A 3 hour train ride from Sapporo, across Hokkaido, brought us to the southern coastal city of Hakodate. Fortunately, our hotel was within walking distance from the station. Very conveniently located, is the Hotel Resol, just 5 minutes' walk from the station.
The stuffed pancake was pretty good while the fish spicy hotpot was tasty and in the cold weather, was most appropriate. The peach wine was also very refreshing, but best of all was the dessert. Ice cream accompanied by warm mashed Japanese sweet potato; an interesting and delicious combination.
Just across the road from the hotel is another restaurant that specializes in Hakodate squid. The squids there are quite different from the ones we are used to. Instead of white in colour, the squids there have translucent body and seems to be shining. The squid sashimi was really fresh and the texture was smooth and slightly chewy. Other dishes worth mentioning are the toasted rice onigiri, which was excellent; the huge raw oysters were succulent and juicy; and the hot plate tofu. Wash the meal down with Japanese sake, and it is just simply unforgettable.
About 100 metres from the hotel, is the Hakodate Asaichi (morning market), which is open from 6am to about noon daily. This is a very colourful network of streets that spans about four city blocks. Here you can find stalls and shops selling fresh seafood such as sea urchin, crab, squid, octopus, shrimps, fish, salmon eggs, scallops etc. You can also find stalls selling fruits such as melon, strawberry (sweet, juicy and enormous), tangerines etc. Also available are wasabi flavoured crackers, squid ink flavoured crackers, the famous Hakodate stuffed squid and even pure horse oil skin care cream (excellent for moisturizing your skin).
In the middle of the market, you can find a large squid tank where you can catch your own squid and immediately eat it. With so many squids swimming in the tank, it is not difficult to catch one with the line and hook.
After some snacks and squid ink ice cream, and a photo with two pretty Japanese girls, we ventured to walk along the Hakodate Bay and port area. It is so beautiful to see a blanket of pure white snow covering the landscape. As we walked through a park and left our footprints in the virgin snow, I felt so at peace with the world.
After a short walk, we arrived at the Kanemori Red Brick Warehouse, once the first commercial warehouse in Hakodate now turned into a shopping and dining complex. Here you can find souvenir shops, boutiques and supermarkets selling fresh produce, daily necessities and local delicacies including Royce chocolates.
Continuing our trek towards the Motomachi area, we chanced upon the popular fastfood joint Lucky Pierrot Burger Restaurant, which serves the famous Whale Miso Burger. The meat was deep fried to crispy and fragrant, but it was still a little tough and fishy. We also tried the popular Chinese Chicken Burger which was quite ordinary.
Round the corner, we had to make our way up the slippery sloped road to reach the Motomachi area where you can find many foreign looking buildings including the Russian Orthodox Church, the old British Consulate and the Chinese Memorial Hall, and also the Funadama Shrine (船魂神社). Walking along the narrow streets of Motomachi with snow flakes falling around you, that feeling is really something else.
Taking the Hakodate tram from Jujigai all the way to Goryokaku Koen Mae station, we arrived within 10 minutes' walk to the Fort Goryokaku (五稜郭). On the way to the Fort, we chanced upon the Chinese Restaurant "Goryokaku Yumin". There, we had our lunch of Ramen noodles and side dishes of Spring Roll, Gyoza and Pig's Ear. The Pig's Ear is worth a try.
Arriving at the Fort Goryokaku, we first went up the 107m tall Goryokaku Tower, where we could get a bird's eye view of the entire layout of the huge fortress. The Fort is a massive star-shaped Western-styled fortress that has been converted to a public park with over one thousand cherry trees planted around its moats. Too bad in winter we cannot see the cherry blossoms.
After visiting the Fort, we headed for the Hakodateyama Ropeway to ascend Mount Hakodate (函館山) for the spectacular night view. Visiting the Fort Goryokaku first, had the advantage of discount coupons for use on the ropeway. There is always a long queue at the ropeway station, so be prepared to wait. In any case, the wait was well worth it as the view from the top of Mount Hakodate is indeed spectacular. Even on a not so clear night, with heavy snowfall, we could still see the sparkling lights of the city. Believe it or not, we even bought a couple of ice cream cones and ate them while standing at the top of the Mountain and out in the snow. An experience not to be had often.
After coming down from Mount Hakodate, it being a cold night, we decided to have Yakiniku (BBQ skewered meat). Again the restaurant was just round the corner from our hotel. The restaurant is not very big, probably can seat about 10 to 12 people around a charcoal grill table. You could order individual skewers of chicken meat, beef, pork, mushrooms, scallops, eggplant, shrimps and even rice cake, to be placed on the burning hot charcoal to cook. Another excellent meal.
And the perfect way to end a perfect day was to sit watching the Hakodate Bay from the Twilight Bar on the top of our Hotel Resol, drinking a Bloody Mary and munching on smoked duck.
Next morning, just before we left Hakodate, we went back to the morning market (Hakodate Asaichi) to have a breakfast of donburi. Just look at the salmon eggs, the sea urchins, the huge scallops and the tempura. How can we not enjoy it.
Then it's off to the train station and head for our next destination, Noboribetsu and the Hell Valley.
