Asahi-dake and Tokachi range

For the last few days, the weather of Asahikawa is fine but very cold. So it looks very beautiful scenery of Asahi-dake and Tokachi range. Then I took photos. I uploaded a few photos to this blog which were taken by my digital camera, Panasonic's lumix G-1. I also used a film camera, Canon T-90 with new FD 20-30mm, for shots of mountains but I have not developed the film yet.

Anyway I have never seen these sceneries in Japan except central Hokkaido aria. It looks like Canadian mountains.

Kita-no-miyako Ashibetu / Hokkaido

Mr. Tom Royal reports the present situation of Kita-no-Miyako Ashibetu in English. His research is very precise and informative. So the information of  huge statue of Kannnon is enough that I should report the other side of Kita-no-miyako, the hotel.

I stayed this hotel two times. It was almost ten years ago, first time visiting Ashibetu. I knew that there was the huge kannon statue with a curious hotel. At that time, I didn't have reservation but I could check in of the hotel. There are two lodgings, one is imitation building of Sanjusangendo temple in Kyoto and the other is also imitation of the Gojyu-no-tou of Houryuji temple in Nara. I stayed a former accommodation without reservation. Inside the hotel, I found a display of suits of amour for Samurai and a classic car with large portraits of Western ladies. In contrast to curious entrance and corridor, a room is confortable Japanese style. Then I took a bath of a large Roman style and enjoyed a dinner show of historical drama with a typical tray service and beer.

Next, we revisited there four years ago with reservation. Because I requested to stay the tower (Gojyu-no-tou), I could do that even the gust was just only us. The top of the tower has various statues of chinese goddess, paintings, and so on but the room was really simple Japanese style. After a bath, we enjoyed dinner show like before except that this time there was the only one audience, us ( my wife and I),  for the performance of popular songs by sisters Umizawa.

Unfortunately we can not stay there any more because a religoius organization bought these lodgings last year. But the Kannon tour is avarable for all people.

Photos are here, 2002, 2011 (Nika-no-page, sorry Japanese only)

Takehachi

Last night we went to a restaurant in the downtown of Asahikawa, the name of Takehachi. They serve very delicious game meet of deer, venison, and so many kind of wines with a glass. The owner of the restaurant knows all of wine and advices the best much wine for foods. We also enjoyed a seafood, curpaccio of fox jacopever (Ma-soi in Japanese ) from Hakodate with dry white wines that were made in Hokkaido.  If you want to have a rich dinner of European style in Asahikawa, I strongly recommend this restaurant. I'm not sure that the owner can speak English, but maybe he can.

A makeup of OSCE

Yesterday I had a makeup of the test of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) of OSCE. At my first trial of CPR, I did not pay full attention to helper when the defibrillation was performed for a simulator. So this time I was so careful not to forget it, and the test was passed.

Shige-chan Land / Abashiri, Hokkaido

I went to there a few years ago. That is real artistic odds place! Wooden aliens ( the Nano-Nano tribe), peanuts creatures, gourd people etc. You can find exciting exhibition in this place. Shigenari Ohnishi (Shigechan) is now making his own secret base in the middle of Hokkaido. He was the art director in Tokyo, and moved to Hokkaido to expand his creative life. It occurred him to create the wooden alien when he found a throned coconut at the chinatown of Yokohama. Right now, there is large army of wooden aliens in Abashiri.

Shige-chan also use a driftwoods and roods for his work. I prefer a huge driftwood work, the drunken Mexican man because of his funny shape. A part of his works have price tags, so you can buy one if you have enough money because the price is so high. But these are art works and all is one of a kind, so the price is reasonable, I think. If you do not have much money, don't regret it because there is a souvenir shop in the land. I bought a bandana on which the little gourd people printed.

I like his characters and also his way of life. Please visit this secret land when you come to the eastern part of Hokkaido.

Place: 256 Aza-Aioi Tsubetsu-cho Abashiri-gun Hokkaido

Official Page (English!)

Skip Town 

Nika no Page (Japanese only)

A farm of Ezo Red Foxes / Rubeshibe Hokkaido

I want to introduce one place to go in Hokkaido. Last summer I went there. That is "Farm of Ezo red foxes" in near Kitami-city. There are so many wild red foxes in Hokkaido, but breeding farms are few. Over half of wild red foxes in Hokkaido have a parasitic worm echinococcous, so you don't touch them and don't drink a spring water in where they live. But this is a farm of foxes and the worm should be stamped out from the body of fox, I hoped. I was looking for the instruction panel or sign like this,  " Foxes in the farm are free from the worm, don't mind to touch them", but I couldn't. I was so disappointed and was so careful not to touch anything in the huge cage.

Foxes are cute and look like healthy. So I could enjoy to take pictures of them. But when you go there, be careful to touch them.

Place: Hanaoka-52-1, Rubeshibe-cho, Hokkaido

Farm HP (Japanese only)

Where is Rubeshibe?

What is Hokkaido fox?

Battery of RX-7

In this winter vacation I prepared the Computer Based Testing (CBT) that was perforrmed at 6th Jan. then I could not drive my car. Almost one month I left my RX-7 as it was. A few days ago when I switched on the ignition of the car, there was no response! The battery went almost flat. I just changed a new battery last year. So this dead battery is now recharging at Mazda garage near my home. I hope a revival of the battery. Anyway cold and snowy environment is not good for a battery.

31 Jan. 2015 OSCE

Last year on this day, I broke my leg by falling down on the ice road. That was terrible experience because it was the first time for me to go through an real operation. After operation I have forced to use crunches for a month. So in this winter season I really pay attention to walk on the snowy road.


Today there was the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) in Japan. This exam. is for all medical students in Japan to attend the clinical training at a hospital. I could not finish a medical interview and an auscultation of heart within my time limit. So I am afraid of the result of the exam.

Resume my blog

Today, I resume this blog as my diary. So I will try to write my everyday life. Of course I want to introduce you so many curious places of Japan like before, but now I am in a medical school as my second career. Then there is no enough time to visit these places, no enough money to go there. So I will write my everyday life and the report of curious places that I have ever been to. The report will be uploaded weekly or  monthly. If you have a request for a place to report, please send e-mail to me. Also give me e-mail when you want to know about the life of Japanese medical student in middle age! 

email: nikari3333@gmail.com

Maishima Incineration Plant Osaka City

" Is this a waste service facility?" I was very surprising at the outward appearance of the building when I reached to Maishima Island in Osaka city near Universal Studio Japan. I could not understand that it was just garbage incinerator. A chimney with tear shape roof like the Klemlin and so many abstract arts on the wall. 

You can get an inside tour of this facility with reservation. I have attended this real cool activity for 7 years ago. As same as exterior, the interior of the incinerators was very impressive. That was designed by Austrian designer Mr. Hundertwasser and built by Osaka city. So this means that it was built by citizen's tax and the expense was 80 billion yen for one facility. But the tour fee is free!

Because Mr. Hundertwasser thought this facility as the nature forest, there is no same format in the building. The every passage has the different curve and the size of all windows is not same each other. I think that this building is very symbolical meaning of Osaka trait because of its chaos. They like it and cultivate it. When you visit downtown of Osaka, especially in Minami area, you can feel it precisely. 

Anyway, when you visit Osaka, this is the "must to go" to place. I strongly recommend.

sakakibara Dai- Kannon Temple (Mie Pref.)

It's like a fantasy theme park for elder. You can see a tall Goddess of mercy in gold. There is an orchestra of little green frogs at the entrance of the temple. When you go inside of it, you could feel some strange atmosphere compered with an ordinary, old style temple, like in Kyoto. Yes, this temple is NOT at all. They don't have supporters, usually a supporter of its temple have a tombstone of his ancestors, so there is no real tombstone in the temple. 

    

Then you can enjoy your touring inside of the temple if you are not the Buddhist. But, at first you should pay the entrance fee, 800 yen (there is discount coupon of their web site). The temple calls it "dedication", but I think it may be "entrance fee" for attraction. After the entrance gate, you can see tiny statures of Daikoku and Ebisu who are member of Japanese Gods. For the statues were made by pure gold, you can touch them. Surprisingly, one touch makes improvement your fortune, especially for a luck of money! Never miss to touch them.

Next, cats orchestra will be waiting for you with a huge pair of clogs to welcome to throw coins into an offertory box. Of course this monetary offering improves your money luck too. Then you must go inside a pilgrim room for Sikoku-Singon sect Buddhists. A pious Buddhist should go on a pilgrim to visit 88 temples all around Shikoku island by his foot. But in this room there are 88 boxes which contain sand from each temple, so you can pilgrim all temples about ten minutes or so. 

OK, after your religious austerities, go out to a courtyard. Thirty-three meter of golden Kannnon is looking down at you from center of the garden. In this courtyard you can find so many funny statures around the Kannnon. Teng, Kappa, Hakutaku and singing kannon with her microphone of Karaoke set! I could not tell all attraction in the temple. So try to  search yourself.

If you want to have some souvenir of this place, I reccomend you to get " Goshuin" of this temple. This is like a hand made stamp written by Japanese brush. This is real cool. Originally we must dedicate our own hand-copying of sutras, then the temple gives us the Goshuin as proof of the prayer. But now it is a mere certificate of visiting. So you can purchase it for 300yen without sutras. Please try it.

 

sakakibara hot spa

http://www.sawasdee-japan.com/sightseeing-spot/chubu-region/mie.html#Sakakibara%20Spa

nika's page

Hotel Kawakyu (Wakayama Pref. Kinki)

I have stayed here only once at almost five years before. The shape of the building was very strange and cute.
 
 This hotel was constructed in luxury during the Japanese bubble economy term. So you can imagine the interior of the hotel from its outside.
 
 Now the room charge is not so cheap compared with an ordinary hotel, but you will be satisfied with their hospitality that is the mixture of Western and Modern Japanese style.

 
 I strongly recommend to stay here for every odd place lovers. Here is the reservation web site. Of course, you can use English there.

nika's page: 39-6 Hotel Kawakyu (Sorry Japanese only)

Reference (Sorry Japanese Only)
 

Hashima Island – Gunkan Jima-

This small island is located in the offing of Nagasaki Peninsula. This uninhabited island is very famous among Japanese ruin lovers because of its shape and well preserved condition. Now, access to the island is strictly restricted by the goverment. A few years ago, I went by motorcycle to the Peninsula to see the battle ship shape of the island from the seaside. During the trip to the nearest port for the island I found a little signboard on the roadside. “To Gunkan-jima by ferryboat” Wow, I thought that I would be able to go to the island! So, I followed the sign which indicated that I should turn right. Soon I reached a small harbor and an old fisherman said to me “The next ferry from here to Hashima wharf is at 5a.m.”



The next morning I was at the harbor at 4:30a.m. Almost 20 people were there. Most of them were carrying their fishing rods and cool boxes with fishing gear. As for me, I just had a small bag with a camera and wore a rider’s jacket and leather pants. There were two young girls who could not fish so well. Oh yes, they were going to try to explore the inside of the island, like me. We all embarked the battleship. Twenty minutes later we reached the wharf and jumped off the boat. Most people went their different ways along the wharf to go fishing. But we, the girls and I, climbed the ladder onto the wharf.



At the top of ladder, there were huge buildings in front of me which I’d never seen before. Then I started exploring the island's ruins. Firstly, I walked around the small island to find out where the dangerous places were. The condition of most buildings was not so bad. I could not believe that they were built around 60 to 80 years ago!



I decided to try and climb up one of them. I chose an old tall apartment block. The stairs were firm but there were many bits of glass and stones. Finally I reached the top floor safely. The scenery from there was so good.



After my conquest to the top of the apartment, I checked the rooms for sign of residence. On entering one of the rooms, there were old manga magazines and empty coke bottles. OK, I understood all residents had been gone for almost forty years before because of the governmental energy change from coal to oil. It was very quiet there.



Next, I went to the west part of the island where I found a very impressive scene. The East China Sea and the bow of a battleship! I am not an enthusiast of ruins but I felt this view was very beautiful. I joined with the girls and we walked around the island.



About 20 minutes before 8a.m. we had to be back at the landing place to get on the boat. At last we researched the site of a school. The furniture in the classroom was destroyed by someone who did not have the conscience of a ruin lover.



Finally we got back to the harbor at 8:30. It was an amazing experience for me. Nowadays, you can go to this island safely in an official manner. Again, landing without permission is prohibited now.

The world's tallest bronze statue of Buddha in Ushiku City

First, I would like to report on the world's tallest bronze statue of Buddha which is in Ushiku city, Ibaraki Prefecture. The height of this Buddha is 120 meters (394 feet). He is in the temple park, named Ushiku Arcadia, which was built by an old sect of Japanese Buddhism. I have been there several times, but the most recommended time to go there is for the New Year festival that is held from 11p.m. on 31 Dec. to around 2a.m. on 1st Jan. annually. In the New Year of 2007, I attended this fantastic and grand entertainment event. In front of the great Buddha there were so many people for the celebration of New Year with a very solemn mood. Half an hour before New Year, fireworks for charity began. Then just before midnight, a sutra recitation came from loudspeakers. There is a temple bell toll on New Year's Eve and laser lights beamed from the Buddha’s chest! It was very funny even for me, being Japanese. Fireworks were set off again and were even more splendid. I left the religious event because of the low temperature.











You can also enjoy this kind of event in the summer but I think the winter is better to the religious feeling. If you have a chance to visit Ushiku City on New Year’s Eve, please try to have spectacular feelings!