Japan Trip 2010 - Part 2

[This post is a second part of the three-part blog post on my trip to Japan. Please check here for the first part.]

View of the Sapporo City from Mt. Okura

After a full-night of food, I really didn't want to get up in the morning but then we were on a tour so we didn't have an option. So what was the first thing we did? Well, buffet-style breakfast! Seriously, I felt sick about food that morning even though the breakfast was really good. That being said, I still had a pretty full breakfast - 2 bowls of congee with some Japanese condiments and some eggs, sausages, and hashbrown. I guess I didn't really mean it when I said I was sick of food :).

Anyway, we continued with our tour around Sapporo on our second day. It was the nicest day of the trip and I took most of the pictures on that day. We first stopped by Mount Okura Ski Jump Stadium (see left). It was used by the 1972 Winter Olympic. The view on top of the mountain was spectacular (see above). Oh yeah, they sell cantaloupe-flavored and honeydew-flavored ice-cream on top of the mountain. It was great to have ice-cold ice-cream under a freezing cold weather.

We also stopped by Tanukikoji and Shiroi Koibito Park before heading to Otaru (小樽). By the way, the weather wasn't that great throughout the trip - it snowed almost every day. As we went from Sapporo to Otaru, the weather changed from sunny bright day to blizzard-like dark evening. It wasn't that pleasant; however, for Otaru, it's actually pretty nice. Why? The snow made the already-romantic city even more romantic. Imagine walking with your lover under snow along the canal (see below) with a music box in one hand and an umbrella on the other hand. I heard some girls like that (that was what I was told, haha...).

Otaru is a smaller city and it has a very rich history. What history does it have? Well, someone has already done a better job in telling all about it, so check this wiki page to find out more (I don't think I can ever be a tour guide since I am not that good with history; maybe I just need to BS.) We ended the day at Grand Park Otaru, where we stayed for the night.

Otaru Canal at night

[Stay tuned for more about my trip]