Well my winter holiday begins this evening. I am taking the sleeper express Hamanasu most likely for the last time, as it's being axed this coming March (along with the Cassie) to make way for the shiney new Hokkaido Shinkansen. I have booked a lower berth (B shindai), and this too may be my last experience using this form of accomodation. In Aomori I will be taking a Hayabusa service on to Tokyo, with an arrival around 11am. I splurged a bit and got a seat in the green car.