HAPPY BIRTHDAY MUM!!!! (For yesterday)
We made it to Asahikawa on the train. Just going on the train helped reinforce how everything is different here. With a capital DIFF. The trains run on time (I mean on time, to the second). They are clean, comfortable, fast, tilt round corners, and if you end up leaving a station the same way you came in, everyone gets up and swivels their seats round to face the other way.
Although we were quite late into Asahikawa by provincial Japanese standards, our host, Hirofumi-san, ("Westerners find it easier to call me Hiro") collected us and took us to get some food in a local convenience store. For Hiro it must have been very odd, as we were tired but extremely enthusiastic and curious about everything (what is this? what on earth is that? nani desu ka?). - I bought some aloe yoghurt made by Meiji, Hiro's company, and some inari sushi. It took me some time and Hiro's dictionary, to find out what was in the yoghurt, as I had no concept that aloe was edible, let alone very nice. I have confirmed this since by buying some more and eating them all.
We went back to Hiro's apartment, in the Nishikimachi area of Asahikawa about 7km from the station. He lives on the first floor in a modern 2 room apartment in a block of 4, like a large modern house, next to a level crossing which beeps and boingles all night. We were right to come to Hokkaido, as the temperature is a livable high 20's/low 30's with low humidity, unlike anywhere further south. I haven't worn anything other than a light top and trousers since we were up a Mongolian mountain.
The next day (that would be Saturday 19th), Hiro took us out to see some of the local area not accessable by public transport. Our first stop was at a tree made famous in a Japanese TV ad. There were coach parties and people having their picture taken with the tree. I am not sure what the tree made of all the fuss, but it was a very lovely lone mature oak tree set against a view of rolling hills. It is quite disconcerting to come across an area of Japan that could have been either nicked from, or prototype for, an indefinable part of Northern Europe, Bedfordshire meets Bayern via Bayeux.
We had lunch at a soba bar in Biei (check out the link for its English) before driving on towards Furano. Suddenly there was a flash of rainbow flowers on our left, and after some excited gardening-related squeaking on my part, we pulled into a car park. Surrounding us were fields of pure colour, each a solid block of bedding plants, grown in tractor rows. There were bedding salvias, salivia patens, cleome, verbena bonariensis, coleus, and others all jostling for eye-room. The gardener part of me was vibrating along with the colours as I walked around. Hiro and Andy bought ice-cream and waited patiently!
We went onto Tomita Lavender Farm where there was a similar thing, although the lavender was over. It was lovely to wander amongst the holidaying Japanese enjoying the flowers and lavender ice-cream.
Finally we went to our first onsen, Japanese hot spring bath, up one of Hokkaidos beautiful mountains. I am glad I had read about the routine here, becasue they are gender segregated, and I was on my own! The view of pines on the misty mountainside as I soaked in the outside rotemburo, was serene and sublime.
After a wonderful day, Hiro very patiently guided us around the local supermarket, answering what must have been idiot-level questions and translating for the awkward vegetarian in the party. It is much the hardest place to be veggie, as everything contains fish. I ate some noodles in soup at lunch (although not the soup itself, as dashi, the standard Japanese stock is made with tuna), but my body decided in no uncertain terms that it wasn't happy with this addition to my diet, even in small quantities.
After a delicious meal, Hiro went to work to finish of some things before disappearing to Tokyo the next day for 10 days training, leaving us to flat sit. It still amazes me how trusting and generous our HC hosts are!