I had my first semi-harrowing adventure in Japan after going on a backcountry snowshoeing trip gone bad. The 13 of us - 11 JETs and two guides - who signed up for the "Hokkaido Backcountry Xmas Party" trip had no idea what was in store for us. We were looking forward to a short, breezy snowshoe trek to a rustic cabin where we'd settle in for the night and have a Christmas party. The next morning we'd hike a slope next to the cabin for a few hours of pristine, untouched powder. Little did we know how the trip would actually turn out.
We started out the day at a small parking lot at the head of the trail just before 11:00am. The trail we were taking was a "shortcut", supposed to only take 3 hours, leading up to the cabin from the back side of the mountain. It had been snowing the day before, coating the ground and trees under a blanket of thick, white snow. Fifteen minutes after setting out we reached a fork in the trail and decide to follow some tracks and take the right fork after consulting a map. We walked for an hour and a half before realizing the tracks in the snow stopped. Our guide went on ahead, came back and said "Do you want the bad news or the bad news?" We had hit a dead-end and took the wrong trail! So after a break, we packed up and double-timed it back to the fork where we should have taken the left path.
It was another hour and a half by the time we made it back to the fork. We'd been snowshoeing with our heavy packs for over 3 hours by now and were already exhausted. For some of us in the group it was the first time ever snowshoeing so it was tough going. Being weighed down by our over-night packs and snowboards strapped to our backs, it wasn't quite a walk in the park. I wasn't accustomed to the exercise (after a 2-month hiatus from the gym.. which is entirely my fault) so my legs were seizing up by then. We got back to the fork, it was 1:00am by then, and we were basically back at square one - except a lot more tired.
When we headed down the left path things got a bit more difficult because there weren't any tracks to follow, which means we had to break the snow. If you don't know what breaking snow means, just imagine doing a stair-master on the highest setting for a few hours. It's hard work! Luckily we had 13 people to rotate amongst to break the snow. It was slow going, maybe 10-15 meters every minute, but we were slowly making progress. We were still in a good mood despite the huge detour but were hopeful we'd make it to the cabin soon so we could relax for the night. After about an hour and a half, during one of our breaks, our guide says, "Honestly guys, it's probably about another 2 hours from here." We were even more exhausted by then, we'd been walking in the snow for over 4.5 hours and it was slowly starting to get dark. We were not very happy. But we continued to trudge on, gritting our teeth through the pain and hunger and forcing our bodies to keep going for just a little longer.
About an hour later we stumbled upon some good news - snowmobile tracks! It meant we didn't have to break snow anymore. We followed the snowmobile tracks for a couple hundred meters before we were told to stop so our guide could consult the map. Even though it was easy-going, we weren't entirely sure these tracks lead to the cabin. We stopped on the trail and waited for our guide to decide which direction to go. It was slowly becoming apparent that we were lost and didn't know which way to go. It was 3:30pm by now, and in case you didn't know, the sun sets at 4:30pm at this time of year. He told us to get out our headlamps, which some of us didn't have, and said we'd probably have to use them. We stood around talking, slowly losing our confidence in our guide, stewing as he used a cellphone to consult Google Maps to find the cabin.
I'll just remind you here that this hike was supposed to take 3 hours, we had been hiking for just under 6 hours, we were exhausted beyond belief, hadn't eaten a proper lunch, it was getting dark, we were lost in the middle of a forest, some of us didn't have proper gear (headlamps, emergency blankets, even our water was running out), and our guide had no idea which direction to go. Needless to say, we were not only frustrated, we were pissed off. Some of us wanted to go back to the car and call the whole thing off but survival dictated that we stick together in a group. The worst thing to happen would be for 1-2 people wandering off and finding them the next day in the snow.
After 20 minutes of deliberating, our guide finally decided where to go - another 3 km off the snowmobile trail, still another 2 hours away. This was when we pretty much mutinied. We weren't going to break snow in the dark in a direction we weren't even sure the cabin was in. The trek was already a complete failure so it was safer to go back to the cars since we knew which direction they were in - back the way we came. After a few minutes of deliberation he finally made the call we were waiting for, "Alright guys, let's go back to the cars and decide what to do from there." Geez, finally! He should've made the call hours ago when he knew we were lost and saw some of us barely being able to walk.
The hike back to the cars from that point was all a blur. It was pitch black out and all I could see was the halo of light in front of me from my headlamp. I was hungry and beyond exhaustion but I was fueled by the prospect that we knew where we were headed and not by thoughts of reaching the warm cabin (which I had given up hours ago). I had already pulled by groin and was forcing my leg muscles to continue walking for the fact that if I stopped, I probably wouldn't be able to get moving again. I stumbled over the uneven snow in my snowshoes, focusing on one step at a time, and lost track of the time within my thoughts. I was faring better than some of the others in the group who were less fit or less experience than I was. They had to rely on huge doses of painkillers or the support of others just to get through the muscle pain they were experiencing. I'd never been in the situation where I had to keep going for the sake of survival. I can't say I like it very much.
Once we reached the cars it was 6:00pm, a full seven hours after setting out. Some of us collapsed on the ground in the parking lot from exhaustion. I hugged my car. The nightmare trip was over. We packed away all our gear and changed while we waiting for our guide to come with the slower members of the group. He admitted afterwards that he messed up, and gave me and another JET money cover the cost of gas for coming out to the trip. Later on, he also offed us the option of doing the trip again for free or getting a portion of our original payment back. I opted for the latter. We all went to an onsen afterwards to soak our aching muscles and wash away the memories of the day. It would've been good exercise... if I was in the right mindset for it (my friend Nicole said we 
probably burned over 4000 calories), but all I was really looking forward to doing was reaching the hut and snowboarding the next day. We never did reach the cabin, but mistakes happen. And now I know how hard I can push my body. If anything, this whole trip was more of a test of mental toughness, and something I think everyone should go through (though not necessarily voluntarily) just see where your personal boundaries are.
In the end though, it was an adventure :)
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To me, "Christmas" means spending time with family. It means eating a Christmas dinner of turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, gravy, veggies, and cranberry sauce. It means opening presents on New Years Eve after dinner. It means being in that all-encompassing festive atmosphere during the Christmas holidays and having warm memories of Christmas from my childhood.
This being my first Christmas in Japan (I was in Vietnam last year) I was pretty excited to see how the Japanese spend their Christmas. But in Japan, what does "Christmas" mean? Two Things: KFC and Christmas cake. Christmas in Japan is more of a novelty holiday, like St. Patrick's day or Valentines day back in Canada. They aren't really "holidays" per se (since it's not a national holiday), but it's one of those fun holidays where it's fine if you don't actually do anything for it. In Japan, it's somehow become tradition (I have a feeling through clever marketing) to eat KFC for Christmas, which is the closest you can get to proper turkey in Japan. I'm not sure where the Christmas cake tradition came from but it's normally a strawberry-flavored sponge cake that's 
eaten between lovers on Christmas Eve. There's an old saying in Japan that if you are older than 25 (the date of Christmas Eve) and still unmarried, you are a "Christmas cake" meaning you get old and stale the longer you leave it past the 25th! This year I celebrated Christmas Eve Japanese style. I went snowboarding at amazing Asahidake (2 days after opening) for untouched, waist-deep powder. Amazing! That night I made a stop by KFC intending to get some fried chicken but got a huge line-up instead, so I just got a picture with the Kernel and left empty-handed. I ended up getting cold, fried chicken after a stop at Seicomart (a convenience store). I wasn't intending to, but how could you pass up that Christmas packaging! I also picked up some other things for a complete, well-balance Christmas dinner:
Mmmm.. Tim Tams, Cheeza, canned coffee, hot chocolate, and gyudon. I wanted to get some Christmas cake but that stuff is hella expensive, so I opted for pastries instead. Also, for the record, the beer wasn't mine. I ended up hanging out with my friend Nicole and watched How The Grinch Stole Christmas while she wrapped last-minute presents and listened to Christmas reggae music. It was probably the most bizarre Christmas Eve I've ever had! It was justified because the next evening, on Christmas Day, I went to my friend Caroline's house where she had ordered in turkey, ham, stuffing, cranberry sauce... a proper Christmas dinner! I hadn't had turkey in over two years so I stuffed myself like I was going into hibernation. Overall, not what I was used to but a fun Christmas nonetheless. I'm still undecided where I'll be having Christmas next year, whether it's in Japan or back in Canada.. Hmm, どうしようかな？
Canada