Sendai: Zuihoden, the Mausoleum of Masamune Date

Date Masamune (family name: Date) build his castle in Sendai in 1600 and was important in the growth and development of the city. Masamune was actively trading with Europe and even sent Japanese delegations all the way to Madrid and Rome. He was both a legendary leader and warrior but he may not be such an icon even today if it weren’t for his missing eye and the crescent moon helmet. Other leaders may have united Japan, but Masamune is instantly recognizable.

He served Toyotomi Hideyoshi who finally united Japan, and even took part in the ill-fated Korean invasions. After Hideyoshi’s death, he supported Tokugawa Ieyasu. A wise choice since it was Ieyasu who emerged victorious out of the Battle of Sekigahara. Still, neither Hideyoshi nor Ieyasu ever trusted Masamune completely. Masamune was a powerful daimyo and as such a potential rival who also had contacts with foreign missionaries.

Zuihoden is the place where he, his son and grandson are buried and it’s one of the stops on the Sendai Loople bus. The mausoleum was constructed in the architectural style of Monoyama and is an impressive sight. It burned down during the war however and what you can see today is a reconstruction from 1979 and 2001.

From Hakodate to Sendai by train – going underground

The Shinkansen bullet-train is one of the trademarks of Japan, yet, there’s no Shinkansen on Hokkaido. Routes have been proposed as early as the 70′s but it wasn’t until 2005, when construction was finally started. In 2015 the first part will be finished, connecting Shin-Aomori (and Tokyo) to Shin-Hakodate. Currently you have to change trains at Shin-Aomori.

Fortunately, train connections are already advanced enough to offer express trains. So I took the Super Hakucho from Hakodate to Shin-Aomori and changed there to the Tohoku Shinkansen for Sendai. The green hakucho train almost looks as if it has a mouth, doesn’t it?

Hokkaido and the main island of Japan, Honshu, are connected by a 54 km long tunnel which is 240 meter deep at its deepest point. JR Hokkaido seemed to have the train fan in mind, when they made the info graphic. When riding the train, it just feels like a long tunnel, nothing special at all.

An evening in Otaru

There is one other city in Hokkaido I visited during this trip to Japan: Otaru. Otaru is close to Sapporo and can be reached in just 40 minutes via the Hakodate Line from Sapporo Station. The city also has its own snow festival which is supposed to be less commercial – whatever that means. Unfortunately, I spent more time at the Historical Village of Hokkaido than anticipated and arrived in Otaru after 6pm.

Otaru has a population over 130000 but I guess many commute to Sapporo for work. I got off at Minami Otaru Station which is a good start for a roundtrip. The immediate area around the station was quite sleepy, but my first destination, Marchen Square, was just a short walk away.

On the way to the square I passed “Kinderlieb”, a hands-on toy store with a German name. “Märchen” is German for fairy tale. On the square (which is more like an intersection) there is a steam clock in front of the music box museum. The clock is activated every full hour:

Otaru has a well-preserved historic street and may also be called the Venice of Hokkaido.

Hakodate’s Tram

Hakodate’s public transport consists of tram lines and busses. For tourists, the tram is probably the most useful with the three most important stops being Jujigai (Mount Hakodate, Motomachi, Red Brick Warehouses), Hakodate Station and Goryokaku Koen Mae (Fort Goryokaku) all used by both tram lines.

When entering the tram, there is a small machine which prints out little sheets of paper with a number on it. This is important when you leave the tram, as the fare will depend on the distance travelled. If you want to buy a day pass (600 Yen) however, you just need to tell the driver that you want to buy a one day pass. Next time just show this pass to the driver.

The day pass is interesting, as it also has a foldable map inside. There was not much incentive to use it however. Maybe next time, when I have more time to get lost.

Hakodate Christmas Fantasy & Red Brick Warehouse

A (former) foreigner’s district is not the only thing that Hakodate and Yokohama have in common. Both Japanese cities also have red brick warehouses which are used for various shops nowadays. There are restaurants, cafes, clothing and gift stores and – in Hakodate at least – a super market. The space around and between the warehouses is used for special events such as the Hakodate Christmas Fantasy.

Hakodate Christmas Fantasy is an annual event and each day they light a big christmas tree. I rushed to make it in time from the Goryokoku Fort to Hakodate’s bay area. Turned out I didn’t have to rush at all because there was a lengthy christmas story about a woman from Hakodate and her husband from Halifax, Canada. Halifax and Hakodate are sister towns since 1982.

The lighting of the tree was accompanied with some fireworks. December is not the time for firework festivals here in Japan, unless you go to an amusement park.

Loving Hut in Tokyo

Loving Hut is a fast growing vegan food restaurant chain founded by “Supreme Master” Ching Hai. Unlike most restaurant chains, each branch can offer different kinds of food, e.g. the one in Palo Alto had nothing in common with the one in Seoul. Tokyo already has a few vegan and vegetarian restaurant and even a vegan festival near Yoyogi Park. Now it also has a Loving Hut.

Of course, the Tokyo one caters to the local taste. Therefore you will find two curry plates on the menu in addition to a hamburger, vegan hot dog, cheese tart, ice cream and a spicy noodle soup. The main dishes are offered as a set with soup and dessert. Take out is an option for any dish (not including the soup).

This is really more of a “take out” place, the chairs they have in the restaurant are uncomfortable to sit on even though I’m slim. The dish I ordered was the Zen Plate for 1000 Yen with teriyaki vegan meat made from soy bean and lotus root.

Illumination of Hakodate’s historic Motomachi district

Hakodate was the first port to be opened to foreign trade after Japan was forced to give up its isolation. Just like Yokohama, Hakodate has a Motomachi district where foreign traders or diplomats settled. Therefore this district has many foreign-looking houses and churches. I’ve been to the former foreign residential areas of Kobe and Yokohama before, so I was curious to compare them to Hakodate’s.

This city is amazingly convenient for travellers, because of the close proximity of Motomachi district, Mount Hakodate and the Red Brick Warehouses. Originally I wanted to go to Mount Hakodate, however with heavy snow fall sight wasn’t good enough. Even at Motomachi I had to wait for the short periods when there was a bit less snow.

Interestingly, there are a various places of worship almost next to each other such as the Higashi Honganji Temple and the Russian Orthodox Church. All buildings were closed however and few people were outside at that time (8pm). I guess most who were outside were at the Red Brick Warehouses.

The building above is the Hokkaido Prefectural Government’s Old Branch Office. It was first built in 1909 and then renovated in 1982, when the park around it was also constructed. Today, the first floor serves as the Motomachi Tourist Information while the second floor is a museum about Hakodate City.

Parts of this park were nicely illuminated.

Fort Goryokaku in Hakodate during Winter

Originally, my next stop after Sapporo was supposed to be Aomori, but I switched to Hakodate instead. Hakodate is Hokkaido’s third biggest city and its port was the first to be opened to foreign trade. One of the main sights is Goryokaku, a star-shaped fort that was the site of the last battle of the Boshin War, a civil war in Japan between the imperial forces and forces of the old shogunate.

The star shape of the fort allowed more cannons to be placed while reducing the number of blind spots where cannons couldn’t fire. The fort is a public park today and one of Hakodate’s cherry blossom spots. The nearby Goryokaku Tower offers an excellent view over the fort even though the angled windows of the tower make it hard to get a good shot of the entire fort.

Upon buying the ticket for the observatory deck (840 Yen), I was told that there’s going to be a light-up event starting at 5pm. Of course everybody up there waited for this event!

Shiroi Koibito Park: Chocolate Museum and Factory

Chocolate (or cocoa) is produced since thousands of years. It has been used in religious events, as a currency and even a medicine. Early cultures in South America called it the food of god. While considerably shorter, chocolate has a history in Japan too. Ishiya is a Sapporo-based chocolate company famous for Shiroi Koibito (White Lover), a butter cookie with white chocolate in between. The Shiroi Koibito Park is the place where you can learn more about the history of chocolate, make your own cookies and take a look at the Ishiya factory. There’s actually even more to see there.

There’s not much to do during Winter outside (the park). One booth was open and selling drinks. You can take pictures of the seasonal decoration and illumination. Access to the park and the Ishiya shop is free. The actual museum and factory costs 600 Yen and includes a Shiroi Koibito Passport (in Japanese) and one cookie. If you like to save money, eat the cookie in safe distance from the chocolate factory!

The first stop is the Aurora Fountain, built by a British company in 1870. A few exhibits are shown around the fountain, more can be seen in the second part of the factory walk.

This second part shows you cups from the 18th to early 19th century which were used to drink chocolate. Elaborate designs and the famous Meissen porcelain can be seen and show how much richer people appreciated their chocolate. A gallery displays the packaging labels.

Visitors continue to the time tunnel and the chocolate factory.