Up down and around in circles...

So we headed up to Niigata prefecture (just barely) to try our luck at snowboarding this weekend... and neither of us set foot on a board.  The weather was awful, pouring rain all day Saturday, and crazy long lines and snow on Sunday.  Alan tried his luck at skiing Saturday, I had had my heart set on boarding... and we discovered that large group activities are probably not the best place to learn a new skill.

 Having been loaned a board, I am determined to try... but probably not for another weekend our two.  We hope to head to our first snow festival on Saturday, and fingers crossed for better luck there than in Niigata.

Though snowboarding was a fail, we were happy to note our overall attitude towards that failure has changed dramatically.  I think after many months of trying too hard to do what we *think* should be enjoyable, we have finally learned our limits and have no qualms about changing plans in favor of a less stressful activity.  In the case of this past weekend, that plan required an onsen.

My weekend in Niigata: talk to foreigners, drink beer, eat tasty food, onsen, talk to foreigners, drink beer, eat tasty food, onsen.... rinse and repeat.  Saturday, I took two baths in one day.  I can now tie my towel on my head so it doesn't fall off or get wet, and can prance around nekkid with the best of them.  From not ever wanting to go to an onsen ever ever to spending three days marinating in one is a pleasant shift in attitude.

We also had the opportunity to actually speak with Japanese people.  Though I do believe people in our area are good, nice people, they often are not the most outgoing or communicative of folks.  We are used to being invisible and ignored, and have gotten into the habit of mumbling polite phrases in response to the polite phrases being mumbled at us and leaving it at that.  However, this weekend all the barriers collapsed, and we managed to have several conversations (sort of) in Japanese with real live people.  Though one of those conversations involved drunk people, and therefore doesn't count, we put the rest firmly in the "win" column.

In particular, if you're ever in Nagano City, we visited a new restaurant called Il Giorno off Rt. 18 with some of the most delicious pizza, homemade juice bar and freshly ground coffee.  The shop is small and cute, but the proprietor is incredibly friendly.  Super curious, she asked lots of questions, and even taught me how to make a spicy oil using tougarashi (in romaji, I'm not sure of the spelling) pepper.  These small encounters make struggling with language worth every minute, as for that small time we converse, we are no longer invisible... we exist!  It's a heady feeling.