Last Day!!

I have survived the Christmas season and nearly 10 months working at NOVA, a feat not to be taken lightly! Today is the last day of work before 10 days of holiday are upon us... Oh how sweet it is. Tomorrow Amy and I leave for the mountains. First we will take a bus to a town called Matsumoto, apparently there is a large and beautiful castle there. Then we take a short train ride to Hakuba, a town nestled deep in the Japan Alps, or at least I hope so. Three days of snowboarding will be followed by 3 days in Tokyo. We are going to a New Years party in the Shibuya district of Tokyo that costs 7500 yen (about $80). I am not sure exactly what to expect, but I told my friend Kasey that it had better be good or she is in trouble haha.

Christmas was expectedly uneventful. On Christmas Eve we relaxed and watched some holiday movies. On Christmas day I worked and tried not to be too bitter. We opened presents and relaxed in the evening and watched The Grinch, definitely a must-have on the 25th. Of course it doesn`t feel at all like the holidays. Christmas has a decidedly different spin in Japan, more like Valentine`s day... Boyfriends buy girlfriends expensive Tiffany and Co. jewelry or designer bags.

On the plus side, it started snowing about 2 weeks ago! They say it never snows in Nagoya but boy did it ever!! It was amazing.

That is about all I have time for right now.
Hope everyone is having a good holiday season!