Niseko!

Hello My Dear Great Ones,

Most of the following pictures and video were taken by Celia.  I think she is a good photographer and her camera is an apple I phone!  Wow.  We enjoyed our time at the Niseko ski area.  Great snow, small lift lines, super terrain, huge area, it is a great area.  The weather, however wasn't the greatest but we got a few hours here and there where it was decent.  Another great feature about Niseko and skiing in Japan in general are the ticket prices.  An adult day pass at Sunshine Village costs $109 Canadian plus GST whereas an adult ticket day pass for Niseko, a much larger ski area by the way, costs $56 Canadian tax included.  Another reason why I believe that Japan has the best skiing in the world.  

Please click on the link below for a great video.

Looking out to Mount Yotei an inactive volcano.

Nice views.

The snow was incredible.  Trees were almost totally buried in snow.

Happy times.

This cosy lodge halfway up the hill was a welcome respite from rough patches of weather.

Heading down the slope from the cozy lodge.

Taken from the gondola going up the mountain.

Fantastic!!!

Of course we had fun reading the Japanese attempts at English.

Thank you for your corporation?

After ski time was spent in hot springs like this.   They are called Onsens. Great for aching muscles.

And of course raw fish for supper.  Very Japanese.

Skiing in Japan is fantastic!  Celia and I both really love it.  Experiencing real winter for a week is also a great reminder of how much I love Hong Kong and its lack of snow and ice and freezing cold winds.  Amen.

Have a great week.

Love adios and ping on!

Dirk