Winter Vacation Day 1 -- Myoko, Japan

I’m typing this fireside from Myoko, Japan, in the pub of an English Bed & Breakfast we’re staying at called The Hawk & the Hare Inn, run by a Brit who was born in Atlanta. And I’m drinking a German beer. How cosmopolitan can one family get? (Tricia is upstairs trying to get Jonas to go to sleep. I wish her well).

We found this place on a lark. We’re meeting our friends in three days in Hakuba, about an hour away, and decided we couldn’t stomach staying in Akita one day longer, so we took off this morning at 6 a.m., driving eight hours through some nasty weather At one particular rough point, it felt like slabs of ice were falling from the sky – then a few miles later, sunshine. The weather changes often and dramatically here.

About a quarter of the way there, we stopped for a break (notice Jonas still in his PJs). Jonas was absorbed by the ocean, and didn't seem to mind the cold wind and spray hitting him.

And just a few hours later ...

Tricia and Jonas went snowshoeing for about 10 minutes once we got settled. I tried to go night skiing, but the mountain was closed due to high winds. Dinner was spectacularly Western; something the host called Guinness stew, which included potatoes, carrots and beef. We both love Japanese food, but a break is called for now and then, and we were ready for one.

(interlude: two young Japanese couples playing Uno just switched to Operation Brain Surgery, which has them doing some sort of funky calisthenics on the floor. Also, I’m now watching The Fellowship of the Ring on a 46-inch TV with our host, who is definitely a little weird, and claims to be a Tolkien expert, along with being a falconer).

Tomorrow, Jason skis in the morning, Tricia in the afternoon. Jonas, sadly, is left on the sidelines until I can buy him a sled, which I plan to do just as soon as I get some rest. (Postscript: Jonas did get to snowshoe some more with Tricia while Jason skied. He loved it and ate snow the entire time. If you look above, you can see him licking the snow off his glove.)