Day two in Niseko! It was still snowing in the morning through the night, which set the stage for a great day on the mountain. We hit our beloved hotel breakfast buffet, then went back to the room to FaceTime Morgan, Joseph’s partner who is to join the travel adventures in Bangkok on 01/19/2023. We talked plans for Thailand in the weeks to follow Bangkok and began to add structure to our loosely set itinerary. (Note: I prefer the sweet spot and balance between having some plans or ideas of places you want to go, but with flexibility around what dates. It’s easier to have more freedom and flexibility soloing, but coordinated travels with multiple people require more coordinating for transportation and lodging purposes).
Late morning we set out for the slopes. Joseph had limited experience skiing and snowboarding, and elected to ski while in Niseko. We did a few runs together in the late morning/early afternoon before Joseph had a private 2 hour lesson. The powder runs were great and only improved as snow continued to fall. After this split, I did some solo riding for a couple of hours before making a return to King Bell Hut for tonkotsu ramen.
Quick lesson on ramen: We learned from our ramen tour in Tokyo a few days prior (01/12/2023; thank you Morgan for organizing for us) that ramen originated in Hokkaido after a Chinese traveler shared a noodle recipe with a Japanese traveler after crossing paths in late 1800’s. Amazing how something like one of the world’s most popular dish came into existence from two people from different nations connecting while traveling. This leaves me wondering, what other significant inventions and ideas have been created as a result of different people coming together while traveling? What will come in the future as a result of traveler collaboration?
By the end of my meal, unfortunately I began feeling ill. I felt feverish, light-headed, dizzy, and a slight sore throat when swallowing. I’ve had altitude sickness and covid multiple times, but this did not feel like either of those. I went back to the hotel, showered, and went straight to bed to chug water and rest. It was only 4:00PM.
My only break from napping was to robe up, slipper on, and go to the hotel’s convenient store for a nutritious dinner of ice cream and gatorade. Then, it was back to bed to me for the night. Meanwhile, Joseph explored the town, hitting a few cool bars and restaurants, including one called Half Note where an Australian barber working seasonally in Niseko at a Cubano shop actually gave him a haircut in the bar. He was kind enough to bring me a crepe when he made it back to the hotel room later that night.