highlights of 2006 - part 3

july 29th

i've left my town, rubeshibe, and am now in niseko with my friend katie. niseko is one of our favourite places in japan. it is a nature-lovers haven offering skiing, snow-shoeing, hiking, rafting, mountain running, adventure races and mountain biking.....yes, mountain biking.

katie and i have decided to spend 4 days camping in niseko with each day offering a different outdoor sport. we decided that no boys were allowed. we had spent the past year doing all of our outdoor sporting in large groups of men and this was a 'girls rock out' event. nice.

it's day 3. we rent mountain bikes and head out for a day of adventure. i'm feeling great. i am literally 100meters from our goal - the onsen!!! i'm going fast and lose my confidence. i brake hard and that's all i really remember.

i realize i'm groaning and when i open my eyes i see blood all over my hands and can feel it dripping off of my chin. i try to use my tongue to feel if i have any teeth but my mouth is too swollen to allow my tongue to move. i sort of remember a car stopping ahead of me, my friend katie arriving and someone else washing my face. i'm crying. "katie...is my face ok?" i'm so worried i've fucked up my face. i don't seem to notice the pain in my arms yet. "you're going to be fine" she pats me on the on the shoulder.

katie comes in the ambulance with me. i'm in shock and barking out orders. "how am i going to get home? where is my wallet, i don't have insurance, do they take visa? where are my glasses? is my face ok?" i'm trying to speak japanese to the paramedic but can't seem to make any sense. katie is amazing at keeping me calm. "don't worry...i'll handle everything" she says. she does.

there is so much to this story i could write for days. katie stays with me at hotel, packs up the camping gear and carries both of our huge packs around. she washes and feeds me, repacks my suitcases. katie - i can't thank you enough.

somehow i spend 36 hours traveling alone with my face all bandaged up, both arms in soft casts and in a lot of pain. i arrive in canada, 5 days after the accident, 4 days with no shower, and am taken to emergency. i don't think the nurses believe my story at first. "how hard did you hit you head?" i keep getting asked. i have surgery 2 days later on my right elbow. the left is broken too but not soo bad.

it has been 4 months since the accident. i will have surgery again this winter/early spring. my face is fine. my elbow is still weak and my right arm is 2 inches shorter than my left. i've learnt i have amazing friends and family. i wish i could thank all of the strangers in niseko, the airports and on the planes who helped me out. especially the woman in a tokyo airport bathroom who washed my face, combed my hair re-did my ponytail for me.