Another full weekend

This past weekend was another 3 day weekend here in Japan. Monday was 'Coming of Age Day', a day where all the boys and girls who turn twenty this year gather for a day of pomp and circumstance in their hometowns.


I took full advantage of the three days, starting with Friday night at my new favorite hangout in Nyuzen "Koshi". This is where Christmas Eve was celebrated this year...friends, food and wine, what more do I have to say?! (thanks for the photo Owen!)







Saturday, I and all the hooligans from the night before convinced ourselves that we should still go snowboarding as planned -despite the incredible amount of snow that had fallen overnight -and despite the fact that is was still snowing! We loaded up Johnny's car and after only a small delay (we had to boost the car) we headed for the slopes. By the time we got up to the moutain we could hardly see two feet in front of us, big white flakes falling straight down. But, we strapped on our boards anyway and headed up the lift. I was about to get my first lesson in riding powder...and my first lesson in how to dig myself out when the riding part doesn't go so well. It was an incredibly challenging and exhausting day, but with so many of us riding together -there were about 10 of us - it ranks up there as one of the most fun days I've had on my snowboard. (I stole your photo Matt, hope you don't mind!)

I spent Saturday evening recovering by soaking in the tub and reading one of three books I've got on the go- "The True History of Chocolate".



Sunday Kirsten and I decided to go shopping in Takaoka. We hopped in her little yellow plate and headed to AEON mall - with thoughts of Starbucks urging us through the snow covered roads. Takaoka is the only city in Toyama-ken that has a Starbucks. Toyama city has a Seattle's Best, but I'm sorry, it's not Starbucks. Being the "Coming of Age Day" weekend, we saw tons of young girls dressed in their kimono, walking around the mall with boys dressed in suits. It's quite a bizarre sight to see at a mall. Speaking of bizarre, I found the photo above on the internet, it was taken in Harajuku, Tokyo (an area known for it's 'odd' side)

We sat in starbucks and people watched for a while before hitting the shops. Of course I dragged Kirsten to the bookstore where I found another magazine with my photo from the car show in it. I HAD to buy it! It also had photos of friends that I have met through VW, very cool.

We ended our visit to Takaoka with dinner at an Indian restuarant we just happened to spot on our way out of the city. This particular restaurant is quite well known among JETs in the area, and now I know why. The proprietor is a very interesting gentleman. He spent the evening telling us how to get a man in Japan and why, we got an explanation on the differences between Japanese and Indian men, and at the end of the night was practically trying to set us up with the two Japanese boys whom he had seated at the table next to us! All in all, some great entertainment with our very delicious dinner.

And then there was MONDAY!! After what seemed like days of endless snow, the sun finally showed her beautiful face and gave us perfect weather for another day at Seaside Valley. So, with what is now becoming a nice little routine for John, Kirsten and I, we loaded up our boards, put on some tunes, and hit the expressway headed for Seaside. The hill was packed, but that didn't discourage us from putting in a full day in the sun! And what a day it was! I'll let the photos speak for themselves.