What can I say about my weekend in Hakodate? A lot I guess but since most of you are probably more interested in my travels then my dating life I’ll just give you the hightligts, of which there are plenty. Needless to say the two days my girlfriend was in town were great.
She arrived with a big smiled running out from the departure gate and jumping into my arms, a sight which caused a bit of a stir among the more conservative Japanese crowd. My girlfriend was also nice enough to bring some of the good weather they’d been having in Osaka with her. She was also awesome enough to have brought a giant (hand)made lunch.
We wandered around town checking out the classic brick buildings on the old wharf (filled with annoying souvenir shops) enjoying tasty gelato and soaking in the warm rays of the up until now shy sun. As most tourists who come to Hakodate do we took a bus (not the expensive cable car) up the mountain to view what is described as ‘one of the three most beautiful night views in Japan.’ I think the sunset was better then the night view of the city, but that’s just me. Both views, however, were breathtaking and we couldn’t have asked for more perfect conditions. I think I snapped off almost a hundred pictures trying to capture just the right scene.
We decided to forgo a fancy dinner, mainly because it was getting later and we were tired, hungry and had no idea which place was good, ending up at a burger restaurant called Lucky Piero (piero means clown though the one on the side of the building looked like something out of Stephen King’s IT). Why would we go there? Well, the closer I got to Hakodate the more people talked about the place and how I should try it out. I have to say there were right. If you are ever in Hakodate try out the Lucky Piero (I think there are 14 locations around the city) because it is definitely worth your time, especially if you’re an expat in Japan. It isn’t gourmet but it’s a welcome change to what is normally served as a hamburger in this country.
Morning, or rather I should say mid-morning because there was no way in heck I was getting up early when I had a comfy hotel bed to sleep in, found us at the Hakodate morning fish market near the main station. We wandered around a bit taking in the sight of row after row of crab (both live and dead). It was pretty much what the name says it is, except you won’t really find anything else other then crab. Left, right, everywhere you look it crab…and the occasional line of dried fish hanging up beside, you guessed it, crab.
The market was in full swing by the time we got there with all the shopkeepers watching like hawks for potential customers (which we were not). We got a few cursory glances but were pretty much ignored, other then the occasional attempt at English in order start a conversation and the sales process. One shopkeeper did stand out amongst the others and as he engaged us in conversation, or rather I should say began to lecture us, he cut off some nice sized hunks of crab and handed them to us to taste. He laughed at the other shopkeepers and their short sightedness for ignoring people like us. Sure we might not buy anything but a good conversation and some free samples would definitely not be wasted on us. My ears picked up at this. If we as a couple have a good time at the Hakodate morning fish market we’ll pass our experience on to our friends, who then may come themselves. If the friends then buy something the investment the shopkeeper made in you wasn’t wasted, even if they buy from a different stall. The important thing is getting the message out about Hakodate and getting people to come because eventually someone will buy from you. Create a good experience for everyone and you shall reap the rewards. Sorry to ramble on about that but marketing is a passion of mine and when I hear another person talking the way that I think, especially in Japan, I just can’t help myself.
My girlfriends plane was set to leave in the early evening so after a delicious lunch of sushi (we asked a couple locals for their recommendations) we headed to a local hot spring to soak the chill out of our bones and finish up the weekend. The place where we ended up wasn’t the fanciest but it was the popular spot for locals, which is much better (cheaper and better conversation). If you have the choice between a big resort hotel hot spring and a small one that all the locals frequent, choose the latter one, usually the quality is better and the company friendlier. After our soak we lounged around watching horse races and eating soft serve ice cream.
Her time to go came all too soon and before I knew it I was once again alone in a hotel room. The next day it was off to Aomori and the main Japanese island of Honshu. I was hoping for good weather but the forecast didn’t look good. Hokkaido was seeing me off with an overcast sky and brooding clouds but I thought perhaps Honshu would provide something a little more appropriate for my grand entrance, or rather return.
Related posts:
Good stuff Mike. Nice pics. I’m longing for the road. BTW how are you finding the sack with PC and all, manageable?
Benji
I’m glad you had a good weekend with Miwako. Too bad about the weather, but your fishmarket time sounded most interesting. Hope you have some pictures from that. I always enjoy the time we could spend where tourists don’t go, and where the people live. I envy you your experiences. You got that “bug” from somewhere!!!!