Lmst

@Graham_LRR also (a copy of) the original design doc for the 64 Olympic logo, at the excellent NHK Broadcasting Museum.

We do occasionally feel the need to take a break from Japanese food while on vacation. Briefly. A+ lox toast w/ chai latte courtesy of Woodberry Coffee Roasters. Evidently it's often packed but the rain was on our side today.

#food #travel #japan

A photo of a meal. Two thick slices of toast are covered with cream cheese, lox, and garnishes.

@Graham_LRR an example of the excellent branding from the '64 Olympics at the Ueno Shitamatchi Museum.

Even now it still looks better in person than most modern Olympic branding.

A photo of a collection of memorabilia from the Tokyo 1964 Olympics in a museum exhibit, including a program, shirt, and other items

@WoF it really is the same building, minus the ghosts and plus a lot of folks. Fortunately no line when we arrived and there was space in the tea room

After 1.5 vacations in Japan I finally did a weeb thing. This lovely Taisho era tea house in Hirosaki was featured prominently in the manga and anime Flying Witch.

The apple pastries were delicious!

#travel #japan #food #anime

A photo of an antique house turned into a cafe. The architecture shows both Japanese and European influences. It is a beautiful day.

A photo of a delicious looking apple pastry.

Next stop on our trip: Aomori City! We enjoyed the Seikan ferry museum in Hakodate so we decided to try the similar Hakkōda-maru (八甲田丸) museum here.

Pleasantly surprised by how different they were, both felt worth the visit! @hwesta got behind the wheel.

#travel #Japan #ships

A photo of a caucasian woman in a lavender raincoat and broad hat on the helm of an antique ship.

Goodbye Sapporo! Hello HELL. Well. Jigokydani (地獄谷) literally means Hell Valley and you can see why! The area is filled with sulphurous springs, it's quite a sight to behold! We also saw and heard some good birds up in the mountains as well.

#travel #japan

A photo of a large area of sulphurous volcanic hot springs

For our last dinner in Sapporo we decided to take another run at soup curry, this time at Soup Curry Yellow, which was closed last time.

I enjoyed last time but this one knocked it out of the park. My strongest recommendation. @hwesta got the chashu and it was better than many ramen places we've been to. I only wish we had tried them earlier so we would have had time to go again!

#travel #food #japan #Sapporo

A photo of a meal. You see two bowls, one filled with off-yellow soup, vegetables, and meat. The other has spiced rice and a lemon wedge.

Usually when we are on vacation we hit up restaurants that I've researched ahead of time, or just something convenient if we're hungry.

But! Yesterday we managed to strike up a conversation in Japanese with a staff member at a museum and were rewarded with a recommendation for Men-Eiji Hiragishi Base.

So glad we went! The tsukemen ramen was delicious, and the combination pork/fish soup base was a new and tasty experience for me.

#japan #travel #food

A photo of a noodle set. You see one large bowl of neatly folded noodles and a second smaller bowl of soup.

Our first museum in Sapporo and second Ainu museum of the trip was the Sapporo Ainu Culture Promotion Center, aka Sapporo Pirka Kotan. A different experience from the previous museum, with a focus on modern recreations rather than historical artifacts. This meant we could touch the clothing and see how the woven bark fabric felt, very cool!

#japan #travel

A photo of a museum exhibit. On the wall you see various pieces of Ainu clothing and wooden cooking tools.

Dinner at our second night in Sapporo was the local specialty Soup Curry, from the recommended Tiger Curry.

Kind of like a fusion of Thai and Japanese curries. A delicious new experience.

#food #travel #japan

A photo of a meal set. You see a big bowl of orange curry filled with meat and vegetables, plus a side of rice and a small beer.

Touchdown, Sapporo! Kicking things off with a hot bowl of miso ramen, cold beer, and vinegar chashu at the famous Sumire. We had heard horror stories of 2 hour lines but we just walked in. Delicious! The sour chashu was a great contrast to the super rich miso ramen.

#food #travel #japan

A photo of two bowls of ramen with a bottle of Asahi Super Dry beer.

Our fifth museum of the trip, yesterday, was the super interesting Museum of Northern Peoples in Hakodate.

We're already interested in the history of the indigenous peoples of Hokkaido but what really elevated this museum were the many plaques with more personal commentary on the exhibits and even the building itself from the museum director!

ありがとう、館長さん

#japan #travel

A photo of a museum exhibit. It is a two person kayak made from wood and hide. It sits behind glass with a large info plaque Infront of it.

The view from the top of Mt. Hakodate was stunning on this beautiful day. It's better known for its gorgeous sunsets and city night lights but we were completely satisfied with the low crowds and clear views just after lunch. 凄い景色！

You can see how the mountain sits at the end of a narrow spit, evidently formed as a sand bar 3000 years ago.

#travel #japan

A panoramic photograph taken from the top of a modestly tall mountain. You see the long narrow strip of land that composes Hakodate leading out from the island in the shape of a fan, flanked by ocean on both sides

@ninafelwitch yes! Very accessible too, the new shuttle line takes you right there from Ōmiya station.

Our fourth museum of the trip was the memorial ship Mashumaru (摩周丸). This ships serves as a museum for the history of the Aomori - Hakodate ferry line that was obsoleted by the Seikan tunnel. Super cool to be able to explore the bridge! 日本語だけど

#japan #travel #ships

A photo of a large multi-deck ocean ferry moored permanently in port. A bright blue sky is overhead.

James Patten boosted:

Spent our first day at the excellent Edo Tokyo Open Air Architectural Museum. 30+ historic buildings from the Tokyo area relocated to a lovely park for you to explore. Lots of friendly staff, some of whom spoke English. Hard to capture the experience in photos, since so much of the delight was walking though and feeling the spaces.

#Japan #travel

Inside of a mondernist Japanese living room built in 1940, during WW2. Two storey windows with a wood lattice open to a garden. Inside, wood floors, and a squareish couch in front of a wooden table.

Exterior view of a very fancy Japanese home from the 1930s or earlier. Well trimmed bushes and lush trees partly obscure the house, which has many gables and partly gables roofs made of wavy tiles

Inside of an old (around 1700s) farmhouse of a village administrator. It shows three different types of floor: in the foreground, stone floor for dirty shoes and messy work; then wood steps and walking area for high traffic zones; then tatami mats around an inset fire pit for sitting and relaxing. The fire pit has an iron kettle and a fish shaped pot hook hanging above it.

Exterior view of a 1920s Japanese house built with strong European influences. One story, with a simple gabled roof made of tile. The walls are pale yellow slats with white framed windows. A trellis covers a porch on the side

@brunoph highly recommend both the Ōmiya and Kyōto railroad museums.

Third museum of the trip: the huge Ōmiya Railroad Museum! A must visit for any train enthusiast. Pictured here is the rolling stock exhibit, just one of five! We barely saw a third of it before we had to head out to catch our shinkansen to Hakodate. We'll be back for sure, maybe even this trip!

#travel #japan #trains

A photo of a huge indoor space scattered with many different train cars and engines, shot down from a second floor balcony.

Second museum of the trip, the small but excellent Ōmiya Bonsai Art Museum. Lots of excellent information prepared me to appreciate their many beautiful bonsai. Also fully English bilingual signage!

This Japanese White Pine, named Chiyo-no-Matsu (千代の松) is over 500 years old and the largest at the museum, as tall as I am. 美しい。

#travel #japan

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