The Hokkaido Story (w/pictures): Part 5

Hokkaido (北海道) means “Way to the North Sea” as it’s Kanji suggests. It is the northern most major island in the Japanese-island chain. Unlike the other islands of Japan, Hokkaido has probably the most western influence of all, especially from Americans. Their agriculture and their grid-like layout of major city streets are of American influence.

Otaru is a small port town on the western side of the island that faces the Sea of Japan. It is a quaint touristy place where one can enjoy the beauty of the sea and the mountains at the same time.

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We left Asahikawa early in the morning for a two-hour train ride to Otaru.

The life of a part-time adventurer. Always on the road and always carrying your luggage. And always never too happy carrying said luggage.

There are different modes of transportation from Asahikawa to Otaru. Bicycles weren't one of the options. Who do you think I am? Lance Armstrong?

The dude in the background think I’m strange for taking this video. But who cares? This video though does not give justice to the marvelous winter landscape of Hokkaido.  The train ride was smooth and painless.

The Hayao Miyazaki-esque coastal train ride. Yes, that's the Sea of Japan to your right.

I went but never found it.

Otaru boast the largest mall in all of Hokkaido and the fifth largest in all of Japan. We stayed at the Otaru Hilton smack dab in the middle of the Otaru Outlet Mall. The girls couldn’t contain the excitement of the endless shopping they’ll be able to do especially when the mall is just below you.

We were hoping Paris would stop by our hotel room and say "you're HOT!"

The Otaru Eye

Two little black birds cruisin' on the ocean front park. Fly away Jack and fly away Jill.

Plotting the shopping route for the day.

This is the view from our hotel room window. If you look closely you'll be able to find Waldo.

With it’s close proximity to the ocean Otaru is known for it’s seafood, and sushi happens to be what this town is famous for.

Kaiten sushi: A glutton's worst nightmare.

It's finger lickin' good!

That's the guy responsible for that Nigiri pictured above. Remember his face. Just incase my stomach turns funky.

We were a little bit dissapointed that the food at the Kaiten sushi wasn’t as good as we expected it to be so we ventured out further to find the best sushi place. We asked the help desk lady at the hotel and she suggested that we go to the sushi dori (sushi street) in the heart of  Otaru. And street lived up to it’s name. Three blocks of wall-to-wall sushi restaurants and it was just a matter of picking the right one.

This is your mission, should you chose to accept it: find the best sushi restaurant.

the impossible mission.

hard to decide when there's so much to choose from.

the girls tired from their mission.

Mission accomplished! Finally we've found a place to eat.

Stacey's livin' large. That's her sashimi bowl, soba, and teishoku.

Sara showing off her wimpy kani (crab) bowl & miso soup.

and that's my monster tempura teishoku w/ miso soup. Jya, ittadakimasu!

The girls walking off the few calories they've just ingested.

After a satisfying meal it's time to go home and call it a day.

To Be Continued… More of Otaru next time.

I’m half crazy, all for the love of you…

The following conversation occured on Dec 16:

Me: Today is the anniversary of my move to Hawaii. I can’t believe that I’ve lived here for a year now.

The GF: Oh wow! I can still remember cleaning your apartment right before you arrived.

Me: I know. Time went by so fast.

The GF: BTW, what about us? When is our anniversary?

Me: I dunno? I thought you remember?

The GF: No, I don’t remember either.

Me: Well, since today marks the first day where we’re actually living on the same time and space why don’t we make today our anniversary instead.

The GF: Okay.  So, where’s my anniversary present?

Me: Here — *kiss*– Happy anniversary.

The GF: That’s it?

Me: Okey, here’s another one — *kiss* — Now where’s mine?

The GF: Here *kiss* Happy anniversary.

Me: Fair enough.

Who would have thought that a very Filipino Cali-boy meeting a Japanese Hawaii-girl would end up falling in love. It started with a meeting in Las Vegas in 2004. Although we both liked each other from the very beginning but we were at a stage in our life where we needed to find our selves. She left for Japan in 2006, for two years to find herself — immersing herself  in the land and culture of her forefathers. While, I, on the other was busy making a name for myself.

Although the wide Pacific ocean seemed too vast to span, yet somehow we found a way to bridge that gap. We became good friends despite the fact that we’ve only met each other twice. It was in 2007 that I got to see the real her. Spending two weeks with her and friends in Japan opened my eyes on how special this girl is. It was one cold rainy night in  Seoul, South Korea when I asked to her to be my girlfriend. She hesistated and asked me to give her more time to think about it. We still had the vast Pacific ocean to overcome and we couldn’t figure out how to bridge it.

And this is how I know it’s meant to be. When a higher power sets everything in motion and bridges that gap for you. All of sudden that wide ocean that’s been keeping you apart has somehow shrunk. That’s when I knew that this is the girl and this is place where I should be. I have a job that I love  and even better the girl that I’ll probably spend the rest of my life with.

I’m not really the type that likes to count days, months, and years. And I’m glad my girlfriend is the same way. Although it is good to remember and celebrate these days but it is not the amount of years that determines the success and failure of a relationship. It’s a matter of building and nurturing that relationship that determines it’s success. I’m no Nostradamus but I know she was made for me.

Our first encounter. (Las Vegas, March 2004)

Harajuku, Japan (March 2007)

DMZ, South Korea (April 2007)

Furano, Japan (December 2008)

———–

Well, hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!

The Hokkaido Story (w/pictures): Part 4

I often like to tease the GF on why the Japanese prefer to drive on the wrong side of the road. She’d counter, “it’s not the wrong side of the road, honey!” Which makes me sound like an ignorant buffoon. She explains, “just because they drive on the the other side of the road doesn’t mean it’s the wrong side. They just have a different way of doing things around here.” All I can say is, なるほど (naruhodo). Because I still don’t get why they can’t just drive on the “RIGHT” side of the road, like the rest of the world? But I’m thankful that my girlfriend is an expert in driving on the wrong side of the road. Because I’d probably throw up my bowels if I were forced to drive down there. On the wrong side of the friggin’ road.

You see, the thing that confuses the heck out of me is that when making turns their left-hand turn is like our right-hand turn and the right hand turn is like our left-hand turn. And you always have to remember that you should turn to the opposite side of the road otherwise you’d be driving against traffic. So, I’m glad she took the reins in driving when we took the short road trip to Furano. I already have trouble telling which hand is the right hand and which is the left hand. So reorienting myself on which side of the road I should be driving will just give me a brain aneurysm.

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Furano is a small agricultural town just in the outskirts of Asahikawa. It’s beautiful landscape makes it a very ideal site for many Japanese commercials, movies, and TV dramas. One of which is 優しい時間 (Yasahii Jikan), my most favorite J-ドラマ of all time, and the biggest reason for this whole Hokkaido trip.  I fell in love with the landscape that I just had to be there physically to experience the beauty of it all. And it did not dissappoint.

on the road again... but on the wrong side of it.

The Furano sign doubles as a giant's tuning fork.

The Sara & Stacey Skating on Ice Special part 2

feelin' like a MOVIE STAAAAR! or at least feeling like Taku-chan. In front of the real Mori no Tokei Coffee Shop.

So who'll play the role of Azusa?

This is where Azusa threw a fit and broke all of Taku-chan's plates. And yes they use real firewood to heat up the place.

The dining area and the real fire place.

This is something she'd call a kampeki (perfect) photo. Coz she looks good in it.

Curry-rice and white beef stew for lunch, and of course coffee. Warms the soul.

The Sara & Stacey Skating on Ice Special part 3.

That's the smile of someone ready to mingle at the Ningle Terrace.

Shhhh. There's an elf working inside.

I have a feeling that we're not in Kansas anymore. We're in the North Pole Toto.

Higuma can have his "Most Fierce" title but I'm still the "Sexiest" on the island.

Yes Bob, tell him what he's won! -- A trip to the Furano Prince Ski Resort!

Sara's version of a snow angel.

Stacey's version of a snow angel.

Late that afternoon we went back to Mori no Tokei for desserts and more coffee.

We can't leave Furano without the experience of grinding your own coffee beans.

Let's grind this baby up!

Then after coffee we went back to Nigle Terrace for more shopping.

The elves were still busy at work ...

and the girls were still busy shopping.

At about 4 p.m. the sun was already setting so we headed back home before we get stranded in the middle of the icy road.

I was trying to take a picture of the mountain but it kept moving and won't sit still... actually it's just coffee jitters?

We were dashing through the snow with this cute thing, the Japanese call this a car.

After arriving in Asahikawa we were faced with the daunting task of trying to decide what’s for dinner. Anything sounds good right about now.

Too many options for dinner. Doushiyo ka na?

Then we stumbled into this place where they serve a five-course crab meal.

the first two courses were crab sashimi and crab nabe.

3rd course was crab gratin.

4th is crab tempura

and to finish it off, we had boiled crab.

We capped the night by watching an episode of  Full House in Japanese. Uncle Joey and Uncle Jesse never sounded funnier than this. Now I can’t wait to watch Seinfeld or Friends dubbed in Japanese. Enjoy!!!

To Be Continued… Next time I bring you Otaru, the city by the sea.

The Hokkaido Story (w/pictures): Part 3

旭川市 (,Asahikawa) is second-largest city in the island of Hokkaido. The city is surrounded with rivers and stream thus being called Asahikawa, meaning morning river.

Our lovely hotel while in Asahikawa.

The hotel where we stayed at has two types of rooms. They have western style rooms, which is pretty much your standard hotel room, and then there’s the ryokan (japanese) style rooms. Ryokan’s are typical Japanese Inns.  They are quite popular in Japan and even dates back to the days of the early Samurais.

shhh... if you listen closely you can actually hear Sara and Stacey snore in symphony.

As you can see the difference between a ryokan style room and a regular hotel room is that the floors are covered with tatami mats, you have a futon to sleep in instead of a regular bed, and you have a short  japanese table instead of a desk.

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The itinerary for the day was a visit to the 旭山動物園 (Asahiyama Doubutsuen or  Zoo).

A club where all the sexy beasts go.

This doubutsuen is one of the most popular zoos in Japan and is a very big tourist draw for the city of Asahikawa.

Pffft! This sea lion is such a show off.

I see the bathrooms!

The sign says that in order to see any of these animals you must first do a disco dance move. So what are you waiting for? Shake what yo' mama gave ya!

Don't use THE flash or else the polar bears will flash you!

Will I look cuter than the lesser panda if I stick my tongue out like this? *bleh*

The most of popular of the exhibit are the Lesser Pandas, also known  as the Red Panda. People can’t seem to get enough of them. People would gather around their enclosure waiting for them to cross the hanging bridge and is a really great treat for the little kids to see.

They're called Lesser Pandas, but in what way are they lesser than the regular pandas?

I prefer to call them Cuter Panda.

Any minute now an unsuspecting passerby will be getting the golden showers.

My! What big teeth you have grandma?

All this animal watching is making me want to eat them! Errr... I mean eat lunch with them.

A question of etiquette. Should I give him the a--... ah nevermind!

Hey penguin! Strike a pose! Show me blue-steel!

Hey dude! Stop grooming yourself and act like you don't care about these paparazzis. Pretend like you're a vapid young celebrity. Like this.

I see kitty! Here kitty kitty kitty!

Lions, and tiger and bears... Oh my!

The trip to the Zoo was so much fun. Getting to see all of these different animals was really great.  It’s been a while since I last went to the Zoo.

Asahikawa is also best known for  ramen. So after spending the entire day at the zoo we headed out in search of a good ramen shop. We found this quaint ramen place just a few blocks from our hotel. The temperature was again a freezing 2°C so ramen was definitely a wise choice.

The girls trying to decipher the menu to make sure what we eat isn't alive or moving.

the ramen shop models.

Tough choices compared to the beef, chicken, or shrimp choices of instant ramen?

Ramen and gyoza... perfect combination!

Well that’s it for todays edition of my Hokkaido Story.  Next time, we’re going to Furano.

To Be Continued…

The Hokkaido Story (w/ pictures): Part 2

Our day started at 3 a.m. with an all you can eat breakfast which was probably the best and most imporant meal we’ve had all day since our journey to Hokkaido will take us about over 20 hours.

At about 4:30 am our bus arrived on time to shuttle us back to the airport so we can finally be on our way. At the airport we made a few changes in our itinerary since our trip was delayed by a day. Thankfully, JAL- the coolest airline of all – allowed us to extend our trip for an extra day without any extra charges or problems.

caught the 6:00 am sunrise at HNL airport.

The flight left on time and we’re finally on our way to Japan. After 9 hours of flying we finally touched down at Narita airport. But that was just the beginning of our long journey ahead. We had to catch a bus from Narita airport to Haneda airport because for some odd reason flights from Narita airport to Sapporo were not available. So that took another hour from Narita to Haneda. Once we got to Haneda we had to do the same routine of getting our boarding pass, checking in our luggage, going through security checkpoints, and finding our gates. At the airport we had to wait another hour before we actually depart for Sapporo.

look at the smile on their faces after finally walking on Japanese soil.

Dont let the size of the catering trucks container fool you. all they gave us was juice and rice crackers

the katsu curry sandwich inside that cutesy package didnt make the trip because it was half way down my digestive tract before we even boarded.

The flight to Sapporo took us another two hours. By then we’ve been travelling for almost 12 hours non-stop already.

I see snow, I see snow, I see snow... WHEEE!

We were suppose to spend the night in Sapporo before heading out to Asahikawa the next day, but since we spent it in Waikiki the night before, we had to make the long train ride from Chitose airport to Asahikawa instead. Another two hours of travelling to be exact and with one train transfer. By now we are extremely exhausted since we’ve been travelling for more than 16 hours already.

Stacey feeling Japanesey on our way down to the train station from the airport above.

the not-so-Rapid-Airport line train map from Chitose Airport (bottom) to Asahikawa (right)

Stacey and Sara exchanging shopping plans already while waiting for the train.

Fortunately for us we didn’t have to travel far to get from the airport to the train station since it is literally below the airport.

the look of excitement.

After arriving in Asahikawa (finally!) we headed straight to our hotel. It was suppose to be a 10-minute walk from the train station to the hotel but what they don’t mention is that the walk is relative to the weather and the road conditions. It must have snowed two days prior because it was a frigid 2°C (it’s friggin cold if you’re used to the cool 70°F weather of Hawai’i) and the sidewalk was literally frozen. Stacey had trouble walking on ice because her shoes weren’t designed for the snow, and was owned by gravity a few times. Besides a few bruised egos we made it to the hotel fairly safe. But by that time we got to our hotel to settle down our stomachs were already demanding to be fed.

We were debating on either having sushi or nabe. Although the sushi shop was a few blocks closer the need for warmth and nutrition won. So nabe was the clear winner.

We didnt know how to cook nabe so Stacey asked our waitress to show us how. After posing for this photo of course.

Seafood & beef nabe = Oishii soo!

Itadakimasu! Translated in english: Im starving... Lets eat!

The food really hit the spot. Nothing satisfies a hungry and cold stomach, after a 20 plus-hour journey, than a nice big bowl of seafood and beef nabe. Ahhh! *rubs the full and warm belly*

The Sara and Stacey Skating on Ice special. Admission is FREE!

After dinner we headed back to the hotel and called it a night. It has been one long and exhausting journey. And tomorrow, another adventure.

To Be Continued… because I just spent the last 5 hour writing this entry.

The Hokkaido Story (w/ pictures): Part 1

It started out with a drama or dorama, as the japanese would call it, about a boy disowned by his father after accidentally killing his mother in a freak car accident. The story is centered around a coffee shop in the middle of the forest called 森の時計 （Mori no Tokei or Forest Clock). The coffee shop is owned by the boy’s father who moved to Furano after the mother’s death to fullfil the mother’s dream of owning a coffee shop in her hometown. The son lived in the nearby town of Biei working as an apprentice to a master potter at the same time trying to wash himself from the guilt of killing his own mother and attempting a reconciliation with his father and ultimately seeking his forgiveness. The drama is called 優しい時間 (Yasahii Jikan).

This set in motion what ultimately became our Hokkaido adventure.

We got to the airport early that morning all ready to board the plane.

Stacey and Sara patiently waiting to board the plane.

The plane was stopped in the middle of the runway due to mechanical problems and was forced to head back to the gate for repairs. A half-hour passed and the problem was finally fixed. Now we are actually off the airport. After flying for an hour and reaching maximum altitude the pilot made another announcement. The plane is failing again and this time the plane had to make an emergency landing back to HNL.

Fire engines were blaring as we made the rough touch down (the most hair-raising experience I’ve ever had in my life) and was escorted back to the gate again. Another hour passed when they finally decided that the problem cannot be fixed within the day and had to cancel the flight for the next day. We were a little disappointed that our trip was delayed but I was amazed at how flawless JAL handled the situation and even more amazed at how the passengers reacted to the situation. None of the passengers threw tantrums for missing a day of their trip. Some quietly grumbled but none caused a scene.

When we got out of the plane JAL employees were already handing out snacks, phone cards, and instructions on how the situation will be handled. Then everybody was herded and directed to a bus that was waiting outside the airport to shuttle us to the Marriot Waikiki where we will be spending the night. When we got to the hotel we were assigned rooms and handed $35 dinner coupons and $15 dollar breakfast coupons.

Our room for the night with ocean view and the most comfortable beds ever.

this view makes you forget that your plane just got grounded.

Hokkaido what? We're staying at the friggin Marriot Waikiki! FOR FREE!

Grinds FOR FREE = all you can eat crab legs and prime rib = broke da mouth

The next day we start our trip all over again. At 3 a.m.!

To Be Continued… because I’m getting sleepy.