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BROTHERS in business Brian and Wayne Parfitt own restaurants and bars all over the world, and moved into the Niseko entertainment scene in a big way this season.
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BROTHERS Glenn and Dale Goulding are believed to be the first to bring international tourists to Niseko with their company Deep Powder Tours. Powderlife tied down co-director Glenn for a few quick que...
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WHEN Tomoko Kazama isn't working in marketing for Niseko Village at Higashiyama, she loves hitting the mountain and going big. We get to know the poster girl for Niseko Village a little bit better...
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Meet local Kutchan character Shukin, an American former Buddhist monk who now lives in Japan and is a skilled swordsman. An interesting background worthy of getting to know him a little better, we tho...
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IF you're talking skiing and Niseko, they don't come much better than Toki-san...
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DENNIS Van Den Brink is one of those great guys everyone in town seems to know. It may be the dreadlocks and tattoos that make him stick out, but Powderlife got to know this local Dutchman a little bi...
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WHETHER it's for his ski guiding, management of hotels, restaurants and festivals, or promoting and marketing Niseko to the world, everyone seems to know family man, businessman and downright nice guy...
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HAVE you experienced the aroma and flavour of juicy yakitori skewers? Niseko’s famous yakitori izakaya owner, Masanobu Saito, came to Niseko all the way from Kyushu 34 years ago, and quickly became fa...
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PAUL Haggart came to Niseko from New Zealand three years ago, and has quickly become a respected ambassador for the foreign community here. He has got involved with all levels of the local community,...
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WELL-GROOMED long hair, his trademark beret and a big, welcoming smile. Almost all of Niseko’s tourists know who he is, or have seen him at least once. The face of Hirafu Village, Takanori Tachibana,...
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Kensaku Kuno is the general manager of Tokyu Resort Group, the owner and operator of Grand Hirafu. We asked Kuno-san to reflect on the past, present and future of Hirafu.
How long have you been in Nis...
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A well known ‘secret’ among people who have been coming here for a few years is the Half Note Jazz bar. Complete with pool table, table tennis table and stage, you could well find an impromptu jam ses...
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Par is a well known Swedish skier and snowboarder who has been riding Mt Annupuri for more than 19 years, but still retains a zest for the sport like it was his first season. His long, blonde dreadloc...
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Niseko has an amazing variety of adventure sports activities - there’s something for everyone to enjoy all year-round. However until a group of Australians established adventure sports companies in th...
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There have been a number of Australians who have made a major impact on Niseko, beginning with adventure sports trio Ross Carty, Ross Findlay and Scott Walker, and then the inbound tour operators. Fol...
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Ninety two years old and still going strong, Rokurou Takada - affectionately known as Roku-san - is a local insitution. Roku-san used to be the only active player of the traditional Taiko drum in the...
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This issue we meet the creator of the local course map and the painstakingly created and immensely popular village map, both contained in every issue of Powderlife. For everyone who has marvelled at...
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Long time Hokkaido resident Neil Hartmann shot to prominence with the release of snowboarding road trip movie Car Danchis in 2005 . The sequel Car Danchi 2, including the classic footage of the epic 2...
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Niseko has a number of residents who have achieved great feats in their chosen field. One of these is Higashiyama Prince Hotel manager Jiro Kamiharako, who was one of the pioneers of the V ski jump an...
