Standing room only on a local train for a 30 minute ride heading northwest from Sapporo, the track eventually travelling along the coastline of west Hakkaido towards the port city of Otaru. The closer we got to Otaro, the more crowded it became to the point I was worried we wouldn’t be able to squeeze through with our luggage to the doors in time.
The city is known for its glassworks and saki distilleries but we won’t have time to get around to seeing this – out final destination of Furano is tomorrow but we wanted to see this little seaside port, famous for its Canal where the old fish processing warehouses are now a touristy area lined with cafes and shops.
Staying in the Grand Park Hotel overlooking the marina. The hotel is indeed Grand although a little dated and the view is spectacular. There was a cruise ship in dock further around which we saw making its way carefully out of the harbour through a narrow opening after dark.
There’s a huge shopping mall under the hotel and we decided to chance a quick lunch in the food hall. Feeling a little conspicuous in a sea of Japanese faces, we managed to order some tempura using the international language of finger pointing and scuttled over to a corner to eat it.
Our hotel is a little way out of town so we caught a taxi in to see the famous Canal in daylight.
The Canal and Wharf – not much snow yet in Otaru but the winter light reflecting on the water was beautiful.
In one converted warehouse there were hammocks instead of seats. Interesting….. I would say it was the ultimate coffee shop, just perfect for relaxation. It was here we bought some bread pastries for an easy breakfast in our room in the following morning.
Back to town by taxi for dinner in after dark. There’s many yakatori and izakaya bars to choose from. Our radar worked again for a small husband/wife run restaurant that had the cosy drop down in-floor seating. The atmosphere was friendly and warm.
As with a lot of restaurants, drinks were served with an complementary appetizer (which you actually have to pay for). Being a seaside port, seafood was the theme.
There was smoked fish (I think it was eel) with onion (on the left), a shell creature which you have to pry out of the shell, it’s long and the body winds down through the whole shell (middle), and tofu and roe (right).
There was no way I was going to eat the shell innards. Even Jeff looked dubious – he ate his reluctantly but then had to eat mine to save face as we were being watched by the owners. I have to point out that this shell creature was raw! The first time I’ve seen Jeff hesitate with eating anything and I know he secretly struggled to get in down although he will never admit defeat when it comes to food.
We also enjoyed a seafood salad, a whole grilled mackerel and a rice ball with a surprise of smoked salmon inside. The pickled plum accompaniment was really good too.
We had to walk a little way after dinner in the slush and ice to hail a cab. Luckily we had mastered the ice shuffle but holding hands makes for a safer excursion. Love the way the roads at intersections are heated.
Honourable Jeeves made an appearance. That man is everywhere!
Jeff and Catherine xx
Food and Adventures Along the Way 