Japan with Cleo #6/10 - Hakodate: Seafood, Melons, Sakura, a Fort

(This post is Part 6 of 10 on Japan with Cleo, 28 April - 14 May 2017.)

Cleo at Goryokaku, Hakodate (on IG)

After the sakura-viewing trip to Hirosaki the day before (Part 5), we set off in high spirits to Hakodate. The sakura zensen forecast indicated that the sakura (the Somei Yoshino) would be in peak in bloom.

The plan was to spend the day in Goryokaku Park, one of Hakodate's best sakura blossom spots. We were there last year (posted here) and it was gorgeous at peak bloom, albeit cloudy.

Taking the Hokkaido Shinkansen, Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto Station (on IG)

Early morning (well, not too early), we took the Hokkaido shinkansen to Hakodate. As mentioned before elsewhere, the Hokkaido shinkansen line opened in March 2016. Although, considering the commute time, I have to agree that it's a confusing business model since it actually makes more sense to take a domestic flight between Tokyo and Hakodate. In fact, this seems to be the case because 1 year on, and the line continues to suffer from low occupancy rates.

At the JR Hakodate Station (on IG)

Hakodate (函館) is Hokkaido's 3rd largest and southernmost city. Historically, Hakodate is one of Japan's first cities whose port was opened to foreign trade as a consequence of the 1854 Kanagawa Treaty. (Yes, Commodore Perry and his Black Ships. The 'negotiation' of a treaty with foreign war ships sitting in your port.... American foreign policy attitude hasn't changed in centuries, only the form of the big stick has changed.) That said, like other port cities in Japan that share this history (e.g. Yokohama), Hakodate also has a former foreign settlement district (the Motomachi district), which unfortunately we did not visit.

On arriving at Hakodate, we headed for Hakodate Asaichi (Hakodate Morning Market) for breakfast, before going to Goryokaku for the sakura. We stayed for a few hours and made our way back to Hakodate Station, to catch a late afternoon train back to Tokyo.

White miso ramen at Ajisai, Hakodate Station

As we did not have lunch while at Goryokaku, we decided to grab a bite at Hakodate Station before catching our Tokyo-bound train. Not much at Hakodate Station, but we all had a bowl of decent ramen at Ajisai (あじさい), a popular ramen mini-chain with the main store around Goryokaku.

HAKODATE ASAICHI

First stop: Hakodate Asaichi (函館朝市), the morning market that is walking distance from the JR Hakodate Station. Last year, we had a seafood donburi for lunch at the Donburi Yokocho, the market's restaurant arcade, but did not explore much of the market area.

Hakodate Asaichi Nakadori (on IG)

This trip, we arrived early, so we could have a look around, though we didn't really explore the market as thoroughly as we did Tsukiji Market (Part 4).... I had hoped to visit Uni Murakami, which processes its own uni and serves up a whole array of uni dishes. But as our day trip fell on a Wednesday (3 May), the one day on which the shop is closed. Sigh.

The market covers 4 city blocks and has hundreds of shops selling seafood, fruits and vegetables, processed food products, and meals. I read somewhere that the Hakodate Morning Market caters more to tourists, while the locals tend to visit the Hakodate Jiyu Ichiba (函館自由市場), located near Shinkawacho Station.

Fresh seafood and packaged products at Hakodate Asaichi (on IG)

Hokkaido is generally known for its fresh and delicious seafood, thanks to its plankton-rich, cold waters. We've had some really fresh and quality seafood when we visited Asahikawa, Otaru and Shiretoko. Hakodate is likewise. Other than crabs and murasaki uni, the area is also known for hokke (ホッケ), the Okhotsk atka mackerel / Arabasque greenling, a popular souvenir from this region.

And then there is squid. So, the day before, we went to Apple Capital (Part 5, Aomori), and now we were in Squid City. Apparently, the Hakodate area accounts for half of the squid caught in Hokkaido, and is best known for 2 kinds of squid, the surume-ika (common squid) and the yari-ika (spear squid). The latter is a winter and spring seasonal delicacy, which we saw at Aomori Gyosai Centre (posted here) and also ate at Sushi Nakamura (posted here) during this trip.

So, I originally intended to try odori ika (literally, "dancing squid"), one of Hakodate's famous squid dishes, and one that evokes strong opinions - see it on this YouTube video. Basically, a fresh squid is prepared and served sashimi style. The reason for its name is because when shoyu is poured onto the tentacles, they move.

Our breakfast place at Hakodate Asaichi (on IG)

We stopped by one of the eateries for our breakfast. Inside, like the other shops and eateries, there were many tanks full of live seafood (mostly king crab, hairy crab, squid, uni...).

Grilled king crab (tarabagani), Hakodate Asaichi (on IG)

We had a large king crab, boiled and grilled. It was darn fresh, considering that it was live in the tank a few moments ago. Delicious and super fragrant...the sweet and juicy flesh, buttery and toasty from the grill.

Breakfast at Hakodate Asaichi (on IG)

On top of the delicious king crab, we each also got a seafood donburi. Mine was a rice bowl topped with murasaki uni and ikura. (Nope, no odori ika in the end...) DT got the same rice bowl as I did, and Hubby got a rice bowl with just ikura. I think we're all going for broke for cholesterol here.

After the very satisfying breakfast, we went back out to the market area, to return to this fruit stall along Nakadori where we had noticed the slices of rock melon for sale. 

Fresh, juicy, sweet rock melon (Yubari King?) (on IG)

The sign said「赤肉メロン」which means "red flesh melon", but the colours and net patterns on the rind are like the Yubari King. So I'm not 100% sure if it is the Yubari King or one of the other local melon cultivars. A single slice was going for ¥300 (USD2.67 / SGD3.72 as at 3 May 2017), so price-wise, it was not cheap by normal standards.

We bought a slice for a taste. OMG!!! Very refreshing, super juicy and super fruity sweet!!! It was so good that we shelled out another ¥300 for a 2nd slice. And we licked up every drop. I have to say, it's not worth sharing; best to get one half all to yourself!!!

So, as discussed in the Tsukiji Market post (see Part 4), Japanese fruits are very expensive. But the taste is assured, with every single bite.

GORYOKAKU PARK

After breakfast at Hakodate Asaichi, we took the train to Goryokaku Park. Our visit to Goryokaku (五稜郭) to see the sakura blossoms was another check off the BFF bucket list.

Cleo at Goryokaku, Hakodate

As mentioned above, Goryokaku Park is one of Hakodate's best sakura blossom spots, with around 1,600 sakura trees. It's clearly very popular, crowded with people admiring the blossoms, and others having hanami parties. But it didn't feel crowded at all, and there was a fun and festive atmosphere.

Goryokaku, Hakodate (on IG)

Goryokaku Tower, Hakodate

The park is a former fort, designed in a star-shaped Western style.

As Hakodate was one of the first ports to open to foreign trade as a result of the 1854 Kanagawa Treaty (mentioned above), the city has a mix of Western and Japanese architectural styles.

Goryokaku (the fort) is one of the best examples of Western architecture in Hakodate.

Other than Goryokaku, some of the best examples of Hakodate's Western architectural style and trading port history are in the Motomachi district, and the red brick warehouses at Hakodate's waterfront. (Very much like Yokohama.) Didn't explore the Motomachi district or the waterfront area this trip, but they would be areas I would like to explore if we ever come up here again.

As mentioned in my post on last year's visit with Yui, Goryokaku was built in 1855 1857 (completed in 1864) to defend Hakodate against Western imperialist threats and was the main fort of the short-lived Republic of Ezo in 1868. (The republic lasted only 6 months.)

Sakura trees lining the moat at Goryokaku Fort, Hakodate

The fort was created by the commissioner of Hakodate as the site for the new governing office of the Republic of Ezo. It was named Goryokaku (五稜郭) after its 5-pointed star shape (五 go = 5; 稜 ryou = angle, corner; 郭 kaku = fortification). The fort was designed by Takeda Ayasaburo, a Japanese scholar of Dutch studies.

Fluttering, pale pink sakura blossoms, Goryokaku, Hakodate

Goryokaku was made into a public park in the 1910s, and was designated as a national special heritage site in March 1962. Specifically, Goryokaku was the site of the Battle of Hakodate. Led by Enomoto Takeaki (榎本 武揚, 1836-1908), the remaining samurai of the fallen Tokugawa shogunate left Edo with 8 warships. They moved northwards, and were joined in Sendai with troops led by Otori Keisuke (大鳥 圭介, 1833–1911), Shinsengumi led by Hijikata Toshizo (土方 歳三, 1835-1869), and others.

They arrived at Hakodate and occupied Goryokaku in October 1868. They were later defeated by the Japanese Imperial Army, and Goryokaku was taken by the army. Enomoto and Otori survived, but Hijikata was killed. Hijikata, by the way, is a much popularised & romanticised figure in Bakumatsu period anime/manga - just think of the Hakuoki (薄桜鬼) series...（*/∇＼*）ｷｬ The Bakumatsu era is also a popular setting in popular culture like anime, e.g. among many, Bakumatsu Kikansetsu Irohanihoheto, Gintama... and of course, there's Kenshin, who was the fearsome assassin for the Ishin Shishi, though the anime itself is Kenshin's post-Bakumatsu life in the Meiji era.

Anyway, the Battle of Hakodate marked the end of Japan's feudal system, Japan's civil war, and resistance towards the Meiji Restoration.

Goryokaku, Hakodate

Hardly any of those violent past shows these days, and the scenery is one of peace.

This trip, the weather was a fine day - clear, sunny, blue and cloudless. And it stayed that way the entire day. Quite unlike our visit last year, which had started out sunny but turned cold and grey when the clouds and cold rolled in.

Somei Yoshino in full bloom, Goryokaku (more on IG)

Somei Yoshino in full bloom, Goryokaku (more on IG)

This year's blooms were as gorgeous as last year's. Really pretty against the fine blue sky.

A mass of sakura blossoms in Goryokaku

Cleo at Goryokaku Park, Hakodate

So, earlier this year, I visited the Blossom Bliss sakura display at the Gardens by the Bay (posted here). Well, sakura in a glass conservatory is lovely, but sakura is truly most beautiful on a fine sunny day in a large park.

Cleo at Goryokaku Park, Hakodate

We got to a nice, flat grassy patch that's surrounded by with sakura trees, which I recognised it from last year's visit. We decided to just sit down on the grass, soak up a bit of sun, and stare at the sea of pale pink blossoms surrounding us.

It was also a pretty spot, so I took Cleo out to take some photographs.

While I was doing that, a middle aged Japanese man came over and observed me curiously. I'd noticed him a little earlier, going around photographing various things and people with his pro-series DSLR and fish-eye lens.

Anyway, he came over and asked me, in Japanese, what I was doing. Okay, so it was an amusing but also slightly frustrating situation. I knew a little Japanese, enough to get the gist of his questions, but not enough to properly converse with him. And he knew a little English, enough to get the gist of what I was saying, but not enough to properly converse also. Quite amusing. But in the end, I think he got the gist.

He asked to see the photos I had taken and he got quite interested when he saw them. He then asked if he could also take a photo of her. (◍˃̶ᗜ˂̶◍)ﾉ”

This is the 2nd time this trip that Cleo has sparked conversation by adults, in a positive way. I see it as progress!

Yotsuba enjoying the sunshine and sakura, Goryokaku, Hakodate.

Yotsuba enjoying the sunshine and sakura, Goryokaku, Hakodate.

Other than Cleo, I also brought along a little figure of Yotsuba (the Revoltech Kaiyodo one). Admittedly, she's a lot easier to carry around and photograph.

After a while of basking in the sakura and sun, we got up, brushed off the grass, and slowly made our way. Along the way, we passed the former Hakodate Magistrate's Office, the Bugyosho (奉行所), where officers of the shogun administered Hokkaido. The current building only dates back to around 2010, when it was carefully reconstructed and opened to the public. (Excavation and research of the site began in 1985.)

The former Hakodate Magistrate's Office (Bugyosho), Goryokaku

The original building was built and completed in 1864. Around the time that Hakodate was opened to foreign trade, the first Magistrate's Office had been located at the foot of Mt Hakodate, but a decision was made to move the office inland. So the original structure was built inside Goryokaku.

The former Hakodate Magistrate's Office (Bugyosho), Goryokaku

In 1868, following the Meiji Restoration, the new Meiji government took over the Goryokaku and the Office. Then there was the Boshin War (1868-1869), the declaration by Enomoto Takeaki et. al. of the Republic of Ezo, and the Battle of Hakodate. When Enomoto et. al. surrendered in 1869, following their defeat, the Meiji government demolished the Office and other ancillary buildings in 1871.

Blossoms near the former Hakodate Magistrate's Office (Bugyosho), Goryokaku

There was a lovely tree next to the former Hakodate Magistrate's Office that was starting to bloom with pompom-like pink blossoms. Not sakura, for sure. The petals are round and the blossoms have an umbrella shape. So, I think plum blossoms, perhaps?

Daffodils at Goryokaku Park, Hakodate

A lot of daffodils in blooms near one of the exits at Goryokaku. Same spot from last year's visit, just from a different angle.

Double-petaled daffodils at Goryokaku, Hakodate

Whenever I see daffodils, I somehow always think about William Wordsworth's "I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud". When I see those sunny yellow blooms shining under the sun, "my heart with pleasure fills, [a]nd dances with the daffodils". 

Japanese quince blossoms (boke), Goryokaku Park

Also at the same spot as last year were the Japanese quince (ぼけ, boke) which were also in bloom. Very beautiful...although in the bright afternoon sun, their colours didn't appear to be as deep as last year's.

Strolling, jogging, cycling, and just sitting on the grass, under the sakura blossoms.

I don't know how the Japanese seem to be able to treat sakura as both an everyday normal event, and a special treat at the same time. Watching the locals in Goryokaku Park, the park is basically just like any other park where the residents stroll, jog, cycle or walk their pets (mostly dogs). Yet, at the same time, during sakura season, there is a sense of seasonality in whatever everyday activity they do. Maybe it's the way they stop to admire a specific bloom or branch as they go by, or gaze at the blossoms as they sit on the grass.

Hanami and jingisukan at Goryokaku Park, Hakodate.

All around the park were hanami parties - groups of various ages sat under the canopy of fluttering blossoms, enjoying jingisukan and cold beer. Jingisukan (ジンギスカン) is a popular mutton barbecue dish in Hokkaido where mutton and vegetables are grilled over a domed iron hotplate. The name of jingisukan comes from Genghis Khan, founder of the Mongol Empire, because apparently mutton conjured images of Mongolia to the Japanese. Whether it was thus named because the Japanese thought Mongolian soldiers grilled mutton on their dome-shaped helmets is controversial. Personally, I just think the dome-shaped grill is ingenious - the fat and juices of the grilling meat runs down to coat the vegetables!

Hanami and jingisukan at Goryokaku Park, Hakodate.

Maybe hanami parties are the reason sakura season is a special, seasonal treat? Don't know about them, but it sure looks like a treat to me! Hubby and I both love jingisukan, which we first had back in Sapporo in 2010. So, it was both wonderful and torturous to walk around the park, because the aroma of jingisukan permeated the entire park. And nothing makes us drool more than the fragrance of meat and vegetables on the grill. A feast for the eyes, the nose and the stomach.

And though DT griped a bit about the mutton smell (he doesn't like mutton), he did say it would be a perfect way to spend a day under the sakura. "Lay out a mat, break out the grill and the drinks, lots of good food with good friends. The perfect way to spend an afternoon under the blossoms!" In his exact words. Funny, because I said that to Hubby here last year too! Guess that's why we're such good buddies.

"With the ending of one season, another new one begins." (Boys Be...)

This sakura viewing part of our trip may signal the closing of a chapter in our lives, so that we may move forward - whether for us individually, or together as a group. Yet at the same time, it also felt like the beginning of something.

So, at the start of our hanami part of the trip (in Hirosaki, Part 5), I quoted from Boys Be.... Now, it feels rather apt to again quote Boys Be... once more. So let's go with:

"Nothing stays the same. Every story has its ending. It's hard to accept sometimes, but that's the reality. One season ends and another begins."

꒰*⑅˃̶͈ ৺˂̶͈⑅꒱੭ु⁾⁾·°

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Japan with Cleo (28 April - 14 May 2017)
- I. Tokyo - Asakusa • Seiko Museum • Ginza • Akihabara & Nakano • Tsukiji Market • Enoshima • Shinkawa, Tsukuda & Tsukishima • Sushi Nakamura • La Paix • Nishiazabu Taku • Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu • 3-gatsu no Lion 
- II. Aomori & Hirosaki - Auga Market • Aomori Gyosai Centre • Hirosaki Castle Park • Hirosaki Sakura Matsuri 2017 • Flying Witch
- III. Hakodate - Hakodate Asaichi • Goryokaku Park
- IV. Fuji Five Lakes - Lake Motosu • Subaru 5th Station & Shibazakura • Chureito & Kawaguchiko
- V. Osaka - Kuromon Market • Dotonbori • Harukas 300 • Food Basement Galore!
- VI. Kobe - nackymade • Steak Land Kobe

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