Road to Nowhere

According to the weather report yesterday morning, we were scheduled for about a foot of snow. Shortly thereafter, it started raining and didn't stop until late last night. We woke up to mostly blue skies and springlike temperatures this morning and, after downing several cups of coffee, jumped in the car for a Sunday drive.

We started out on a familiar route into the mountains, then took the first opportunity to head off in a direction we hadn't been before. I think it's cool here how quickly things get very rural, very 'Japanese,' once you venture off the main drag. It doesn't take long to find yourself on narrow roads winding through the forest, with a smattering of villages here and there, most of which feature hunch-backed old ladies gawking with a mix of indignation and disbelief as we drive by.

The route we found ourselves on today promised a ski resort at the end. We weren't planning on hitting the slopes, but it was a worthy destination at any rate. So we plodded on for about an hour, winding through tiny villages and past bewildered, hunch-backed old ladies, and amid generally beautiful winter terrain. It was warm and the skies were blue, and as such everything was melting at a pretty quick rate. The roads were steaming from the snowmelt, and more than once we heard the loud thunk of snow landing on the roof of our car as we drove under the trees.

Can't say I was surprised when we eventually reached the ski resort to find that it was out of business. I've seen more defunct mountains here in Japan than functioning ones. Apparently this one had just bitten the dust this year.



A few other shots from our drive.





As I mentioned in my previous post, tomorrow is National Foundation Day here. So happy birthday Japan, and thanks for the day off!