*yawn*
So, I am delighted to see that all the pictures I posted made it onto my website this morning. Sapporo was really a Winter Wonderland during the Sapporo Snow Festival. While there was not snow on every bit of ground, it was interesting to see the piles of snow one meter tall along the roadside.
I was able to see so much on that trip! Odori Park, Sapporo Tower, Sapporo Clock Tower, Susukino, Sapporo Factory, and the Zepp Sapporo Concert Hall! I really got my money’s worth!
I might as well say a few tidbits of each place while I am at it. Odori Park was the location of the Sapporo Snow Festival that was the reason why I went. This park is 1.5 kilometers long, terminates at the Sapporo Tower on its eastern end and Sapporo City Archive Museum on its western end. You could label Odori Park as Sapporo’s beltline, splitting Sapporo into northern and southern half. Sapporo Tower is Sapporo’s television broadcasting tower. In almost every large city in Japan, you can usually find a soaring tower near the center of the city that is run by Japan’s television broadcasters to give everyone in the city area a clear signal. Sapporo Tower reminds me strongly of Tokyo Tower, structured similarly to the Eiffel Tower but red in color.
The Sapporo Clock Tower is Sapporo’s oldest building, and is the symbol of Sapporo. It is a strictly Western style building that used to be a part of drill hall of the Sapporo Agricultural College, now Hokkaido University. The people of Sapporo lovingly call this clock tower Tokeidai, and it still works today! Susukino is another must-go destination for anyone visiting Sapporo. The largest entertainment district north of Tokyo in Japan, Susukino is the home field for many Japanese beers. Though it is not really a location of my taste, I was treated to Susukino’s Ice Festival, which is done in parallel with the Sapporo Snow Festival.
Finally, I ended my trip with a concert at Zepp Sapporo. While it is just another concert hall in Japan, I went to a special concert. I went to see Hatsune Miku, a digital idol. TL; DR, Hatsune Miku is a Vocaloid, an artificial voice synthesis program distributed by Yamaha. She has a large following all around the world, selling out concerts wherever she performs. How does a digital program perform live you ask? Quite simply with a “hologram”, but not an actual hologram, the technology used is a highly transparent plate specially designed to transmit light that is projected onto it from the back. However you understand the technology, Hatsune Miku truly appeared to be on stage, dancing and singing in perfect sync with the backup performers.
Well, I am still trying to work on getting my Akita onsen trip photos out, but I am running out of time before my trip off to the Kansai area tomorrow. I will be able to see Osaka, Okayama, Hiroshima, Himeji, Kobe, Nara, and Kyoto during this trip, so I am so excited I am not even certain what to pack! Hopefully I will be able to post photos and short writings as I go