With a well-deserved title as a legend, we bid farewell to James Brown for now and say goodbye to “This is a Man’s World.” Because it’s about time that the male gender makes a little room. Girls on the mountain are pure girl power—or Joshiryoku, if you will.
Okay… did that sound a bit too feminist? Don’t worry, I also own a Kähler vase and have taken countless pictures of my avocado toast. My real point with all this melodramatic nonsense is, at its core, that I hope more girls dare to go against stereotypes and expand their passion in the male-dominated ski/snowboard world! And I can guarantee that a season in Japan will do just that.
Traveling as a tourist in Japan can be fantastic, but working as a ski instructor during a gap year is a completely different experience. You arrive as an awkward, pale foreigner but leave Japan with a new international qualification, a second family, improved language skills, and an expanded cultural understanding. Sorry for the formal tone—of course, there are also tons of incredibly charming Australian ski/surfer dudes and an unlimited amount of sushi that makes the quality at Sticks look ridiculous.
Japan is a fantastic country, and a season here is an experience most associate with hardcore skiers at an almost unimaginable level. After 16 years of piste cruising with my family in Austria and a few high school trips, the distant powder paradise seemed incredibly intimidating. The thought of not having the technique or understanding for more challenging terrain scared me.
In Japan, you sing karaoke until your throat is sore and drink sake until it goes away. But when the snow starts falling, it’s straight to bed! The bar clears out in five minutes because everyone wants to be up early for fresh morning powder. With a shared passion for skiing, you find ski bums of all levels in Japan, and it’s important for skiers of every ability to push their limits to improve. I experienced incredible openness from the experienced instructors who invited me on tours around the mountain—or their backyard, so to speak—to share their expertise and passion.
There was absolutely no doubt that I pushed my limits and significantly improved both my skiing and my confidence. The cultural aspect of a ski season in Japan adds so many crazy experiences, and despite the overwhelming number of guys, I met loads of badass girls who had conquered their fears and pursued their passion in the country with the absolute best snow in the world.
If you have any questions or just want to hear some wild stories about a season in Japan, feel free to contact me at [email protected]
/Mitzi Friis-Hansen