LOWS:
• Paying though the nose for archaic kerosene heating.
• Brushing with death every time I sit behind the wheel…that ice I tell you!
• Not being able to feel my extremities for a considerably percentage of the day
• No sun at 4pm
• Shutting off half of the rooms in my apartment because it’s too damn cold…and then walking into those rooms when I
realise I need something from them.
• My favourite places closing for the winter (Yuni Garden, the Bakery and Ice-Creamery)
• A less-than-satisfying New Years, and a BBQ-less Christmas Day
HIGHS:
• Learning and semi-conquering the snowboard. And doing it every weekend.
• The fluffy white blanket of snow that covers the mountains and falls from the sky like marshmallow stardust
• Snow-ball fights
• Snow-sled races (yes, I took part in one!)
* Meeting Mario and Luigi
* Pounding Rice Cakes
* Finding a Drive-Thru Starbucks
* Getting an iPhone. Yes, geek.
* Seeing the impossible being carved from Ice at the Yuki Matsuri (Snow Festival)
* Making friends with the local ski hill owners and getting a free season pass!
• Way too many ski tours to keep track of
• A trip to Tokyo with grandma to see Mr Fuji himself!
• Scoring a fat 100% on the JET Japanese correspondence course
• Meeting a ton of new Japanese friends (including some my own age at last!)
• An invitation to start Adult English Conversation classes
• Reaching the 6th level of Japanese calligraphy (I started at the 9th level) and receiving a Bronze mention.
• Experiencing a KFC Christmas party
*Hip-hop partying through Hokkaido
* And finding a nice boy to bring home to the parents!
Luckily the highs outweigh the lows, hey?!
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