Footsteps in the Snow

When you almost lost the will to pursue something, are you going to give up or proceed?

Earlier that day I was battling with my reluctant body about the worthiness of this 2-hour journey to a snow place when I was supposed to be enjoying quality bedtime since restlessness for almost three days of being nomads around Japan has finally kicking in.

I was later convinced that I had to proceed because just like what a friend said, “this part of the trip is included in our itinerary.” In that instance, I could not reason out the spontaneity of a group trip since I was the one who made our itinerary. That’s added to the fact that I signed a lifetime subscription to the mantra that “a friend should never be left alone.” So I woke up early to join Kuya Ron who was very adamant to take the adventure to the white mountains while the girls were having their time at the dreamland.

The night before, I received a message from a friend discussing the possibility of snowfall in most parts of Japan so I geared up for it.  Right after breakfast, I took the courage to move my feet outside before I change my mind and go back to bed.

We walked fast enough to the nearest local train station and took the shinkansen (bullet train) to town of Yuzawa. Cliche as it may sound but my second ride at shinkansen was one of the best rides during that trip. All along I thought it would bring me to lullaby due to sleeplessness in the past days but never did I feel taking a nap on the duration of the train ride because Japan’s countryside was very scenic. When my eyes started spotting houses covered by white ashes all the more I got excited to alight and head straight to the ski place.

We seated comfortably for an hour. Upon hearing a voice announcing that we would soon be arriving at Yuzawa station, I made myself ready to take punches of shutter. Then the train door opened. When I took that first step outside, I became immobile for a second. An adage saying that the hardest part of doing something is the beginning has been proven correct. Facing the unkind wind outside was very challenging. I was wondering whether we alighted at the right station or we just entered the world’s biggest fridge. My consciousness got blown away by the -4 degrees Celsius temperature. Freezing to me was an irony.

I began looking around. Not far from where I was standing and chilling at the same time were scenes totally new to me— someone was raking his roof, a man paving his doorstep and a worker clearing the driveway of private and public cars. Everything was new for someone like me who grew up in a tropical country.

Soon, we boarded the bus that would bring us to Kagura Ski Resort— the nearest ski resort from Tokyo. We later learned that all passengers were heading to the same direction making it easy for us to locate our destination.

After twenty minutes we finally have ourselves settled in a surrounding where mountains were capped by gleaming white.

It took me sometime to believe that it was real because I was still entertaining the likelihood that I was just dreaming or maybe I was in heaven— if there was such place here on earth.  Me surrounded by snow; me in Japan during winter; and me traveled a thousand miles to reach this place seemed bizarre.

I hastily removed my gloves without minding the cold and touched the snow. I didn’t care if it made my hands numb. I was enjoying what I was doing, every bit of it. The word “bliss” in my vocabulary had gone to obliviousness for what I feel at that exact moment was beyond sheer joy and elucidation. The spontaneous candidness and purest expression of a child seemed to have entered my body slowly. I didn’t fight back. I just let it consume me. I was like a kid with burning fascination to something I just saw and experienced for the first time. It may be a typical scene to those who live there, but it was for me a “could-be-once-in-a-lifetime-event”.

I turned to my back; my travel companion was whiling away his time few meters from me. We were too overwhelmed taking each moment by ourselves. While he was mustering the perfect angles for selfie shots and when he wasn’t looking at me, I tried grabbing a pea-size snow and secretly (now it isn’t a secret) put it inside my mouth. Yes, it tasted like an ordinary ice (hahaha)! I should’ve brought condensed milk with me.  🙂

Although the ground was in freezing ice, the skies were in deep blue while the sun was shining bright above us. I imagined it smiling at what we were doing, just like the sun I used to draw when I was in grade school.

We went up to the ski area through a cable car. The mountain slopes were filled with people skiing here and there. Kuya Ron and I were the only people walking above the surface of hard ice. No wonder why some who noticed us were clandestinely laughing. We had forgone the chance to ski due to high rental fees for entrance, ski gears and basic training considering that we have limited to try it. Besides, walking at the snow was already enough for us.

We waited again for a bus to Yuzawa train station at the lower ground after two hours of brief sojourn. Since we still have ample time to wander while waiting, we walked along the empty highway adjacent to Kagura. The place was quiet and calm, and covered by snow with only few houses around. I started wondering how this place would be like if it wasn’t winter.

Dog Hotel

While enjoying the remaining time before leaving, I thought of farewell. Then I realized that I shouldn’t feel bad about it. At an early age, I’ve got used to saying goodbye and hello to places, learned to leave home and return, and traced the unknown so it would not be new to me later on. I became fond of exploring what’s out there and see things beyond my typical world which led me to believe that I was born to read maps. And finding this place covered by snow somewhere in the globe wasn’t just an achievement. For me it was victory.

After sometime, the bus arrived; we left, had our lunch at half past 1pm, and boarded the train to Tokyo. I had the chance to check the photos I captured when we were tracing our way back. I could only wish our other travel companions were with us so there would be no need for me to show off my photos, adventures and my first footsteps in the snow to them. But only those who didn’t give up their will to pursue something will reap the reward. I was glad I proceeded.