A bit more about Tanuki (sorry, I try to make it short to avoid contaminating this great thread). Japan have a lot of tanuki related traditional culture. Japan has many traditional good luck / guardian statues, and one of them is Tanuki. Especially, Tanuki is used for Izakaya and sake related business. If I mention history, it can be long, so won't write about it but you see a lot of Tanuki statues are holding Tokkuri = traditional sake bottle. You see 八 on the bottle. The kanji means 8. Traditionally, 8 is a very good number for Japan and it is said Tanuki has 8 good luck items and body parts (Tokkuri = the traditional sake bottle, the traditional hat, big belly, big balls, etc are one of 8). A lot of good luck Tanuki statues are Shigaraki wares(= it's a type of traditional stoneware pottery made in Shigaraki area, Japan). Why Shigaraki ware is used?. It also has a historical reason (it's sake history related too), but I omit it to make this post short. I just add a link about Shigaraki ware. About Shigaraki ware : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shigaraki_ware Shigaraki area is famous for Ninja as well. So some good luck Tanuki statues are wearing Ninja costumes too. This Ninja Tanuki statue is carrying a Katana instead of Tokkuri (traditional sake bottle). amazon (especially Japanese one) sell quite many different Tanuki statues (more than 200). This one is with an owl and it's because owl is also traditionally considered as a guardian / good luck charm in Japan. Edit: About Kasa (the traditional hat, which most Tanuki statues are also wearing) : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kasa_(hat)
Tanuki SAN! I’ve been obsessed by them since I had one run in front of my car on a drive to Chitose last year. He was a bit special tho - tried to jump the snow bank/fence to get to Lake Shikotsu and smacked himself into the railing - repeatedly.
Ha ha! Never considered that. But I think a covered one was also installed in Thredbo at FF recently...IIRC. Shall have to double check in a few months.
It’s Saturday & the Place is Busy. A Lot of Tele About. Including this pose of Army chaps skiing there Army issue kit in Civvies.
The Line between BC & Inbounds is getting very blurred here at Niseko. They have groomed a 30M wide track between the Boundary & All it’s Warning Signs and The Peak. That is provided a fully groomed track outside the Boundary.
love the shots Skifree - honestly, come April, you could hold a slide show for all the Oz 2019/20 Central Honshu skiers and there’d barely be a dry eye in the house. Have you thought of getting into (Hokkaido) tourism next year? Only semi-joking (;-) (hi from a lovely mild & sunny Mt Buller! BTW. MTN bike city this weekend! )
Now we rarely boor yoo with food pics but tonight we cannot help but say you lot missed out on some very very good sushi followed by by even better scallops (surprise they are not potatoes but seafood, hard too believe I know but we experienced the evidence) for desert.
Pizza Box run in the Clear & Nice Combed Surface. Was faaaastt. Oh & we can see the peak Nisekoan Nupuri.
