First, did you know that if you click on any of the
pictures, it will take you to an enlarged slide show of all the pictures in
this post? I’ve chosen to shrink the pictures to fit better with the text, but
you can see them in their (slightly larger) glory if you click. I promise!
Before I get started, let me introduce you to "Hakodate Guide" Hijikata, my favorite Hakodate mascot.
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| On the left, Hakodate Guide Hijikata (upper right) and pals. On the right, the actual Hijikata Toshizo, co-founder of the Shinsengumi "samurai death squad" and leader of the Bakufu rebel forces in Hakodate, where he died in battle in 1869. |
I wanted
to go to Hakodate during Silver Week, but I decided too late to make the
arrangements, so I went to Hakodate the weekend after Silver Week instead, heading up
Friday after work and coming back Sunday night.
Short
Hakodate lesson/sales pitch: Hakodate is a port city on the southern end of
Hokkaido, about a 3-hour express train ride or ferry ride from Hirosaki. In March
2016 the Shinkansen will start running to Hakodate, which is cause for great excitement
locally. Historically, Hakodate was one of the first ports opened to
international trade after the ending of Japan’s 200-year-plus
self-imposed trade isolation in 1854. The city has lots of examples of
western-style architecture dating from that period, including churches, civic
buildings and houses. Hakodate was also the setting for the last stand of the
Bakufu rebels, the Battle of Hakodate, which ushered in the Meiji era. Finally,
it’s a city on a bay with water on two sides, and a small mountain at the south
end with a spectacular night view of the city lights.
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| Just for fun, a montage of decorative manhole covers showcasing some of Hakodate's attractions: from the top, the Greek Orthodox church, happy-looking squid, and the Old Public Hall inside the outline of Goryokaku Park. |
Friday:
My trip
started off inauspiciously with a typhoon. After a
slightly nerve-wracking train ride (wrong-ish tickets, late trains, track
changes and someone sitting in my reserved seat with a box of grapes), I got to
Hakodate around 7pm. There was a cold, wet wind blowing and the streets were almost
completely empty.
I took the city tram to
the base of Mt. Hakodate and walked up the hill to the ropeway to the summit,
but it was closed due to high winds. When I turned around, I
saw a gleaming church spire from the ropeway parking lot and decided to have a
bit of a night wander, which is one of my favorite things to do, especially
when the streets are empty and quiet.
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| Ropeway to the summit, regretfully closed |
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| It looks like the ropeway to a space station |
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| The view from the parking lot is not half bad |
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| Alley between western-style buildings |
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| Three churches in one shot: Episcopal in the center, Russian Orthodox hiding on the left and Catholic church spire at right |
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| Approach to the Russian Orthodox church from the street |
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| The Catholic church spire from the top of the Russian Orthodox steps |
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| The Hakodate branch of Higashi Hongan-ji |
I missed
the last tram home due to miscalculation, and had a 20-minute walk back to my
hotel to the east of the train station.
Saturday:
Saturday morning was cold
and gray, and not quite completely raining. I walked to the station and then
took a left and strolled straight through Hakodate’s famous Morning Market. I
saw a lot of crabs, live and otherwise; squid and sea urchin; and also
cantaloupe, corn and seaweed. I walked through an indoor market hall with many
sea creature stalls, and came to terms with the fact that most sea creatures
scare me a little and I don’t really want to look at them, much less eat them.
Next door
was another indoor market hall full of mostly produce stalls, and I stopped to
ask some questions about the $25 cantaloupes and chatted about the source and
flavor of the corn, apples and mikan. I felt a little braver and I asked
another shopkeeper about the many types of dried scallops she had for sale, and
learned that some were for immediate snacking, and others were for cooking in
soups and stews. I bought a huge slice of cantaloupe for 200 yen (about 2
dollars) and sat in the restaurant behind the stall to eat it - possibly a
harmony crime, as it was a bit unclear if this was actually allowed, but
preferable to walking around with sticky fingers and cantaloupe juice dripping
off my chin.
The sky was still gray
and drizzly, so I took the tram to the Bay Area and Red Brick Warehouses, which
turned out to be a bit of a tourist shopping paradise, especially on a gloomy
day. I bought postcards and many small omiyage, and sampled bits of food and
drink. Several shopkeepers were happy to chat, and I found myself buying more
than I needed. Just as I decided it was too dangerous for my wallet to stay
inside the mall any longer, the sun broke out of the clouds.
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| The "Bay Area" - the Brick Warehouses at the left, Mt. Hakodate beyond |
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| A footbridge over the canal connects two of the Brick Warehouses, so shoppers can easily walk between. |
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| Ivy grows on the old Post Office near the Brick Warehouses. |
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| Lunch at Lucky Pierrot burger chain |
I had
lunch at the famous Hakodate burger shop, Lucky Pierrot, highly recommended by
several of my coworkers and friends. It’s a chain in Hakodate, and over the
weekend I came across at least five of their locations. Their logo is a
terrifying clown. I ordered the Lucky Burger, and it was quite good (but I think I still prefer my neighborhood spot Pepe Kitchen!)
I took a gamble on the
weather and headed to Goryoukaku park, a star-shaped fortress built in 1855 to
protect the Tsugaru Strait, captured by the Bakufu rebels in 1869, and the site
of their defeat at the Battle of Hakodate. I didn’t plan to go up to the
observatory deck of the Goryoukaku Tower, but when I saw the crowds of people
making a beeline for the door, I decided to do it. It turns out there is a museum
about the history of the fortress, located on the observation deck.
At the
gift shop in the Tower, I discovered and immediately became obsessed with
Hakodate Guide Hijikata, the adorable cartoonized version of the real-life
Hijikata Toshizo, cofounder of the shinsengumi samurai assassination squad, and
leader of the rebel army at the Battle of Hakodate, where he was killed in
action. Nowadays he’s a cute anachronistic city guide, occasionally riding a
yellow scooter and waving a tour guide flag from his sword. Naturally. You can find him napping with cats on cellphone cases and playing board games with the rest of the rebel army on plastic document folders. All of this is as it should be.
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| Goryokaku Tower and museum |
Please stay tuned for Part Two: Night view from Mt. Hakodate, Churches, Cheesecake and more...
