After a huge anticipation, I finally managed to complete my fourth day of skiing alone in Cairngorm National Park.

The Start

In my sophomore year, I took the Judo course because the names of the waza (techniques) sounded really badass, like 大外割 (Osoto Gari), 小內割 (Kouchi Gari) etc.

As a Wuxia novel fan and someone who is generally good at sports, I’ve always wanted to try out Taekwondo. However, due to the myth (or fact? idk) that stretching your legs too much as a kid will damage the growth in terms of height, my mom never let me learn it.

When I first got to college, since my body growth had already become stagnant, I went to a training of the Taekwondo club in my school to get a taste of it, and boy was I impressed. The staggering physique of the black belters hitting a pad at high speed with their foot and the loud and crisp sound accompanying it is just so damn shocking, and I immediately fell in love with it.

Naeba ski resort is a huge resort with a huge hotel and many trails. It is also connected with Kagura Ski Resort through a 5km long ropeway.

If you’re very athletic and can generally pick up new sports quickly, you can probably ease through blue i.e. intermediate trials on your 2nd day with a personal coach. If you’re in a group teaching session or only being taught by a friend, then it may take a bit longer as there may be bottlenecks in groups, while your friends may not know how to teach.