Japan : Tokyo, Niigata
Winter YE16>2017
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Welcoming the New Year 2017 from Midtown at Roppongi-Minato in Tokyo
(Jan-2017) |
Journal Entry... My 4th trip to Japan. Looking forward to another yearender in the snow.
28-dec: Return to Tokyo...
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No crowd
at Roppongi Crossing |
It was a fourth trip to Tokyo. #FlyPAL landed in Narita, at 1:23PM, which was delayed by 1 hour due to air traffic in Manila. Boarded the plane at 7:21AM, while the plane geared for takeoff at 8:33AM. I was antsy to get off the plan, like ugh, let me out!
Check-in: Apartment, in Roppongi-Minato area. Hubby's fave Century Southern Tower Hotel was fully booked for the holidays, even if he tried. Apartment was in a quiet midtown neighborhood, which can be likened to Tokyo's upscale area. From Midtown station, hubby and I pulled our luggage walking the distance to the apartment, and down the street from that Lawson's convenience store. Walking to the apartment made me feel I was a local in Tokyo.
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| Flora and fauna fronting the commercial mall in Roppongi blooms throughout winter |
30-dec: Snowboarding in Gala Yuzawa...
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Snowboarding 101
at Gala Yuzawa Resort |
Snowboarding was the agenda. Hubby pinned on GALA Yuzawa Ski Resort, situated in the Niigata prefecture of Japan. GALA Yuzawa is the one and only ski area that is directly accessible by Shinkansen, 75 minutes from Tokyo station. Mad flurries of snowfall greeted us when we got off the train station, that connected to the resort. Previous year, I tried skiing down the Beginners slope at Mount Teine, in Hokkaido-- where I made it down the mountain walking the slope and dragging my skis... for my own sake. Didn't I say I was downgrading to snowboard the next time? I had a theory it was easier to maneuver a single board, than a pair of skis, in the snow.
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Photo-op with Mark,
the snowboard instructor |
Hubby and I signed up to #CanyonsSnowsportsSchool for the snowboarding lessons. We were assigned, together with five others, to the British-English-speaking instructor, Mark. With Mark, there was no need to play the charades learning to snowboard, unlike with the strictly Japanese-speaking instructor in Teine for skiing lessons. Gala Yuzawa was a full house that day, there was no free-flowing area for proper snowboarding lesson. Add to that, I was still figuring out if I was left-footed, or right-footed, by sliding the snowboard in the snow and identifying which foot had the most grip against the snowboard. There is a specific snowboard for a left-footer and right footer, respectively. While sliding the snowboard around the landing area, alternating between my left and right feet, I would keep myself alert not to be hit by skiers and snowboarders swooshing down the narrow Gala Yuzawa slope to the landing area.
So which was easier, skiing or snowboarding? Well, neither. I'm downgrading myself to sledding down the Kid's slope the next time, lol. As they say, practice makes perfect... my photo-op in snowboard will suffice*wink;)
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| Full house at the Gala Yuzawa Ski Resort during the holidays |
1-jan: Countdown to HNY 2017...
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Hachiko -dog statue
near Shibuya crossing |
A New Year's countdown to New Year 2017 was happening at Shibuya crossing, and in the presence of Hachiko - Japan's iconic dog. Come New Year's Day, I went around to observing the Hatsumode tradition of visiting the oldest Shinto shrine every first day of the year. Last 2016, hubby and I went to Sumiyoshi Taisha Shrine, in Osaka. This 2017, I went to Sensoji shrine, in Asakusa. First things first, going to St. Ignatius Church for my own Catholic tradition of hearing mass every first day of the year.
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| Hatsumode crowd at the Senso-ji Temple on the first day of the new year, 2017 |
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Senso-ji Shrine
in Asakusa |
Despite the sheer number of shrine goers to Sensoji shrine, the annual event was organized as expected. Only in Japan that I don't mind being in the crowd, because it is always a friendly crowd. Shortcuts to the main shrine have been cordoned off, hence all shrine goers had to walk the main pathway to the shrine, while Japanese security gave advisories via the megaphone. Those advisories went in one ear, and out the other, because it was in Japanese, without English translation. One hour had gone by unnoticed, when hubby and I finally got inside the shrine.
In the evening, hubby would meet up with his long-time bestfriend, who had migrated to Tokyo for work; meet-up was outside the Ryogoku East Station, and reunion dinner in a restaurant up in the building right across it. "Reunited, and it feels so good... lalala la!" they both sang, if I remember it correctly.
3-jan: Return to Manila... Assorted goodies, i.e., Royce chocs, Tokyo Banana, etc., totaling JPY19,000 (yikes!) had entirely filled my luggage on the flight home. "P.s. All mine!" Happy New Year 2017!
Link to YouTube>>> Ungkler Travels | JAPAN feat. HNY 2017, TOKYO!
oOo
PHOTOSTITCH
#Japan #Tokyo #winter2016
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| This way to Roppongi-Minato apartment... |
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| Nearing Roppongi crossing... |
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| Asakusa, by day... |
