I'm finally getting to the end of the Dynasty Travel Hokkaido tour series. Okay, yeah, sure, I took a hiatus but at least now, I'm again motivated to finish this up! I should stop repeating about that motivation though...

 

So anyway, Dynasty's proposed Day 6 and Day 7's itinerary looked like this on paper:

Day 6: Ishiya White Chocolate Factory --> Otaru --> Susukino Street + Ramen Yokochu

Day 7: Central Wholesale Market --> Hokkaido Shrine --> Odori Park --> Asahi Beer Factory --> Tokeidai --> Mitsui Factory Outlet

 

That's essentially

Day 6: Sapporo --> Otaru --> Sapporo

Dday 7: Sapporo

 

Hence our tour guide, Ms Reikko shook things up a little and we ended up with a Day 6 itinerary that looked like this:

Otaru (小樽市) --> Hokkaido Shrine --> Susukino Street + Ramen Yokochu

 

 

 

 

The foodie in me had been extremely excited about coming to Otaru even before the trip. Almost everyone who had been to Otaru before me had been telling me things to eat and buy. In just a bit, I'll let you know which are the ones that you CANNOT afford to miss.

 

 



 

 

Otaru is a small harbour city that makes for a pleasant day trip out of Sapporo city. It was once a major trade and fishing port that went obsolete with the arrival of modern dock facilities. The port was land-filled but a part of the old canal was however retained and beautifully restored ~ modern day Otaru Canal. The many old warehouses and old shipping offices that line the famous Otaru Canal are now transformed into shops, museums and restaurants.

 

Unfortunately, it was still blazing hot the day we were there. It was almost 28 degrees according to a huge digital thermometer. I couldn't get a shot of that thermometer though. It felt like every single tourist there decided to converge on that thermometer that day. But anyway, my point in highlighting the temperature in Hokkaido in July, please do bring along water, shades, brollies, etc. Basically I hope you'll make yourself more comfortable while strolling about in the hot sun if that's the period you're going.

 

 



 

 

In spite of the hot weather, the canal makes for a pleasant stroll and the old warehouses are really great photo points. We were there pretty early in the morning, so hawkers along the canal were only just arriving and setting up. I'd imagine that if we had been later, they would have provided some shopping and likely even more photo opportunities.

 

 

 

 



If you're seeking some novelty, there is also the option of canal boat rides. Again, as is with this particular tour, we didn't have the time for that.

 

Having said all that, mid-morning on a July weekday was probably not the best time to visit Otaru Canal. While doing my research, I read that there were festivals and events that were often held along the Otaru Canal. Plus, I can just imagine how much more romantic (and picture worthy) this place could be in winter when they have the Snow Light Path festival!

 

 

 

 

While strolling along, I spotted one of my favourite BBQ restaurant in Japan ~ Gyu Kaku. Yes, they are also available in Singapore, but the ones in Japan are just fantastic. Whenever my friends and I go to Japan, we would definitely make a stop at one of their many outlets.

 

Unfortunately, this time round, I could only afford to take a quick snapshot. My parents thought I was mad when I waved a sad goodbye to the building.

 

 



 

 

Sakaimachi Street (境町通り) is a short walking distance from Otaru Canal, and while touristy, was fun to spend some time in. Many of the old buildings have been converted to shops, cafes and museums. Even my father who's not the shopping sort, found it interesting to window-browse through the array of kitschy offerings, glassware, chopsticks, chocolates, etc. I believe you might even be able to try your hand at making your own glassware in some of the shops.

 

Even though we weren't given a lot of time to explore, in the short time we had, I can say that the variety of stuff found here is quite astounding. Shopaholics, you probably gotta hold on to your wallets or pass them to your non-shopaholic friends. If you're a shopaholic travelling with a group of shopaholics, then... all the best, wallets and cards.

 

 



 

 

Again, due to limited time, I could only get a snapshot of the famous Music Box museum at Sakaimachi Street. In fact, if I hadn't done my research prior the trip, I wouldn't even have known that I was standing in front of it! Neither would I have known that that clock outside the Music Box Museum was a steam clock that was a present from the city of Vancouver! Our dearest tour guide was concerned (again) about getting us somewhere else.

 

Sigh. I so wanted to get a decent picture of the clock and the museum. Even the amateur photographer in me could see the potential photo opportunities presented!

 

Right, if you're into photography, then please make sure you pop by Otaru. The old buildings are great subjects/focal points.

 

 



 

 

So instead of bringing us to the Music Box Museum (which I personally think would have been a much better option), we were being hurried into Ginnokane which was a confectionary shop for a piece of cake and a drink in a Hello Kitty cup.

 

There are better cakes around Otaru (I'll let you know where shortly) and honestly, if you're not a Hello Kitty fan, this was a waste of time in my opinion. I only remember this stop as "Thank God it's air-conditioned!" OK, we got to bring back the Hello Kitty cups which perhaps a Hello Kitty fan would appreciate. I later gave those cups away to a friend who's a fan of the kitty.

 

It's no surprise then that the minute we found out it was Own-Time-Own-Target (OTOT) after the Ginnokane stop, I literally dragged my parents out and headed off to fulfil my stomach's desires.

 

Those of you motivated by food, pay attention from this point on:

 

 

 

 

At Sakaimachi Street, there are several cafes to choose from. However, take it from me that you MUST get yourself to Le Tao for their amazing cheesecake. This was the first stop that I dragged my parents to (after Ginnokane).

 

In fact, I was so excited, I only remembered to get a picture of the cake when my parents grabbed my fork and reminded me. Yeah, I was that close to stabbing the cake already. I was also so excited, I didn't grab any pictures of the café or anything else.

 

My entire focus was that perfect piece of melt-in-your-mouth-awesomeness. The best cheesecake I've ever tasted in my life. And one that I'll gladly fly back all the way for. (Heh. I'm already talking to my friend about the possibility of a winter trip there!) I even asked about the possibility of bringing the cake back to Singapore. Unfortunately, the cake only has a shelf life of 6 hours so that's really impossible.

 

 







 

 

 

Second stop that you MUST make: Kitakaro Cafe (北果楼). Yup, I remembered to get pictures this round, but it wasn't long before I forgot about the camera again.

 

I remember wondering if the god of pastries or baking lived in Sakaimachi Street. First the to-die-for cheesecake, and now the lightest, freshest and most delicate tasting cream puff. It was a good thing I had my mom with me then. I had wanted to go back for a second portion of both the cake and the cream puff, but my mom put a stop to it as she was concerned about the expanding waistline.

 

hmmm... maybe not so good now that I'm writing this. I fly all the way there, a second portion shouldn't have been debated (yeah, I didn't lose that second portion without some fight). Besides, vacation calories don't count right?

 

Now, most tourists would probably have heard of Kitakaro Café and their cream puffs. So don't worry about not being able to find it there. It's not easy to miss it. Not when you see people exiting from its stores with the cream puffs and their signature bags.

 

However, fewer would have known that you can also get one of the best rice crackers here at their souvenir shop. They have several flavours available, e.g. scallop, lobster, seaweed, etc. Samples are also available for tasting so you can choose the ones you really like.

 

The crackers come in slim packs and also have a pretty short shelf life so please think before you buy. By that, I really mean you have got to count the number of days (to your return, till you get to give them away, that sort). I know of many people (especially on their maiden Japan trip) who don't realise that a lot of Japanese souvenir snacks have pretty short shelf lives.

 

But then again, these rice crackers from Kitakaro are so good, my friends and family finished them very quickly and expiry was not even an issue. I bought like 20 over packs home to give away and later even had friends asking if I still had more to give!

 

 

 

 

The third and last recommended stop: Rokkatei (六花亭), which is conveniently next to Kitakaro Café. This is more a souvenir stop point, but the snacks to buy back are worth the snaking queues.

 

What I have pictured above, are their white chocolate strawberries. It's not a personal favourite of mine, but I do know of some friends who love these. So you might as well have a go at it.

 

What all of us (and I really mean all: myself, family and friends) love though from Rokkatei, and which I don't have photos of (go figure?!) is their Marusei Butter and Rum biscuits. I might not have the photos, but they're famous enough you can google for pictures.

 

The Marusei Butter and Rum biscuits are another melt-in-your-mouth wonder. I had friends who made a special request to bring them back to Singapore. I made sure I had a personal box of the biscuits to bring home myself. My parents returned home and found that they were short on presents. I just growled at them when they attempted to take that personal box. It's that heavenly.

 

 

So there, my three recommendations if you ever hit up Otaru.

Well, given we only had an hour of OTOT, I had to hit the top three off my Otaru bucket list. If you're ever in the same circumstance as us, you'll know what to do/where to go.

 

 



 

 

Once we were done at Otaru Canal and Sakaimachi Street, we were shuffled off to lunch. Lunch happened to be near the Tenguyama ski resort. The ski slope was shrouded in green though instead of glistening white snow.

 

 



 

 

 

Of all my meals on this tour, this was unfortunately the worst. Perhaps it was because we just had awesome desserts and were stuffed from that. It might also be because the restaurant was warm, stuffy and had poor ventilation. Whichever, I just couldn't find the appetite for this meal. The fish was too dry and the soup surprisingly bland.

 

It was the one and only meal in this entire trip that I did not finish the food off the plate.

 

 

Tourist Information:

 

Otaru Canal

Address: 〒047-0007 Otaru, Minatomachi, Hokkaido Prefecture

 

 

Hua Ting Steamboat Restaurant

With this being the Lunar New Year period, many Singaporean Chinese would have had steamboat very recently. It's almost like the de facto gathering meal for friends and family during this period. Which is absolutely great for me, since I love a good steamboat.

 

In fact, my group of foodie friends and I come together for steamboat pretty often round the year. I believe we've tried most of the major steamboat restaurants that has been sprouting up in Singapore in recent times. So when one of us suggested a new-to-us place, I was pretty excited.

 

 

 

Hua Ting Steamboat Restaurant opened only in October last year. While we were there, I observed several diners being confused between the Hua Ting Restaurant and this newer outlet at Claymore Connect. The original Hua Ting (Cantonese) Restaurant is located within the Orchard Hotel premises, level 2.

 

Hua Ting Steamboat Restaurant is however, located at the mezzanine level of adjoining Claymore Connect. If you come in through the hotel, look for the entrance to Claymore Connect (next to a pair of escalators, near concierge). Once you walk down that short flight of stairs, turn left and you should be able to see Hua Ting Steamboat Restaurant.

 

 





 

 

 

We were given seats very near the entrance of the restaurant, but since the place was relatively quiet, the arrangement was fine with us. In fact, at first glance, we were a little taken aback as the place was deceptively small for a restaurant. Until we realised that there were at least 2 private rooms and additional hidden space.

 

Hua Ting is one of those outfits where customers make use of iPads to place their orders. For steamboat places like this, I actually appreciate this use of technology as it makes it so much more convenient for us. Especially when you would like a second order of ingredients while already in the midst of your meal, an iPad is so much more convenient than having to keep trying to catch the attention of a passing staff. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who has had to put down my utensils so that I can fully focus on catching the attention of one of the staff. And I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who gets annoyed at failing to catch any of their attention. In fact, some occasions, I secretly wonder if I should just jump up and start wriggling my hands and butt just to grab some attention.

 

 



 

 

Another little item that I appreciated - you see that little napkin like thing on the plate in the photo above? That's actually a bib. It might seem frivolous to some, but to me, it indicated some thoughtfulness on the part of the management. If you're of those persons who puts each dainty morsel of food directly into your mouth, and looks at others spilling their food in disgust, please stay away from me. We're just going to ruin each other's appetite. And you probably can't appreciate the presence of this bib.

 

However for those of you who have groaned at the splash-back when peeling off a prawn head, or have had chilli soup/sauce accidently drip off your piece of meat, or had that prawn ball slip off your chopsticks? You'll be delighted that Hua Ting has thoughtfully provided that bib.

 

 



 

 

 

All right, since it's the Lunar New Year, we went for a yu sheng. For readers (if any) who are not local, the best way I can describe yu sheng (also known as lo hei) is that it's a Chinese version of a salad that's eaten during the Lunar New Year period. Ingredients are generally similar across places, restaurants as they are meant to signify good, prosperity, wealth, etc. OK, a lot of things during Lunar New Year is always to signify good, health, wealth, prosperity, abundance, blah blah blah, so you should know that this yu sheng is no different.

 

The fun is in the tossing of the salad. Everyone gets in the fun with their chopsticks and you're supposed to shout well-wishes while doing the toss. Needless to say, it can get quite messy and rowdy. If foreign friends ever visit Singapore during the Lunar New Year period, you really should get to a Chinese restaurant during this time to observe the spectacle.

 

 



 

 

For those of you who love yu sheng and want to know if Hua Ting's version is any good, I'm sorry to say that I personally find this just average. I've had better yu shengs (think Peach Garden and Prima Tower). There's really nothing much to shout (or in this case, write) about for the one at Hua Ting.

 

 



 

 

I have 3 personal markers when I judge a steamboat restaurant. Pretty obvious markers actually:

1) The condiments provided

2) The soup base

3) The ingredients for the steamboat

 

Most major steamboat restaurants now provide a variety of condiments to go with your food, so seeing that array is no longer unusual. What I do look out for, is whether the items are fresh and whether they run out. Well, Hua Ting didn't fail in any of this. Additional plus, they do seem to have some stuff that are not always seen at other restaurants, e.g. dried chilli shrimp, fried scallions. Definitely no complaints in this department.

 

 



 

 

Next, the soup base. Hua Ting's menu boasts of 8 interesting soup flavours, including Sea Treasure Flambé, Superior Fish Soup with Winter Melon & Conpoy, Shark’s Bone Cartilage Soup with Fresh Bean Curd Sheets and Bak Kut Teh with Whole Pork Bone.

 

Again, like most steamboat restaurants, you can choose up to 2 different soup bases for your steamboat. We went with the Shark's Bone Cartilage (on the right in photo above) and a Sichuan Style soup (obviously then the left one in the photo).

 

Between the 2 soups, the Shark's Bone Cartilage one was a clear winner with us. My friends and I generally tend to order a spicy soup and a more traditional soup base when we go for our steamboats. However, we found the Sichuan style a tad too spicy for us, and we didn't even up the spice level. So for those of you who cannot take spice, our advice to you is to lower the spice level when presented with the option on the iPad.

 

The Shark's Bone Cartilage one however, is just awesome. A couple of tips if you're ordering this:

1) Order the drunken chicken as well and dump the wine into the soup. What was initially good is going to get fantastic. If you're Hua Ting and reading this, hey, how about adding that hua tiao jiu into the soup too?

2) Pls save on ordering the fresh bean curd skin. The soup comes with it and there's plenty swimming in there.

 

 



 

 

Having passed 2 out of my 3 markers, what about the last marker then? I didn't count but Hua Ting's website boasts of over 150 dishes to choose from. For sure we didn't feel like there was nothing much to order. On the contrary, we had to be careful not to over-order since it seemed like there was so many to choose from. They also had some items which were not always common in steamboat restaurants, e.g. the pig's intestines, fried bean curd skin stuffed with salted egg. Items were also pretty fresh and that often makes all the difference.

 

I'm always put on ordering restriction when I'm with my friends. I tend to over-order, especially when I'm hungry. However, here are some recommendations:

1) The homemade items such as the balls and the paste were pretty good.

2) The fried beancurd skin stuffed with salted egg yolk. Yeah, ok, I know. Its salted egg yolk everything these days, but these fried beancurd skin were pretty good.

3) Skip the fried beancurd rolls. Not the best I've had, and comparing it to the one stuffed with the salted egg yolk, the rolls paled in comparison.

 

 



 

 

Price wise, Hua Ting Steamboat would be on the pricier end. Given the price tag, portions appeared smaller than some other restaurants. Our group of 4 paid almost $100 per pax. We ordered items from almost every category except seafood, and the end tab also included second helpings of some orders, a couple of desserts and the yu sheng.

 

Bottom line: would I/we return again?

Yup, definitely. Though I still prefer Imperial Treasure to Hua Ting, I'm not striking it off my list. In fact, there are already plans made to bring another friend along in the near future.

 

 

Information:

 

Address: Claymore Connect, mezzanine level #01-08, 442 Orchard Road, Singapore 238879

Operating hours: Lunch 11:30am - 2:30pm, Dinner 5:30pm - 10:30pm 

Website:http://www.millenniumhotels.com.sg/orchardhotelsingapore/dining/hua-ting-steamboat.html

For reservations: Call (+65) 6739 6628 or email steamboat.huating@millenniumhotels.com

 



Dynasty Travel: 8D6N Colourful Hokkaido Tour, Day 5 (Part 2)

I finally got around to changing the layout of this travel blog too! Yeah, it's been bothering me for a while, but not enough to get my ass moving on it till now. See! Honest-to-God renewed motivation to move this blog along!

 

Day 5's itinerary:
Kitanomori Ice Pavilion --> Furano Tomita Farm  --> Furano Winery (ふらのワイン工場) --> Furano Cheese Factory (富良野チーズ工房)


Once we were done at Tomita Farm, we headed off to the Chateau Furano aka the Furano Winery. It was a pretty short ride since the attractions were all pretty close to one another, so I didn't feel like I got properly cooled down before I needed to head out again. Thankfully, this was an indoor facility and yay to modern technology that gives us air-conditioning.

 

 

 

 

Ok, this was sort of my first disappointment for the day. While entrance was free, we were mostly left to roam on our own. Our tour guide Ms Reikko did give us a brief description of the cellar. Well, I assume that's a cellar since there were so many barrels of wine being kept there. Since there was no proper tour conducted, it was a little boring. I mean, how long can you stare at barrels?

 

Having said that, if I ever get a chance to come back to Furano, I'll drop by the winery again for sure! I'll tell you why (very) soon.

 

So once, I was bored of the cellar (which was pretty quick), my parents and I proceeded upstairs for free wine tasting. I'm not a wine connoisseur. In fact, I drink very little alcohol. So I'm definitely not the best person to write about whether the wines were fantastic or not. However, the little that I did sip to try, seemed to go down the throat pretty well.

 

On the other hand, what I can definitely say, was that the grape juice was AWESOME. Yup, there's grape juice testing too! And the very reason why I'll come back again - simply just to purchase the most awesome grape juice and grape juice jelly ever! I suspect that the jelly also had a little bit of wine in it. We bought a large bottle of the grape juice and 3 packets of the jelly home. The family finished them so fast, I never got to grab photos of them at all. They were THAT awesome. My mom is forever lamenting that it was the best grape jelly she ever had and till now, continues to regret buying only 3 packets.

 

Well, if I ever get the chance, I'll cart an entire box back the next time!

 



 

 

 

Once we were done at the Furano Winery, we boarded the tour bus to the Furano Cheese Factory. Our Dynasty Travel tour itinerary included an ice-cream making workshop at the cheese factory. Mom couldn't stand the smell of milk and declined but dad had a blast of a time making his ice-cream.

 



 

 

 

 

 

This was the ice-cream making machine although we were told that the trick to making good ice-cream was in the proportions of the milk and sugar.

 

 



 

 

While our ice-cream mixture went churning in the machine, we were being shown how to make our ice-cream waffles.

 

 



 

 

 

I have to say, I think my waffles were a lot tastier than the ice-cream we made. Otherwise, it must be the fault of the many yummy soft serves and ice-creams that I've had on this trip. Our self-made ice-cream paled a lot in comparison.

 



 

 

 

Once we were done with the ice-cream workshop, we were left to roam the place on our own. My parents and I headed upstairs (again) to the shop where we were greeted by this massive cow model. It seemed like everyone was taking a photo of it, and I succumbed to following the crowd as well.

 

There was a variety of cheese/dairy related products for sale at the shop, including cheesecakes, cheese (of course!),  milk, etc. As I was super stuffed from constantly eating, dad and I bought a small piece of the cheesecake just to try. Not too bad, but I've had better memories of the cheesecake from Mt Rokko in Kobe, Japan.

 

There were also samples of cheese available for tasting. What struck me was the "interesting" flavours that were available: original, wine-infused and squid-ink. I didn't grab pictures since it was only a few slices of cheese left on each platter. And unfortunately, I wasn't quick enough to grab any of those slices to try either.

 

 



 

 

 

Adjacent to the cheese factory is a little park where you can find these 2 "treasures", a gelato shop and a pizza shop! Heh. See how food-driven I am?

 

I was really too full to even attempt stuffing a slice of the pizza, but I was told by our tour guide Ms Reikko, that the pizza here is really delicious.

 

 

 

 

However, I did get a scoop of gelato to try since they had really interesting flavours as well. There was corn, pumpkin, asparagus and some of the more traditional melon, milk, grape, etc. Well, since I don't usually come across vegetable gelato, I decided to go for the "extreme" and got myself a cup of the asparagus gelato.

 

Not my cup of tea. Imagine a pureed veggies and milk mix. Bleah.

I'll just stick to the real greens in future.

 

 

Thoughts from Day 5:

 

For once, day 5's itinerary felt less rushed. The attractions were much smaller or simpler, and were located closer to one another so lesser time was spent on travelling on the roads.

 

Of the 4 attractions, Farm Tomita is a must during flower season in my opinion. Unless you're allergic to pollen or hate flowers. Otherwise, this place is really good for photos. Plus, you get pretty decent deals on lavender products, great for the home and as gifts.

 

The Kitanomori Ice Pavilion would be great as a side trip if you're nearby and especially if you have kids. You can probably cover the place in about an hour so that shouldn't take up too much time in your itinerary plans.

 

The Furano Winery and Furano Cheese Factory is also pretty close to each other. There's also a grape orchard near the Furano Winery (but I didn't have the chance to visit). I strongly recommend getting the grape juice if you ever visit. Just make sure you pack and secure it well on your flight home as their packing is not protective enough. However, if you're not into wines or cheese, and if you don't join in the workshops, then there's really nothing much to see or do here. Both places also don't take up a lot of time.

 

 

Tourist Information:

 

Furano Winery

Address: Shimizuyama, Furano, 076-0048 Hokkaido

DID: 0167-22-3242

Operating hours: 9 am to 6 pm from June to August,

9 am to 4:30 pm from September to May 

Entrance fee: Free entry

 

Furano Cheese Factory

Website: http://www.furano-cheese.jp/

Address: Nakagoku, Furano 076-0013, Hokkaido

Local address: 〒076-0013 北海道富良野市字中５区

DID: 167-23-1156

Operating hours: 9 am to 5 pm from April to October,

9 am to 4 pm from November to March

 

Dynasty Travel: 8D6N Colourful Hokkaido Tour, Day 5 (Part 1)

It's the eve of the Chinese Lunar New Year! To all my readers (if any) who celebrate the festival, I hope the Year of the Monkey would be a blessed one for you!

And now that the greeting is out of the way, my sincere apologies for the long absence. I have to admit, this blog doesn't take as much precedence as my other blog. Yeah, the nail one. One where the post is often short and doesn't require as much writing.

 

Ok, ok, I can be lazy but hey, I'm back! And to help myself out, I may consider breaking up the travel posts even more (yeah, like parts 1, 2, 3 and maybe even 4) but at least that's going to make it more manageable (well, hopefully) and I'll try my best to keep it going! Especially since I'm already planning for another trip, so I (really) should at least get my ass moving on finishing this one!

 

Day 5's itinerary of the Hokkaido group tour looked like this:

 

Kitanomori Ice Pavilion --> Furano Tomita Farm (ファーム富田) --> Furano Winery --> Furano Cheese Factory

 

 

First stop of the day - the Kitanomori Ice Pavilion. For some strange reason, the building reminded me of the old Snow City in Singapore. Anyway, I didn't bring my camera in. Yeah, I was being paranoid especially since I've seen people post pictures of the insides of the place and all. But I really didn't want to risk getting the camera spoilt since that had happened to me once before. I swear, an old camera fogged and grew mould from condensation after a trip to a similar place before. Hence, this was about the only picture (well, minus those of my parents) I took of the place.

Anyway, if you're near the attraction, then it's well worth an hour to stop by, especially if you have kids with you. The kids will probably have a blast of a time and it's pretty educational as well.

Even before we entered, we were introduced to the "change colour experiment". Basically you were given a slip of paper with a cartoon character to colour in with magic pens. Heh. Those magic pens really brought back memories of my childhood. Anyway, back to the colour experiment. Once you're done with your colouring, the staff will bring you through the magic of how extreme temperatures will change the colours of your cartoon.

And that was just one of the few experiments you'll experience in this place. Like I mentioned earlier, this place is great for the kids - educational fun. There were other fun experiments too, like how you could use a piece of frozen banana to hammer a nail! Next time I don't have a hammer, I'll know what to do. Well. Provided I have a frozen banana handy.

Since, this is an ice pavilion, naturally the temperatures are low - like freezing. However, you don't have to worry about lugging winter wear just for an attraction. Thick winter gear were provided, and they even have helpful staff who would be able to advise you on the best size and fit.


 



Once inside, you'll be walking through some ice tunnels, pass some ice sculptures and of course the requisite icicles. The main draw though for me was the -41 degrees room. Apparently, the coldest temperature recorded in Hokkaido winter was at a freezing -41 degree Celsius. So they built a room where visitors could experience for themselves how -41 degrees would feel like! How cool is that! (All pun intended).

 

You'd realise that most of these attractions would have a café or souvenir shop strategically placed. The Kitanomori Ice Pavilion was no exception. Once you finished having your fun on ice, you'd exit into a cozy café-cum-shop where you'll be given (free) biscuits and a cup of hot tea. I have to say, the hot tea was a nice welcome after the cold we went through.

 

Once we were done with the Kitanomori Ice Pavilion, our tour guide immediately hurried us to our lunch venue. I have to say, this is where an experienced  guide really counted. Although we had a slightly earlier lunch, we definitely beat a terrifying lunch crowd. Lunch was a semi-buffet affair, and OMG! The hungry horde that descended after almost all my tour group sat down with their first round of picks was like a pack of vultures. And when we left the place, there were still more tour buses coming in. Manoeuvring and parking looked almost like some really skilled chess play.

Anyway, the lunch place also had a shop attached. I picked up some of these bottles of moisturising cream that were supposed to be really good. Since I do have a preference for Japanese skin care, I bought some home to try! Unfortunately, I still have not finished with my Hada Labo yet. These are still sitting around so I can't give you the verdict yet.
 

 

 

The picture above should give you a clue as to where our next destination was.

 

That's it! The lavender farm! Specially the famed Furano Tomita Farm! And the very reason why my parents and I (well, mostly me really) braved a sweltering Japan summer to travel. Lavender season is in July and right smack in the middle of their summer. In fact, the day we visited Tomita Farm was a sweltering 31 degrees! That's Singapore on a good day! So if you intend to catch lavender season in its best, please remember to dress appropriately, bring a brolly, put on some sun screen and drink loads of water!

 

 



 

 

 

The Tomita Farm is pretty famous and hordes (yes, again) descend during blooming season. If you've seen pictures of a rainbow flowering field when looking for Hokkaido images, that's likely Tomita Farm at its prime. Rows and rows of purple, pink, red, orange, yellow. So pretty! And all that against an amazing backdrop of majestic snow-capped mountains!

 

If you're a plant-lover, flora-lover, you really cannot miss this if you are in Hokkaido. However, please do check blooming periods/seasons. I understand that if you visit post-blooms, it can look very sad and pitiful.

 

 

 

 

 

Yes. I have a gazillion pictures of the lavender fields. Be glad that I restrained myself and didn't flood the post with those gazillion photos. But really, the fields of purple are a sight to behold. Plus, you feel like you're standing in an aromatherapy store - the scent of fresh lavender in the air was just so relaxing! Flying bees didn't even faze me, when I usually would have run screaming in the opposite direction.

 

The Tomita Farm also boasts of a glasshouse - where the flowers would bloom regardless of season. However, once you've seen the rainbow fields, the glasshouse feels like a mediocre distraction. And if you happen to step into the Dried Flower House before the glasshouse, the glasshouse is going to pale even more in comparison.

 

 







 

 

 

These were really the most awesome dried flower arrangements I have seen. Towers and bridges, pots and vases of colourful combinations. I was pointing my camera in all directions. Great photo opportunities abound in here! You shouldn't miss this if you visit Tomita Farm!

 

Another highlight when visiting Tomita Farm - the shops and cafes. We got to try Furano melons as well. Between the Yubari melons and the Furano melons, my parents and I agreed that we preferred the Yubari melons. While I found the Furano melons crunchier and slightly sweeter than the Yubari ones, the Yubari melons were juicer and would leave a lovely lingering melon aftertaste.

 



 

 

 

What you really HAVE TO try though, is the lavender soft serve. It's pretty famous and you can spot many holding a cone or cup of the lavender soft serve. My dad got a cone while the vanity in me chose at this time to pop its head. The cone meant added calories and I went with a cup instead. Whichever, dad and I agreed it was a welcome respite from the heat.

 

For those of you who haven't yet tasted lavender ice cream - It feels like you're eating clouds of lavender perfume. I know that sounds like something out of Enid Blyton or a fairy-tale, but serious, that's really the best way I can think of describing it.

 



 

 

 

There are loads of other lavender stuff you can get at Tomita Farm. With lavender, its a given that scents, soaps and potpourri were aplenty. My mom bought several bottles of lavender scented beads for the home. I also bought some lavender sachets as gifts and a bottle of lavender-lemonade ramune for a friend. Regretting not getting one for myself now.

 

 

Tourist Information:

 

Kitanomori Ice Pavilion

Website: http://icepavilion.com/
Address: Sakaemati, Kamikawa-chou, Kamikawa-gun, 078-1733
Local Address: 北海道アイスパビリオン, 〒078-1733, 北海道上川郡上川町栄町40番地
DID: 01658-2-2233
Operating hours: 8:30 am to 5:30 pm (last entry at 5 pm)
Entrance fee: 1,808 yen for adults, 650 yen for students and 200 yen for kids (3 years and above)

Tomita Farm
Website: http://www.farm-tomita.co.jp/
Address: Kisen Kita, 15 Go, Sorachi-gun, Nakafurano-cho 071-0704
Local Address: 〒071-0704基線北15号
DID: +81 167-39-3939
Operating hours: Shops typically open from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm, with shorter hours outside of summer season.
No closing days, although some shops close from November to April
Entrance Fee: Free entry to all