Alright, so I get up in the morning and find out that I can get a lift ticket for Happo One (the main ski resort in Hakuba) for only 2000 Yen. This is about $15. I managed to get it from the owners wife of the lodge I was staying at. She got the deal because someone had a season pass and wasn't going to use it today. What a blessing. So then the one guy I met from Australia and I go to the resort. He helps me get my rentals and then we take a lift up to a place on the mountain where we can get bfast. So we get bfast (which was really good) and sit and chat there for a while, waiting for the snow to get soft as right now it was icy. So we wait and then decide to ski down to the Gondola. Anyway, skiing down to the gondola was tough as my skiis that I received were too long, so I fell on the way down and decided I had to go get shorter skiis.
So, I went and got shorter skiis. Then I went to the Gondola and met a couple from New Zealand. They just moved there 2 years ago and were from Singapore. They were a very friendly couple. From there I did my first main run and it was awesome. It was a long long run and it was a lot easier with my shorter skiis. Then from the bottom I went to the top of the mountain through taking 3 lifts up to the top. The view from the top was absolutely incredible. Words can't describe it and my pictures certainly don't do it justice. But there is a reason they are called the Japan Alps. The mountains around here shoot up to about 9000 ft and where we were was at about 6000 ft at the top of the ski lifts. So from here I did some more runs before lunch. So I'm starting to get sore, so I decide I'll do some lunch somewhere. So I go down the mountain and start walking to this one restaurant. So I feel for my wallet and it isn't there!! I start to worry and notice that a hole was ripped in the pocket and my wallet must have fallen out about 3 hours earlier when I fell that one time. I started to think about how I could possibly find it. It had all my money, cards, etc. in it. Not all the money, but a lot. So I think man, it could be burried under snow, someone could've taken it, anything. So, I check with the ticket counter at the resort and ask if they have a lost and found. The lady then asks, "what's your name?" I tell her "Mike" and she then hands me my wallet with everything in it and said a man dropped it off. Wow, what a blessing. This is blessing #2 of the day.
Then I ski for a little longer and then decide to go up to the restaurant I had bfast at and get a cup of coffee. So I have my coffee and then one of the guys that works there comes by and gives me a free cup of green tea. Mmmm, it was so good. Then I skiied down my last run and head for the shuttle bus.
Now, I remembered which shuttle bus we took, but couldn't quite remember at this point. So I get in the one shuttle bus and ask the guy beside me if this is the one and find out he is staying at the same lodge I am. So we took that shuttle bus back and chatted. I concider this blessing #3 as I don't know if I would've felt confident by myself to get back to the lodge where we were staying. So we get back to the lodge, I get a shower, and then this guy who I made friends with on the shuttle bus decide to go find somewhere to eat. The night before we heard about this place called the White Horse which serves really good food. So we go there. To give a background on this guy, he is in his late 30's early 40's, has a wife and kids back in Perth Australia, and is a Christian. So we go to this place and I get a cappuchino and he orders some New Zealand wine. We then get pizza and after that dessert. So I'm ready to pay for my meal and he says "I'll cover it." What??! This is like a $55 meal. But he covers it. This is blessing #4 of the day. Also, through conversation he invites me to come stay in Perth whenever I want and can use a car there and so forth. Wow, a free place to stay in Perth.
So needless to say it was hard for me to accept so much hospitality. We chatted about the church and similarities of Japan to Australia in spirituality and so much more. Really cool to have someone to talk to about that stuff. So then I get back to the lodge and just hang out there for a little longer before going to bed.
Oh yeah, there was another guy from the lodge I met, the one I went to bfast with that offered for me to stay in Sydney as well. He owns a house on the beach and said that if I want to surf or whatever to come stay there as well. So, I think I need to go to Australia soon.
So that was my skiing day. What an incredible day it was. Below are some pictures from the mountain. As the other posts, click on the picture for the full gallery of them.
Also, this post isn't to brag about the blessings, but that it is to point out that not all blessings from God are obvious. Look for them, because they are definately out there. God cares for us and looks out for us, it's just not always obvious.
Alright, the photos below are in a slideshow format. If you want to see them individually, click on the link at the bottom that says "Skiing in Hakuba, Japan."
Skiing in Hakuba, Japan
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