ShayDn

It's certainly getting better in some places... I work at the China World Trade Centre, and when I got here 2.5 years ago, it was a free-for-all trying to get taxis outside. Now they make an orderly queue, and the guard shouts at people trying to get the taxis further down the road... Sometimes works sometimes doesn't :-) And the queues in the subway have improved lots too... they used to be distinctly crowd shaped, and now they tend to be more slender...

Worst experience - lift queues in China... Especially with your own equipment. People here seem to have no respect for equipment, and refuse to queue in an orderly fashion. It's all about getting that extra cm in front of the person next to you, even if it means you're standing on three pairs of skis and a snowboard at the same time. The upside is my pole-plants are deathly accurate now ;-)

Dang, you had time to take photos today? My camera was in my bag the whole day - too busy chasing freshies =D Tomorrow is my last day here, taking the 16:20 bus to the airport... but it's going to be awesome before that. Think I'll still be in my skiboots when I get on the bus!

I'm here in Niseko this week, and ... it's true that it's been quite variable. Sunday was an awesome bluebird day, great for groomers, but fresh snow has been quite rare recently. However, things are turning quickly. Today was an epic day at Rusutsu, with lots of fresh snow and it was continually being topped up. Tonight there is more snow coming, and it looks good for the rest of the week.

Originally Posted By: OkemoLoon What are the little eggs on a stick called that you can get yakitori places? I think they are quail eggs? whats the Japanese name for them? Yeah they are quails eggs - ask for Uzura Tamago Really good with a bit of shichimi on them! You can have them Shio-de (salt) or Tare-de (sauce). I prefer Shio myself...

I've been quite happy with Toyoko-Inn before, they have hotels everywhere which are fair value for money... search for them on the web, they have english site too.

I think チューナップ (tune-up) and ワックス (wax) should get you what you want...

In reality there will be many many "blanket" solutions proposed, more and more reasons raised why those solutions work or don't work, or what they will inadvertently impact and what that will mean, and less and less action. The correct answer is factoring in an externality charge - namely to introduce a greenhouse gas charge into the equation, and then let the markets create the right innovations that will reduce emissions - because reducing emissions will then reduce costs. The knock on impact of an increase to the cost of a hamburger will cause fewer people to choose that option, and i

I'm a member of the Ski Club of Great Britain, and their insurance scheme covers: "On and off piste skiing and snowboarding (with or without a guide), snow parks, cross country skiing, ski touring, heli skiing, recreational racing, snow shoeing, dog sledding, bob sleighing, ice skating, curling, parapenting and tobogganing, all included as standard." Unfortunately it's only available to UK and Ireland residents, and when I looked in more detail at the company that actually provides the insurance (P J Hayman) it seems they don't have a product that covers my case... Will look in

Yeah - I second that recommendation! Looking forward to buying Andrew a beer in a couple of weeks...

Indo - A couple of questions, did you do this online, or by telephone - and do they speak English? My situation is kinda complex... I'm UK Expat living in Beijing, and have company insurance that will cover me for basic snow-sports, but specifically excludes off-piste. I want to "top-up" my cover somehow so that I can ensure that I'm covered wherever I choose to ski... Thursday - I'm presuming the Niseko 100 Yen insurance doesn't cover me if I hike the peak - or does it? Where do you get your 2 weeks ski insurance cover from? Many thanks for your information!

ニセコ深いパウダー雪 might be more appropriate, but I've been outta Japan so long my Nihongo sucks now...

I guess the reason for the different results from Hyperdia is you we're looking at trains for January 2007 instead of 2008?

Thanks for the info - luckily I'm not that tall... 180cm length shouldn't be too bad - will look into the private options, there's no option on Hyperdia to get a price for that though. The basic sleeper charge is 9450JPY. Thanks for the headsup about the distance from Nagano - now that I revised the search, it doesn't even go through Nagano... and looks like it's only 15 mins difference between taking an Airplane and taking the sleeper, and the sleeper saves about 8000 yen (without the private sleeper option). It's a helluva journey, and still adds up to about 35,000JPY which is rat

Hi, Anybody have any experience with the sleeper trains in Japan? I'm going to be over in February for a couple of weeks skiing, 1 week in Hakuba and 1 week in Niseko (so I can really sit on the fence on N vs H debates.) I was thinking about taking the overnight train to Niseko on the 11th. From Hyperdia my trip looks like: Shinkansen 18:34 Nagano --> Omiya (80 mins) Shinkansen --> Morioka (2 hrs) Sleeper --> Oshamambe (7 hours) JR --> Kutchan @10:55am (1hr 40) I see the advantages as - get to ski the whole day in Hakuba, save on 1 night accomodation, do

There was a Naked Pig festival at NanShan near Beijing last weekend... really good fun! And it was the first day I'd had real snow in Beijing (everything is manmade here) - very odd as it's right at the end of the season too... Some photos here: http://www.nanshanski.com/06_07nanshan/winter_c/events20070304.asp They don't have pictures of the 4 guys that went totally starkers, or the topless girl either unfortunately...

Thanks to all who responded - sorry for not getting back to you sooner, my SJ login broke after I changed my mail address and it took 2 days for my new password to come through.... Boothy - I sent you a mail already, Powderoo - I tried to send you a message but there's no details in your profile to contact you. If you'd like to meet up please send me a private message and I'll give you my keitai number etc... Quattro - I made a mistake with the dates, my current plan is to leave on the morning of 24th... Will PM you if that changes though. Anyone else in Niseko from Monday onw

Have been excitedly following the Niseko Now! page in anticipation of my trip to Japan next week - seems things are getting better there now Anyway - I'll be in Higashiyama from Monday 19th to Saturday or Sunday 25th/26th - anyone interested in meeting up for beers? I'll be staying at Black Diamond Lodge, but can meet up either Higashiyama/Hirafu. Also up for meeting other skiers/boarders to carve up the mountain with. Mail me if you'll be around, or if you have any recommendations while I'm there

I just booked into Black Diamond Lodge (www.bdlodge.com) - found it through SnowJapan - for 4 days later in February. Their rates for single rooms were very reasonable, and their location at the bottom of Niseko Higashiyama looks excellent for lift access - but it may be a quiet night life from what I've read elsewhere...

Thanks for all the suggestions. I may well end up just resting and trying to get my fitness up for a more serious season next year... Will look more into okutadami maruyama though - and keep doing my exercises to ensure a quick recovery... Oh - and just to clear one thing up - I never said Karuizawa was good! But it served its purpose well - getting the girlfriend hooked onto snowsports. At the time we went only the bottom part of the resort was open - so there was nothing too tricky to contend with.

I would have used to say Snowboarding - because snowboarders always seemed to have more fun... But I never wanted to go back to a beginner. Then I got into Skiboards - and haven't looked back since. Now I've got three pairs from 90cm to 110cm. The 90s are great in the park but tend to chatter a lot at high-speed. The 110s I've not had much chance to play with - but so far they're pretty awesome and are very stable at speed, carve beautifully, and will float over anything if you ride the tails. Forget snowblades - (for a start it's a Salomon brand name only) - and get some wider skiboa

Ok... So last year was great - I was living in Tokyo - and was having a lot of fun taking cheap day trips on the shinkansen up to GALA, Karuizawa and ended the season with a trip to Naeba in Golden Week! The conditions at Naeba were very bad, but we'd expected that and only stayed there to use the Dragondola to take us to Tashiro, Kagura & Mitsumata - where things were a lot more fun. This year - I'm living in Beijing - had a very early trip to Karuizawa back in December to help get my girlfriend interested in Skiing, and then had a few day trips here in Beijing - which is a very int