 Poster: A snowHead
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| Themasterpiece wrote: |
| Anyone notice how many announcements there in the resorts? Sometimes a speaker from every pole on the ski lift. And a constant stream of talking. I found it quite irritating actually. |
It's better than the constant stream of J-Pop that you get at many resorts such as Furano 
But I understand after the general quiet tranquility of an isolated chair left. It's the same in Supermarkets or some airports were it seems every inanimate object talks to you.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| PowderAdict wrote: |
| Themasterpiece wrote: |
| Anyone notice how many announcements there in the resorts? Sometimes a speaker from every pole on the ski lift. And a constant stream of talking. I found it quite irritating actually. |
It's better than the constant stream of J-Pop that you get at many resorts such as Furano
But I understand after the general quiet tranquility of an isolated chair left. It's the same in Supermarkets or some airports were it seems every inanimate object talks to you. |
That nearly drove me demented in furano.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| element wrote: |
| Quote: |
Another tip for anyone dirtbagging overnight at Chitose: the onsen is (was in 2014 anyway) open overnight and has a large sleeping/relaxation room. I remember the entrance fee being very cheap, and worked well for me with an early morning flight.
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Great tip, but be aware that they will ask if you have tattoos, and if you do, don't say yes. They had a wee laminated card that basically told you to wee wee off, and we were daft enough to be honest when they asked. Cue awkward moment. |
I recently read that the Rugby World Cup has done wonders for cultural acceptance of foreigners with tattoos. That doesn’t mean welcoming but it seems there is a much increased chance of (reluctant) acceptance and not being thrown out.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Themasterpiece wrote: |
| Anyone notice how many announcements there in the resorts? Sometimes a speaker from every pole on the ski lift. And a constant stream of talking. I found it quite irritating actually. |
I don't find it irritating in the slightest, but it does seem a bit like you're in a film about some dystopian future, like Brazil or something.
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Kokusai again today. It was a little bit good and still throwing down when we left.
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| element wrote: |
| Quote: |
Another tip for anyone dirtbagging overnight at Chitose: the onsen is (was in 2014 anyway) open overnight and has a large sleeping/relaxation room. I remember the entrance fee being very cheap, and worked well for me with an early morning flight.
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Great tip, but be aware that they will ask if you have tattoos, and if you do, don't say yes. They had a wee laminated card that basically told you to wee wee off, and we were daft enough to be honest when they asked. Cue awkward moment. |
Interesting.
Is this because tattoos are linked to gangs or something else?
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@DB, tattoos are traditionally a Yakuza thing so very frowned upon in Japan.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@DB, Yes, within Japan they signified the Japanese version of the Mafia the Yakuza. I believe the issue is that displaying tattoos in an onsen from rival gangs would result in violence. The Yakuza members are heavily tattooed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yakuza
Access to onsens varied for tattooed members of one of my tours, some it was no issue, others required them to be obscured with tape, and some was an outright ban.
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Yep, I don't have any tattoos but my wife has a couple. We visited a load of onsen, some out in non touristy bits in the middle of nowhere. It was never an issue at any that we visited, apart from Chitose Airport, which took us by surprise as you might expect an international airport to flex the rules a bit. I think part of the issue is that rules don't seem to flex in Japan so an employee will say no if you tell them outright, but if you don't declare the tattoos, you are unlikely to be challenged once in.
Also, none of this is criticism or whingeing - I like that the Japanese have their own way of doing things - the poor woman who had to turn my wife away could not have been more respectful, and looked more upset about the situation than we were, and we had just spent 4 or 5 hours driving 40 odd miles in ski gear as the expressway had closed due to snowfall and Sapporo was gridlocked.
I also quite like the slightly sinister, dystopian vibe of the chairlift announcements.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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I''l be there in a few days, tattoo and all! Bought a roll of waterproof bandage to put over mine just in case.....
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| KenX wrote: |
| I''l be there in a few days, tattoo and all! Bought a roll of waterproof bandage to put over mine just in case..... |
Couldn't you just wear a one piece fartbag to ensure the tramp stamp is always covered up. 
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Dave loves getting it in the face
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You know it makes sense.
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| SnoodlesMcFlude wrote: |
Dave loves getting it in the face
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Looks awesome!
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Awesome day 
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Poster: A snowHead
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Really enjoyed reading this thread, thanks!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Just found this from theMYasHbash thread 2015...
| admin wrote: |
...pigeondave is a great example of what can be achieved, from scratch, in just one week!  |
5 years from turning up on a bash having never even tried on ski boots to powder shots in Japan. @Dadmin, should be proud.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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A brilliant day at Rusutsu to end the skiing part of the trip. We basically lapped two different lifts for the day with massive smiles on our faces.
I think both of has had benefitted by skiing tighter stuff at Kiroro earlier in the week, so playing in the trees at Rusutsu seemed that much easier. If we had done it the other way round then I think we'd have skied piste only at Kiroro because would be nervous about how much closer stuff is.
Finished the day with a visit to the Snow Festival in Sapporo. Interesting but I wouldn't say it was a 'must do'.
Me trying to be Sean Pettit, but with considerably less ability and pop...actually zero pop
The only time the sun seemed to come out all day, as we made our way back to the car
Totoro snow sculpture
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So what you're saying is @smigusdyngus managed over a full week without breaking a ski?
Glad you boys got lucky with the Japow in the end. Look forward to hearing about Dave's cultural discoveries.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| SnoodlesMcFlude wrote: |
Me trying to be Sean Pettit, but with considerably less ability and pop...actually zero pop
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Great pic !
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Fairplay lads - great photos.
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Looks like a great trip.
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| Dave of the Marmottes wrote: |
So what you're saying is @smigusdyngus managed over a full week without breaking a ski?
Glad you boys got lucky with the Japow in the end. Look forward to hearing about Dave's cultural discoveries. |
Not broken, but the ski with the white base is now a hit on green with all the bamboo it’s ridden over.
Snoody has already said that we have gone to the snow part of the festival (the ice sculptures are at a different site). As for other cultural discoveries, I’m not too sure what you’re on about 
The hotel Baran Zakk does appear to be in an interesting district though.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Dave of the Marmottes, the only cultural thing he seems to have picked up on is having water squirted up his jacksy, which he is pretty keen on. I suspect that he'd refuse to come home if someone thrashed him with pussy willow at the same time.
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For anyone interested, when we dropped the hire car off I reckon we'd covered just shy of 1000km (forgot to zero the trip) and spent around 70 quid on diesel. We also spent a little bit on tolls.
A warning for anyone using Nippon rental who ends up with a Mitsubishi Delica reg 71 75, it's been 'run in' a bit. However I can confirm that the 4wd works quite well in a slide 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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@adithorp, I haven't seen him since this photo was taken outside a local house of disrepute
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Looks like you had a great trip with a happy ending.
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You know it makes sense.
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Little hands
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Just had a minor earthquake, dunno if Dave is to blame.
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Poster: A snowHead
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He'll claim to be just testing the foundations.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| SnoodlesMcFlude wrote: |
| Just had a minor earthquake, dunno if Dave is to blame. |
What? Dave? In the aforementioned? Making the earth move?
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@SnoodlesMcFlude, be careful, 2020 could be worse than 1984 
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Urgh. I came for the photos not the filth (though not that photo – unfortunately, what has been seen cannot be unseen ). Can we keep it contained to the sex offenders gondola?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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[quote="Scarlet"]Urgh. I came for the photos not the filth
Filth?
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You'll need to Register first of course.
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Don’t worry folks I’m alive.
The menu was vast and the portions were large, with a lot of pork offered.
Prices were reasonable although it was a little grubby, but you got a lot of ramen.
If you’re in this neck of the woods I can wholeheartedly recommend www.genraku.com
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If anyone is in Tokyo then the TeamLab borderless exhibition is pretty impressive if you're into visual art stuff.
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@SnoodlesMcFlude, looks great but not while there’s powder waiting!!!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@BobinCH, I've flown halfway round the world, thought I'd do more with the trip than just skiing. Also thought I'd share ideas with other people who don't just want to ski but to experience a bit if the country as well...or those who end up here when there isn't powder.
There are plenty of threads that tell people where is good to ski, very few seem to talk about the nuts and bolts of a trip, which is what I've tried to cover a bit more
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FAQ
