As we started to climb, my eyes were fixed on the back of Toshiya"s boots rising and falling with a slow and regular rhythm as he broke trail with his skis. We worked our way up the ridgeline leaving behind a deep trail in the fresh snow. After a few hours of steady climbing, lost in my thoughts, I took a second to pause and catch my breath, inhaling the cold, biting air. As I raised my head and turned to look behind me, the view was like nothing I had seen before. Instead of mountains and valleys, I was staring directly down at the sea, which was painted in the deepest of blues that shimmered in the bright sunlight.