March 2025 greeted me with an unexpected gift — a late burst of winter. Overnight, the town transformed under a soft white blanket, only an inch or so, but enough to make it feel like I’d woken up inside a postcard. I layered up and set off through mud, ice, and slush for a 25-minute walk to one of the highlights of my trip: the snow monkeys. The path was slippery, my shoes were soaked (pro tip: if you pass a shop offering snow boot hire at the start — take the offer), and my fingers went numb somewhere along the way. But when I finally saw those monkeys huddled together in the steam, it was pure magic — the kind of scene that makes you forget the cold and remember why you travel.