After a few days experiencing the busy, urban, city-life of Singapore, we hopped on a bus to cross the border to explore the jungles and beaches of Malaysia. We crossed into Johor Bahru and snaked our way up the coast to the sleepy coastal town of Mersing, the coastal gateway to many of Malaysia’s outlying islands. We were headed to the biggest and most beautiful island on the Eastern coast of Malaysia – Palau Tioman. The white, sand beaches and crystal clear waters helped rank Tioman Island as having some of the best beaches in the world, and with the boom in popularity and tourism there were no lack of options of places to stay. Resorts have been developed all along the beaches, turning the island into a crowded, weekend getaway for Singaporeans and Malaysians alike. We decided to go a little off the beaten track and stay at the one lone beach on the Eastern side of the island, Juara Beach. To get to the beach we had to cross through the mountains in the middle of the island on a steep, paved, one-way road in a 4WD by our resort owner, a talkative local Malaysian named Stevin. We stayed at the comfy Juara Beach Resort for three lazy days, each a mix of eating, snorkeling, swimming, napping, eating, chatting, walking on the beach and, just relaxing. I will never get tired of beaches. Maybe it’s because I grew up in the middle of Alberta amongst plains, forests and lakes, but beaches still have that tinge of exoticness to me. There’s no sensation quite like digging your feet in the soft, welcoming sand and feeling the waves rhythmically wash over them.

We were surprised to learn that there was a sea turtle sanctuary at the end of Juara beach. The Juara Turtle Project has a staff of dedicated volunteers that scour the beach for turtle eggs every night to protect them from predators until they’re ready to be hatched, and once the baby turtles are born they are safely returned to the sea. There weren’t any baby sea turtles when we went to the sanctuary but there was a tank with a full-grown, blind sea turtle that has to be hand-fed each day by the staff. Sea turtles are my favorite animals. If I were to be reincarnated, I would want to be a sea turtle. I have a lot of sympathy for what they’re doing at the sanctuary, even more so upon hearing that the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico killed 300 sea turtles. It would be a shame if these majestic animals were to go extinct, I’d cry a little inside.

Malaysia’s island life is worlds apart from the city life. Time moves at a different pace, there’s no rush, and everything is quieter and more laid-back. I experienced the same thing when I visited the outlying islands in Hong Kong. The contrast between Kowloon and Lamma, Singapore and Tioman is indescribable. You can just feel the difference in the atmosphere (or maybe it was just the lack of pollution?). It isn't until you walk around the island and see the school, the local cafes, and vegetable gardens set against the jungle backdrop that you realize that these people live there. I was just a stranger intruding on their little island, hoping to share a few days of their beach and lifestyle with them.

Sooner rather than later, it was time to leave the island. Thinking back and looking at the pictures of our time on Tioman, I can still distinctly remember the sound of the lapping waves on the beach, the feel of my feet in the sand, and the soft breeze underneath the trees on a particularly hot afternoon. I’ll never forget my time at Malaysia’s one little beach with its love for turtles.

With the first hint of spring in the air and the cherry blossoms beginning to bloom, it’s the perfect time to take a step back and appreciate Japan for what it offers… five consecutive days of holidays and a chance to leave Japan and travel abroad. In other words, Golden Week is upon us once again! Last year took me on adventures throughout Hong Kong and China. This year took me a little further south to explore the Lion City – Singapore. With an unprecedented 10 days off (in Japanese standards), Eliza and I decided to travel down to this exotic Asian city-state to taste the food and see the sights.

We spent a total of four days in this hot, equatorial city, each day offering a bounty of sunshine, beautiful weather… and oppressive humidity. Singapore is infamous for its stringent rules such as being fined for jaywalking, spitting, or chewing gum. As one touristy T-shirt said, “Singapore is a FINE city.” In reality, some were jaywalking left, right, and everywhere (despite the signs politely asking to use the crosswalks) and other were just finding clever nooks and corners to spit. It does, however, live up to its reputation for cleanliness, comparative to Japan.

We explored our surroundings and took in famous landmarks on our first day – the durian-esque Espalanade theatre hall, the trendy nightlife area of Clarke Quay, and the famous Merlion fountain, the symbol of the city. Having grown up in northern climates, the heat and humidity quickly took a toll on us, sapping our strength and producing a constant sheen of sweat. Being an equatorial country, the temperature rarely drops below 30°C. The only safe-havens were the cool, air-conditioned confines of the hostel or one of the many shopping malls that dot the city.

Singapore is one of the largest, wealthiest cities in SE Asia. Being so, it’s no surprise that it attracts many kinds of people from all different cultures to live and work. This is evident in the widespread use of English as the de facto language of communication, but it’s not uncommon for a typical Singaporean to know two, or three different languages. It was interesting being an Asian tourist when shop-keepers addressing us would switch from Mandarin, to Cantonese, to Malay before realizing we spoke English. The diversity of cultures also brings with it a unique blend of asian cuisines, and the Singaporeans love their food! The plentiful “Hawker stalls”, as outdoor food courts are called, are the cheapest and the easiest way to sample the variety of foods Singapore has to offer, whether you feel like Chinese congee, Indian briyani, or spicy Malaysian mee goreng noodles. The mix in cultures also brings with it religious diversity. In certain parts of the city can you find a Buddhist temple, Catholic church, Islamic mosque and Hindu temple all within walking distance.

Being a rich, affluent nation and tourist destination, Singapore had plenty of tourist attractions to offer. In the southern-most tip of the country is a small island entirely dedicated to family attractions – Sentosa Island. Eliza and I spent an entire day on Sentosa, spending a half-day at the newly opened Universal Studios Singapore before exploring the different sites, including a second Merlion statue with a brilliant, multi-colored tiled walkway called the Merlion Walk. On Silosa beach, with its fine sand and dotted with palm trees, can you find the famous aquarium and historical Fort Silosa. As the sun set, we walked the length of the beach to ride the famous night luge with its rainbow-hued lighting, making it feel like you’re in Mariokart on Rainbow Road.

Our time in Singapore was amazing. Even with four days of exploring, we weren’t able to visit the sites we wanted to go to on the outskirts of the city, like the infamous Night Safari or Bird Sanctuary. Whether it’s from the amazing variety of delicious food to the friendly locals to the endless amounts of things to see, Singapore is definitely a city worth visiting.

In a last-ditch attempt to experience Winter before it - and I - leave Japan I revisited Fukiage onsen, the small mountain onsen I went to last year for a short weekend of snowshoeing and outdoor adventures with outdoorsy, like-minded friends. Last year consisted of an epic snowshoe hike up Maetokachi-dake in gale-force blizzard weather (ok, not quite) and an amazing snowboard through untouched, back-country powder to the onsen. This year was, well, quite a bit tamer than last year. But by choice. One of the other activities we did last year was build a snow cave for the hell of it. This time, we set out to purposely build a snow cave, and not just any snow cave, a Snow Grotto! Muahaha!

Armed to the teeth with three snow shovels and the knowledge of snow cave-building from YouTube videos, we departed the onsen with snowshoes strapped to our feet and hiked up a small nearby hill. Staking out a good place to build our snow cave, we chose to conveniently use the same spot as last year. Buckling down against the heavy falling snow and occasional patch of sunlight in the cloudy sky, we carefully engineered the cave’s layout and then started digging, and digging… and digging. That's all there really is to building a snow cave. After a few hours of cold, hard work we finally had enough room to fit seven people in the newly dubbed “Yuki Grotto”. Not a group to be satisfied with just having enough room... we built seats and a table too. And a nice sloping roof. After chilling inside the snow grotto for a bit (literally), admiring our work and having pretend nabe (all the while wishing we’d actually brought real nabe) we headed back down to the warm, inviting onsen, secretly hoping a bear would find the snow cave and take up residence. Next project: Snow Love Hotel!

After missing two seasons, I was finally able to see my first Japanese baseball game! In Japan, they take their baseball seriously. Baseball is a serious sport. Sapporo’s baseball team is called the Nippon Ham Fighters. Notice the clever company advertising subtly inserted into the team name? As a bonus, everyone receives a free stick of ham from their sponsors upon entry! I’ll be honest, baseball isn’t all that really interesting to watch. There’s the occasional grand-slam and moments of excitement, but mostly it’s waiting around for those exciting moments to happen (unless you really like the pitching). Give me a good hockey game any day. What I was looking forward to about watching a match wasn’t the baseball… but the crowd! Japanese fans are all kinds of awesome and completely justify the sole reason for going to a game. First off, each team has their own section where everyone is decked out in their team’s color weaving the ubiquitous plastic noise-makers. Heaven forbid you wear a white jersey in the yellow section, but this being Japan you would probably be politely relocated to your ‘proper’ section, free of charge, of course (compared to other countries and sports where you’d get beat down for this). Secondly, there are music sections! Each team has their own dedicated ‘band’ of taiko drums and brass instruments that blare out unique rhythms and chants for each player. I especially like Keisuke’s (or was it Ishii’s?) chant where, with a cue from the band, the audience all stand up and jump on the spot. Accompanying the rumble throughout the stands is the trippy feeling you get watching the thousands of people bobbing up and down. It’s like doing The Wave but getting seasick at the same time. Aside from the game itself was the constant barrage of entertainment - from the cheerleaders, the mascot B.B., the plethora of colorful, dancing (and random) mascots promoting something or other, or the audience itself. The Fighters lost, unfortunately, but there was plenty to watch and it was an exciting game nonetheless. For my first baseball game in Japan, I give it two 'hams up.

Part 4
Continuing our road trip of Eastern Hokkaido, I took her to all the natural locations of Eastern Hokkaido I’d explored in the Summer but had yet to see in the Winter. The first, beautiful view of frozen Lake Kussharo was enough to stave off the wind that battered us from all directions. Following the shore around Lake Kussharo brought us to Sunayu with its Nessie-like mascot, Kusshie. In the summer, Sunayu is a famous destination to have foot baths in the sand, as you can read here. In the Winter, the warm sands prevent the ice from melting and hordes of swans come to be fed bread crumbs by easily-amused tourists! In this hotbed of geothermal activity, just further up the road was the onsen town of Kawayu and sulphuric gas mountain, Iozan. I’d planned on making a visit up to serine Lake Masshu but, unbeknownst to me, the mountain road is closed and unplowed during the Winter months. We carried on to Abashiri (where I was the week before for Queens of the Drift Ice) to have a late lunch at a tiny train station café that served home-made hamburger and katsudon. We’d planned on going drift ice cruising and snowmobiling but the warm weather still kept the drift ice away and we’d arrived too late to go snowmobiling. After a round-trip tour of Eastern Hokkaido and a few hundred kilometers later, we made our way back home to nap off a leisurely day of sightseeing.

Part 3
A few weeks later, Eliza came out of of the city again to spend the weekend exploring more of rural Eastern Hokkaido. The first place we went after picking her up from Asahikawa was Sounkyo gorge, an onsen town nestled deep in the mountains, to catch the tail end of the Sounkyo Ice Waterfall Festival. In the middle of winter, on a frozen lake an ice castle magically springs to life (actually, after months of preparation and “growing” the castle with water hoses) complete with turrets, winding passageways, precariously sharp icicles, ice slides, ice stairs (I think unintentionally icey), and a 15m tall ice tower. Walking inside of a living ice sculpture is like building a Lego castle when you were a kid and wanting to shrink down and walk through it. Awash in multi-colored lights and joyous laughter from all the tourists, it was like a freezing version of budget Disneyland. If you get the chance, the Sounkyo Ice Festival is a definite must-see. Check out Crystal's great blog for her experience of the festival.

Part 2
When there isn’t a festival going on, it’s always a good idea to throw one yourself! This year was the 3rd Annual Queens of the Drift Ice (here's what happened last year), a time to showcase Eastern Hokkaido’s famous 流氷 (ryuuhyou), or drift ice. It’s a good reason, and usually the best time of year, for those who live in other parts of the island make the long trek out and explore Abashiri for a weekend. Surprisingly, a record number of people made the half-day journey out to Abashiri in what was probably their first, and last, time to the far east. Unfortunately, due to a sudden Chinook just mere days before the weekend, all of the drift ice retreated back to Siberia and the drift ice cruise we had booked was cancelled. But there was still a lot of winter fun to be had, including snowmobiling on frozen Lake Abashiri, onsening, eating Nepalese food for lunch (nothing like keeping warm with curry!), and visiting Abashiri's Drift Ice museum (it's not quite the same..) or many other museums. That night saw a football-sized team of us, over 55 in total, taking over the Abashiri Beer Gardens for two hours of all-you-can-yakiniku. After eating our body weight's worth in meat, we headed to Tokoro to party the night away in Caroline’s ‘mansion’.

It’s been a busy past few months; Winter just flew by, it seems! The sun sets later, the snow is melting (in between random spurts of blizzards) and it’s undeniably, no matter how much I try to deny it, turning into Spring. With the imminent changing of the seasons, I’ve been trying to enjoy the remaining days of Winter before it evaporates, leaving the green buds of leaves, blooming flowers, and warmth in its wake. The next few posts are a recap of my Winter adventures over the past few weeks.

Part 1
Winter, as with all seasons, brings a bounty of festivals to Japan. The Japanese love to celebrate, whether the reason is big, small, or made-up, festivals are always great times to see the Japanese at their best. A few came to Hokkaido the past few months, including the biggest and best – Sapporo’s Yuki Matsuri. This year it happened to fall near my birthday (which is on another Japanese holiday, Setsubun). A few days of paid holiday turned a long-weekend into one of the best times I’ve ever had in Japan! I spent this week-long combination Birthday, Yuki Matsuri, and early Valentines weekend in Sapporo with Eliza. She surprised me with a night date up scenic Mt. Moiwa and a flambé-style steak dinner where our meal was cooked right in front of us. The next few days were spent looking at the always-impressive snow and ice sculptures of Yuki Matsuri, then heading to Niseko (where I spent most of my Christmas holidays) for good times with friends and an amazing powder day on the slopes. Upon returning to Sapporo the next day, we immediately went snowboarding again at Mt.Teine (site of the 1972 Winter Olympics) with some Japanese friends of ours. On Valentine’s Day, I took Eliza out for 5-course meal at a French restaurant in Otaru where we had the entire cozy restaurant to ourselves. We strolled along the famous Otaru canal afterwards, taking in all the glowing snow sculptures for the last day of the Otaru Lantern Festivals for a perfect evening to cap off an awesome weekend, and 24th birthday.

I've written before about the Japanese inventing sports and making them "softer" or more easier to play, but there's one sport they've changed and pushed it above and beyond, inventing rules, equipment, and expanding this one-time childhood activity into international winter 'sport'. I have to admit that it's pretty brilliant, and having participated in a tournament last weekend, I'm all for taking it to the Olympics.

I'm talking... snowball fights!

Snowball Fights - or Yukigassen as it's called in Japanese (Yuki=snow, kassen=battle) - has been around in Japan as an organized sport since the 1980's. It started right here in Hokkaido from it's humble beginnings as small town's yearly tourist attraction to a winter activity with an international committee and tournaments held all throughout Japan and countries like Finland, Norway, and Australia. The Yukigassen court is 40m x 10m with small, 1m-tall ice shelters placed strategically throughout the field and a Center-line that separates the two teams' areas.

The two ways to win are by hitting all of the opponent team members (a hit by a snowball anywhere on your body is an out, even if you drop it on yourself or from friendly-fire!) or by pulling the opponents team flag out of its base. Each team only has 90 snowballs for the entire 3-minute round and consists of 7 players, 1 coach, and 2 substitutes. The 7 players are divided into 4 forward players (wearing black-numbered vests) and 3 back players (wearing red-numbered vests). Forward players are not allowed to cross behind Back Line (where the snowballs are) so it's up to the back players to roll or pass the snowballs up to the forward players, who are probably bunkered down behind the shelters. Only 3 team members are allowed in the opponents area (i.e. are allowed to cross the Center line at one time) and having any more is an automatic forfeit. You can check out all the rules on the official Yukigassen website (in English): http://www.yukigassen.jp/english/index.html They've even developed equipment for official Yukigassen tournament play including protective hockey-like helmets, colored vests and a perfectly spherical and oh-so-grippable, 45-at-a-time snowball machine. I seriously want one, but the 73,500yen ($850) price tag per machine is a but of a bummer.

A lot of Yukigassen tournaments are held in Hokkaido around this time of year. Some are local, others are regional, with prize money for the winning team (30,000 yen at the tournament I played at) and a spot to compete at the all-national tournament in Yamanashi prefecture. Glen's town of Kiyosato (up near where I climbed Mt.Shari in the summer) had one of these tournaments and invited us to enter a team of gaijin. So we gathered a group of 8 ALT's and called ourselves the Storm Troopers. All except two of us had never played before but, fortunately, we would be able to watch a few matches before our first one. The matches were pretty.. tame.. to put it politely. They preferred defensive strategies which included a lot of snowball lobbing at the people behind the shelters then staying alive until the clock ran out. We'd worked out a strategy the night before which involved rushing at the opponents flag before they had time to get any snowballs, but we realized the impracticalities of it after seeing our first game (goes to show you shouldn't strategize before ever playing the sport). We decided to scrap our strategy and go free-for-all, balls-to-the-walls, and do our best.


It turned out being the best strategy because we had a blast! We played valiantly and (kind of) aggressively, which I think took the Japanese teams off guard. We had two sets of two matches that day - the first of which we tied then lost, the second of which we lost and lost. Two of those losses were desperate (but successful) dashes by our opponents for our team flag after after we'd shrunk their numbers quite a bit, and the other loss was from an epic one-on-one stand-off with Simon and the remaining member from the other team... ending up with a snowball to Simon's gut. Zannen.

Overall it was a ton of fun, even though we lost horribly (but not by much!). It was the same thrill of exhilaration and satisfaction you got as a kid when you threw a snowball 10 meters and smoked your opponent in the head. Ohh yeah.. Why no one thought of making this a sport before? I have no idea, but I'm bringing Yukigassen to Canada!

The next thing Eliza and I did was to make a Winter visit to the Yamabiko waterfalls, a short drive outside of Maruseppu. I'd been to the falls two summers ago soon after arriving in Japan. As impressive as the small, quaint waterfall was then, it was even more impressive as a frozen column of ice! The road leading up the falls is closed in the Winter so we had to park and walk a short twenty minutes to the entrance path. I'd never actually seen a frozen waterfall up close before, but it was like a huge icicle the size of a redwood tree! The shrine behind the waterfall was still there, nestled deep against the bedrock, along with signs of the other curious visitors before us. The picturesque scenery along with the sounds of the forest, muffled by the quiet blanket of snow, made it the perfect place to relax and spend time alone in nature ;)