Days 8 & 9 on the Northern Sea Circuit - Going with the floes

 

Breaking the ice

In our last episode you learned that I succeeded in checking off another item on my personal Japan-related bucket list, namely by visiting the mysterious Mashū-ko 摩周湖 and getting to see it on a relatively clear day. That was the highlight of our Hokkaidō 北海道 trip for me, but in this installment you can find out what made my wife happy about our visit, so please read on!

Our breakfast that morning at the Forest of Akan Tsuruga Resort HANAYUUKA in Akanko Onsen 阿寒湖温泉 included (for me, anyway) a hearty bowl of rice topped with nattō 納豆 and a raw egg. The idea of eating raw eggs is understandably an unsettling one, but this video explains why consuming them in Japan is relatively safe. I've never had any issues, and my stomach is far from being ironclad: 

After breakfast we drove north from Akanko Onsen on National Route 240 for about 90 minutes to the city of Abashiri 網走, population 35,000. Shu-E had expressed a strong interest in going out on an icebreaker to see the drift ice in the Sea of Okhotsk オホーツク海. I had tried to make a reservation online, but all sailings appeared to be full for that day. However, we were advised to go to the port anyway to see if there were any cancellations. And sure enough, soon after placing our name on a waiting list, our number was called and we boarded the Aurora ice breaker sightseeing ship a couple of minutes before it set off:

For about an hour the ship made its way through the drift ice, as the many visitors (most of whom seemed to be Chinese or Taiwanese, but with a few Westerners like myself thrown into the mix) oohed and aahed while taking photos, videos and selfies:

Stellar's sea eagles could often be seen perched atop the ice floes as the ship made its way past:

The Aurora at times really had to force its way through the drift ice, unlike the ferry we took to Suomenlinna when we were in Helsinki in early 2017, which had little difficulty (of course the latter ship was larger, and the ice floes weren't as thick as what we encountered offshore in Abashiri). My wife was quite pleased with the experience as you can see in this photo taken standing next to our rental car in the parking lot afterward. She's seen holding a brochure promoting whale meat dishes that she picked up in the terminal (note that we didn't consume any cetaceans on this trip):

In my current physical shape waddling like a penguin is much easier than strutting like an Egyptian. Throughout our time in Hokkaido slipping and falling as a result of the ice was an ever-present risk, but I always managed to remain standing on both feet (though there was one close call in Otaru 小樽):

Now that the icebreaker excursion box had been ticked by my spouse, it was time to decide what to do next. There are several museums in Abashiri, and Shu-E opted for the one devoted to the penal system. Say "Abashiri" to many Japanese, and the prison there might be the first thing that comes to mind. Fun fact: I had a coworker in Shibuya 渋谷, Tōkyō 東京 who hailed from Abashiri. The reason why the city was her hometown was that her father was an official in the correctional institute. One time she brought back a gift of a pair of traditional geta 下駄 wooden sandals, made by prison labor. It was regrettably lost in one of my many moves.

We drove from the harbor to the Abashiri Prison Museum 博物館網走監獄, an open-air museum containing some of the original Meiji-era 明治時代 prison buildings. Home to over 1000 hardened criminals, the original prison was infamous for its cruel conditions. The first building we visited was the original administrative building, which served its purpose until 1987. Photography wasn't allowed inside. There was a small cafe where we had a coffee and a snack, as the restaurant just outside the museum entrance, which serves the same meals eaten by prisoners at Abashiri's working prison, was too crowded to get inside (we couldn't break in!):

 

The Abashiri Prison back gate, constructed in 1919 and listed as a tangible cultural property:

The excellent Penological Museum covered the role prison labor played in the development of Hokkaido in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Unfortunately photography wasn't allowed inside here, either. There were no such issues, though, in the nearby courthouse (the defendant is the one wearing flannel at lower left):

Models of inmates trying to sleep and keep warm in temporary quarters set up while the prison was being constructed:

Prison officials and their families lived in much better conditions, of course:

The highlight of the museum was the prison house and central guard house of the original prison, consisting of five radial wings overseen by an interior octagonal guardhouse. The 226 cells within could house up to 700 inmates. The structure was used as a prison house from 1912 to 1984:

In addition to communal cells, there was also solitary confinement:

From what little I know about the present-day Japanese penal system conditions have not changed much:

The human desire to be free could not extinguished, however, as this story illustrates. Shiratori would eventually be granted parole due to good behavior in 1961, and died at the age of 71 in 1979:

Other dioramas show prisoners eating and taking baths. The latter activity was apparently the highlight of each day for many inmates, especially during the colder months:

The Lecture Hall is another important cultural property:

Japan is definitely one country where you do not want to be arrested. Suspects can be detained for questioning for up to 23 days without a lawyer present before being charged (or released). The conviction rate exceeds 99%, though only half of the detainees are ever referred by prosecutors to the courts. Numerous cases of forced confessions leading to convictions have been exposed, resulting in some recent high-profile acquittals or retrials. And the death penalty (hanging) is still enforced. In fact, prisoners on death row are not informed in advance of when their execution date will be, meaning every morning they wake up could be their last. Relatives are only given the news after the execution has been carried out. 

As it was getting late in the afternoon and we hadn't had a proper lunch other than the snack in the administration building, Shu-E located a favorite of mine on Google Maps. The directions we followed took us through some neighborhoods where the snow hadn't been plowed recently: 

MOS Burger モスバーガー! A lot of gaijin 外人 don't care much for the chain, but it's always been one of my favorites. Admittedly they come up with some weird concoctions that I wouldn't try (like the burdock root burger or konnyaku juice) but the standard cheeseburgers and fries have always been reliable favorites. Everything is cooked to order, so don't go into a MOS Burger expecting quick service - they take the "fast" out of "fast food"!:

The drive back to Akanko Onsen was uneventful but scenic:

Going out for dinner that evening. I had soba noodles 蕎麦:

I mentioned in the previous post the nightly fireworks show that takes place over Lake Akan 阿寒湖. On our last night, instead of viewing the 花火 from the warmth of our room, we went outside to watch. It was -13°C/9°F but didn't feel that cold. I guess our taste of prison life had toughened us up:

After the pyrotechnics we "drifted" back to our room, where I enjoyed a blue-colored local craft beer:

The view from our room on our final morning in Akanko Onsen:

In contrast to the dark, snowy conditions a few days previously when we drove from Kushiro 釧路 to Akanko Onsen, the drive back to the Toyota car rental agency went smoothly. The weather was clear, and being a Sunday morning in the countryside, there wasn't much traffic on the road, even once we reached central Kushiro:

After returning the car we walked to Kushiro Station 釧路駅 to wait for the train that would take us back to Sapporo 札幌 one final time:

The Ōzora おおぞら limited express train pulls into Kushiro right on time:

Seeing as 26 days have passed since eating this meal and writing this blog post, I could be forgiven for not remembering exactly what kind of ekiben 駅弁 I had for lunch on the train. I do recall a few things, however:

1.) it was delicious;

2.) it consisted of different kinds of seafood atop a bed of rice;

3.) it was the last one of its kind at the station shop from where I purchased it;

4.) the chocolate tea latte drink wasn't that good:

The scenery for much of the journey was beautiful in its winter starkness:

Obihiro 帯広 was the biggest city the train stopped at between Kushiro and Chitose 千歳 (where Sapporo's main international airport is located): 

The city itself appeared unremarkable from the train windows, but what I took to be the Daisetsuzan Volcanic Group 大雪山系 in the distance was an impressive sight:

We arrived at Sapporo Station on time at 15:41 (unlike our journey of a few days previously which was over a half-hour late getting into Kushiro), a total travel time of 4 hours and 20 minutes. It was less than fifteen minutes on foot to the Nakamuraya Ryokan 中村屋旅館, a pleasant Japanese-style inn where we slept on futon 布団 and soaked in a communal bath お風呂 (or least I did):

My wife elected to stay in the room and relax before dinner, but as usual I went out to have a look at the neighborhood. I came upon this sign claiming all Japanese supposedly yearn for the return of the Northern Territories 北方領土, three islands and a group of islets just off the eastern coast of Hokkaido that were seized by Soviet forces at the end of the Second World War: 

The above proclamation stands on the grounds of the Old Hokkaidō Government Office Building 北海道庁旧本庁舎, more commonly called Akarenga 赤レンガ, meaning "red-brick building".  The neo-baroque building was erected in 1888. I visited it in 1991 and didn't plan on going inside again, which turned out to be a good decision as the interior was closed for renovations. I did, however, take a stroll around the snow-covered gardens:

Another fine dinner at a ryokan. My meals haven't looked this good since coming back from Taiwan, especially as my wife is still there visiting family and friends. I've just been ordering dinners on Meituan 美团 to eat at home each evening, with only the cat to keep me company:

I remember Sunday evenings in Tokyo in the Nineties watching Chibi Maruko-chan ちびまる子ちゃん and Sazae-san サザエさん on Fuji TV . Fast forward to 2025 and both series are still going strong, with Sazae-san having been on the air since 1969. And you thought The Simpsons has been around since forever?:

I believe the Chibi Maruko-chan theme song has changed over the years, but this version was a massive, inescapable hit in 1995, the year the anime debuted on TV:

On the other hand, the theme for Sazae-san remains the same as it ever was:

A lot has changed in Japan since my first trip back in January 1989 (about 2½ weeks after Emperor Hirohito's 昭和天皇 death), but as the presence of the above アニメ on Sunday evening illustrates, there's still a comfortable cushion of continuity. 

And that's even with the explosion in foreign tourists, whom we will see a lot of the following day. Stay tuned...