Japan 2009- Hokkaido (Otaru) Day 2
Taking the subway to Sapporo station where we hop onto the JR train towards Otaru, about 40 mins ride.
We bought the Otaru 1 day pass (750 yen) which covers the subway as well as return trip to Otaru and back to Sapporo.
at Sapporo JR station
on board JR train to Otaru
Otaru (小樽市) is a city and port located in Shiribeshi, Hokkaidō, Japan, northwest of Sapporo. The city faces the Ishikari Bay, and it has long served as the main port of the bay. With its many historical buildings, Otaru is one of Japan's leading tourist destinations.
a very cute souvenir shop, its located opposite the Music Box Museum, you can find Potato Land snacks here (limited to 1 box per customer only)
purple hello kitty- trademark of Hokkaido and only Hokkaido has Hello Kittys of this colour cuz they represent Lavenders.
this is by far, the BEST ramen i have ever eaten, its SHOYU Ramen, i tried Miso Ramen at Ramen Alley the day before but i still love love love this Shoyu Ramen i had here, it has very addictive and extremely tasty broth.
We stumbled upon this eatery while walking, its not found along the main central street, instead, it's found along one of the other streets near the Hokkaido Bank.
Besides the wonderful Ramen, this eatery also serves fantastic Gyoza.
I am not really a Gyoza person but these are really yummy, its just like eating Xiao Long Bao, where all the soup will burst into your mouth once you sink your teeth into them.
and yup, i remembered to take note of this place, its called Otary Kuraya, website can be found on this picture.
i so have to take it down so that i can come back here again if i ever visit Otaru next time.
Otaru Kuraya's surroundings- which is basically nothing in particular.
Music Box Museum- i love this place, its magical and filled with many different kinds of musical boxes/ornaments.
inside the music box museum
you can customize our very own music box by choosing your own melody with the design you want~
this is the music ornament i got, i chose it not because of its design, but because of its very sad melody which attracted me very much.
for more info on Otaru Musical Box Museum, visit this website:
http://www.otaru-orgel.co.jp/en/
Le Tao, a great pattiserie that sells wonderful pastries and cheese ice-cream!
Rokkatei, another very nice shop that has wonderful snacks!
Remember to try their Marutei Butter biscuits, they have to be refrigerated so its best to buy a box and consume it within that day, they're super yummy!!
this is a sample that looks so real!
this is not the marutei biscuit but its also very nice!
Rokkatei's yummy cream puff that comes with free coffee.
Marutei butter biscuit!
typical Hokkaido snacks
Cheesecake from Le Tao- its a must try!
Cheese ice-cream, its another must-try, i personally like this alot, tastes like frozen cream cheese!
Le Tao's chocolates are similar to Royce chocolate, melts in the mouth and so smooth.
horse carriage!
Owls seem to be another symbol of Otaru, these souvenirs are found in almost every gift shop.
supermarket
Hokkaido corns are exceptionally sweet and juicy, very crunchy too.
They are a must-try too, they taste so different from the corns we have in Singapore.
windchimes are everywhere, even a canal like this has windchimes hung across it.
i'm very charmed by this city, its so mystical!
Finally we reached the famous Otaru Canal.
Otaru Canal (Otaru Unga) used to be a central part of the city's busy harbor in the first half of the 20th century, when large vessels had to be unloaded by smaller ships, which then transported the goods to warehouses along the canal.
The canal became obsolete, when modern dock facilities allowed for direct unloading of larger vessels. Thanks to a citizens' movement, however, a part of the canal was beautifully restored in the 1980s instead of being landfilled, while the warehouses were transformed into shops, cafes, museums and restaurants.
The canal makes for a pleasant scroll during the day, when various artists present their works to the passing tourists, and it is very romantic in the evening, when the gas lamps are lit.
we found cheap deals for rock melons.
Rock Melons are another of Hokkaido's best local produce.
Incredibly sweet and juicy, they cost alot more here too, we had so much of this during our trip here.
goodness, there are simply too many good things to try here!
see what i mean?
pictures and words just don't give it justice, you will only know the goodness of it once you personally taste it!
JR Otaru Station
we headed back to Susukino area for this 90 mins crab buffet dinner!
The restaurant's name is EBI KANNI GASSEN, its located on the 12th level of a building called F-45.
F-45 building is somewhere opposite Sapporo Tokyu Inn (on the same stretch but on the opposite side of the road)
its about 3 mins walk from Susukino Station.
TEL 011-210-0411
Cost is more or less 4000yen per person, all you can eat for 90 mins. They have various sets and prices vary from set to set.
We chose the King crab legs + snow crab legs set, sushi, tempura and chawanmushi included.
these are the snow crabs, they're my favourite, meat is more tender and sweeter than the king crabs.
in general, this was a superb dinner which wasn't too expensive, very fresh and good quality seafood!
the chawanmushi (steamed egg) has gingko nuts inside!
