Root-a-toot-toot

It's bloody brilliant here.  I love Rooters.   Deeply.  I would tell all of you to come now, but I don't want you to come and mess up my powder.  By the way, don't you hate it when you're stuck on your board edge, on a particularly treacherous slope/cliff, and all you can manage is sliding down sideways, while taking massive amounts of snow with you.  Then some 18 year old screams out from the chairlift above you; "You're ruining it for everyone dickhead".  I've seen it happen.  But never in Japan. It's much more of an Aussie move.  Powder is scarce in Australia - people get possessive.   It's more likely the 18 year old Japanese powder creamers would call out "Otsukare sama desu" = "You are working really hard", but meaning more like "good job".  I hear them yell it to their friends.   A liftie said it to me the other day when I was particularly flushed and out of breath.  I was like "Thanks Farmer Yuji, so are you with that big glove on a stick and your broom".  I think we bonded.  I'm sure he brushed my chairlift side extra well.   That's another great thing about Japan skiing.  Zero attitude from the locals.  Imagine how much we'd all be spewing if droves of Japanese came over and flicked our snow all over the joint with their pesky skis.  We got huffy enough when they took too many koala pictures on the Gold Coast.

If you don't like tacky resorts, you should also give it a wide berth.  I myself, love it.  If you don't appreciate tack, you are missing out one one of the true joys of visiting Japan.  Once I went especially to visit a lake for the sole purpose of seeing the lake boat, which resembled a fairytale castle.  I'd spotted it in a magazine.  It didn't disappoint.  Rusutsu Resort burst on the the scene right toward the end of the Japanese bubble era.  It would have been revolutionary in it's time.  A delightful mix of Japanese and European charm (with a touch of The States thrown in - they can't resist).  However, hovering in 1989 it has remained, down to the uniforms worn by the bellboys.  It's worn around the edges to say the least.  Yet I like it like that.

The slowest transport on the planet

They went mental on the 'features'.  There is a mini monorail which takes you from our hotel just across the road to one of the 4 (!!) Gondolas- perhaps only 200 metres in total.  It is slow and ridiculous.  We were late to pick up the girls today, as the driver took it especially easy while approaching the tunnel.  Perhaps 2km an hour.  I am not exaggerating.  You could roll faster.  But, there is heating in the seats, which is always a nice addition - rolling in snow does get a little chilly.  How much it cost to build I can only shake my head at.  I bet they're wishing they saved their pennies now and just bought a fleet of shuttle buses......or donkeys.  There is a wave pool too, complete with water slide.  The pool is warm like a bath, with a nice view over the slopes.   The waves roll in every 10 minutes for about 5 minutes of smashing everybody up against the sides.  They're really quite violent.  I remember I took the girls in there last year, and they got washed halfway up the pool and tossed across the steps while I was adjusting my bather top.

I wish I was in Dixie, Hurrah Hurrah

There is a special water show with lighting, to songs from the Sound of Music.  Enough said.  There is also a kind of amusement arcade - and I have mentioned that mechanical dog band before.  Good old Daniel and The Dixie Diggers, still churning out the hits from the Deep South.  Of course there's a games arcade - with more ways to blow a few yen on useless crap that always makes everyone cry because that 'claw' thing is rigged.  It's got no grip.  It also has a 4D theatre.  What is 4D anyway?  I thought 3 was maximum.....Physics was never my strong point...couldn't get past the teacher.  Too gangly with a pointed beard.  Couldn't concentrate.
Valli, Cordi and I went in one of those photo booth things tonight and did girly shots.  I couldn't do it real Japanese girl style and give the"V", as I had a child in each arm.  Felt cheated.  They must enhance certain features in those things, as what the hell is going on there? The eyes....they're not human.... My forehead is also not that large either.  Cordi also got a dose of the alien treatment, Valli never truly looks human anyway.....

Raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens

There's something off there

In the special continental section they have a European street facade.  Feels just like you're strolling through the streets of country France with a baguette in one hand saying 'bonjour' to everyone.  Except for not being in Europe, or outside, and not holding a bread stick and also avoiding eye contact.  In the lobby, there's a full sized carousel imported from Germany, with lots of scary looking animals to make your kids cry when you force them to have a ride so you can get some pictures.  Then there's the restaurants.  Most memorable is the German Beer Hall "Oktober Fest" - an all-you-can-eat Japanese buffet.  They don't even bother to pretend it German food...although wait, there may be some mini sausages on there somewhere.  Of course there's beer.  Japanese beer (it's better anyway....).

Tres chic

It wasn't pretty then, and it's no better now

How did they get it in? that's what I want to know

Uneasy

Outside the crazy continues with all sorts of light "illumination" statues, a monstrous sized snowman, and how original - a roller coast park.  It's closed in winter.  But is sure looks good.  Snowboarding alongside it is particularly surreal.

Even all this joy aside.  It's just a bloody top resort.  The snow is excellent.  Really truly excellent.  The tree riding is perfect.  There are a lot of options on and off piste.  Even though out-of -bounds is, well, out-of-bounds, they rarely enforce it, so you can powder cream to your heart's content.  Or mess it up as much as you like.  Not only will nobody be mean to you about how much of a spaz you are, there's more than enough for everyone to enjoy......

Land of the Snow Mushrooms

Beautiful