Mogami Kushi-Katsu

Wow! What a great meal and fun experience! Mogami Kushi-Katsu offers a wide variety of Japanese cuisine. Here’s how it works. When you sit down you have a salad bowl full of various vegetables, a bowl of pickled root and a plate that looks like home base of a baseball field. In the plate were 4 dipping options, soy sauce, sesame sauce, Worcester sauce and special salt. On the end of your table is a list of 36 dishes that will be brought to you throughout the evening.

We gave our group the challenge to make it all the way to 36. Once you are full though, you just say, “I’m good for now.” Each of the 36 dishes is deep-fried in healthy safflower oil and is served on a stick. The beauty of this is that when your server puts your food on home base they point the end of the stick toward whichever sauce or salt you should dip it in. The whole idea is very creative and absolutely delicious. 

So let me give you some numbers now. Per day, about 1 or 2 people ever make it all the way to 36. Okay, so the first two out were our hosts, Miyu and her mother rounding out about 11 courses. The next four out were Kazia, Emily, Dylan and myself completing 20 courses. Abby made it all the way to 27 or so but had reached her limit. 

So you’re probably wondering, who’s still in? Mr. Nakamura, with a grin on his face, saying he was ready to go all the way. Mary Kate and Sarah A, two of our athletes, who were getting full but wanted to prove they could beat each other. Also, with great surprise Sarah Snell, our coach’s wife. And you better believe it, they all made it all the way to 36. The chef couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw three women and one man from our group had all completed 36 courses of pure excellency. And just in case we weren’t all full enough we stopped for some ice cream and cake on our walk back to our hotel!

Shiga Kogen

 Today was another fun day of racing in Japan. I am amazed and very complimentary of the efficiency of how the race was run. The women were done before 11:30, both days! Today’s weather was much nicer than yesterday’s. The rain from yesterday stopped and turned into snow. For our second run the sun was bright and shiny. Although I had to hike my second run, it was a successful week of ski racing and a great experience. Now, we are in Tokyo! I hope this city is ready to handle us, American teenage girls!

 This is team America after our first run!

This is our friend Ai from Japan!

Today we said goodbye to Hakuba and Miyu’s hotel. As sad as it was to leave, we are all very excited to race at Shiga Kogen tomorrow! Today was not only a travel day, but also a day of sight seeing.

Our first stop was at Zenkoji, a Buddhist temple. We walked through gardens, the temple, and surrounding souvenir shops. In the temple, Mr. Nakamura showed us some Japanese customs. It was very beautiful inside, decorated with many reds and golds. We also walked through a dark tunnel. We couldn’t see a thing and had to find our way out. As a group we also managed to find the knob of a sacred door inside the tunnel. The room behind the knob is said to hold a god. The meaning of the tunnel is to see the light again and to appreciate it, like seeing the light for the first time as a newborn.

Next we visited the Monkey Park! It would be an understatement to say we all had fun! The monkeys were all so cute! We could walk about them freely and see them in their natural habitat. They all gather in this spot because of the hot springs here that they bathe in. Now, we are settled in Shiga Kogen and ready to race!

Good Morning and Good Bye Hakuba

My stay in Hakuba has been nothing less than magnificent! Every day has been beautiful and full of new culture and excitement! The 360 degrees of mountains surrounding the city will be an image I will never let out of my memory. This morning we will be leaving Hakuba and moving to another ski resort in Nagano. I look forward to seeing Shiga Kogen and their snow monkeys!

Accommodations

Since our arrival in Japan we have stayed at two hotels in Hakuba. The majority of our stay we have spent in Hotel Goryukan. The hotel is very nice. It blends Japanese and western culture well. We slept on the floor and in beds. Also, it has a shower in each room but also a very nice public bathing area.

The first night we stayed here, we slept on mattresses on the floor. It was quite comfortable. The other nights we slept in beds. The rooms are very nice.

The view from the lobby is incredible. Through windowed walls you look out at Happo ski resort. Straight ahead you will also see the ski jump from the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympic Games! For more information on the hotel you can click here for Japanese or click here for English.

For one night in Hakuba we really experienced some Japanese culture, by sleeping on the floor. When we were showed to our rooms we were strongly instructed to take off our shoes. After walking up some stairs we were greeted by our simple room with just a table in the middle. This was no ordinary table though. It heated up underneath so you could stay warm. When it was time for bed, you pulled out a comforter and pillow from the closet and hit the hay!

The Skiing at Happo

I have spent that last 4 days free skiing and slalom training at Happo ski resort in Hakuba, Nagano. The skiing here is absolutely incredible. It feels like spring skiing every day: blue skies, warm sun, and perfect fluffy snow. The first two days skiing here we got to ride some awesome powder and the last two have been spent getting in some great training.

 This is our group at the top of the mountain.

The 1998 Winter Olympic Games were held here. Being in this city, I understand why this would make such an amazing Olympic City. The people are very friendly, the scenery is breath taking and there is a lot of culture to be experienced. At Happo, the ski jump, cross country, and downhill events took place. Being a ski racer, it was pretty cool to see the Olympic start and ski on the trail.

 Talk about paradise. This wasn’t so bad to wake up to every morning!

Happy Happo Festival

On our second night in Japan, we went to a festival at the mountain. Fighting through the jet lag, we all had a lot of fun! To get to the festival, we walked through a village with lots of restaurants and shops. When we arrived at the base of the mountain there were many tents selling various Japanese cuisines.

 The first part of the festival was made up of drum songs related to the region. There was one big drum on the center of the stage (shown above). Also, there were many smaller drums below, where the monkey is standing.

There were also many cute mascots on the stage after the drums. They helped with the raffle that took place. Ms. Snow Girl 2012 was at the festival, because she is from this area. She raffled off ski outfits and other great prizes!

 Once the festival moved away from the stage and onto the snow, a Volkswagen drove down the mountain. This was really cool to watch!

Then a series of ski demonstrators performed. It varied from past Olympians to synchronized skiers to these guys above hitting jumps!

Lastly, we watched an amazing firework show with many fireworks I have never seen before! There was even a Hello Kitty firework!

Japanese Fast Food

We have been quite busy ever since we have arrived in Japan. When we arrived in Narita- Tokyo, our host, Miyu’s father picked us up from the airport to bring us to their hotel in Hakuba. On the way we stopped for the Japanese version of fast food for dinner.

  This is our host, Miyu, with some Miso soup!

At this restaurant, you do not order your food from a counter or from a waiter. Actually, a conveyer belt comes around with an array of sushi, juices and desserts for you to choose from. You can also order special sushi or soups from a touch screen at your table!

The sushi was pretty good, for fast food! This is a picture squid and tuna sushi above. The payment system works well. When you finish your meal, you stack your plates. Then you bring them to the register to pay. Different plates are worth different prices. I found this to be a very cool and unique Japanese experience and recommend it to anyone visiting Japan!