Otaru, Japan

After an enjoyable stay and visit to Noboribetsu, we drove north to the port city of Otaru.  Along the way stopped at various places of interest.

Sobetsu Fruit Village

We stopped at this fruit farm (one of many) to pick cherries and strawberries for the road.  Visitors pay an admission fee to enter the farm and then they are allowed to eat as much fruit as they like. while at the farm  Any fruit that is taken away is chargeable.  We spent about an hour here eating and picking cherries and strawberries which were the only fruits in season.  We had a fun time and best of all, these were some of the sweetest cherries and strawberries that we have ever eaten!

Lake Toya

Lake Toya is a volcanic caldera lake located in the southwestern part of Hokkaido and it is part of the Shikotsu-Toya National Park.  Mt. Usu, the active volcano that stands near the lake is one of the most active volcanos.  Due to the grey weather and overcast skies, we could not see the white smoke rising from the volcano.  

Otaru Viewpoint

A beautiful view of Otaru. The port city of Otaru is famous as the location site for the film "Love Letter".

Otaru Canal

The small, but picturesque canal is one of the landmarks of Otaru.

Kita No Ice Cream Shop

This ice cream shop is located in a small historical building near the canal.  It sells some of the strangest flavours that include squid, sea urchin, beer and bean curd.  We weren't keen to try any of these unusual flavours, so we played it safe!

Sakaimachi Street

We did some window shopping on this well preserved merchant street.  This street has lots of restaurants and shops, selling an array of goods including Otaru's famous glassware.

 Steam Clock

At the one end of Sakaimachi Street in front of the Music Box Museum, stands a steam clock just like the one in Gastown, Vancouver.  We learned that this steam clock in Otaru was a gift from the City of Vancouver.  It was really nice to find a "piece" of Canada here in Japan.

Otaru Music Box Museum

This museum was built in 1912 and it is home to a huge collection of music boxes.  Otaru is known for its music boxes and this is the perfect place to purchase one.