峇峇屋

是那闪动的珠帘吗?

让烟从花灯中溜进来

是那轻轻散乱的雨滴吗？

让模样在薄影中成形

我感觉心湖飞溅

像一首诗的莅临

我看见松香袅袅

婀娜于千重镜之间

如何能再靠近一些？

倒不如不曾碰面？

如何能割舍那么一点？

宁可索然无味闲荡人间？

且听那大屋沉寂

游走着百年狂草

外野聒噪

孕育着一团虚无

我迫不及待一场轮回

好让魍魉在晨露中娇媚

Never too old for fantasies

It is easier to roam around Japan if you read Chinese. There's always one or two Chinese characters scattered in the bunch of strokes and curves of the Japanese words, so one can more or less guess the meaning. By our statistics, two Chinese words appeared very often... and they got us scratching our heads... 

有料无料，究竟么料？

无料 in Cantonese means nothing, empty, useless, worthless etc but this term is most welcome in Japan! It means "free", we love everything useless and worthless in Japan.   

Otaru

The edge: The hilly land of Otaru ends in the ocean. It looks placid here but there's actually a retaining wall far off there near the horizon; strong waves could be seen whipping up white splashes into the sky.

I like Otaru for its simplicity. It is a small town and port about 45 minutes by train from Sapporo, an ideal location for a half-day trip due to its proximity. JR the train that offers a half-day pass was a good choice to get there. Honestly, there's no breathtaking scenery and massive heritage here but this little place makes one feel at ease, probably because of the ocean especially when it is dotted by boats that somehow command admiration and fascination.

No-frill: A walk down the main road from the railway station, this simple place is famous for soft ice-cream, music boxes and glass ornaments, set in an old port filled with well-preserved structures. Sweet, soothing and crystalline, they are just the right ingredients for fantasies.

Walk of serenity: Two shots on the different side of the canal that has a medieval touch to it. These old storehouses by the river have all been converted to nice bars and restaurants. The night scene must be happening but we did not stay here till sundown. Oh the Otaru beer is kind of famous, too.

We rule: 11.1c, the champion's temperature!

A dreamy walk: This is Otaru's shopping street of sort, souvenir shops line the car-free street and the best part of it is that cheese cake samples are generously given away to passers-by. It is a long, long road but the walk is inevitable, as the famous music box factory stands at the end of it. With the milky aroma lingering in my mouth, the sun slowly setting and my legs felt like jelly, this walk in search of music boxes was somewhat dreamy.

Strange tools: I have no idea what these swings doing here. My guess is they are to hold up the snow during winter so there won't be a mini avalanche?

Magical boxes: Finally, the music box factory, a three-storey wooden building that looks like something from Studio Ghibli anime. Even that guy in the photo looked a bit like Harry Porter. Anyway, there are hundreds of music boxes to choose from, the prices increase as you go up the floors. The top floor features really exclusive stuff, and with astronomical prices, too.  

Mount Moiwa

Whenever a city is visited it is a norm to go to somewhere high enough for a bird's eye view of it. For Sapporo, Mount Moiwa that is 531m above sea level, equipped with cable car and free shuttle bus, is that kind of a place. It is simply an observatory deck, of course there's interesting flora and fauna in the jungle and it is a great ski destination during winter but those are not our stuff, still, we spent a good half a day loitering around there.   

Harmoniously side-by-side: The dead and the living sharing a peaceful city.

Legoland: Little structures crawling around little hills.

Sun down, lights up: Sapporo, the big city that can somehow exude small town charm.

Preserved in time capsule: The old school tram and its station. 

Tokyo

After five calm days in Sapporo, we were left with slightly more than 48 hours in Tokyo. It was a blessing that the two days fell on the weekend, Tokyo loosened up a little in contrast to the last sight I caught of it. What I had in memory from my last visit a few years back was dominated by super fast trains with piercing precision as well as hordes of working executives in black suits walking brisk and straight. Like robots. This time around I get to enjoy the weekend easiness, and what's the best activity in a big city like this? Shopping, of course.    

The first 24 hours in Tokyo we took a day pass and tried to cover some important areas. We set off from Ueno - spent the morning at the Ueno park and local market - then Ginza the shopping pinnacle, Akihabara the gadget haven and ended at the Skytree Tower the latest icon. This is Ginza, I wonder if the town planners had oriented the roads and structures this way to capture the sunlight so gracefully.   

So free?: Did I guess it right? These people are queuing there to wait for the video arcade to open?  

Nestled: I should say something about the lodging in Tokyo. Of course rooms in Tokyo are not for claustrophobic, but I just love them to be so compact. We checked into Weekly Mansion Ueno. I slept next to a microwave and ate late dinner on the bed, but you can find everything you need in this little room, and I could still put my luggage on the floor and enjoy a long hot bath. I had sweet dreams there. 

67-year-old flame:  The Ueno Park is where families and couples throng for cherry blossoms. A walk around the park filled with flowers and buskers during the wrong seasons was still pleasant. Do look out for this monument promoting peace. The flame inside the dove was from the fire left behind by the atomic explosions in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Still burning after all these decades.

 Seen at a small shop selling everything that promotes sleep. I bought some nice stuffs here. Just a note, Phiten products are generally 40% cheaper than in Malaysia. 

 Raining all day.... Though it is more troublesome but the rain has beautified the journey. I think the world always has its size doubled whenever it rains thanks to the dewy reflections. 

Some nice building designs spotted in Tokyo.

Food moments!

Hokkaido is famous for its fresh produce. Apparently, because of its cold and clean water, the seafood are extraordinarily fleshy and the fruits are abnormally sweet. I can vouch for that! The corn, potato, pumpkin, onion, honey melon are super sweet, juicy and crispy. The pumpkin, I hate pumpkin actually, but it is so creamy and velvety that I did not mind carrying it through almost 10 hours of flight and the long journey back to Malaysia for my granny to try. Anyway, here's a quick glance at the lovely delicacies we had in Sapporo and Tokyo. 

Pork Ramen at Rera Outlet Park, I rate it No: 1, whipped up by 櫻島拉麵, a ramen chain quite commonly found in Sapporo. The pork broth is clear yet flavorful, the noodle is springy but infused with the sweetness of the soup. The egg has the perfect half-melted yolk. Each bowl was about 900Yen (RM36) , I drank till the last drop of it.     

The famous Sapporo beer was like elixir of happiness in the cold weather. Cold, crisp and clean in taste, love it!

Sapporo's specialty "Genghis Khan" - BBQ lamb served with vegetables, soy sauce dips but no oil. It emits heady aroma. There were a few Genghis Khan outlets near our Susukino hostel, I was happily intoxicated most of the time!

Oh this is some sort of famous Hokkaido dessert, cream and raisin sandwiched in melt-in-the-mouth butter cookies.

The Hokkaido crabs that have been enjoying epicurean attention from around the world! The three kings there are Hairy Crab, King Crab and Snow Crab. The picture shown below is King Crab, we had earlier mistaken them for Snow Crab which can actually grow up to thrice their size!

The aunty at the Susukino seafood market carefully cutting the King Crab and Hairy Crab into small pieces for our convenience. We simply simmered the crab in water the steamboat style at our hostel to savor the original flavor, the meat was sooooo sweet.

The abundance of produce sold at the Susukino fish market. We bought one Hairy Crab and one King Crab at 5,500yen (RM220), my aunt is the haggle queen!

We found out the next day that we had mistaken the King Crab (far left, misleadingly called 鳕蟹 in Chinese) for Snow Crab (my aunts are holding their legs). We "wowed" so loud when the handsome seafood seller showed us the frozen Snow Crab legs, blush blush, they were so much bigger! The taste? Hairy Crab is yummy but the texture is relatively rough, King Crab is yummier as it is more succulent, Snow Crab is the yummiest with its delicate, marsh mellow-like meat!  

After a walk in the Susukino seafood market, enjoy fresh sushi at the Osanai Restaurant located near the market. 

Our steamboat dinner at the humble Weekly Sapporo Hostel, complete with sea urchin, salmon roe and scallop. (Can someone tell me why this photo refuses to lie horizontally??)

King Crab vs Snow Crab. 

Japanese desserts bought from the supermarket. Love the combination of mint leave, mochi and red bean. 

The Hokkaido experience is incomplete without the dairy products such as caramel, chocolate and soft ice cream especially. Here there's the three of us in Otaru. 

I fell in love with this at first bite and I will probably fall in love with the person who brings this to me again. Seriously, I do not know what this is called but it cannot be bought back for the filling is fresh from the fridge. It should be raspberry yogurt cheese, sandwiched in flaky, delicate butter biscuits slathered with cream cheese. Love it to the max!  

Sapporo is all about ramen and I will never get tired of it. Here is the Ramen Alley in Susukino. We chose a simple outlet, most of them were not open in that early morning anyway. We ordered Spicy Ramen and Butter Corn Ramen, the taste was good but I still preferred the Pork Ramen at Rera.

Cold Soba in Sesame Sauce spiced up with a dash of wasabi in Ueno, Tokyo. Mushroom Soba Soup to bask in autumn. Japanese Curry to feel closer to home.

I must recommend this, the best Udon I've ever had. It is simply udon served cold with a bit of minced chicken in Soya Gravy, but the flavor is unique and the udon's texture is soft and springy just like mochi, fully infused with sweetness of the gravy. It was a surprise find in the Ginza area.

Finally, a simple cup of hot coco at Akihabara the mecca of gadgets, watching the mad rush outside at my own pace.