Hakodate Dec 2014

It was an early trip for us going to Hakodate.

So the whole Hokkaido itinerary was planned by my mom and as expected, she included a 4-hour journey- whole day crash tour to the southernmost tip of Hokkaido!

Good thing, trains in Japan are the fastest and most efficient in the world!

Not to mention they serve good food too haha

Here is a snap of Hokkaido's specialty yogurt and choco chip ice cream!

Ice cream for breakfast? why not! lulz

Welcomed by this city night view from Mt. Hakodate <3

I recommend going to the tourist information upon arriving the station.

You could inquire about the whole day pass for the streetcar(tram) which is the most convenient way of getting to the tourist attractions. The pass, together with the map is around 600 yen ;)

First stop is the morning market, walking distance from the station.

Here, you could spot a lot of live crabs and shellfish. Perfect for fresh seafood souvenirs! hehe

One thing you shouldn't miss though is getting the seafood rice bowl from one of the several eateries around Asaichi (morning market).

Once you see these displays, don't hesitate to enter!

Mom got the salmon + ikura set ¥1510

While I got the crab + uni + ikura set ¥1940 ❤ 

Ain't these the most beautiful seafood rice bowls you've ever seen??!

huhu it's so fresh I can't even....lol

Walking around Hakodate is not a problem too as the road/street signs have English translations :)

Tasting the locally brewed beer is also a must in Hakodate.

You could have your drinking session at the beer halls in the red brick warehouse!

it was quite gloomy and deserted walking around the city.

I could only spot a few fellow tourists like this family who's about to cross the street hehe

Spotted some Shiroi Koibito choco drinks! yum ❤

Shiroi Koibito is one of the most popular cookie/confectionery makers in Hokkaido btw!

I'll post a separate entry for that soon ;)

I absolutely love pudding ❤

and this was glorious ❤❤❤

Hiked up going to Motomachi ~which is technically at the foot of Mt. Hakodate! 

huhu what an exercise for me, it was a bit hard walking uphill as the road was super icy!  -___-

Motomachi is known as a foreign district. 

A lot of  Russian and other Western traders moved here in the past.

Here, you could see the Old British Consulate.

going up to see...

The Old Public Hall!

the view from the Old Public Hall ❤

The beautiful view of Hachiman Zaka slope (still in Motomachi)

All these trees are illuminated at night. It's so beautiful! too bad I only had a glimpse of it as we were in a rush to catch the last train going back to Sapporo!

From Hachiman Zaka, it takes about 6 minutes on foot to go to the Ropeway station and another 3 minutes to the top by Ropeway/Cable Car.

Roundtrip fare for the ropeway is ¥1200 for adults and ¥600 for children ;)

The magical view <3

FYI: There were sooooo many tourists by this time. Coming here at night is so popular

that some of the tourists, come around sunset and don't leave their spot until night fall =/

So yea after taking this picture from the perfect spot, my mom and I decided to eat dinner first. WRONG MOVE! When we came back, it was insanely crowded and most of the people didn't want to move/leave even after taking a shot. It was too cold to wait too. So annoying >:(

Anyway, here's a shot from a different angle lol

My only proper picture of the "night view" from the resto.

My mom had a better pic though haha =P

Well at least my seafood casserole was scrumptious!so cheezy nyahaha

back at the station ~pretty lights!

Jozankei, Sapporo Dec 2014

If you're the type of person who's more interested with relaxation during a vacay then I highly recommend you try out the natural hot springs that's all over Japan.

In Hokkaido though, Jozankei is one of the popular spa-towns around.

Our free shuttle bus that was included with our day tour. 

Getting To Jozankei: Subway from Sapporo to Makomanai station then bus(30mins) to Mori No Uta(our hotel)

There were so many hotel/resort spas to choose from but I chose Jozankei Tsuruga Mori No Uta as it has the best outdoor hot spring bath that I saw online hehe

They also offered a day trip which included a lunch buffet and a free shuttle bus. Nice!

The interiors were so gorgeous. 

I particularly liked their lobby lounge which had this "forest oasis" theme that guests will surely love ❤

As I mentioned earlier, Mori No Uta has the best outdoor spring bath ever!

Here's an image from Google coz unfortunately, I couldn't take a picture of it since the only thing I can bring to the hot spring is a towel (You can read more about Japanese Hot Spring etiquette HERE =P )  

~You can see more pics at their website anyway :)

It was really beautiful, the mild snowfall added a more dramatic effect to our bath experience! *lucky*

Also, they use Shiseido for their bath products too ~sosyal!

Then it was time for lunch! yahoo <3

The buffet served a lot of traditional Japanese food yumz!

look at the snow view outside!

my eats ;)

love their dessert! they even had milk soft cream which is quite popular all over Japan.

After lunch, we were just killing time waiting for our 3pm departure back to Makomanai so we just

cam-whored outside the winter wonderland surrounding the hotel haha

Little Red Riding Kaye =P

Otaru Dec 2014

First stop for our Hokkaido Itinerary was Otaru city.

It takes about  30 mins from Sapporo station via JR Line and is the last station so no worries if you wanna sleep in the train lol

You could see at the map above for an idea ;)

Otaru is considered a popular destination since you can find so many historical buildings here.

In addition, there's so many souvenir stores,museums and dessert shops! oh my~~

So much snow!!!

Otaru Canal

-this used to be part of Otaru's busy port, transporting goods to warehouses along the canal.

So many tourists were racing each other in this spot trying to get a good picture of this view lol

The pathway on the side makes a pleasant stroll and perfect for photo-op moments as well =P

lovely <3

at night

Sakaimachi street

-here you can find lots of restos, cafes, souvenir shops and museums lined up.

suddenly, little snowmen on the bench

At the end of Sakaimachi street is the famous Music Box Museum.

Constructed in 1912, it is considered as one of Otaru's historic landmarks being the only building that utilized brick on wooden framing.

Trivia: the building used to be a home furnishings store before being reborn as a music box retailer :)

It's really a-MUST to visit here as it's one of the largest music box museums in Japan!

*and there's WiFi too btw =P

only a portion of the whole entire store lol

As expected, there were lots of music boxes in various types and sizes!

This one is my favorite and yea I got one for myself with the tune of Somehere Over the Rainbow~cute!!

Here's a video of one to the tune of Let it Go =P

there were a lot of melodies to choose from mostly classic lullabies and main themes from japanese anime/drama

i think these teddy bears got lost in this store haha

when I say a lot of styles to choose from, there's really a lot....

❤ ❤ ❤ 

there's even a sushi one 

Speaking of sushi,  Otaru is also known for its freshness of sushi since it faces Ishikari Bay!

Be sure not to miss out these sushi rice bowls!

Also, there are also shops that serves grilled giant scallops ~you can easily spot those on the side streets lol

Not sure but looks like cream puff?

Time to hoard Royce!

You can find these in almost every sweets stores along Sakaimachi

There's no price difference of Royce in Hokkaido and Tokyo by the way ;)

BEST THING EVER

Got this for the bf since he loves Camembert cheese and it was abso-fckin-lutely divine ❤

LeTao is one of the most popular confectioner's shop in Hokkaido and it has several stores around Otaru.

The Double Fromage cheesecake is one of its bestsellers. 

"No-baked cheesecake made from Italian mascarpone put on baked cream cheesecake"

It also comes in a chocolate variant. Yes it's truly a #deathbycheesecake moment when you devour this masterpiece LOL

My absolute favorite was this Niagara White Rare Chocolate ❤

"Niagara wine, a specialty of Otaru, is used for this white chocolate, and it’s rolled up into a ball one by one carefully by pastry chef"

No exaggeration but this chocolate instantly became my fave, the moment I smelled it!hahaha

The aroma was just alluring -like fresh grapes harvested in a vineyard haha wtf?!

And even the taste was sensational!

Really mild white chocolate with a hint of grape flavor and very creamy.

Goodbye truffles, goodbye ferrero...I have a new favorite!nyahaha

Another must try is this soft cream Rainbow tower!

~be sure to grab one at the store in Sakaimachi. I saw another store in a different road and it was more expensive but had fewer flavors =P

ice cream in winter? why not?!

my goodies!

Loved Otaru so much, I wanna go back!!!