Sapporo

Sapporo was the last stop on our trip to Japan, where they were hosting the 62nd Annual Snow Festival. I first read about the snow festival while living in Portland, as Portland and Sapporo have been sister cities for over 50 years! I've always wanted to go, and since Japan is just a 3 hour flight from Dalian, it seemed like the perfect opportunity. Of course, most people in Dalian choose to go to Harbin, China for their snow and ice festival (about a 1 hour flight from Dalian). It was a tough choice, but at 20*F warmer (20 degrees in Sapporo v. 0 degrees in Harbin), Sapporo was the winner!

We had a great time!

Caught in one of many brief blizzards:


Snow Festival sign:


Frozen bananas that don't need a freezer:


One snowboarder jumping every 8 seconds:


Beautiful snow temple, a replica of an actual temple, actual size:


The little steam engine:


The snow family:


Hundreds of small snow sculptures:


Three blocks of ice carvings:


Frozen fish:


Lights in downtown Sapporo:


Outdoor food court:

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Skiing in Furano

Riding the lift.
Cold fingers.
Warm sun on my cheeks.
Endless snow below.
White flocked trees out of a picture postcard.
Mountains rising high in front of me.
And at 12:50 every day, Bruno Mars playing on the loudspeakers.

I forgot how much I love skiing. The quiet beauty of the snow and mountains paired with the adrenaline rush of going just a little too fast. Yup, I could stay here and enjoy for a really long time!

Here are some photo highlights from skiing in Furano (Hokkaido, Japan).



Super(snow)man flying outside our house:


The end of a beautiful snowmobile ride over the bridge and through the woods:


Happy, happy, happy:


Happy this lift was closed:


My favorite ski run (Kiana's too!):

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