Sapporo - A Few Quick Facts... And Cake

31st July, 2010 -  Sapporo is a reasonable sized city - in fact, 5th largest city in Japan. Now whilst you might have in your mind the image that Japanese cities are sprawling megatroplii, the reality is quite different once you get out of Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya... indeed, Sapporo is a fairly low-lying city, with few large buildings. That is partly to do with the population (only 1.9 million), and perhaps partly to do with weather (a lot of the city's commercial areas lay underground in a series of arcades).

The weather in Sapporo's generally on the, well... cool side.... but it might surprise some people to know that it's not that cold. The coldest month, January, just sneaks below an average maximum temperature below zero degrees Celsius... and in August it gets a warm 26 degrees maximum on average. Of course, when you throw in wind-chill into the winter temperatures it's a little bit of a different story. The one thing is they definitely have plenty of snow...with over an average of 180 cm in January... a good reason to build underground where it's warm and out of the wind.

The above was regenerated from the Japanese Meteorological Agency website for weather records since 1877 (except for snow depth which was from 1955). (Post-script... I realised after doing these, that I don't really understand the numbers. If I take my own experience ... the snow-depth in January / February is pretty deep... I would imagine that you might get a good 30-40 cm on a good day... and I can't say I recall that much rain during these months.... as compared to snow... so I'm not sure how to interpret these figures...)

The tallest building in Sapporo is the JR Sapporo Station building (known as JR Tower) - and it's a bit of a compass point for navigation within the city. Actually, there's a good observatory in the building, though T-chan and I have yet to go up to the top... next trip perhaps. This building has been around since 2003... but it must have been opened just as I arrived for my first trip (as I can't recall what used to be here).

JR Sapporo Station

Public transport in Japanese cities tends to be good - but I'm a little hesitant about saying it's that great in Sapporo. Basically, there's the main train line that runs through the city, and then there's the subway spokes coming out from Odori... combined with the trams (street-cars) and buses it's ok, but I'd have to say that there's a lot of attractions in Sapporo that are best seen with a car.

Source: Official Sapporo Tourist Website.

We're lucky in that T-chan's house has good access to trains and subways... and of course, we can always borrow the parents car if we need to.

The main thoroughfare is between JR Sapporo Station and Odori Kouen... down the green boulevard below. Actually, when we visited in 2010, they were still working on the underground arcade linking the two... literally underneath this street. They've since opened that arcade (and I'll post about it in my 2011 trip posts).

But Sapporo Station is definitely a focal point for shopping, and one of the best things to do is go downstairs in the basement of Daimaru... where (like many Japanese department stores) you'll find all number of different food shops. 

I thought I'd just add a few photos... given that I'm starting to get hungry... The Japanese love their sweets, and they have any number of different brands. Hokkaido is relatively famous for it's chocolates and sweets... and they definitely aim at the tourist market as well (the Japanese tourist market that is).

Now Japanese cakes may not be for everyone (as they are light flavoured), but if you're like me and you don't like the super sweet cakes - especially the ones that you buy here in Adelaide - then it's a refreshing change. And like most things Japanese, presentation is all important.

And if you're wondering - 2415 yen is about $28-$30 AUD at the moment. Almost too good to eat.

And along with the big cakes you'll find all manner of small delicacies..

Man - I really am getting hungry now! Well - lunch time.

Sapporo - The Storm Hits

8th Jan, 2005 - The day starts with a cold wind, and the bit-between-my-teeth, I head out to exhume the car. I felt like some very badly dressed (and not so handsome) Indiana Jones... in search of some lost ancient treasure. Anyone seen a Toyota around here?... Ah... there it is.


We were going shopping today, and that meant using the car. The weather wasn't great even as we headed off....

The futility of a snow-dump-truck trying to quickly offload it's not-so-precious cargo whilst another countless tonne of snow started falling down upon the city did not elude me.

It's funny how our perspective becomes slave to habit. I can't help tilting my head every time I see this photo. Not sure if this is common anywhere else in the world (but in Australia we like our traffic lights vertical).

It starts - all of a sudden - getting quite dark, and the snow starts sweeping in over Sapporo. It's fubuki... a snow storm.

Actually, the photos most probably give a slightly better impression than that which I had being a passenger in the car. Visibility was very limited (and the wipers were going like they were trying to take off) - and T-chan had to drive very slowly. Whilst this driving is quite dangerous if you're not used to it, it's not as bad as black ice, which typically occurs at night and in the morning when the snow/water melts and re-freezes on the road. Hard to see and incredibly slippery. Thankfully, most cars in Sapporo are either 4WD or AWD, and just prior to winter everyone changes over to their winter tyres. You just need a lot of patience and a little bit of courage...

We arrive at the shop (a nearby Sanwado)... to be honest - as I write this, I wonder what it was that we wanted from the shop so badly that we thought it a good idea to brave the snow-storm. There is a Mister Donut here... but I don't think even I am that big a fan.

T-chan looks quite casual - however - that was largely due to the cold locking all of her joints together. Of course, for local dosanko (person from Hokkaido), this is just another Winters day. Actually the name dosanko derives from the name for the famous Hokkaido horses, also known as the Hokkaido Washu. Not that flattering a connection really. 

Hmmm... T-chan's not very happy being compared to a horse.

The strange thing was that after spending perhaps an hour or so shopping, we left to find the skies almost clear.... the snow storm was over.

Literally within the space of about 10-20 mins, the day had suddenly turned clear; the fresh winters air teasing your senses and your exposed skin... It's amazing to me that the day could transition so quickly, as if the city had spent all of it's fury and passion, and now exhausted, had changed it's mood into a benign, even happy one.

The only reminder that there had been a snow-storm was the tonnes and tonnes of piled up snow.

Ah - home sweet home. Who would have thought that the weather had been so bad earlier in the day.

Despite the bad weather, there's something exciting about snow-storms. If you've seen the movie the Ice Storm (another great Ang Lee movie), you know the feelings of tension that can build prior to and during a big-freeze. Then again, these sorts of storms are pretty regular in Sapporo, so the tension never gets a chance to build up too much. Plus, there's enough clear days to get and about and blow off some steam. Or in this case, snow.

A Quiet Sapporo Day - Something Wicked This Way Comes...

7th Jan, 2005 - We awake to an eerie quiet - the dim light lets us know that it's going to be another cold day. The snow has been steadily building up; the ice gradually invading the skylight with it's crystalline plans to conquer this white world.

Winter in Sapporo, at least in T-chan's house is a strange contradiction. Outside the cold threatens to consume all; however inside the warmth of the floor heating (and especially the heated toilet seats... ahhhhh) conspire to fool you into thinking the weather is not so bad outside. In fact, you can quite easily walk around in just a loose shirt.

Today, there's not so much snow outside... yet the film of white has covered the surrounds...

And the clouds over the mountains offer only the promise of more snow on the way.

It is an inhospitable country when the winter comes in - and even the Japanese trees need help to survive the winter. It is common to bring out the supports in November - a job that is often done by professional gardeners... but T-chan's Otousan is a part-time gardener himself.

This is called yukitsuri, (or yukigakoi) or snow suspension, and is designed to support the additional weight of the snow on the branches. There are many examples in parks of extreme yukitsuri that look like some strange kind of modern art.

Another feature of the Japanese gardens in Sapporo (as in other cold parts of Japan), is the effort expended to cover the more vulnerable plants in a protective covering using a combination of thin bamboo ribs and a synthetic hessian material. This keeps the majority of the snow away from the plants and the root system.

It's a full days job to cover the plants in even a modest garden.

Indeed after a heavy snow, the plants can be all but buried in the snow, but will be protected enough to come out bright and early come spring.

You may well ask - what happens to all that snow that we shovel off the driveway? The simple answer is... off the driveway and onto the road... at least the roads edge. This is based on the principle that (a) there's not that many pedestrians walking around in winter, and (b) the council is responsible for snow-shovelling the streets. Actually - I told a lie... almost as many people walk in winter as in summer - and indeed it might be safer to walk to the subway than try and drive your car.

In the meantime... it's a quiet day today - but there's a sense of something coming.

A 2005 New Year - Of Snow and Fukubukuro

1st Jan, 2005 - After an eventful night, we awoke to find the world covered in an even thicker quilt of white, cold snow. The new year would be a cold one, if the first day was anything to go by.

In Japan, there is a concept of the first of the year.. such as the first sunrise (Hatsuhinode) or the first visit of to the local Shinto Shrine (Hatsumōde)... in this case it was going to be the first snow-shovel of the year. I'm not sure what you would call that in Japanese... Actually T-chan's family are lucky (with a new-ish house) in that they have a heated driveway.... however, on a bad day, even that doesn't help you!

T-chan helps - but I get the feeling that she's a little over-dressed. One of the down-sides of coming back to Japan from Australia is that you often don't bring a wide range of clothes. Certainly not enough clothes for every occasion.

It wasn't such good weather to visit Hokkaido Shrine, so we looked for nearer things to do... After clearing the driveway and cars, T-chan and I go to do some New Years shopping at the local Seiyu store (a cross between supermarket and department store)... 

There's a tradition in Japan of the "fukubukuro" (or lucky bag). It's based on the idea of a lucky dip - a shop will often have a range of sealed bags which can be purchased at reasonable prices 2,000 - 10,000 yen. You don't know (generally) what's inside until you've bought it, but it's generally (fingers crossed) a good bargain. The good thing about buying fukubukuro is that you can always on-sell on the internet auction sites (the discounts are often > 50+% off), so you can even come out of it with a little pocket money if you don't like what you find. I was happy with my choice - 

Actually Seiyu was controlled by Walmart (the US giant) who purchased a controlling share in December 2005 - and since they have owned it, the chain supermarket/department store has been going downhill. It just goes to show that some commercial business models do not translate well in a global economy. There have been some positives however with Seiyu being one of the first retailers to gain ISO 14001 certification for eco-management in 2007 (well before green-bonanza - which faded into the green-almost-revolution as the world's economies headed south in the global financial crisis). Unfortunately, Walmart didn't appreciate that the Japanese actually would pay more for quality - and infact, did not necessarily respond well to the "we sell for less" mantra.

Shopping over, we headed  back home. The rest of Sapporo was looking like a premonition of things to come. New Years Day in Japan is always pretty quiet - with people electing to spend quality time at home instead. Of course, it doesn't help when the weather's cold out.

The local shops are "on holidays" for the day... but it won't take long for business to pick-up again (even with a lot of snow). It's nice to know that even in the heart of the capitalist dream, that the Japanese can take time out to relax (when they're not buying fukubukuro).

Despite the snow of the night before, the snow-tractors (employed  by the local government to keep the roads clear) are often out of commission on New Years Day in the suburban streets. Anyway - it's meant to be a holiday isn't it?

A Beautiful Winter's Morning in Sapporo

30th December, 2004 - It's a cold, but clear Sapporo winter morning. The penultimate day of the year. A light snow covers the cars, the garden is now well and truly in hibernation underneath it's protective shrouds which had been put on about two months earlier.

The world looks different than it had in Autumn when we were last here.

Yet today is a day of preparation... We've an important job to do. To prepare the Mayudama. Mayudama is a very old custom of attaching ball-like ornaments to branches for hanging at New Years time. Depending on who you believe, they represent either mochi (rice cakes) or silkworm cocoons. If the former they are called mochibana (which are larger). Either way they are meant to represent prosperity for the new year.

I'm not entirely sure what all the other items are supposed to signify however... overall, it feels a bit like decorating the Christmas Tree - but an "olden time" Christmas Tree. Actually these ones are a little strange. They come as two semi-spheres, and you glue them together (around a branch) by adding water to one surface which must soften/break down the chemical bonds allowing them to re-form once you bring the two halves together. It was fun, if a little odd.

Some of us however were less than impressed by the effort. Momo (T-chan's cat) was more concerned about soaking up the suns rays. What a life!

Off to Sapporo and Okonomiyaki

28th December, 2004 - It was cold again today (around -4degC - which isn't so bad considering), and the snow was coming down reasonably strong. T-chan and I decided to walk to the subway station to go into town for lunch. Here's the park where T-chan learnt to ski when she was a primary school student (there's a small hill that is ideal for practicing...). The subway station is about 15-20 mins away, so we're quite cold by the time we get into the warmth underground. I love the fact that you can buy hot coffee in a can from just about any vending machine in winter... that's been a common saviour in Sapporo.

Today's lunch is Okonomiyaki... which is like a cabbage/flour pancake filled with lots of yummy things... Generally speaking, okonomiyaki is prepared for you  (in the form of a batter) by one of the staff - and is cooked on a hot-plate in front of you. It's quite a lot like a thicker monjayaki. We often make this at home - it's pretty easy (just ask me for the recipe) - but it's still nice to have out.

In looking back at my photo's, I wonder if perhaps I have a limited number of ways of expressing my feelings towards food. It would appear I have an equal fondness for Mister Donuts (below). This is very Australian (in a cringe-worthy kinda way). Oh Happy Days.... ?;`)