A quick summary

Asia
February 28th 2010

Published: March 6th 2010

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amatth11

practising tricks

not a bad backdrop either

So I thought i'd give everyone a break from the 'it snowed a lot today' style updates (it did, though). That said, we never had more than 40cm at any one time, probably just as well since it slid off the roof every few days, sounding like the building was being demolished.
In the end I only went for the 'level 1' qualification as my instructor didn't seem interested in teaching me the necessary tricks for the next grade; shame, as I'd bought a new snowboard to make it easier for me. We also visited 2 other resorts for a day each of tree runs, the snow festival in Sapporo (and yes, it did), the lights of Otaru, and I also climbed the neighbouring volcano - was disappointed that we didn't get to the top, but then again it would have been to too icy to ride down. Did at least see an eagle; wasn't expecting that!
The onsens were a strange experience - no clothes of any sorts, but they are segregated by gender, there's a hot tub, a slightly cooler one, an outdoor one, a sauna and a proper cold bath - tried it and couldn't see straight for

just another pow day

had a lesson - all work and no play!

about 10 minutes.
On to Tokyo, and getting the Chinese visa was actually very straightforward, as long as you had all the right paperwork. Once again, though, I found myself in a town closed down for monday, so not too much culture experienced. This return visit only reinforced my admiration for their ability to build a city in between all those train lines, though. Just like last time in japan I was woefully underdressed with my 4 days of clothes compared to the elegant locals; time to head on. Beijing.

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