Japan, Sapporo: Clock Tower, Old Government Building

Two sites in downtown Sapporo "recommended" to some extent in the guidebooks are the clock tower and the old Hokkaido government office building. The clock tower is so unimpressive I passed by it the first time. What it is is the remaining building of the old agricultural college located in Sapporo. It looks like an American prairie schoolhouse of the nineteenth century, because that's what it is.

Sapporo was developed with American assistance to improve agricultural output of the region. Today the tower building is a museum of the city's history from that era, and the clock still keeps time and chimes on the hour. The entrance fee is 200 Y and you can spend about 15 minutes looking at the exhibits.


The old government office building is somewhat more impressive ...


...but it's only feature of interest to me is the charming little garden on the premises.

Japan, Sapporo: Odori Park

The downtown district of Sapporo is divided in two by Odori Park, which runs about a dozen blocks east-west. A few blocks to the north is the JR (Japan Rail) station, a critical landmark for any traveler; to the south is Susukino, the lauded (and I may say, overrated) dining and drinking area. On the east end is Sapporo TV Tower, which offers an observation deck, a decent way to spend half an hour.


In addition to the Tower, the photo illustrates the other key features of Odori Park: people actually use it, there are fountains and sculptures, and there are flowers, starting with the cherry blossoms:


You want fountains and statues?


The following are named, in order, Shepherd Boy, Mother of the Frontier, and Mother and Child with Flowers:


These features were all on the north side of the park as I headed to the TV Tower. One more thing, though, before we go up in the elevator for a panoramic city view. The City of Sapporo has an ordinance forbidding smoking outside. Bars and restaurants, usually not a problem. But outside, in the open air, where whatever toxins your cigarette smoke may contain are immediately whisked off into the uncountable volume of atmosphere surrounding us: No.

So, they have these little kiosks for the "convenience" of non-smokers. Inside, there is usually a drink machine some industrial-size ashtrays, and signage about being a polite smoker (I totally did not photoshop this, I swear):


I suppose smoking actually is sort of "passing gas", so ... well done.

It seems every city of size in Japan has a tower with an observation deck and an associated gift shop you have to pass through on your way out. As I mentioned, the tower is at the east end of Odori Park, and I went there on my first day to get the lay of the land. The observation deck is at 90 meters, and the elevator takes right at one minute to ascend. Nothing to write home about (or indeed even much to blog about), but worth a half-hour--and they give you a discount ticket for an ice cream from the vendor at the base.


I think I'll do one more post about my short visit to Sapporo, so stick around to learn about a fairly dull historical site and very charming little park.

Japan, Sapporo: Asahi Tour, Food and Drink

A key thing i wanted to do during my trip to Sapporo was take the Sapporo brewery tour. There is no longer a Sapporo brewery in Sapporo, so I took the Asahi tour instead. First thing I have to note is that it was very difficult to lacate the brewery, as none of my maps had sufficient detail, and there was no signage for it anywhere.

I found the Japanese people friendly, if mainly unable to speak English, but they were all willing to give me directions. Sadly, each person seemed to think it was in a different location from every other person. When I saw this, I knew I was close.


The tour was all in Japanese with a laminated card with a sentence of English for every five minutes of Japanese. So I'm sure I missed a lot. Those big tanks were just about the only "real" part of the brewing process you could take pictures of, and most of the tour passed through interpretive areas, where you could look inside a fake brew vessel or taste some hops.

At the end of the tour, they provide you with three glasses of Asahi--each one a different variety, brewed on premises--and a pack of snack crackers. Honestly, I was glad to have done a brewery tour, but it just wasn't that impressive.


I was, however, delighted with my meal at one of the handful of restaurants, Lamb & Grill Pilsen, specializing in the grilled mutton dish called "jingisukhan" or "gengiskhansu". Not surprisingly, all the beers available are in the Asahi family--and that's plenty okay with me. You have an in-table grill, and they start you with a salad and some miso soup; the main course has three different cuts of meat, plus mushroom, cabbage, bean sprouts and onion. There is also a slab of fat to keep the grill clean.


Jingisukhan is a specialty dish of Hokkaido, the northernmost main island where Sapporo is situated. Another specialty here is ramen, the well-known noodles, though they are generally a bit thicker here than elsewhere. There is an area of Susukino, the eating and drinking district, that's known as "Ramen Alley".


My visit was cut short so I didn't get to eat as many meals as I would have hoped, so here's a nice steak (though nothing to compare to kobe beef in Kobe, either taste or cost), a lovely dark (it was on special) from our friends at Suntory, and a cheese plate at this minuscule bar I found in the arcade at Susukino:


My vacation got cut short. And I have to take full responsibility. Usually, I book a hotel for my first couple of nights on a trip in advance, and then see how things shake out after that--not particularly clever or unique, but this time it really backfired. This week (the first of May) happened to be Labor Day, Children's Day, etc in Korea, resulting in a full week off. Unfortunately it was also Constitution Day, Greenery Day and Children's Day the same week in Japan. Everyone in Japan seems to travel during this period. After my reservation ended, I was unable to find a room anywhere on the island of Hokkaido. Not a one.

I had a choice to make, travel south by train and hope for something in Tokyo--both parts of which were bank-breakers--or head to the airport. Korean Air was able to put me on the next flight with no fare adjustment. So my six-night trip became three, and I barely got enough pics for one more post.

I fear I have over-compensated, as my upcoming journey to Cambodia is far too long, at 17 days.

Japan, Tokyo: Food and Drink

Sushi and Sashimi Some sashimi, aka, raw fish, tastes like raw fish. But some of it tastes like seafood butter, like some kind of fleshy salt candy that melts in the mouth. I wouldn't describe myself as an expert, but I do know that some of the world's best is to be found in Tokyo. So it is only to be expected that within a few hours of checking in at my hotel, and making my way to the Ginza, I had been advised to find the nearest Zanmai Sushi restaurant, one of the city's most popular chains, and had done so.


After wandering in and out of a few of the district's watering holes, I made my way back to Oak Hotel, stopping off a block away at the last place that was still open in this quiet neighborhood. The only thing on the menu seemed to be sashimi, so I double-dipped:


I can't say this hole-in-the-wall joint was better than the famed Zanmai, but I won't say it was worse, either.
The third night, I was up for more sashimi, and had been hearing about the Tsukiji Fish Market, the Tokyo version of Noryangjin, I imagined. However, it was raining outside the comfy little "standing bar" I was in, so I decided to put it off. From my journal: "Later ... Change of plans. The rain turned into a sprinkle so I went to Tsukiji after all. Despite the fact it was not yet eight o'clock, I only found two sashimi restaurants open--one of them simply because it's a 24 hour place. Still, the price was right and the fish was excellent, so I'm not complaining." Except about the fact this supposed high-point was as lively as a Methodist Ladies' Wednesday night prayer meeting at the North Pole.


My last full day on the trip, the weather was finally quite nice, so I tooled around the Ueno Market area, looking for cheap eats--well, Tokyo being Tokyo, cheaper eats. Common in Tokyo--and Seoul and indeed throughout Asia--are plastic models of the food, to show you exactly what you're getting. Sometimes they are so realistic, I wonder how they'd taste ... nah.


I found just the place I was looking for up a side alley. Again, from my journal: "After quite a bit of wandering, I'm sitting sidewalk-style at one of the hundred little sushi restaurants, having eaten some maguro and some toro (red and fatty tuna, respectively) along with a tomato salad that consisted of a well-chilled tomato and a dollop of mayo on the side. A really pleasant combination. ... The weather has been a bit of an issue, but unlike in Kathmandu, say, Tokyo has drains, so you're not treading in septic water, dodging vehicles made even more dangerous by poor traction. I am getting a passer-by to take my picture as I am typing this. Done! And not too bad, all things considered. The couple next to me commented, as so many Asians do, "Handsome!" But that's just for looking Western."


I decided to stick with Ueno for the afternoon and have quite a few drinks, which I hadn't really done up to this point. I crawled various places, imbibing a beer or two, and having the requisite snack--the cheapest thing on the menu is always edamame, or soy beans. Here's my second stop, kind of a sports bar, or at least a place where they were all intently watching a tennis match. Next is a shot from my third stop, with a beer and Ikkoman shochu (aka soju) from Kagoshima prefecture, 'made from high quality potato malt', "which frankly doesn't taste all that much like the soju I'm used to. It does pack a punch, though, so it's supporting my objective."


Takashimaya is one of the huge department stores in Nihombashi with three or four floors of groceries and restaurants where you can have a nice meal for a less outrageous price--just choose one of the "set meals". I had a beef stew set which came with really lovely dumplings, which themselves came with an instruction card--mix the soy and vinegar in the bowl, and let the dumpling cool a bit before shoving it in your pie-hole.


Ginza Lion is a German-style beer hall built in 1923 by Sapporo. The ambiance is Tokyo unique, the service is great, and not only do they care about their beer, they care about its presentation. That means firstly, giving it an adequate head, and secondly, serving it well-chilled. But I also like how each of the beers comes in the correct glass--no Cass in a Max mug here! And they serve nine different formulas, ten if you count the non-alcoholic, which I don't. Here I am drinking the 1.3 liter German-style (1,728Y):


They also serve outstanding food here, but you won't find sushi on the menu--well, maybe a bit. Pretzels, sausages, rosti (hash browns) are the lighter fare. For a full meal, I had the 8 oz. wagyu sirloin, perfectly prepared, for 3,758Y. Later, I had some awesome ribs with a potato and mushroom gratin.


But not all my time was in Ginza. I also visited Shibuya, famous for its busy crossing and its neon lights. It's just fine, but for a Seoulite, it's nothing special. I did, however, have a wonderful revelation, that of the "bronze" beer vessel. I failed to note the name of the bar this was in, but it was a tiny, subterranean place, and they charged a 50% premium for it--still, when I open Smokin' Steve's Bar & Grill, it's bronze beer vessels all the way!


I paid a visit, too, to Roppongi, the "gaijin district", which I rather enjoyed on my 2012 trip. Within five minutes out of the station, five African men approached me sequentially with a come-on to their bar: pretty girls getting naked, two beers for 4,000 Y (that's forty bucks, btw!), or just a beer if you want. Five minutes after that, I am ensconced in a place called Pizzeria and Bar Certo, with a Moretti and some cheese served with honey (I never had that before, but I'll definitely have it again). Finished the evening at The Hub, a British style pub with its own brew. Cool, quiet place, about one minute from the subway. Both my choices, I'm sure, to put to shame the loud, crass, smokey joints the touts were offering.