Snowy Japan

Pictures from Hokkaido

It is a bit startling to begin a trip to Japan in March and find yourself in a wintery landscape. As Canada is in various stages of recovery from winter (or not), the skiing season in Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido is also just approaching its end.

I flew to Sapporo, Japan from Hong Kong, where my brother lives. From Sapporo, the two of us drove a couple of hours along heavily snowed roads to Niseko, which is the country’s premier ski resort. There are, of course, many Japanese vacationing here, but seemingly equal numbers of young Australians and middle-aged Hong Kongers with their families.

Below is a photo I took on my iPhone when I arose at dawn, still jet lagged, on my first day in Japan.

Morning in Niseko

In some ways the winter landscape is very familiar to a Canadian but the birch trees give it a distinctively Japanese touch.

Birch trees on a snowy mountaintop against a dull cloudy sky

When the sun is not shining the bright white of the snow melds into the dull sky.

Niseko is next to a volcanic mountain called Yotei, though it is also sometimes called Yezo Fuji because of its resemblance to the much more familiar Mt. Fuji that is visible from Tokyo. When you travel around the district, Yotei is constantly making new appearances from different aspects and like Mt. Fuji, more famously, can reveal itself in many moods in different light and weather conditions. Below is a farmhouse near Mt. Yotei as the sun sets and the moon rises.

A farmhouse near Mt. Yotei as the sun sets and the moon rises

Unlike my brother, David, I am not much of a skier, but we went snowshoeing and the conditions were perfect. The crust on the snow and the divots at the base of trees are evidence that spring is on its way.

The forest near Mt. Yotei shows the evidence of above freezing days and cold nights

Maybe it goes without saying that the food here is fantastic. A weak yen, and the relative absence of inflation at a time when we have just been through it back home, makes even the resort-prices for meals seem reasonable to North American eyes. But I am sure I will post a little more about the food when I am in Tokyo in a few days.

A couple of young women going for a walk early in the day close to where I am staying

A crow (or perhaps a raven?) on the roof of a snowed-in lodge high in the mountains

I am grateful for this bucolic introduction to Japan and am excited to plunge into the frenzy of Tokyo next.