Niseko, my last overnight stay in Japan and also my most physically demanding experience during my stay in Japan.
My sole focus here was to learn how to snowboard and boy did I get into it! I was ready with all the knowledge such as the top snowboard brands and how to glide while on snow but never knew that actually doing it could be this terrifying and amazing at the same time. 
Besides going to the bar with the hostel manager for game night, my time here was all about getting the right snowboarding techniques right. A big shout out to my instructor at GoSnow, your patience with me was outstanding!
On the first day as a novice, I felt overwhelmed and stupid for thinking I would be able to get the skills right on the same day. My body was a little sore from falling down way too much (thank God for the snow cushion) and I could not get my brain to translate properly to my body. The moment I started to go down slope, I’d immediately freak out and fall over! It took me over 2 hours to get down the slope on the first day. I felt like such a loser.
On my second day, I confessed my mental block to my instructor, and she took the time to go over the lessons with me (good thing I was there in off-peak season). Once I was able to understand the rules better, I was able to cut my time of going down the slope from 2 hours to 15 minutes! Woohoo!! I would like to get it down to 5 minutes or less, if I ever get the chance to go on the same slope again.
I felt totally badass and wish I had one more day to advance from beginner level to novice (I started as a first timer on day 1). The only thing I could not quite figure out was how to snowboard off the ski lift. I kept falling out of it and the guys pretty much knew to stop the gondola when it was my time to hop off. #hotMess.
If I ever find myself in Niseko or at any ski resort, I will definitely spend a day with an instructor to get some more lessons in, then go snowboard solo. I have finally found my sport soul mate! Maybe this will get me to try out surfing again…
Ooh, I was also able to snowboard in the S form (I learned that it was a big accomplishment for noobs like me) and that definitely made my day!
It means I was able to switch my angles from left to right, and right to left without falling on my bum. It also means I was able to switch from snowboarding on my toes, to snowboarding on my heels, then transitioning back to my toes…while doing this, the snowboard glides in a S shape. A great technique to have for me because I could NOT get off my bum facing front, I could only do it backwards and this got me stuck snowboarding backwards. The S form allowed me to transition from back gliding to facing my front while going down the slope.
The next morning, after two days of falling into the snow really hard, my body was ridiculously sore and ready to recover in Nigeria. Good thing I saved snowboarding as the last activity to get up to in Japan. Compared to my skiing lessons in Chile last year, Niseko’s GoSnow crew killed it hands down! The slope was perfect, the crowd was just the right number, and I will definitely come back for more.
Sayonara!
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