(JAPAN) Naeba. Niigata Snowboarding Vacation PART 1

SNOWBOARDING VACATION NIIGATA (PART 1)

Hey everyone

I just came back from a snowboarding vacation with a couple of friends, we went to this place called Naeba in the Niigata prefecture which is famous for being a ski/snowboard destination in Japan.

here's the cover shot for the vacation.
The members of the trip:

From left: Ferlyn (me), Ilie, Naoki and Mirei (bottom)

We left on a friday morning and came back sunday night just in time for the manchester derby between Manchester united and Manchester city which ended with a UNITED win of course!
~~Glory Glory Man United~~

Naoki and Ilie came over the night before, which was the day i got back to japan.. imagine the rush i was in. I had to unpack my luggage from singapore, clean my apartment and pack another luggage for the trip.

Naoki and Ilie "like a boss" pose brushing teeth on my couch.


we ended up not sleeping the entire night after a round of karaoke till 3am and talking the night away. we left my place at 6 in the morning, took a taxi to Ikebukuro bus terminal which was a 3min by taxi from my place (hence the sleepover).

Tons of people at the terminal going on ski trips. one reason being there were plenty of bus tours and the other being that it was a 3day weekend (monday being a national holiday).


Mirei checking our bus time and number



Different ski destination by bus.
our bus was filled with teenagers and young adults, mainly guys (^_^) but there is a surprisingly number of female snowboarders/skiers. always good to see competitive females around.




Stop-over at Gunma which is roughly a 2 hour drive from Tokyo.
Beautiful scenery aint it. we dont get this in Tokyo.







Almost at Naeba which means we're at the mountains!!
SNOW!! yay~ god i'm such a kid. Picture taken from inside the bus but came out great! love the white blanket of snow. gorgeous aint they.










once we got to the ryokan we were staying at, which was so homely by the way. Loved the obaasan inn owner. she was so cute and talkative! I really like the street lamp right outside our ryokan. it was sooo lovely at night with the orange hue light reflecting the snow ( it snowed throughout the trip)




Being a first timer and all. i dont got my own gear and rented all from the ryokan which had rental services. We got straight into our gears and head out to Mt.Naeba
Ground view








After a few practices which i failed miserably... my fear of falling and the board being so slippery against the snow and all didnt help. But we headed straight for the ski lift anyway!
First time and i got straight to the lift, i'm glad i'm still alive! thank you lord!!

Ilie was our teacher the entire time, he was the only one with snowboarding experience.



Clipping in our shoes to the board.




Naoki and Mirei
Naoki like myself is a first timer while Mirei has been skiing her whole life, she's the ski professional but its her 2nd attempt at snowboarding but the woman learns so fast! probably because the snow is second nature to her.





Myself and Ilie
The kid had the balls not to wear a snow hat. well its not his fault... Naoki forgot his and since its Naoki's first time Ilie gave his to Naoki.



After a few attempts at the slope it was time for lunch, our favorite place the entire trip was this little cafe restaurant called the "Whistler Cafe" which from the name you can guess that its theme is Whistler, Vancouver. With the Canadian flag everywhere and the likes of Justin Bieber on the radio.

Check out what the two kids wanted to do....




Even with my hands freezing i cant not check my twitter and leave my phone alone.
Way to go ferlyn!



The day went by really fast and before we knew it, it was dark and we head back to the Ryokan for dinner. I love the meals that was provided. full on japanese meals completed with miso soup and green tea. tonight's dinner was karaage with mayonaise accompanied with saba (i think) and french beans with a serving of orange on the side




Well i shall end part 1 here~
have yet to upload and resize the other photos yet. i hoped you enjoy the pictures as much as i did taking them and the trip itself.

Be back with part 2 in the next 4days

Love and stay safe

Ferlyn Yoshimi