On the road: Hokkaido – part II
So where was I, oh yeah, Hokkaido! In my previous post I actually forgot to mention I ran into some shrines near my hotel, which had some cool statues, and I actually found “the sweeper” (read Discworld if you have now idea what I’m talking about).
Anyway, once I visited the university, it was time for some more Hokkaido culture and visit the original Sapporo beer factory. Sapporo beer has brewed for over a hundred years now, and the first factory has, of course, been turned into a museum. Here you find the history of Sapporo beer, all clearly explained in Japanese…
It was fun to see that, since the founder of Sapporo beer got into beer making after a visit to Germany, all Sapporo beer bottles have German written on them since the beginning of the brand.
Also, apparently Sapporo beer is made my small elves/angels or something…
Having witnessed this miraculous process, it was of course time to taste the final product, so I sat down in the empty beer hall and had myself a nice cold Sapporo classic (only available in Hokkaido…).
After visiting the factory, it was time to do some studying again, so I found myself a nice place to study until it was time to get some dinner. After dinner I went to one of the bars mentioned in my lonely planet, Hall Stairs Espresso Bar, which was a very dark, atmospheric, interesting, but mostly empty bar. I clearly picked the wrong night to go to this place, so I left the place after a few drinks, ready to go back to my hotel early.
On my way back to the hotel, I walked past another bar mentioned in my guide, so I decided to just give it a go and check it out. Blues Alley is a large bar, divided into several areas, which gives a homely feel to the place. As I was alone I got a spot at the bar and there I quickly started a conversation with the bartenders, Yuki-san and Makoto-san (I think… kinda lost their business cards, gomen ne!).
As they couldn’t speak a word of English, all our conversations were in Japanese only. Needless to say, this helped improve my Japanese a lot, and it was very very fun to talk to these guys. They told me were the best onsen were, and where I could eat the best Jingus Kahn, fried lamb meat. I told them about Holland and we spoke about lots of other stuff as well. I left the place around three in the morning, drunk as hell and very happy, thanks guys!
The next day it was finally time to visit an onsen area. Time to chill in the hot springs! I went to Jozankei Onsen, about an hours drive by bus from Sapporo. When I arrived there, I was immediately treated with an excellent view of the Jozankei area.
Snowy peaks, hotels and the river running between them, quite impressive. I walked around town a bit, following the map around to find locations of interest, while deciding which onsen to visit here. I ran into many interesting things, like eggs being boiled (I think) in the hot water and the god of the river.
While walking around, I reached the river edge where I located a bridge in the distance, which I just hád to go and check out.
Once I reached the bridge, I found the snowy hill on the other side quite interesting, so I decided to climb it to see what was up there. Climbing it proved a bit of a challenge, since the snow was quite deep, so I kept on sinking away in it. Even in the footsteps created before me, I sank deeper. Obviously a bit heavier than the average Japanese person. Still, it was very fun to do, and once I got to the top, I finally found an onsen! So it was finally relaxation time…
I spent about two hours soaking in the various baths found inside, until it was time to head back to Sapporo. I dozed all the way back to the city, so I arrived quite relaxed back at the city. There I quickly located the Jingus Kahn restaurant, recommended by Yuki and went in for the tabehoudai/nomihoudai, or all you can eat and drink! For about 25 Euro, I got to stuff my face with a shitload of lamb meat, vegetables, rice and of course some beers.
After dinner, I was so stuffed, I couldn’t do anything but go home and sleep the night away. On my last day, I decided to visit Hokkaido Jingu, Hokkaido’s first Shinto Shrine. It is situated inside a forest/park on the edge of town, and once you’re there, you immediately forgot you’re really still in an urban area. All you find, is the peace and serenity of the shrine and nature around it.
As is normal with shrines, at the entrance was the place where you wash your hands and can drink some of the water as well. However, this was the first time I could understand the sign above it, so I have to share that with you of course. The sign says (loosely translated): Since a lot of people use these ladles, please don’t use your mouth directly to drink the water.
At night I visited the Blues Alley again, to thank the bartenders and have a final nice night out in Sapporo. The next day, I started my long train ride back to Tokyo around 12:30 and arrived back home around 11 at night. Along the way I did come across this 1337 wagon though… (for geeks only)
Hokkaido, it was a blast!
