Skiing with a panda

FEBRUARY WEEK 1:

February started in the best possible way. Still being a little disappointed that we didn’t manage to go skiing over the New Year period, we accepted an invitation from Eri to go skiing in Naeba, Niigata. It is actually the exact same place that we went to for Fuji Rock Festival last year.

Sophi hadn’t snowboarded for 9 years and Cam hadn’t been on the skis since 2002 (very briefly), so the excitement level was sky high. There was quite a large group of us; us, Eri, Andrew, Hana, Sebastian and his friend, and one of Eri’s high school friends.

The weather forecast had looked promising in Niigata, with snow expected up until the weekend, and the temperature in Tokyo was definitely cold. We left Tokyo quite late, and hence didn’t arrive in Niigata till about 2 or 3 in the morning after stopping off at Eri’s parents place in Saitama to get the car. We had a few welcoming beers at Eri’s house and packed it in for the night, everyone sleeping basically in the same room on futon mattresses.

The plan to be up and out of the house by 8.30 didn’t really eventuate with everyone being quite sleepy from the late night, but we did make it onto the mountain by about 11.30am. Sophi’s 9 year hiatus from the sport showed from the opening minute on the snowboard, so the rest of the guys headed off while we stayed on the beginners slopes. Sophi valiantly kept at it over the day and by the end of it, was managing to float down the mountain like a leaf falling to the ground in the wind, of course with the occasional face-plant or stack. Although it was cold, you couldn’t really notice once you got on the mountain, and the conditions for skiing were awesome. We have both only ever skied in Australia so the experience to ski in Japan was amazing.

Skiing in Japan has a very different feel to it than skiing in Australia. Instead of skiing all day and then drinking all night, the trip consisted of skiing all day and then going back to the apartment and taking a hot spring bath, and getting to bed at quite a reasonable hour.

UENO ZOO

Later that we week, we looked at the next thing on our “to do list” and decided on Ueno Zoo. It is the oldest zoo in Japan, and it shows. With an entrance fee of only 600yen, it is easy to see why some of the enclosures are as run down and small as they are. Oldness aside, it is quite a good zoo, with a good variety of animals to see. Visiting Ueno Zoo really makes you realise how good Taronga Zoo is.

It was cool to see a panda, which is the main attraction at the zoo, but unfortunately he was in a tiny little room, just sitting in a hollowed out section, looking very depressed.

The polar bears were probably the unhealthiest looking of all the animals; they just continually walked from one side of the enclosure to the other like some perpetual motion.

The most impressive animals were the flamingos, and the giant tortoise, which was 78 years old.

Around Ueno, there is an enormous market/shopping area. We strolled around but nothing really took our fancy.