Japan

In Japan we spent a lot of time in Hokkaido, the wild and untamed North of Japan, watching volcanos and wildlife. After that we went to Honshu to experience the exact opposite – Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto.

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Osaka (01.-02.09.2019)

We spend our last day in Japan in Osaka before we take the flight to Indonesia. Since both of us are now a little bit taken along by the hardships, we start the usual exploration of the city very slowly. A sight that one cannot miss in any case when visiting the harbour city is the castle of Osaka.

We continue on foot to the Dotonbori district. Comparable to Shinjuku in Tokyo you can buy all kinds of advertising, food, shrill Japanese music and interesting things.

The sensory overload is perfect! To make this comprehensible, here are a few impressions from the quarter:

Diana had already seen a culinary peculiarity in Germany on Instagram, so it was physically impossible to miss it. In Osaka there is the bakery Rikuro which sells probably the most fluffy cheesecake in the world. There is almost always a queue in front of the shop. As soon as a new tray is finished and ready to sell, one of the employees calls „Chessecakiiiiiii“ loudly and people already scratch their hooves. But the queuing was also worth it!

After we devoured the cake in the hostel, we had to start our way to the airport Kansai, which was completely built in the sea. The next stop was: Bali! We left Japan after 1.5 months with mixed feelings – sad to leave a beautiful and friendly country and happy, as we definitely have to pay less attention to the money at our next stop.

Kyoto (27.08.-01.09.2019)

We have planned a few days in Kyoto as the penultimate stopover of our time in Japan. Unfortunately we are not so blessed with the weather anymore. Our first walk through the city is therefore accompanied by a constant drizzle.

Then we head for the imperial palace. Compared to China, the moderation and simplicity of this palace is striking.

Unfortunately the rain catches up with us again and again. But it doesn’t matter, because we are well prepared!

After we could read a little about the past history of Japan here, we want to dive into the more modern culture the next day. In Japan this goes very well via print media – of course we are talking about mangas.

There is an entire museum in Kyoto that focuses on the collection and exhibition of Japanese and international mangas. We visit the museum and can learn about drawing styles, elements and the historical development of „comic books“. The best part, however, is that you can read them. There are classics like Pokemon, OnePiece, Attack on Titans, Dragonball or Detective Conan, but also current series. In the whole museum that goes over 3 floors, almost all walls are equipped with shelves that contain all the mangas published since 1945.

Here for example is an edition from the beginnings of the mangas (actually from 1945) – a story about baseball!

After spending about 1 hour visiting the museum and 2.5 hours reading English mangas, we leave the museum again.

We dedicate our next day to the older history again and drive with high expectations to the Kinkau-ji, the golden temple of Kyoto. Despite the rain, other people also had this idea on this day.

But reality is a little different:

But in the end we have to drive quite disappointed again. There is no information about the temple, the time in which it was built or the Japanese Buddhism. In principle, the entrance fee for a round of walking around the temple was paid.

Of course we meet JD and Julia in Kyoto again. Together we get on the train to walk through the thousand Tori gates.

However, the complex is huge and the further away you are from the train station, the quieter it gets and the looser the Tori gates are standing.

At the end of the corridors you will always find small shrines, which in turn are decorated with small versions of the gates.

Many Japanese wear Kimonos. The clothes, which have a similar status as traditional costumes in Germany, can be borrowed in many places in all cities, optionally also with photographer. Also in the corridors of the Tori gates, which represent a popular photo motive, we see again some kimono wearers.

Humidity is extremely high, nevertheless we decide to walk to the highest point of the plant. With some wet shirts we reach the top, also quite lonely.

In the evening we arrive back in our accommodation quarter.

One last excursion remains before we leave Kyoto – the bamboo forest in Arashiyama.

In Kyoto we finally find the time to record the usual companions of the Japanese. That includes:

After a few days we leave Kyoto again and head for our last destination (this time by train): Osaka!

Tokyo (21.-26.08.2019)

Tokyo is huge! Our trip from Fujikawaguchiko to the Japanese capital takes two hours and you feel like you’re driving 1.5 hours through the city. By metro we continue to our accommodation, which is located in a quiet area behind the main building of the Asahi Brewery. Especially one characteristic of the building catches the eye: What is called Beer Flame reminds rather of a golden carrot.

Since Tokyo has a lot to offer, we take the time to explore the city quarter by quarter. First on the map is the highend quarter Ginza.

There are expensive shops lined up at luxury boutiques and these in turn at high-class restaurants. Nevertheless, if one distances oneself some crossroads from the main road, one can find a big fish market. There are sushi shops, crab shops and other shops offering maritime products. Now we couldn’t hold back any longer and finally had to eat Sushi in Japan! Therefore we chose one of the many Suhsil shops with conveyor belt, where the small rice balls pass the seat and you can easily help yourself. The colour of the plates indicates the price and at the end the money is collected. When entering the shop we are greeted so joyfully by the cooks that in any case also the last one noticed that we arrived. As expected, the sushi is great!

Then we got a visit: Diana’s former roommate JD and his girlfriend Julia arrived in Tokyo. Of course we met and celebrated the reunion!

The next day the next quarter to explore was on the list: Asakusa. Situated directly on the other side of the river, we only had to cross the bridge and could experience a very touristically staged quarter. One souvenir stall after the other, until we arrived at a big temple – which was also overcrowded.

We then decided to get closer to the Japanese culture in a more modern way and took the train to Seibu to the MetLife Dome – home of the baseball team Seibu Lions. Luckily, JD knew all about baseball and was able to explain all the rules and tricks so we could understand the game!

At the beginning of the game the stadium was still half empty. By the end of the game, however, it was completely full. Of course, cheerleaders came onto the field first, before the Japanese national anthem sounded.

The game’s on! The atmosphere is good and very civilized – as you are used to in Japan. The fans sing (for us complex) songs and jump back and forth on the stands.

Due to our present rule coach we understand the game and can even cheer, because there are always very exciting sections, depending on which team is currently throwing or hitting. We had decided to favor the home team – this should turn out to be a good decision after 3.45 h! In the end it’s 8-6 for the Lions!

We leave the stadium again between fans of the local Lions and the away team of the Rakuten Eagles, but there are no fan clashes. Everything is calm and relaxed. At the end of the game, when we are sitting in the train, we notice that one or the other fan has had a thirsty drink during the game and needed a quick rest in the train.

The next day we continued our exploration of the different quarters of Tokyo: today we had chosen the colorful neon and advertising district Shinjuku.

But when we arrived there it was very relaxed at first – there are many small areas in Shinjuku that differ a lot. Directly at the station there is a jumble of narrow alleys where you can eat Yakitori (meat skewers) or ramen. Walking through the alleys we alternated between good smells and smoke.

On the other side of the rails begins the stereotypical image of Tokyo – billboards where the eye goes!

What of course should not be missing during a visit to Japan is a Game Center. These are available from different providers such as SEGA, Namco or Taito. The fun is of course guaranteed!

When the sun goes down, the city comes to life. The advertising lights come on and the city is as bright as day again.

Shinjuku is especially interesting not only because of the latent sensory overload, but also because of the active chigolo and escort scene which is staged quite differently than in Germany or Europe.

As we roam the neighbourhood we have the feeling that there is a lot of Mafia activity, but it is still 100% safe. Later we decide to get into the metro again and go to Shibuya. Our destination is the Shibuya Crossing, the most frequented pedestrian crossing in the world! Arrived there we look for a good spot – which you can unfortunately find in the adjacent Starbucks (if you do well, even without having to order anything!).

At one corner of the intersection hangs a webcam that can be viewed 24 hours a day on Youtube. We have positioned ourselves visibly – here as another version of Where’s Waldo?

In every major Japanese city we saw, we noticed an architectural feature – a red and white tower that strongly reminds us of the Eiffel Tower:

A quarter is still on our list: Akihabara! The district is best known for its manga and anime scene. Although we come on Sunday, we can understand this.

In our hostel we had met a German couple (Saskia and Philipp) who had joined our group of 4 today. The aim was to get to know the hop- and malt-based scene. We definitely did that and our small group of six almost doubled over the evening:

Our time in Tokyo was already coming to an end, but we had another day to relax and decided to visit the TeamLab. However, this art exhibition is different from other art exhibitions and therefore really fun!

In the next room we were surprised by huge balls!

Of course there were more rooms, but if someone wants to go to Tokyo, we don’t want to anticipate everything here!

A final Sushi should mark the end of our time in Toyko already after five eventful days, before we would get into the night bus to Kyoto:

Fujisan (16.-21.08.2019)

After a long bus ride we arrived in Ebina. With two buses we continued to Fujikawaguchiko, a hypertouristic place at the foot of Fujisan. The rush on Fujisan and the surrounding region is understandable: from the stamp in the passport, magnets, logos, postcards, T-shirt and stamps – everything is refined or represented with the silhouette of the stratovolcano. Furthermore, it is a sacred mountain and many Japanese aim to climb it at least once in their lives. When we arrived we still felt the foothills of the passing typhoon, because it was still raining cats and dogs. So we decided to camp at one of the lakes near the mountain before we started the ascent. We had chosen Lake Shoji for this purpose. We could see the mountain for the first time on the following day:

Of course we wanted to arrive at the summit in the best weather. So we spent a lot of time searching through weather reports and finally found the Norwegian weather service which seemed more reliable than the Japanese counterpart for some reason. After we had to change the campsite once more, we start our ascent.

Of course you can climb the Fujisan during the day. You can also climb it during the day with overnight stays in huts (of which there are really plenty). But these cost 50 to 80 €. We simply did not want to pay that. So we decided to go the traditional way. At 8 pm we found ourselves (in the pouring rain) at the fifth station – the starting point of the hike. There we met another small German group of hikers who, like us, wanted to do the ascent with headlamps overnight. At a leisurely pace we were supposed to make it to the summit or the crater rim in time for sunrise. So we started leisurely. After we voluntarily had to pay 1.000 Yen for the Fuji Conservation Fund, the path continued upwards in serpentines. At a quarter to 9 we had left, so we had a lot of time to reach the top, because the sunrise is typically in summer at about 5 o’clock. With our headlamps we walked up the mountain and quickly gained altitude. A total of 1,400 vertical meters had to be climbed to the top. After about an hour in the rain we heard astonished calls of many Japanese – the cloud cover had loosened and suddenly you could see a beautiful night sky!

At Fujisan there are many huts and stations where for example drinks, snacks or oxygen containers could be bought. Nevertheless there is also the possibility to get a brand stamp tattooed on a wooden stick. Quasi like a kind of walking stick. With the best will in the world, we couldn’t miss it!

Meanwhile the way wound up in serpentines and was interrupted again and again by stations. There were so many people on the way talking and eating Instant-Noodles at the stations, that you almost felt like at a festival.

1.5 h before sunrise we stood just below the crater rim and wanted to tackle the last part.

So in Stop’n’Go manner we went up the last part. And the otherwise so polite Japanese started to push slowly. Sometimes it was so slow that we got cold. Slowly the sun began to rise.

It became brighter and brighter and we progressed slower and slower.

But we’ll make it just in time! 5 minutes before sunrise we were able to position ourselves optimally and watch a beautiful sunrise!

Shortly after sunrise a few clouds end the spectacle again and we decide to start the crater tour! At first it is very foggy and windy!

But a few minutes later the last clouds have finally disappeared and we can see the whole crater and above all the whole panorama!

The only thing missing is the final stamp on our stick!

After a break we went back to the fifth station. In daylight we first noticed how hard the mountain is worked by man. Even excavators and bulldozers are used here.

After a long descent we arrived back at the fifth station with heavy legs. So we had successfully mastered our overnight hike!

Aomori (15.08.2019)

Aomori was just a short stopover on the way to Fujisan. Nevertheless the ferry was an absolute highlight!

The ferry is huge! The terminal in Hakodate has three floors to board the ferry. There are a thousand different seat categories on board: Luxury couches with a view in the direction of travel, normal cabins, even cabins especially for pet owners – and the lowest class we had booked. But it was really not a bad class, because the individual rooms were lined with felt mats and soon after the start of the journey many people had chosen a comfortable spot on the felt floor and snored away.

Otherwise the trip was rather unspectacular – except for the fact that the WiFi worked better on the sea than in the ICE from Cologne to Frankfurt.

The city of Aomori is quite unspectacular in itself. We killed the time with food and running around, because we waited only for the departure of our bus to Ebina (near Tokyo and Fujisan) in the evening. Especially at the promenade we could hang around.

In the evening we could finally get on the bus to Ebina, which should bring us a lot closer to our next stop overnight: Fujisan!

Hakodate (13.-15.08.2019)

While hitchhiking in the area around Furano two older sisters had picked us up by car. During the half hour drive we got along so well that they invited us directly to their home – to Hakodate!

After we arrived early with the night bus from Sapporo to Hakodate, Ritsuko and Ayako picked us up at the bus stop and brought us, including breakfast, to our place for the next two nights: the two sisters have a very close relationship and share a lot, for example a garden house with sleeping facilities. There we resided in the middle of the vegetable garden.

After breakfast and some sleep we went to the center of Hakodate. There we could repeatedly see the love of Japanese for Shiba Inu dogs:

The culinary highlight of the day awaited us in the evening in the house of Ayako. She had conjured up many different small Japanese dishes and we could eat enough for the first time in a long time!

When asked if we could take a shower, the heads were shaken. „Today we go to the Onsen“. So we were packed into the car and off we went to a small onsen near Hakodate and our garden shed! It was indeed strictly separated by sex. But before we went into the bathrooms we could take part in a lottery. Our prizes: socks with cats and handkerchiefs – why not! In the Onsen itself Diana could enjoy the warm water in company and Lucas alone. Of course, the extensive washing was also very good.

The next day we drove to the fish market of Hakodate and could admire all kinds of things:

When asked whether the crabs came from the waters around Hokkaido, the head was always shaken! „From Alaska“ was probably the most frequent answer. The glorious times of Hakodate seem to be over. It went on with smaller crabs:

At a stand we asked how much a king crab weighs, whereupon the seller simply reached into the aquarium and put one on the scales.

But don’t they snap? „Only the little ones, they’re aggressive!“ It’s like real life.

As we stroll across the market, the craftsmanship of the fishermen is evident to us. One of them cut up squids in a few seconds from alive to ready to serve:

Surrounded by all the delicacies from the sea, we could not hold back and had to taste the king crabs. But our limited budget only gave us a small part of the whole.

On the way to Ritsuko and Ayako we went back through the harbour area. The manga popularity is already noticeable here:

Arriving at the two of them we immediately went to the stove, because we had to boost the Käsespätzle production again! The meanwhile almost perfect processes had (as usual) a usable result and we could already enjoy the good food.

After a nice evening we had to say goodbye the next morning, because next we wanted to take the ferry to Honshu, the biggest island of Japan, where Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Mount Fuji are located.

Sapporo (08.-12.08.2019)

Since we hadn’t really seen much of Sapporo before, we took a few days to explore the capital of the prefecture of Hokkaido. Of course we use the metro as our primary means of transportation.

Our first trip was to a suburb of the city. There we hoped to meet a true celebrity who had become so famous through social media like Instagram and Youtube that even TV teams from all over the world (including Germany from Pro7) came by. We are talking about a Shiba Inu!

Ken was actually a normal Japanese dog until his owners came up with the idea of opening a shop he could run. In the left box, corncobs and sweet potatoes are offered alternately and paid for in the small red slit on the left side of the stand. As soon as visitors arrive and Ken is not too tired, he looks up curiously and is happy to be stroked. Of course we couldn’t deny him this.

After we had often been drawn a picture of Japan so far, which shows colorful shrill billboards that glow like in Times Square, it was time after two weeks to finally see them.

A frequently encountered and interesting thing is the reproduction of food. These are then placed in their original size in the shop windows of the restaurants and sometimes provided with the price, which of course has made life easier for us.

Food is an important part of everyday life in Japan anyway. On every street corner you will find a shop offering food. For example, you can go to small ramen shops like this one:

Frequently, however, one also finds a Ramenstreet in the cities of Japan. So also in Sapporo. There Ramen shops are lined up closely and in the end there is only the agony of choice!

After we had already visited the local brewery during our first stay in Sapporo, but were too late for the tasting, we of course had to catch up. Said, done!

Slightly drunk we explored the streets of the city a little bit. Here a few impressions:

We got the impression that the Japanese are into games. In many cities there are gambling halls that don’t focus on slots and gambling games, but on video games and others. We were able to find one of these in Sapporo, the Namco World.

At night we took the night bus further south – to Hakodate.

Akanko (06.-08.08.2019)

Actually we only wanted to stay here for one night, but were able to relax very well and stayed two. After the tent was pitched and we had returned from our first exploration tour of the small village, we were surprised by unusual camp site users: Deer had settled a few meters next to our tent. The falling asleep in this night took place then to the melodic grass plucking and chewing of the deer, which seemed to taste the grass beside our tent probably best. They also made themselves felt in the morning because a deer stumbled over our tent ropes. The following evening we met the deer again, but this time in the centre of the village.

Our last hitchhiking attempt was a bit tiring and lengthy due to geographical misunderstandings, but in the end we arrived in Sapporo in the evening.

Meakan-Dake and Akan-Dake (03.-06.08.2019)

We pack up our tent in the morning and walk to the tourist information. Here we are lucky again and we are taken to our destination, a camping site at Lake Onnetoh. We set up our tent again and can look forward to three days of pure nature, even without WiFi and reception. The campsite was also equipped with lattice boxes for food. The nocturnal fox visit to the neighbouring tent showed us why it was a good idea to use them.

The weather is good and the next day we decide to start a day trip over the two volcanoes Meakan-Dake and Akan-Dake. On the sea side we pass a very intensively smelling onsen and on the north side of Meakan-Dake we reach the crater rim.

Meakan-Dake is an active volcano. Along the whole way you will be warned about the risks of a volcano hike.

We were more worried about the potential stings from the various insects. Some of them had considerable sizes and once we were able to follow the growth live:

The path wounded further up and after the tree line the crater of Meakan–Dake followed. Our first real volcano in Japan! The activity also became obvious quickly, because in many places deafening sulfur fumaroles came to the surface. Arriving at the highest point of the crater rim, we could not only enjoy our usual food, consisting of toasted toast and sliced cheese, but also a magnificent panorama:

Slowly clouds come up and we decide to continue the way over the crater of Meakan-Dake, direction Akan-Dake.

Of course, we do not let ourselves be taken by the experience of climbing two volcanoes in one day. But after a 20 minute ascent the clouds have won and we can’t enjoy the other view of Meakan-Dake anymore. Therefore we start the way back and arrive well exhausted at our tent.

But the next day Lucas doesn’t take the opportunity to shorten the hike again and walk in better weather. In perfect sunshine he arrives at the summit of Akan-Dake and can admire the beautiful stratoform of Meakan-Dake.

His motivation was even higher to climb Meakan-Dake again. The looks were great of course!

Back at Lake Onnetoh again, we took a little walk around the lake. The reason was this view:

On the day of our departure we are very lucky and soon we find ourselves in a small boxy car with the destination Akanko!

Furano to Honbetsu (02.08.)

We get up, pack our stuff and position ourselves along the road. Today we wanted to hitchhike as far as possible towards Akan National Park and visit the lavender farms of Furano along the way. The road close to our camp site is not really frequented and until now we got to know Japanese people as security-loving and we posed the question to ourselves if we even have a chance of being picked-up …

We wrote our destination on a sign – in English and Japanese. After 45 minutes two sisters pick us up and they are so excited to have us that they drop us off directly at the lavender farm and even invite us to their hometown Hakodate. Hitchhiking the first time in Japan worked out pretty good!

As soon as we arrived at Tomita Farm a sweet smell of melon hits u. Mostly honey melons are cultivated on Hokkaido. The price is quite Japanese as well – one melon costs at least 2.200 Yen – that is 18 to 19 Euros! We decline the offer and move on to the lavender fields.

Of course there are many lavender products around – we tried lavender ice cream:

We continue our trip by train as we have to do groceries in Furano. After a few minutes we find ourselves on a parking lot of 7/11 waiting for someone to take us. A kind young man takes us a little part of the way and drops us of at another 7/11 parking lot, where we get picked up by a nice teacher from Obihiro. Although she already did us a huge favour, she invited us for ice cream (again that day) and even brought us to the bus terminal in Obihiro as we took the bus for the last part of our trip. Our first experiences while hitchhiking in Japan are positive all the way!

The last part to a free camp ground is taken by bus! In Honbetsu we found a free camp site but it is 1.750 meters away from the bus stop. We take on this distance with our common bagpacks and our food bags that weigh an additional 8 kgs. When we arrived completely exhausted we saw signs warning of the bears that are around. We didn’t know where to store our food bags so we just asked our neighbours. Their answer was simple: „Bears? Nooo. Here are foxes and bears don’t come out when there are fox around. Just put your food in your tent“. We are not keen to meet either of them in the middle of the night but give in to the council of the wise Japanese campers around us – and we wake up well rested in the next morning without any visitors in the night.

Furano (30.07.-02.08.)

We started our road trip with Aoki and None early in the mist of Tomamae. It took us three hours to arrive in the Furano region and at least the weather improved a little. The central area is known for huge lavender- and flower fields. We only visited a small one though, but it was still colorful!

Our drive towards our next accomodation continued and we passed the famous Blue Pond. The pond that was originally installed as a protection against natural erosion got its blue colour because of dissolved minerals. Many Mac-users might know it because it is a default wallpaper.

While continuing to drive we had our first encounter with Hokkaido wildlife. Although Hokkaido is known brown bears it is only a fox looking for food at the road side.

After a few kilometers we arrived at our accomodation – after a few weeks we can finally pitch up our tent again. We say goodbye to Aoki and None and completly go for our camping mode. The camp site is a little full as many Japanese people are travelling by motorbike or with their whole family. But we mostly meet people from Hokkaido.

For the next day we planned our first volcano hike in Japan! We get up early and start our hike. But along the way we have to realise that we won’t have a nice view on top – The peak of Tokachi-Dake is completely covered in mist …

We hope for some more wind and continue to hike to the peak, passing three craters without even seeing them. When we arrived at the peak we are rewarded with strong wind and more mist.

We go back (a little disappointed). We still enjoy camping and even have some WiFi in our tent. We are underneath the thick layer of clouds and can withness a nice sunset.

The camp site is part of an Onsen. Those are hot springs that are used for bathing. In the evening when it cooled down we left our tent and headed for the Onsen. Usually, they are separated by gender, but we are lucky and this particular Onsen has a mixed area. While we are getting cooked we are setting our minds to the next day when we want to hitchhike to Meakan-Dake and Akan-Dake.

Shortly before packing up our tent Tokachi-Dake showed it’s friendly face and shows it’s peak.

Tomamae (27.-30.07.)

Couchsurfing sadly didn’t work in Sapporo. We found a host in the North of Sapporo though: Mr.Aoki in Tomamae. We took a bus from Sapporo to the countryside for three hours along the coast. Aoki picks us up at the bus station together with his new wife. Both are married for the second time and celebrating that she now can stay in Japan for one year, as she is from Thailand. We are hosted at the same time nonetheless because Aoki owns a Rider’s House that was supported by a local bank to support local tourism. Tomamae is mostly known for being one of Japan’s finest locations for the deployment of wind energy – of course we couldn’t miss that!

At the same time as us Shinichi, a friendly Japanese guy from Nagano stays in the rider’s house. He is always in a good mood and meets one prejudice about Japanese people – he loves karaoke bars. Was it a coincidence or not, we’ll never find out, but there was a karaoke bar literally one walking-minute from our place. After having great barbecue with Aoki and his wife None we went to the karaoke bar with Shinichi.

The bar looks rather ordinary and an old, friendly woman greets us behind the counter. Shinichi invites us and within one second we have alternatively Japanese or Korean Whiseky in front of us. At the beginning we are all alone in the bar and so we can shamelessly sing English or Japanese songs – the split should be clear. To scroll through the millions of songs available we got a little machine that is passed around to select songs.

As the microfone is set to maximum volume our great singing skills can be heard three blocks away for sure. As soon as the songs start some trashy Japanese videos are shown that don’t match the song at all, but it is quite funny to see Bon Jovi, ABBA, Bonnie Tyler or Meat Loaf with a Japanese video in the back.

After one or five other Japanese or Korean Whiskeys, the total decrease of our singing skills and some funny hours we leave the karaoke bar again.

The next day we get up early (more/less) in order to visit the local Shrimps-Festival. It is comparable to Thanksgiving but completely based on fishery. Many products from the sea can be purchased and also catch some shrimp. The last is less spectacular than it sounds. The living shrimp are piled up on a long table and row of people line up behind the table, equipped with baskets. After a few introducing words of the show master the beginning of the „catching“ is signaled. All of a sudden all people behind the tabel start shoveling as many shrimp into their own basket as possible. After a few seconds the whole show is over and the next group heads towards the table.

Aoki knows every person in Tomamae. Wheter it is the mayor, agency people, police or entrepreneurs. Of course he introduces his new wife and guests from Germany to everybody. In general everybody asked us why we came to Tomamae. Each time we answered to meet Aoki and see the rural life of Hokkaido and each time our answer was acknowleged with a long Ahhhh or Ohhhh! After that many follow up questions on Germany arose and stories about their own visit of Europe were told. It almost feels like every person in Tomamae already visited Germany.

Of course Tomamae owns a mascot that is around the festival and takes pictures with everyone. As it wears a hat similar to the one Diana wore to her defense of dissertation we took a picture with the mascot as well.

Of course there are more activites at the festival. One of them being the possibiliy to be drawn Japanese style. For 200 Yen (approx. 1,60 €) we took this chance.

An animal that plays in a major role in everday life in Hokkaido is the brown bear. At the entrance of Tomamae everybody is greeted by a huge brown bear!

Nonetheless the wind power plants are sighted way more frequent than the brown bears. We take up the road to gain a full panoramic views of this very beautiful source of renewable energy generation.

To bring some Germany cooking to Japan we prepared some Käsespätzle!

This is the result in the end:

The next day we departed to our next destination Furano and Aoki and None took us to get there. They even showed us some of the nice corners of central Hokkaido.

Sapporo (25.-27.07.)

We finally arrived in Japan! After we spent our first night in a sleeping/waiting room at Narita Airport in Tokyo we are keen to see Hokkaido’s capital Sapporo! We are confronted with Japanese reality within seconds – everything is so much more expensive than we would have guessed. A hostel bed costs around 20 € per person and per night and on the weekend even up to 35 €. Therefore, we just stay two nights in Sapporo for now.

The capital of Hokkaido is famous for it’s huge beer brewery – it carries the same name as the city: Sapporo Brewery! There is a small and free museum that shows how the art of brewing beer came to Japan. A Japanese dude from Hokkaido went to Berlin to learn it – at least Germany, although we all know it’s not nearly as good as Bavarian Beer! In Sapporo – until today – beer is brewed according to the German Purity Law – and it probably is the best beer we tasted while travelling so far!

As we needed to engage in some serious planning work we didn’t see much of Sapporo for now. Our first impression is positive nonetheless. Compared to the hectical Chinese cities Sapporo is calm, clean and down to earth. People greet each other and are always ready to help and friendly. We feel in good hands. We even find a couchsurfing host some 200 km North of Sapporo, in a small village that we initially didn’t plan on visiting. We embark a bus to Tomamae and into the rural side of Hokkaido.