Hokkaido Yuki Matsuri

So after almost 2 years of hard work, stress, sleepless nights and god knows what else I’ve finally managed to get me some data I can work with. This of course means I’m now elbow deep in data analysis. A lot less stressful than experiments for sure but also a lot less fun. It’s repetitive, it’s boring and, thanks to the ambiguity of the technique I’m working with, seemingly never ending. But at least I have something I can work with.

Data analysis does however come with some benefits though. Almost all the analysis is computer based and as such can be done anywhere. This means I can do the unthinkable and…take a holiday mid-week. I know I know it’s very out of character and I’m pretty sure very un Japanese but hey, I’m not Japanese and neither is my boss so I managed to get away with.

So what prompted the desire to take a bit of a break, apart from being fully done in by several months of hard experiments? Well I’ll tell you. With my departure immanent, albeit not as soon as I was thinking it would be, I’ve been taking every opportunity to explore further afield whilst I’m in Japan. With that I decided to head out to the northern most reaches of Japan, Hokkaido.

The northern Island of Japan is famous for several things. Its natural beauty in any season is lorded by many of those on the mainland, its low population means that much of the natural landscape lays undisturbed. The same can also be said of its wildlife. Sadly this is best seen in the summer months and as we are in the middle of winter there wasn’t much chance of that. However winter also boasts some unnatural beauties of it’s own in the form of the Sapporo Yuki Matsuri (札幌雪祭り).

The snow festival is one of Japan’s biggest events seeing more than 2 million people flock to Hokkaido annually to bare witness. It was started by a few High school students building Snow statues in the centrally located Oodori park in the 1950’s and has grown and grown ever since. One of my favourite facts is that the local defence force is required to participate as a training exercise.

The festival runs for one week and whilst you can visit the sculptures anytime I definitely recommend heading down after dark. Sure it’s freaking cold (about -10­⁰C)

And yes the streets are crowded but the lighting is absolutely fabulous and really accentuates just how amazing these things are. Pictures do not do these things justice. The scale is just something else with entire buildings being reconstructed purely out of snow. I was pretty much in awe of everything I walked past, some of these sculptures were easily over 10 metres.

A little bit down the way is Sapporo’s central entertainment district, Susukino, where the streets are lined with spectacular ice sculptures. Again these really need to be seen at night as the pure ice glistens with the surrounding lighting. Once more I really can’t do these justice with pictures but I gave it a go anyway. If you go for the start of the festival you can also be treated to watching some of the sculptors hard at work with their chainsaws putting together some of the statues.

Of course no festival in Japan would be complete without Yatai’s, small portable food stores, and these were a bit of a treat. The other thing Hokkaido is famous for, besides nature and being mega cold, is food. It is one of Japan’s central agricultural hubs, being home to about a quarter of Japan’s arable land. Add to this the cold northern seas and that gives you great fish and veggies to boot.

Being that it is very cold Hokkaido food tends to be on the heartier side but when you are out in sub-zero temperatures that is pretty welcome. The miso ramen was amazing, a really nice blend of aka and shiro miso, and the curry soup is possibly the tastiest thing I’ve eaten in Japan. Sadly as it was only a 2 day stay I missed out on all the good seafood but as it was crab season I think I would have missed out anyway.

Due to the short nature of the trip there really wasn’t much chance for side trips unfortunately but I did manage one. Just a short journey from the centre, maybe 30 minutes by train and bus, is a small peak called Moiwa san. It’s not particularly but it does offer some amazing views out over Sapporo, as well as having a rather unique cable car journey to the summit. Sapporo doesn’t have many tall buildings so you can really see pretty far out across the area.

To be honest that is pretty much it. I probably spent as much time travelling out there as I actually did in Hokkaido but I’m really glad I went. My favourite moment? Well that is a bit private but one thing I found highly amusing was Panasonics stage at the Snow festival. They had cornered off an area to advertise their new range of air-conditioners, complete with Hawaiian scenery and a fake beach. Was it successful? I’ll let the thermometer do the talking.

Mata ne.

Fishing with birds.

Well as once again find myself in work at silly o’clock in the morning it is a definite realisation that summer is over. Actually I’d been meaning to write this entry for quite some time now but just hadn’t found the time. I visited an amazing conference on Mass spectrometry; the science and technology used to accurately measure the mass of atoms and molecules. It gave me lots of ideas and also inspired me that hope was not completely lost for Josie.

Anyway that's not really that interesting, though in one of the talks it was revealed that a lab group had modified their million pound piece of equipment with lego. Instead I wanted to write about something I’d been meaning to do for ages.

The conference was in Kyoto you see and during the summer the quieter, more tranquil area to the north, called Arashiyama, becomes a hive of activity. Well after the sun goes down at any rate. A less well known and definitely quirky tradition called Ukai (鵜飼), or cormorant fishing attracts many away from Kyoto’s more popular central districts. The cormorant being Liverpool’s official bird I kind of had to go really.

The tradition itself traces it’s roots back over 1000 years and was most likely brought over from china. Quite a few rivers play host to it in Japan over the summer, the most famous being the Nagara River in Gifu. The Oi river of Kyoto is much nearer to me though and since I was in the area it was worth a visit.

Before I get into what actually happened I have to sidetrack a bit to tell you about the journey there. Now the easiest way to get to Arashiyama from central Kyoto is by the main train line. I however had a free pass for the underground from the conference so I chose to exploit it as much as I could.

Sadly I couldn’t make the entire journey that way but it lead me to riding the rather charming Keifuku electric railroad. This is a one-car tram that winds through the streets of northern Kyoto and gave me more than a hint of nostalgia for some of my European adventures. It’s dead old, it began operation in 1910, but it made the journey that bit more special.

After arriving it was only a short walk to the Togetsukyo Bridge which was lined with boats, their little lanterns beckoning me on. Since the cormorants aren’t so big, and as it is dark, the only real way to view Ukai is up close in a little roofed boat. I got my ticket from the boat stand and, since I couldn’t really understand any of the kanji instructions, followed a pair of Japanese Girls to a nearby platform.

In the end they were as clueless as me and we were ushered back to the ticket office by one of the Ukai boatsman. It did however prove as a starting point for a conversation, a bit of language goes a long way and it was nice to have a bit of company, sometimes experiences are best shared.

The girls it turned out were old friends from Uni in Tokyo, though one hailed from Kyoto. Her friend was visiting and as neither of them had seen Ukai before they decided to make the trip out to Arashiyama, firsts all round then. In fact I'd say it's quite common for natives of a country to have not participated in many of their cultures older tradition. I mean I've never morris danced for a start.

We boarded our boat along with about 20 others and were guided out to the middle of the river. To my surprise once we were anchored in place along side many other eager viewers some small motor boats pulled up alongside us. Each had a few tepans (Japanese hot plates) and hotpots selling grilled squid, oden (a kind of stew) and mitarashi dango (rice dumplings grilled in a sweet sauce). The girls bought a couple of dango and gave one to me, never refuse free food from a lady. Golden rule.

After a bit of snacking the boats moved away and it was time for the main event. The cormorants have small bands around their necks, not enough to be uncomfortable but enough to stop them swallowing any fish they catch. They also have a long rope fixed to the band and are held in groups of about 4 or 5 by the fisherman on the boat. It kind of looks like he’s taking them for a walk I must admit.

At the back of the boat a large bale of dry grass is set alight so the birds can see better and then the event kicks off. It was quite distressing at first for me. The cormorants dip under the water to snag a fish and then are hauled onto the boat to relinquish their prize. It seemed a tad cruel but the birds didn’t seem to mind to much and they are rewarded with a sliver of fish for their efforts, just enough to keep their appetite going.

The leisurely cruise around the river took about an hour all told with the cormorants being paraded in front of us periodically. I guess it’s mostly for show these days really but it is something I may not have a chance to see again, I try my best not to let opportunities like this pass me by.

All in all it was a very relaxing way to wind down after a hard day of science. The river is serene at night and Arashiyama just has such a chilled atmosphere. The boats themselves rock pleasantly and you sit maybe a few centimetres above the water. If I get the chance I think I’d like to go again with some friends. Apparently you can also go to a restaurant afterwards where they prepare sashimi from the evenings catch. It’s a tad expensive however so I gave it a miss.

On the way back however I had a wonderful moment of serendipity. I managed to get off the train a stop too late, I was daydreaming a bit as always. My stomach was grumbling at this point and I came across a burger place with a skateboard for a sign. I was sold before I even crossed the door. It was awesome, best burger I’ve had in Japan and genuinely spicy. A top end to a boss night.

Ja sore de ijou desu,

Mata nee. 

Singularities in Singapore.

 So lesson of the night number one, if a Japanese person ever uses the phrase “deshou” (the potential form of the verb to be, i.e ‘might be’) to end a sentence, don’t believe a word of what you have been told. We managed to get turned around twice before having to leg it for the night bus barely managing to get on in time. Our efforts were rewarded however by a super swank night bus. We had foot rests, blankets and even a weird cover to pull over our heads to block out light.

Suffice to say this return trip was a lot more pleasant than the outgoing one. No sooner had we stopped off in Osaka and we were catching a train out to the airport. This journey seemed to be fated wit coincidences and number one occurred at the airport itself. As we were checking in we ran into a friend of mine from Hmeji who was also off to Singapore, on the same flight no less,  to attend her friends wedding.

The flight was pleasant enough, super basic due to the low cost but since it was only 6 hours in the air  I can’t complain. To be honest I didn’t really miss having in flight movies since I usually don’t end up watching any. You get so much choice these days that I waste half the flight trying to decide what to watch.

At about 9pm we arrived at our final destination, Singapore. This was a bit of a spur of the moment decision but a very excellent one. My mate and myself had been getting a little bit fed up with Japan at this point. The language barrier was really starting to get to him and it put a lot of extra pressure on me. So where is the least Asian bit of Asia? Yup Singapore where English is one of the national language. Hurray for former colonies. (Disclaimer: that statement was entirely tongue in cheek I in no way advocate colonialism and the many atrocities that have occurred in its name.)

The main motivation for visiting Singapore was actually to meet up with an old friend. We’d met him at Liverpool University when we were just starting to play. He, like us, had continued to play and is in fact on the Singapore national team. He’d assured us that Singapore was a pretty small place so even though we didn’t have much time we could still get a lot done.

Having a friend who is local is fantastic when visiting a country. Firstly you’ll waste no time trying to figure out how to get about since you have a great guide on hand. They are more than likely to know where all the best/cheapest/coolest places to eat, drink and sight see are. Worry number two gone. Also if they are really nice, as was the case here, you don’t need to find somewhere to stay.

Admittedly you do lose a bit as there is no time to get lost and discover oddities, still time was short and I was so grateful for my friends hospitality. One cool thing about leaving the UK is definitely the fact I know have friends all over the world, and an even bigger incentive to do more travelling.

Back to the holiday then. Our friend took us from the airport to a nearby Korean resteraunt for dinner and to meet some of his teammates. Korean food is always good, super spicy and very hearty, and I could see the relief on my mates face as he was getting pretty fed up of Japanese cuisine. Me to for that matter.

After dinner we were treated to yet more food (running theme here). Desert consisted of a variety of sot tofu in warm or cold syrup as well as egg custard tarts.  We were led up some stairs to a little room with a load of benches that was crammed full of people. The thing that struck me most was that no one batted an eyelid as we walked in. In Japan there would definitely been some stares (some less friendly or indifferent than others.) Here, nothing. It was refreshing to not feel like an alien.

The following day we had a nice relaxed start and headed out to some street vendors for a breakfast of  Roti prata and curry with carrot cake (don’t let the name fool you it was essentially a spicy omelette though it did contain carrots). 

Now I’m pretty inflexible when it comes to breakfast and to my detriment I don’t deviate from cereal too often. I think breakfast is the meal people tend to be least flexible about, and is probably why Hilton hotels spent so much money developing their breakfast menu. Either way I decided to hang it and just went with it and you know what. It was blooming marvellous. The tea was also amazing; I’ve not had a good cup of black tea since I left the UK.

Fuelled up we were taken to the Marina bay area of Singapore. This place is like taking a step into the future. Being the central area for business and entertainment and is constantly undergoing development. We went to check out a recently developed area known as “Gardens by the bay”.

This area spans around 250 acres and consists of large areas of greenery and water.  The main theme of the gardens seemed to be one of sustainability and I’m sure the natural appearance of many of the structures was supposed to tie into this. At the centre of the garden are two large conservatories that reminded me strongly of the Eden project.

The first, and smaller, of the two is called ‘The cloud forest’ and is a recreation of the environment within mountain forests. It consists of several floors with the temperature dropping as you move higher up. The indoor waterfall was impressive and we were also treated to a geography lesson as we wandered around. Sustainability is at the heart of these buildings and it seems every little feature is in someway related to this theme.

The shape of the conservatories allows rainwater to be guided towards underground reservoirs. Here the water is cooled a piped back up to cool the air close to ground level. As the air heats it rises and is vented at the top. By doing this it reduces the amount of air volume that actually needs to be cooled and thus reduces the energy input.

This is amongst one of the many strategies in place around the gardens and in fact all the electrical power used in its operation is produced on site. One of the most striking features is the Supertrees, giant constructs of metal, concrete and plant life. At their tops they contain reservoirs for collecting rain water to power fountains and irrigation, solar panels for electricity and even act as vents for the warm air collected in the conservatories.

Impressed though I was it eventually became time to leave and move on to the next visual spectacular,  Marina bay sands. This is a resort complex featuring a large shopping mall, cinemas, theatres museums and a casino. The most striking feature is definitely the three tower hotel complex topped by a gigantic sky terrace in the shape of a boat. I’m assured there is a swimming pool at the top with a glass bottom so you can look down, sadly we didn’t have a look.

First stop was  a Chinese restaurant for noodles and dumplings. The wontons were good (but not as good as ma bo’s in town) and then xiao long boa, a type of steamed bun with a soup filling. All very tasty. Following lunch we went to check out the Andy Warhol exhibit in the ArtScience museum.

The term art science is something I could really get on board with. Sadly due to time constraints we didn’t really have time to see the permanent exhibit but the Wahol exhibit was highly engaging and there was even a bit of dressing up and silly photo taking at the end. The museum itself regularly hosts special exhibits so if I’m ever back in the country I’ll be sure to check it out again.

After getting a bit more cultured we left to meet up with a friend I’d met in Japan now living in Singapore, this was the start of what would be many interesting coincidences of the night. Whilst I’d only met this friend a few times before she had lived in Wrexham for several years whilst working so for reasons of common ground we’d hit it off. She’d only been in Singapore for 2 weeks so I think she was just happy to meet a familiar face.

We stopped off in china town for some tea, quite a lot of different teas actually, before coincidence two. My friend who were travelling around asia for their honeymoon, whom I’d met up with in Japan about a month ago, were now in Singapore. They were also good friends with my Singaporean friend and so were joining us for lunch. By chance they had run into a friend they had made whilst travelling around Malaysia and invited her along also.

The plot thickens however. On the way to the restaurant we  picked up a teammate of my Singaporean friend. He was Japanese and had moved to Singapore about a month ago. Here is were it gets weird. Turns out he was the older brother of a friend from the UK. He had lived there from the age of 9 – 15 and knew quite a few of our mates. Coincidence overload.

Obviously this was an interesting night with some wonderful conversations, great food, sadly I couldn't try the crab but all the other seafood was delish, and other such merriment. We capped it off by trying durian fruit. Give it a go if you get the chance, I’ll say nothing more. I do love that most restaurants in Singapore are street style, completely open and very casual.

The day really just confirmed for me that the world is incredibly small. What followed was a fantastic night out involving more food (it’s a national pastime apparently), some scary revelations (when inquiring if it was safe to leave drinks in a club we were informed that the penalty for possession of drugs is death), and even some late night/ early morning  antics in my mates pool (it was going  to happen really).

Day 2 was much more relaxed. We played some frizzers with the locals, enjoyed some more local cuisine and just about managed to squeeze in a viewing of the Dark Knight Rises. I couldn’t have been happier with the whole trip really. I’m immensely grateful to my friend for being such an awesome host. We hadn’t met in years but it seemed like just yesterday we were in the pool. I’m also still grateful to Ultimate, man do I owe so many of my opportunities in life to that wonderful sport.

I guess since this is a post about Singapore I don’t need the Japanese sign off so…

Laters.