditions were great (There was a great dump the day before)- packed power, great for speed and not too choppy. All up, it was under $100 for the two of use to go for the day including snowboard rental (awesome value)!
Next season I will definitely be buying a season pass (only $320).
As you can see from the map below, mainly intermediate (orange/red) runs, so it suited us to a tee.

Trail Maps


Powder





There was a massive dump last night, and it wasn’t due to the delicious okonomiyaki… We had  well over a foot and a half of snow again, and it was glorious! 
Though, to be outshone- in the south of our prefecture they had 2 meters overnight. Apparently entire cars were buried. It does make our foot seem a bit less impressive, however I bet the ski fields would have been awesome… Step one, buy car!

Smile Sunshine Happy Hour






So, there I was, walking down the street- Old jeans tucked into a very unstylish pair of mens gumboots, greasy hair (thanks to the freezing temperatures, lack of hairdryer and the ‘high shine’ conditioner that actually makes hair look greasier after washing), a complete lack of makeup and sporting a swollen donut man ‘layered look’- When suddenly behind me I hear a “sumimasen!” cried loudly.
Usually in Japan this means that the silly Gaijin (foreigner) has dropped something and a kindly Nihonjin (Japanese Person) is usually running up behind trying to return it (This has happened many times in the past with wallets we have dropped and the like). In Oz, or any other country for that matter I would have kept walking with my ski jacket hood and ear muffs on, pretending not to hear- but it is the land of the sweet and kindly.
Next thing I knew, a panting man carrying a microphone and a flag (yes, like one of the ones that they have waiving outside of a used car dealership) came running up with a slightly portly camera man bringing up the rear. It looks like they spotted the illusive Gaijin and wanted the scoop on all the exciting and covert things that we get up to.
After I had used up about all of my vocabulary on the trival things (what I do, where I live, why I live in Japan, about my darling husband etc), he wanted to know what I was doing for the day. Very vaguely (mainly from lack of vocabulary) I told him that I have been shopping (Hence the rather large bag of groceries I was carting) and am going home. His response…
“Excellent, we will come too.”
This is about the time he started speaking a bit of basic English, which I was very grateful for as my basic Japanese was about as dried up as their delicious Umeboshi (sour plums).
I explained to him that it was quite a long walk, about 30mins, but neither he nor his camera man seemed to mind. It seemed that the subtle nuances of my astonished and slightly alarmed look were lost on him. From what I gather from what little Japanese TV I have seen while waiting at the train station, it is quite an honour to have a TV crew inside your house… They come to your home and you proudly show them your treasures and serve them tea ceremoniously in your finest room in your finest china, all the while laughing at their jokes and enquiring about health of Mr Rochester.
Not only are we lacking the above, (unless he cared for a bit of Lipton, and I know no Rochesters in the area) but this is also the part where I must mention that my housewife skills need a bit of polishing (much like the state of the house). In other words, they are about as good tying two brooms to the arms of a bear. Not to mention I had absolutely nothing else to say to him, and if he was expecting a bit of a foreign 'adventure' with him and the camera man...well, awkward!
Luckily, after many times of me repeating: “you want to come home?” “You want to come home to my house” “You want to come back with me” “To my house?” I was able to explain that my husband and my non-existent baby (his poor English skills translation skills, not my Japanese may I mention) were not at home.
It was then that he and the camera man exchanged awkward looks and decided it might be best if they do not come to my house after all…
So, if anyone gets the local prefectural television station and they see a tall, greasy looking (at least I fit the stereotype) foreigner with ‘Crapanese” (bad Japanese) looking awkward on TV, that would be me.
Watch out world, it’s Milhouse’s time to shine!

Little house in Tainai


So it it more of a unit, but it is free and comes with snow :D
Just a quick little tour to show you where we live...

Enjoy

Alfort….



So, I have a confession.. 
Yes, I realise the internet may not be the best place for airing ones laundry, but I have a new love. 
So far he has been keeping me company while I am watching a movie in the afternoon, or sometimes in the morning. His name is Alfort *sigh*. The only problem is Luke… I think he is in love with Alfort too….