Hokkaido Jingu - Cherry Blossoms in May

6th May, 2009 - Alas, I was already back and truly in Adelaide when the Cherry Blossoms had come to Sapporo... and Golden Week is always the time for hanami in Sapporo... and the place where everyone goes is Hokkaido Jingu. It was one year before that we had all gone to the same park to see the sakura... but that year it had largely finished already (and I was a little disappointed). T-chan took some of these photos to let me see what I'd missed. L-kun, T-chan, her parents, and Auntie were off to have a picnic! Once again I'd be left feeling like I'd missed out.   ?8-( 

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The blooms were certainly out on the approach to Hokkaido Shrine, through Maruyama Kouen... and so were the tourists and locals alike. Golden Week (29 April - 5 May) is the peak time for Japanese to get out and about on holidays... and as cherry blossoms are due around this time in Sapporo, it's also a popular destination. Cherry blossoms first appear down in the deep south (in Okinawa) from January/February, and they'll bloom in the north (Hokkaido) in May. That means that whilst the flowering only lasts at peak for about 1 week, if you have freedom of movement then there's a good chance you can find somewhere with blossoms  during March - May.

One of the favourite things to do in Maruyama-Kouen at this point is to find a nice spot and have a bite to eat. It's particularly popular to have barbecues (which can be hired in the park).

Okaasan, Auntie-S. L-kun, Otousan

And there's never a bad time to have food - especially a picnic!

Just say Aaaaaaaahhhhh!

Just don't expect a peaceful lunch out... there's lots of people and lots of noise. There's also quite a bit of drinking that is associated with ohanami (flower viewing).

It's also a great time to go walk the dog.... ok, not everyone has a real dog to walk. However, even an inflatable dog can be a great way of meeting people. The dog was actually a gift from ojiichan to L-kun, and he loved it - and he still plays with it (though the wheels are getting a little worn out now). I also have to say, that "mixed" children are always popular in Japan... you would think they had two heads and had flown down from the moon. I get a little frustrated at the attention L-kun can get - he gets spoilt enough by his parents! By the way - if you're wondering what's that on his back... it's actually a neat little backpack/leash.

Ok - I can sense that there's a lot of people that don't like the use of the word leash when it comes to children. All I can say is that there was a time around this time when it gave mum and dad a lot of reassurance that L-kun wouldn't walk off in the crowd (especially with the 1000's of people walking around Maruyama and the trains etc). Also - they are pretty cute.

Of course - when you're at Maruyama Kouen, you should pop into see the Hokkaido Jingu. There's not much in the way of shrines - at least old shrines - in Hokkaido. And Sapporo seems to be largely devoid of them compared to a lot of Japanese cities. Once again that stems from the fact that Sapporo is relatively young (being established formally in 1868), and even though this period very roughly coincides with the steady re-ascent of Shinto in Japan, it did not appear to be reflected in the growth of local shrines.

The koinobori are an odd addition at this time of the year - celebrating Children's (Boys) Festival - which is actually the last public holiday of Golden Week on the 5th of May (the previous day).

And yes - Children's Day has to be celebrated in T-chan's household with yet another gloriously colourful cake that you find everywhere over this period.

L-kun enjoys his Boy's Day cake - the night before

Like many shrines, especially at festival time, there are any number of different stalls where you buy an assortment of foods. Yummy.

Now - I have to say, that T-chan did something funky with our Canon digicam that day (applied some sort of filter) that gave us a bit of a shock when she checked out the photos that evening. Still, there's something a little interesting (and sepia-like) about some of these photos. Thankfully she discovered this before she'd taken too many photos. Kawaisou!

Hokkaido Botanic Gardens - A Splash of Colour and History

13th May, 2008 - Spring time in Sapporo is beautiful, and full of life. Which is a good thing, because Spring is relatively short. After a long week of being at home relaxing, we ventured forth again with L-kun. This time we wanted to go into the city and visit the Hokkaido Botanic Gardens (Hokkaidō Daigaku Shokubutsuen).

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And if you're looking at the maps, check out StreetView... as they've implemented a great idea here... a higher than normal definition walk around the garden paths. This is a great feature.

Photo taken from Google Streetview... or is that Parkview

These gardens are actually formally part of the Hokkaido University, and as such they are as much about learning as they are about enjoying nature. They were established in 1886, and are the second oldest botanic gardens in Japan.... but not quite as old as the Botanic Gardens back home in Adelaide which pipped them by only 30 years or so. Still, the city of Sapporo was effectively born only in 1868, so it is very much an integrated part of the city.

There are a number of different parts to the gardens, each section having it's own ambiance. The first section that we entered was brilliantly colourful, with lots of flowers in full bloom.

Now, I've said it before, and I'll say it again. A green thumb is definitely not part of my anatomy... so expect a lot of long uncomfortable pauses if you want to ask me specific botanic questions.

It may not be surprising to you that one of my favourite flowers is actually that from the Rhododendron... the bright red flowers may be a little on intense side, but there's something very unconditional about the flowers. Our climate isn't so good for them back in Adelaide, but one of my favourite spots is the Rhododendron Valley in the Mount Lofty Botanic Gardens.

I sometimes wished that I had half a clue when it came to plants and gardening... but I don't think Rhododendron's do well in the hot dry climate of the Adelaide plains. The soil almost certainly too alkaline for these to grow well without a whole heap of conditioning.

There is a good use of water in various parts of the gardens. Never enough to dominate the experience, but just enough to add a sense of stillness.

And with it you can just relax and let the tension flow out of you as you look at the slow-motion explosion of colours and textures of these flowering plants.

There is quite a large area within the botanic gardens that looks... well... like a forest. In fact, it looks like a perfect place to understand what the natural forests had to offer, without having to go out and find a native forest to go exploring in... as you never know what kind of strange creatures you might come across inside such a forest...

Once again, the use of water, and in this case the grasses that grow by the waterways is quite beautiful. The bridge in the distance just adds to that feeling like you may have just stepped into a painting.

There's also wide open grassed areas within the gardens made from Kentucky bluegrass. Now that doesn't really have a Japanese ring to it.

Lilacs are possibly the most quintessential flora for Sapporo - which is interesting as they're not native at all. Lilacs were brought over from the USA by the Christian educator Sarah Clara Smith in 1890, from which point they spread quite extensively. Whilst the Lilac has now become closely associated with Sapporo (which holds a Lilac Festival later in May each year), it was only selected by popular vote as the symbolic tree for the city in 1960. Actually, T-chan has a slightly tangential association with the Lilac, as she attended the school Hokusei Gakuen Girl's High School which Smith had established along with her Lilacs. During the war, the trees were cut down (not sure if we should read anything into this) - but they sprouted forth once more after the war was over. And so the legend was born.

And whilst the sakura were well and truly past their prime in Maruyama, in the Botanic Gardens they were still going strong...  This variety certainly was vibrant... but completely overpowered by the most beautiful blossom of them all, my gorgeous wife T-chan.

Yet another homework piece.... ah, it's going to be a busy week.

And all the time, the ever present Karasu (or crow) looks on... it's haunting (and let's be honest, annoying) cry echoing across the Park. Actually, this picture might suggest only a single, lonely Karasu... oh no.. there were 10's, if not 100's of them... well at least 10. Karasu are the plague of many Japanese cities for the reason that they are scavengers, and will scavenge in the neighbourhood refuse which is typically gathered in a single spot on the roadside awaiting collection. If the rubbish isn't properly covered, good ol' Karasu will find a way in and before you know it, the rubbish will have found a way out. I think they are pretty well universally despised within Sapporo at least.

Once again, the use of water in the garden is subtle and yet powerful. The elevated path winds through a shallow lake filled with all manner of different water plants. At least we think it was shallow, as we were pushing our stroller with a now sleeping L-kun in it. And a good thing to, as the broadleaf plants are known as skunk cabbage... not something I'd like to fall into.

Our experience of the Botanic Gardens was one of pleasant surprise. It's not a particularly showy garden, and in parts looks downright native. However, as a respite from the city (like it's Adelaide counterpart) it makes for a relaxing stroll, not just through the gardens, but also through a slice of Sapporo history.

Ume Blossoms... The Sweet and the Sour of Hiraoka Kouen

8th May, 2008 - After the wonderful experience of the cherry blossoms, we had seen on the local Sapporo news that the Ume trees (I'll explain about ume later) were in full bloom at Hiraoka Kouen, to the south-east of Sapporo. Otousan had very graciously volunteered to drive us there the following day (the 8th)... and we were expecting big things.

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Now I don't want to be overly critical of the Sapporo television channels, but the report that they showed the night before, and what we found were slightly at odds. Instead of being at full bloom, we found the ume to be past their peak. But in true stoic Japanese style, we made the most of what was there. Hiraoka Kouen (park) is a free city-administered park, with some 1200 ume trees. Now ume is known by a few names... Japanese plum, Japanese vine tree, Japanese apricot... well according to my research (it's botanical name is prunus mume) it's actually closer to an apricot-variety that had come to Japan from China a long time ago... And depending on the variety, will either blossom as a pink or a pale green/white flower.

Now the Japanese love to make the most of their attractions. If you're going to see the ume blossom, why don't you eat the ume blossom. I guess it's very efficient. Anyhow, they make ume flavoured soft-cream (ice-cream) for all to enjoy. In fact, today was L-kun's first icecream experience...

And no... I wasn't eating for two... I was holding T-chan's.

Actually, ume is a not uncommon flavouring in Japanese dishes (especially at this time of year). If you haven't tried umeboshi, then I would definitely recommend it. With a warning. I love sour, explode in your mouth surprises. Umeboshi is a sort of pickled ume fruit, which is extremely sour and salty, and might possibly constitute a violation of human rites if forced to eat it. It's sometimes served with meals, or with rice balls (onigiri), and is quite...er... noticeable. It is very Japanese (despite it's Chinese roots), and something you should seek out. Even if it's ume-flavoured candies... which are good if you need to wake up in a hurry.

The flowers were definitely beautiful on the trees that were still well and truly in bloom.

And the variety between colours was also unexpected.

But I have to say that I felt a little cheated that we'd driven all this way based on the news story which had to have been filmed at least a couple of days earlier. Despite the disappointment, it was an enjoyable excursion, and we all had a good time (especially the now ice-cream obsessed L-kun).

And sometimes, when we expect the grand vistas of blooms and find they're not there - we realise that it's not necessarily the quanity that matters. The blossoms are amazine en masse, but the meaning is deeper. This is Spring. The winter has departed. Life re-emerges from it's cold slumber to re-affirm it's dominance over the landscape.

I'm not sure that L-kun was taking all of this in... but there is something singularly beautiful about a tree in full-bloom. Is it really surprising that someone with less than a year's life experience can see this?

One of the things that we saw that day was a school trip, where all the kids had been decked out in their near-matching outfits and hats. As we watched, there was a definite difference in our perspective. Last trip, we most probably wouldn't have given this school group a second thought. Yet now, when we watched, we saw something of L-kun's future. It might not be in a Japanese school, but you never know. The future seems far less abstract once you have your own children. It's no longer like looking through a cloudy window out at some other's world... this was like looking at our future. That sort of thought makes you sit up and notice.

This sort of moment is an umeboshi for the soul!... still plenty of sweet to offset the sour.

Is This The Best Place for Cherry Blossoms in Hokkaido?

7th May, 2008 - After our unsuccessful attempts to see the Cherry Blossoms previously, we set out again with determination (now that Golden Week had officially finished) to see if we could catch a glimpse of the real thing. Our destination was Toda Kinen Bochi Kouen, near Atsutaka Ishikari.... and this time we weren't going to be disappointed.

The park is some 55km North from Sapporo Station, an inland drive along the coast. It's a pleasant drive... but last time, we turned back just before the bridge over the Ishikari River due to the grid-locked traffic going to the park. About 20 km away from the park. That's Golden Week for you.

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Anyhow, the park has some 8,000 yoshino sakura (I didn't count them all). Many of the trees are planted as beautiful sakura namiki (rows of cherry blossoms) along the roadways. It certainly made for some spectacular driving in the green forested hills of Hokkaido. Perhaps the trees were made more beautiful for the backdrop of green that surrounded them...

Or the deep blue Hokkaido Spring sky....

Either way, these were the sakura that I had come to Japan to see. I was definitely satisfied... arigatou otousan to okaasan! The previous disappointment of Maruyama Kouen and previous aborted drive were wiped away that fine morning.

There are a number of tree-lined avenues that were absolutely spectacular - including one that is about 1 km long and is a veritable cherry blossom tunnel. The strange thing is that whilst common-sense would suggest that you get out of your car and walk... common-sense does not necessarily mean the same thing to all people. So whilst you would be enjoying the beautiful sakura blossoms, you'd occasionally have to get off the path whilst someone drove their car past. Sometimes quite a few cars...

A sakura tunnel

Now... what exactly is this park?... well the observant among you (well, it's not that hard to see) will already know that Toda Kinen Bochi Kouen is actually a cemetery. Yes, we had driven over an hour to walk around the petal festooned paths and roadways of a cemetery. Like the cemetery at Takino, this is a fairly famous cemetery around Sapporo. This one is associated with the Sōka Gakkai, an unusual blend of philanthropic organisation and lay religion (based broadly on Nichiren Buddhism). With approximately 8-12 million followers, it's a significant slice of the Japanese population...and one that is surrounded by some controversy for it's political connections. For me, I am happy to leave those questions to those best equipped to answer them. As such, I can enjoy these beautiful trees with an open mind.

And whilst the tombstones themselves lack the interesting variety of Takino, and the cemetery certainly has a deficiency of Stone Henge's and Easter Island Heads... it makes up for it however in beauty and serenity. There are certainly worse places to rest your weary bones (even if they are cremated).

L-kun, still under 1 year here, and whilst he was sort of interested, his interest was pretty well limited to having Cherry Blossom showers... and when you're 1, why not!

Meanwhile, this is definitely one of the best places to see the cherry blossoms in/around Sapporo if you have access to a car, and don't mind sharing the view with the living-challenged. It's not really a place however to strictly enjoy hanami (normally associated with eating, drinking and being merry). There is still a sombre mood to the park - it is a cemetery after all. There are places where you can eat, or where you can find a seat an have a picnic lunch... 

Is this the best place to view Cherry Blossoms in Hokkaido? Maybe it is the most spectacular (I haven't seen that many), but it may not be able to capture the exuberant atmosphere that accompanies a typical Japanese hanami. It is however one of the most beautiful places to view sakura at their peak in Hokkaido. I'd definitely go there again - just not in Golden Week.

Fifth Trip - Hanami Time in Sapporo (Just)

3rd May, 2008  - So we arrived in Japan, our fifth trip together - but (obviously) the first time with our son. We had been stressing out about how we would go on the flight over with L-kun, but the truth is he slept almost the entire way from Adelaide. However - such was our anxiety (as newbie parents) that we forgot to take any snapshots of our trip over. Or even our first day in Japan.

We had planned the trip to coincide with the sakura (cherry blossom) season in Hokkaido... however, like many things in life, it didn't quite work out as planned. Now according to local speculation, the peak season in Sapporo should be around early to mid-May (which is much later than most of Japan due to the colder temperatures in Hokkaido). Now this was the start of Golden Week (when there are 4 public holidays strung together... but I'll talk more about that later... today was Constitution Day. Yeah! In a normal year, the Cherry Blossoms peak throughout Golden Week, being a very convenient though busy time to enjoy a spot of hanami (flower viewing). This year however, the flowers had come early... in fact the earliest in 23 years (or so I read). 

The best place in Sapporo to go for hanami is Maruyama Kouen, which sits adjacent to Hokkaido Jingu (shrine). This is where thousands of people go come Spring... so if you like avoiding crowds, try to avoid Maruyama Kouen. And what do you do when you go to hanami in Hokkaido? Well, typically gather a group together, rent a bbq (specifically jingisukan), bring lots of food and drink - then spend the rest of the afternoon/evening there getting decidely merry. Unfortunately, this year the blossoms were already saying "sayonara"... so it must have been a slightly muted experience for all of those thousands of people.

Now, before I go any further I should first of make some introductions... (without my usual smiley faces... maybe there's hope yet that T-chan will be happy to have her photo's up)

(left to right) L-kun, Otousan, S-Obasan, Okaasan

Anyhow, I guess L-kun is the easy one to pick from the photo above (it was a cool day, hence the blanket). On the left is my father-in-law (otousan=father) and on the right my mother-in-law (okaasan = mother). In the middle is my "auntie-in-law", let's just call her S-obasan (obasan = auntie).

Whilst I mentioned that the cherry blossoms were on the way out, of course, there were a few left. You'll note that these sakura are not the typical white ones that we normally associated with cherry blossoms... but rather a beautiful pink shade. Actually there are a number of different varieties in the park... with over 1700 cherry trees within the park itself. Actually - there are three main varieties: yamazakura (mountain cherry), ezo yamazakura (Ezo mountain cherry - which is also known as known as the Sargent's Cherry. Note Ezo is also written as Yezo which was an alternative name for Hokkaido), and finally the somei yoshino zakura. I'm definitely not an expert at discerning the different types... but somethings can just be enjoyed.

Yezo Yamazakura (Yezo Mountain Cherry)

  

There were white sakura blossoms. When the blooms have lost their petals, they look more like the traditional flower.... but they had definitely reached the end of their peak.

Yamazakura

The sakura below bloomed in abundance... though so the story goes, you can search your whole life and not find the perfect blossom. No matter how many there are. Having said that... why would you want to? Those crazy Japanese... always looking for answers to slightly oddball questions.

This was my first experience with cherry blossoms, and I have to admit that I was a little disappointed (that we'd arrived so late to miss the main show). However, we had a fantastic picnic lunch and L-kun enjoyed himself tremendously... especially when the wind picked up and we were showered with blossoms... a phenomenon known a sakura fubuki... or cherry blossom snow-storm.

There were other blossoms going strong at the time... for example Maruyama has a lot of plum trees as well that bloomed in just as spectacular a show... We enjoyed these blooms slightly more as they were still at their peak. Though they lack the beauty of the cherry blossom, they made up in sheer presence.

Plum blossom

I guess the lesson here is that going to Japan to see the Cherry Blossoms is always a bit of a gamble... unless you can (1) stay a long time either side of the peak, or (2) have the flexibility to travel to find the blossoms which take several months to travel south to north through Japan.

We've been trying to celebrate our own hanami back in Adelaide... but it's not quite the same thing.

One of the things that I had not quite expected however - that did come as a very nice surprise - was the amazing display of colour from the tulips that were planted around the front of Maruyama Kouen (and for that matter all over the city). Sapporo definitely has a tulip fetish, and they can be found growing every where.. even on the sides of the roads. Indeed there's even a variety of Tulip named after Sapporo.

Certainly - they grow well here, and provided a splash of colour that really did bring home the fact that it was Spring-time in Japan.