Alrighty..nothing hard core here guys, but we had a great time in Japan, so I thought I would share a few pics. This was the 3rd snow trip to Japan for the older boys, but the 2nd for me and the little dudes. It was our first experience in powder snow, and it sure makes a nice change from sheet ice! OUCH!



We were surprised by the QUANTITY of snow that fell in short spaces of time, and how the locals dealt with it. We had to dig the car out of the car park OFTEN!




But along with all that snow, when the sun came out, we caught our breath at the beauty all around us. Perhaps taken for granted by those who live in snowy area's, but for me who saw snow for the very first time less than a year ago - this was like being in a fairy tale.







We were amazed by the lack of crowds, even in this busy season and on weekends. Waiting for lifts was rare, and minimal. A very different experience than Aus!




We found lots of fun things to do besides our daily dose of boarding - babybear particularly enjoyed making a big stash of snowballs to ditch as his Mama.




The kids really got to spend a lot of time together - they were best buddies. And I was really impressed with how thier skills came along for just thier 3rd time in the snow. They confidently tackled Strawberry Fields by the end of the trip, and are now dutifully teaching thier Mama some of thier tricks. We particularly enjoyed Snowboard school! It is a great break for frazzled parents, and the kids learn so much more than they would with parents and tackle much harder terrain than they would with parents.




Introducing Mamabear and the bearcubs....




nisekogadaisuki
We will be back for more.




Unfortunately I did not take many pictures, I was too busy looking after the kids...and hubby was restricted to riding up and back in the Gondola thanks to his knee reconstruction - so we are very light on for pics and vids this trip, maybe next time...

Nice Mamabear.

Walking in a winter wonderland.....

Nice pics.. Hope ya boys know how lucky they are!

The snow really is amazing isn't it? I'm from Canada but I'd never seen as much snow as I've seen in Japan. We used to ski a lot in Vermont (US) and they'd freak out over 30 cm and wouldn't be able to get the lifts moving until 11:00. Amazing how they manage it over here, day after day!
Nice TR.

that first shot is dumpling-icious.

Cheers for that, your cubs are lucky.

Thanks for the positive comments guys.

Yes the cubs ARE lucky - Papabear and I got our first passports at the same time as the older 3 got thier first passports (Cub#3 was 6 months old at the time).

And we are all learning to snowboard together - of course they pick it up faster than us oldies!!

They know they are lucky kids, and were really fabulous on the trip. Cub#2's role was bindings and board maintenance, Cub#1 took responsibility for riding the lift with the littlest cub a lot - and in Tokyo we noticed that Babybear was attached to Cub#1 at the hip...why? LOL We worked out he had done the risk assesment and realised he was safest hanging with the one who spoke Japanese!!! Funny!!

Glad you had a great trip! And no injuries/problems etc, too! Sometimes, taking pictures is more hassle than its worth. We almost always have our cameras, but actually forcing yourself to stop lapping up powder takes lots of self-control...something which I considerably lack

Thanks for the pics - looking forward to another Hokkaido trip

Shrink your pictures down so that they can be viewed easier.
About half the size of these ones will be a better TR.

haro mamabear and bearcubs
i think that's your babybear the one with red horns and funky goggles.
i had similar ones on a halloween day a few years ago.

good to hear that your family had a great time in japan.
hope you'll be back soon

Mamabear, promise you will stay off the high heels and the fishnets OK?

Don't be rude now!

High heels - sorry...but fishnets, you got it - haven't worn them in more than 20 years!

Nice pics. Love the car park one and good to put a face to a handle!

Anyone travelling with four kids and a crocked husband is a saint!
Good on you, Mamabear!

MB


Good to see the cubs playing and not hibernating for the winter.

Nice Mamabear,

I guess it is so much easier to come here than it is to go to OZ or NZ for this type of trip, and once here it is so much cheaper for families too.

It is a completely different experience in Japan than OZ/NZ. For us it is a lot about the culture and the language as well. I am a huge fan of Japanese food, and the cubs learn Japanese in school - so it is educational as well as being fun (well thats my story and I am sticking to it!)

We have boarded in OZ, and will be going back for a week in July again in 2008 - but it is definately easier to learn in the soft Niseko POW than on the rock hard Aussie ice! Eldest cub boarded in Cadrona NZ in 2007, and although it was not a great season he and #2 cub are going back again for 2008. Only decision now is where we go January 2009...

Come to Hakuba for the SJ party

actually FT, they fit my screen perfectly. I have the right column turned off so they fit nicely. They are the perfect size the way the are

Too big for mine. It's strange though - in firefox there is a scroll bar across the middle column so I don't lose the handle names or chat box, and the text in other peoples posts wraps to fit my screen. In IE the middle column expands to accomodate the photos and it's really difficult to read all the posts because I have to scroll left and right to read the text.
SG, you are just boasting cos you've got a big screen

Sorry guys.
They fit perfectly on mine so I just assumed they were OK, when I get a chance to alter the sizes of them all I will. I had not realized they would not fit on all screens, and I did not think of my screen as big as it is a laptop, but I suppose it is.
Soz!