SnowJapan.Com#3 0 Posted May 1, 2004 Share Posted May 1, 2004 A new The Setting Journals feature, "2003/04 White Season Wrap & Working in Japan", has been put online. http://www.snowjapan.com/e/features/setting-journals-16.html "The phones are ringing daily at the resort with potential visitors finding it hard to believe that the 2003/4 White Season will carry through until Sunday, May 9. How is it possible to ski and board when you need to have the air-conditioning in your car on as you approach the resort? A lot has to do with the 1,000-meter differential in elevation between the village and the peak of the mountain, as well as the nightly transfer/grooming of snow onto courses that are still open. 26 cm of fresh snow at the upper elevations of the mountain over the last full weekend in April also helps. Fresh snow in late April, what a pleasant surprise! http://www.snowjapan.com/e/features/setting-journals-16.html Please note that the views expressed in any Features on Snow Japan are not necessarily those of Snow Japan. Discuss it here... Link to post Share on other sites
veronica 2 Posted May 1, 2004 Share Posted May 1, 2004 I didn't realise you had other non-Japanese staff there. (By the way, is there some meaning behind the name "setting journals"?) Link to post Share on other sites
Blair 0 Posted May 1, 2004 Share Posted May 1, 2004 Hi Veronica Yes, there have been several native English speakers working at the resort over the past few white seasons, in addition to our two house bands. The title of this column, "The Setting Journals" is named after the daily process of setting up the mountain every morning so that it can be opened up to the public. Until I did it myself, I had no clue about all the variables that are involved in opening up a mountain daily over the 140 or so days of the white season - it is a labor intensive job! You can read more about the process of setting the mountain here: http://www.snowjapan.com/e/features/setting-journals-2.html Thanks for reading. Link to post Share on other sites
Plucky 0 Posted May 1, 2004 Share Posted May 1, 2004 What resort is this at? It doesn't really say in the feature article. A very interesting read though. I really admire the freedom to live and explore that some foreign countries have. I would have loved to have done something like this. Thank you for sharing Link to post Share on other sites
big-will 7 Posted May 1, 2004 Share Posted May 1, 2004 Arai http://www.snowjapan.com/e/features/setting-journals-index.html Link to post Share on other sites
fukdane 2 Posted May 2, 2004 Share Posted May 2, 2004 I wonder what the least number of people on the hills in a day is. Have you ever had like, 10, or some daft low number like that. Some of the smaller places round here sometimes you can count the number of people on your hand. Link to post Share on other sites
TheSwan 0 Posted May 2, 2004 Share Posted May 2, 2004 That column is really interesting, I'd like to know more about other resorts as well. Keep them coming! Link to post Share on other sites
smiler 0 Posted May 16, 2004 Share Posted May 16, 2004 Blair - where do all the staff go to when the snow disappears (the non-Japanese staff? Doesn't your place shut down for large parts of the green season, if I remember correctly. Is it just a case of seeya or do you have an arrangement with another seasonal company like some places do? Are many of the winter workers the same every year? Link to post Share on other sites
Blair 0 Posted May 20, 2004 Share Posted May 20, 2004 smiler - I covered the topic of where the native Japanese seasonal staff go in an earlier version of the setting journals here: http://www.snowjapan.com/e/features/setting-journals-5.html As for the international staff this year, the kiwis returned to the next semester at Uni back home, the Aussies went to work the white season in Australia, and the bands picked up some gigs either back in the Philippines or some other part of Japan. Link to post Share on other sites
Curt 1 Posted June 12, 2004 Share Posted June 12, 2004 How about the foreign staff - do you have new people every year or do some come back annually? Link to post Share on other sites
Blair 0 Posted June 12, 2004 Share Posted June 12, 2004 Hi Curt Quite a bit depends on the type of visa that the foreign staff enter Japan on when they initially come to work for the resort. If staff come on a working holiday visa, then chances are samll that they will receive another such visa the following year; However, if staff (like our house bands) enter on entertainer visas, then renewing a visa usually proceeds smoothly. Blair. Link to post Share on other sites
Honest John 0 Posted July 6, 2004 Share Posted July 6, 2004 House bands? As in music? That Arai place sounds interesting. We are thinking of doing this area (Myoko is nearby right?), and Nozawa and other places in Nagano. Looks like that might be a good holiday. Link to post Share on other sites
Yuki's Passion 1 Posted July 7, 2004 Share Posted July 7, 2004 Smiler, I can tell you that when I was working in Niseko more than 2/3 of the staff at my hotel were returnees - and quite a lot of them had been doing it for 2-5 years too. Once the snow melted away many of the Japanese staff went back to their hometowns and just work arubaito until the season comes back around again; quite a few of us also went traveling together for a while... what a life eh? Link to post Share on other sites
rach 1 Posted July 7, 2004 Share Posted July 7, 2004 YP were you working at one of the 'gaijin places' though? Link to post Share on other sites
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