Hokkaido was…interesting.
It was interestingly american.
Colonization over indigenous natives. Obssession with corn. Organized city planning.
Come to think of it, maybe it’s because Hokkaido and America share the same climate? They are probably similar based on their latitudes. I did searched that Japan did fail to turn Hokkaido into a farming region and turned to the US for help.
Driving there was mostly as pleasant as most other cities, but there is some serious illegal parking culture going on there; the amount of 3 lane roads turning into 2 is the most I have ever seen in a city. Maybe that’s why the Times rental service staff highlighted illegal parking heavily…?
Oh yes, roads are surprisingly bad. On top of the chain of hazard lights, there were lots of roadworks.
I love corn though, so it was a little paradise for me!
I also had miso ramen. It was interesting. The place we went was Aji No Sanpei, where it was supposedly the first store to have it. It didn’t seem too popular compared to Sumire which had an insaaaanr queue. Either ways, it’s good ramen. I heard that there’s a famous miso ramen shop near Waseda in Tokyo trained under the Sumire chef. Perhaps I’ll try that!