The final day

Date: Sunday 16^th August 2015

Weather: Great. Not too hot however the skies were blue with picturesque white clouds.

MP3 track of the day: Twenty-four hours – Athlete

Due to having an early night, I found myself wide awake at around 6:45am. This was good. My alarm had been scheduled to go off at seven anyway therefore, I turned it off and got up. The extra fifteen minutes allowed me to take a little longer getting ready. Once I'd showered, I had a shave before going on the internet for a short while. I found myself ready to leave my hotel at around 8am however, I wasn't ready to leave Asahikawa just yet. After checking out – and receiving yet another small present of food – I asked the owner if it was okay if I could leave my car within his car park for another hour and a half while I walk around Hokkaido's second largest city and took photos. He said that this wouldn't be a problem and so that is exactly what I did.

Though this is Hokkaido's second largest city, Hokkaido isn't famed for it's large metropolitan areas therefore, it didn't take me long to walk down Asahikawa's main pedestrianised street ending up at the stunning new train station. Though Asahikawa won't win any 'beauty awards', the local council has tried hard to make the best out of a pretty glum place; street art is everywhere from fancy lights to a pair of hands coming out a pond. My favourite piece had to be a sculpture of a man sitting on a bench entertaining a cat with his saxophone. It was through taking these photos that I remembered that I hadn't yet bought a photo book. Not holding out much hope, I went into Asahikawa's train station and into the mighty AEON shopping centre. I went into the only book shop there and, surprise surprise, no photo books. There was a magazine, which had limited Japanese and huge amount of photos of everywhere I'd been on my holiday, for sale. Guessing that this was probably as good as it was going to get, I bought the magazine and headed back to my car. The time was 9:46am and I was ready to go; photographed Asahikawa – check; had breakfast – check; car full with fuel – check. I planned my route and off I went.

Due to Hokkaido being full of mountains, finding a road which I hadn't used before – but still went in the general direction I wanted to go – proved difficult. I settled for a brand new beginning to my trip which saw me leave Asahikawa in a westerly direction. I would then join the '452' and fly south through 'speed camera death' village before heading south-west to Tomakomai. I knew I had plenty of time therefore, I decided that I would stop off whenever I fancied. As I was leaving Asahikawa it gave me a parting gift of a beautiful, European monastery-looking building, perched on top of a hill. I didn't stop to take a photo however, it wouldn't be long before I did stop.

About forty minutes out of Asahikawa I found myself driving through rolling hills of farmland. I had seen a signed 'photo stop' and proceeded to follow it. I stopped my car and took a couple of photos however, the sight didn't captivate me for long.

Pressing on I eventually joined the '452' heading south. Though I had been on this road before, I didn't really care as it has become one of my favourite roads in Hokkaido due to being located in a beautiful valley and it having no traffic lights (plus you could count the number of vehicles on the road using one hand). My speed had fallen drastically and, though I had to avoid many stupid foxes, I was just enjoying the view of the mountains, the river and the vegetation which seemed as though it would consume me at any second.

As I got close to 'speed camera death' village I stopped at a, marginally interesting dam, to take a phew photos, remove a dead hornet from my windscreen wiper and to prepare myself for the reduction of speed. As I drove from the dam, through a tunnel, I hit the breaks and my speed dropped to 56kms (34mph) where every kilometre felt like an 'age of this world'. Though there were no 'do gooders' out on the streets, there were plenty of speed signs and it would appear that every driver currently within this area was taking them seriously.

Finally, heroically I made it out of the village and allowed my speed to increase a little. I found myself within a large patchwork area of fertile farm land. The sky was blue and so I decided to decrease my speed once more – much to the annoyance of the train of vehicles behind me – and enjoy the view. Tears were forming in my eyes as I knew, soon enough, that all of this would come to an end.

I made it into Tomakomai at around 1:30pm. Even with stops and driving slowly, I didn't think that I would be arriving this early. I pulled over to get a little more cash and to eat my final dinner. Whilst in a restaurant I text my Japanese friend and explained my predicament (three hours until my car was due back; five hours until my train was due and I was stuck in Tomakomai). In a flash my phone indicated that I had a message and, once read, I had directions to a lake within fifteen minutes of where I currently was. I ate my dinner quickly and headed off to the final tourist site my car and I would travel together to.

During this holiday, I had seen something like fourteen lakes however, this one still captivated me for the hour I had to kill. Probably due to the blue skies but, this lake – though not famous or big – did look very pretty indeed. I followed a nature trail around part of the lake and took quite a few photos. While visiting the information centre, I discovered that this small area of water was actually very important for migrating birds which travel from eastern Russia down to Australia and back every year. I spend a few minutes looking at all of the different species which use this natural resource before checking my watch and realising that it was time to give my car back. As I headed out into the car park there was my car; Charles. Like a faithful dog it was ready to do as I asked.

Though the drive back to the car rental place couldn't have been more than twenty minutes, it was quite an emotional time. Though this cheap, slow - and sometimes annoying - thing I found myself in is just a car, it is also solely responsible for the fantastic time I have had in Hokkaido. No mountain, no matter how steep, stopped this little thing from getting me to where I wanted to go. When I finally handed back the keys we had covered over 3,600km together in just 10 days. This surprised the manager of the rental place immensely and, as I told him where we had been together, memories came flooding back. I gave the car one final check and a final 'thank you'. I walked away not looking back.

It would appear that, over the last ten days, I have bought quite a lot of souvenirs. I don't remember my bag being this heavy when I started this holiday however, luckily, It was only a five minute walk to the station. Once there I walked straight through and into the attached 1950's shopping centre where I found a bench to sit, look through my photos and write part of this blog.

All to soon it was time to get my train. I packed up my stuff and went to the appropriate platform. Once boarded, I noticed that the carriage was hardly full therefore, I sat down with no one next to me hoping that my next train journey would be the same. Due to it being pitch black outside I got out my book and continued to read.

I am enjoying the 'Girl with the dragoon tattoo' however, the chapters aren't half long. It was only a fifty minute train ride however, I stopped reading after a chapter in fear of having to stop midway through another. Once I'd finished reading, it wasn't long before Sapporo came into view. I got my stuff ready as I had one final 'tourist thing' I wanted to do before heading home and, I only had two hours to do it in.

As soon as the doors opened I was off the train like a shot. I found a locker to store all of my stuff, bar my camera and tri-pod, and off I went into the night. This was my fourth visit to Sapporo therefore, it's streets were no stranger to me. I made it to Sapporo's central parks and noticed that it had only taken ten minutes to walk here. I therefore calculated that I had a maximum of forty minutes around Sapporo's parks (photographing at will), giving me ten minutes to get back to the station with a further hour to get my bags, do a bit of last minute shopping and find my train which would take me home. I therefore slowed down a little, took in the night air and allowed my camera to work.

Sapporo's TV tower was lit up beautifully; after taking many photos of it, some beer gardens and four posh – but rather noisy – super cars I walked as quickly as I could to the other end of Sapporo's central parks. You see; when I was here ten days ago (has it really been that long?) I photographed a beautiful old building - with some beautiful gardens in front of it – to death. I could only imagine what it would look like at night therefore, I raced there only to find disappointment. The building wasn't lit up at all; worst still, the hike had cost me my remaining time therefore, I headed back to the train station glad I'd made the effort to see Sapporo at night however, I found myself less than 'bowled-over' by it due to the lack of things illuminated.

I reached the train station five minutes later than I'd planned. It mattered not; I bought myself some 'Royce' chocolate before getting my bags out of the locker. Once on the platform, it wasn't long before my night train arrived to whisk me away from this beautiful island and back to the harsh reality of trying to teach Japanese children a second language. As I boarded the train I took one last look at Sapporo's 'platform 4'.

This being the holiday season the whole train was packed. When the guy – who had reserved the seat next to mine - finally arrived, it seemed as though he realised that spending the whole day worshipping the god Imhotep - and giving sacrifice - so that there would be no passenger sat beside him had been for nothing. I wasn't particularly happy about the situation either and yet, he couldn't have looked more disgusted. This young looking, glass wearing, sandal walking Japanese bloke sat next to me and we said a total of zero words to each other. I didn't care; I ate a few of my new chocolates before placing an eye mask over my face with the aim of trying to fall asleep.

*******

For those 'one otter around the world' hard-core fans, you will of course remember the excruciating pain I received the last time I took the night train back home from Sapporo (Snow festival 2013). Though this train was from the same era as the other one, there seemed to be more leg room therefore, when I opened my eyes at 5:30am, I noticed that I'd managed to get a good five hours of sleep … off and on. With only forty-five minutes until the train arrived at it's terminus I gazed out into the morning light and noticed, every-so-often, that groups of Japanese men had gathered to take photos of the train I was travelling on. Now, not for one second did I mock them however, I did wonder why. Was the train I was on special? Was this it's last run? I had no idea what the answers to these questions where; all I knew is that I must have seen at least twelve groups of between two and eight people on my way to Aomori's train station.

Once at Aomori's train station I noticed that guys were still taking photos. I had no time to ponder the above questions as I had to, not only change trains, but I also had to change stations as well. You see, this train brought me too Aomori's central station whereas, I wanted it's Shinkansen station. As you would expect the transfer was faultless and I boarded my Shinkansen train in less than twelve minutes. Once on board I opened my book as nothing new could be seen from the window however, I did raise an eye when Morioka – my old main city where I have spent a lot of time – came into view.

Once past Morioka it wasn't long before my train was heading into Sendai station. I alighted, happy to find that the sweltering heat had disappeared and a reasonable temperature had taken it's place. I proceeded down isles and through ticket barriers I last went through sixteen days ago (I could hardly believe it) until I reached my usual platform. Having used this 'Tagajo train' a billion times there was nothing much to report. All I will say is that, once I had alighted in Tagajo, it dawned on me that this ugly grey town will never feel like home. You see; previously I lived in Miyako, Iwate and there was a 'homely' feeling to it. I can't explain it but, after one of my many previous holidays there was a feeling - when I entered my old apartment in Miyako - which I did not feel entering my apartment in Tagajo. It was all rather mundane as I did a quick sweep for bugs - who'd squatted here over the last sixteen days - unpacked and filled up my fridge. The rain was pouring down outside and I was glad; Tagajo maybe sad to see me but, in truth, I was sad to see it too.

Next time: September … Japanese F1!

Toodle Pip!

Snap Shot: Sapporo Snow Festival 2015

Date: Saturday 7^th and Sunday 8^th February 2015

MP3 tract of the day: Walk like an Egyptian - The Bangles (please replace the word 'Egyptian' with 'penguin')

Weather: Superb on Saturday; for February, it was pretty warm (which overnight, led to the destruction of some of the snow sculptures). The weather took a turn for the worst on Sunday, with strong winds and a little snow.

Now before I go on, I suppose I should explain what 'snap shot' means within the title of this blog. It basically means that this blog will be a shortened version of my usual blogs, due to a variety of reasons. It is, in effect, a 'snap shot' of my trip.

 

This would be the second time that I would be visiting Sapporo's Snow Festival, and I was just as excited as I was on my first visit. Last time I'd taken the overnight train (arriving Friday at 6am), staying for three days. This time I'd opted to use a plane which, though decimated a nine hour train journey to just an hour and a half flight, was a lot more expensive than the train. Still, with only staying one night, the costs actually balanced out to be almost the same.

During my first visit, I found that having three days to look around Sapporo's, and Otaru's, snow festival was a little too long. Two full days is probably the perfect amount of time needed however, this time, I only had just over a day to see everything. As I balanced 'what I wanted to see' against 'time I had' I created a schedule which, though very busy, wasn't impossible. My flight from Sendai airport left around 9am, arriving at Sapporo's new airport around 10:30am. Being an airport it was of course out of town meaning that, at best, I would arrive in the centre of Sapporo at around midday. I would then walk to my hotel to drop my bags off. Once that was completed I would walk back to the train station, through the snow park, before catching a train to Otaru (hopefully arriving just before night fall). I would then spend a couple of hours seeing Otaru's snow festival at night, before returning to Sapporo to see it's snow festival at night. Sunday would be a lazy day, focusing mainly on the main snow park in Sapporo before heading back to the airport.

I had managed to coincide finalising my 'weekend schedule' with arriving at Sendai's airport. I parked my car within a '£2 for 24-hours' car park and walked the final half a mile or so to the airport.

Being me, I'd arrived, got my ticket (which nobody checked on either my outgoing, or returning flight. I could have said that my name was 'Mickey Mouse' and I would have been fine) and gone through security with plenty of time to spare. I spent the time I had writing my diary and completing small tasks I'd failed to do the night before (after work on Friday, I drove straight to Sendai and stayed the night in a hotel). I'd almost finished my tasks when my flight number was called for embarkation; and so on I went.

Due to it being winter, there is always a worry that flights will be cancelled however, looking out of one of the planes many windows, I'd noticed that the weather was fantastic. I sat back and enjoyed my flight. The company which I'd decided to fly with was called 'Skymark'; basically Japan's equivalent of Easyjet. Drinks had to be paid for (though they were cheaper than in the airport) but the leg room given was actually pretty good. One big difference between Skymark and Easyjet is that Skymark doesn't appear to be doing that well; whilst reading the 'in-flight magazine' I found a leaflet which seemed to suggest that, after March of this year, Skymark will be no more. It was a shame because, apart from the drinks, the crew were friendly and professional and the flight was a dream; bang on time we landed at Sapporo's new airport (Chitose) and though the skies had become cloudy, the landing had been as smooth as Galaxy milk chocolate.

Chitose airport is a strange place because the shopping area seems way too big for the terminal. Though it is Hokkaido's main airport, there was only one terminal with very few gates. The shopping area, on the other-hand, covered well over two-thirds of the airport with so many food stalls that, once I'd viewed them all and decided what I wanted to eat, I'd forgotten where my favourite stall was. It mattered not; I found a delicious looking snack, ate it and headed off to catch a train heading towards Sapporo's main train station.

As you would expect, the train was packed with people visiting the snow festival. I therefore could not get a seat and so I stood for about 40 minutes until we reached the centre of Sapporo. It was during this time that I made a decision; a decision that would ultimately result in less time at the snow park but, would mean that this years visit would differ slightly from my last visit. Most cities and prefectures (counties to you and me) have their own 'famous foods', and Sapporo is no exception with two 'famous dishes'; one is 'miso ramen' and the other is 'Jengis Gan (which I kept calling 'Genghis Khan') which is a lamb dish. The last time I came, I tried to eat 'Miso ramen' but I couldn't find it. This time, with a little pre-planning, I was determined to try both of them.

Eager to get started, I burst out of the train and walked quickly through Sapporo's huge train station and down an escalator to, what I thought was, the 'underground walkway' I'd used two years ago. I remembered that, when I used this walkway it took me halfway to my hotel, by-passing many roads, icy streets and worst of all … traffic lights. As I looked around, some things just didn't match with the memories I'd had and all-too-soon the 'walkway' came to an abrupt end. What had happened is that I'd left the train station at the 'south-east' exit whereas, two years ago, I found the 'underground walkway' when I had left Sapporo train station's 'south-west' exit. Being underground, it soon dawned on me that I had retraced my steps so many times that I was now not sure in which direction I was facing. I therefore decided to resurface and walk to my hotel along the streets; sure it was slower, but there were plenty of landmarks to guide me.

As I walked it dawned on me that it wasn't as cold as two years ago. I removed my beanie hat to discovered sweat pouring down my face and it was then that I realised that having a under-shirt, t-shirt, fleece and a big coat on was a mistake. As I looked around other people had shed layers and I was starting to fear for the sculptures themselves though, as I approached the snow park (which was located between the train station and my hotel), I could see that they were not affected by the weather. Once more I stood and found myself looking up in awe with my mouth wide open. In front of me was a four-storey 'Start Wars' themed snow sculpture. Darth Vader's eyes were probably as tall as I was! Darth Vader, three imperial storm troops, two X-wing fighter aircraft and the Death Star kept me paralysed for at least quarter of an hour and I had to stop my mouth from spilling out Star Wars quotes … which would have been heard by the 'none English speaking' crowd in front of me and, I can only assume, would have led to them believing that I was mentally ill. For the rest of that trip, around every corner, I wanted to tell everyone and anyone that “... the Death Star will be quite operational by the time their friends arrived...”.

I spent an equal amount of time watching snowboarders and Skiers throw themselves off a 'man-made' ramp, to the delight of the crowd, before I shook my head like an 'etch-a-sketch', cleared it, and remembered my schedule. I continued past the snow park and towards my hotel, more eager than ever to walk faster than I have ever walked before.

I screeched to a halt within the hotel's foyer and demanded to be able to leave my bags within their storage room. Of course this was allowed, but not before I'd filled out a small registration slip. Once done I left my hotel realising that this year's hotel was very close to the hotel I stayed at two years ago.

Being confident of knowing my way around the streets of Sapporo, I turned right out of my hotel which was, of course, the wrong way. After a while I rectified the mistake and headed back to the snow park. On the way I stopped for lunch within Sapporo's 'Ramen Street'. I ordered the 'miso ramen' which, not only was it delicious, it allowed me to tick one of Sapporo's famous dishes off my list. Once consumed I continued towards the snow park. The crowds were building though due to my height, my view was unhindered. I past a Japanese temple, many Japanese manga characters and a Malaysian palace, all made out of snow, before I left the park bound for the train station. This time I did find the underground walking path and, once at the train station, I realised my error.

The train station was as busy as ever however, due to the fact that most of the people were still debating on where they wanted to go, the queues at the actual ticket machines were fairly light. I, of course, knew exactly where I wanted to go. I bought a ticket for Otaru and managed to board a train which was just about to depart. This was good in a way as it meant that I didn't waste any time however, once again there wasn't a single seat free. It was an hours trip to Otaru and I tried to rest my feet as best I could whilst remaining on my feet.

I arrived in Otaru just before sunset. I also arrived extremely thirsty and so I disappeared momentarily into KFC and drank their biggest cola on offer. Once consumed I made my way down to Otaru's river front. As I mentioned last time, the buildings along Otaru's river front have more of a European feel than a Japanese one; with their slanted roofs and brick walls. They spanned the entire length of the river front and were covered in snow and icicles. Within the river itself, and along the river's walls, were hundreds of candles; all waiting for night to fall. Once I'd elbowed the packed crowds out of my way (telling some that 'these are not the droids they are looking for') I proceeded back into town to find a street I'd dreamt about many times. For those of you avid readers you may recall that, in my other 'snow festival' blog, I talked about a street of cake shops within Otaru and it was this that I was trying to find. As I walked in the direction I was sure the 'cake street' should be, night had fallen and the city had been consumed by candle light. It was extremely beautiful and very romantic. There were also many 'snowmen scenes' throughout the city, each one portraying an aspect of life which we all probably take for granted. There was a family of snowmen, snowmen on their own and another scene of a snowman asking a snow-woman on a date. It was all very beautiful and it reminded me of that John Lewis snowman advert.

Finally I found the street and it didn't disappoint. Each shop was lit up like a Christmas tree with a salesman, or woman, standing outside with a tray of 'tasters' for passers by to try. Not wanting to seem biased, I made sure that I tried each taster I saw, surprised to find that most of the stores along this street belonged to the same cake company. The only difference between the shops was that they each specialised in a different type of cake. I wondered freely grabbing a taster here and there. With the European look of the buildings, the snow, the cobbled road and street lights - which looked like oil lamps - the whole scene seemed to have fallen out of a Charles Dickens’s novel. I was fully expecting a horse-drawn carriage carrying the 'dark lord' asking people to 'turn to the dark side'.

Once I'd walked back and forth along this street I went back to the river front to see it lit in all of it's glory. The river front was as busy as ever and it took quite a few elbows to get the photo I wanted. After taking a few hits myself I withdrew from the area and proceeded back towards the train station. I was almost back at the train station when I saw a street totally transformed by snow and ice. Just like the rest of Otaru, this street was lit up by candles however, it was also covered in small pieces of snow art. These bits of art included circles of moons or stars – made out of snow – with a candle in the centre. I would have spent longer looking at the pieces of art if it hadn't been for the fact that so many people had walked through here before me and turned the snowy floor into a sheet of ice. To make matters worse, halfway down this street a small snow maze had been erected meaning that the ever reducing ground was having more and more feet trample on it … making it even slipper. I decided to adopt 'penguin mode' which required me to walk like a penguin. It did succeed in stopping me from falling over however, I did get quite a few funny looks from people striding past me.

After I'd waddled off the 'ice street of death', I changed back into a human and walked back to the train station. As I took my last look at Otaru I realised that, sure the small candles in the small snow huts could not compare to the colossal snow sculptures in Sapporo however, my god Otaru is very beautiful. It is much more beautiful than Sapporo.

Once I'd bought a ticket I found myself catching a train which was about to depart. Once again there were no spare seats and, this time, there was no view either. Apart from eating I'd been on my feet almost eight hours and so I was getting very weary. I fought the sleep which seemed to have taken everyone else within my carriage and stood there longing for Sapporo. I was overjoyed when an announcement came across the speaker stating that this service would stop at every platform from here to Sapporo. Apart from a cool breeze occasionally entering a 'over-heated' carriage, I was now praying for Sapporo to come into view.

After what seemed like years I found myself, once more, at Sapporo's train station. My feet begged me to stop however, the time was 8:30pm and I knew that there was only ninety minutes left before Sapporo's own snow festival would have it's lights turned off and be plunged into darkness. I therefore grabbed a snack, and a drink, and consumed them while sitting down. After ten to fifteen minutes I walked on.

I found myself within the middle of the park with an hour to go before it closed. As expected the crowds were eminence and my 'lighting pace' had been brought to a stand still. What I hadn't expected was that the weather, even at night, was holding up. Snow wasn't falling and there was little wind; also it was still quite warm. I moved along with the crowd, adopting my 'penguin walk' as the paths were incredibly slippery. I looked up to see Darth Vader bathed in light. I thought this structure was impressive during the day however, at night, the lights gave it a whole new dimension. I proceeded on, still awe struck however, things weren't quite as good as they were two years ago. I remembered that, two years ago, there was an Audi car made out of snow. Using 'projection mapping' this car came alive and, with the music, the whole show was sensational. I looked around to see if I could see something similar but alas, no decent 'projection mapping' shows could be found. I proceeded around as much of the park as I could before the lights were turned off and cars were once again allowed to use the roads located in between the individual snow sculptures. It was now 10pm and so I headed in the direction of my hotel, but not to it. I still hadn't had any tea and so it was time to search for 'Genghis Khan'.

I found a 'Genghis Khan' restaurant quite close to my hotel and took my seat at the very end of a 'diner like table'. This table surrounded a central part where the waiters and chef's worked. Apart from being close to the door (therefore, every time it opened – and it opened a lot – I would feel a chill) I was looking forward to my meal. Eventually a waiter came over with a salad and a plate with six slices of raw lamb on it. Then the waiter did something I did not expect; he bent down and put on 'heat resistant' gloves. Next he brought over a metal container and, using a pair of steel tongs, he put red hot coals into this container. Finally he placed a metal cooking lid over the container and filled it with butter, onions and a small amount of oil. As it was spitting away the waiter explained the obvious which was “...don't touch. Very hot...”. I then used the set of smaller tongs I'd been given and placed my first couple of pieces of lamb on the cooking lid. I watched it sizzle and waited.

Though the meal wasn't that big, I loved it. Lamb is one of my most favourite meats and these pieces were tender and juicy. I could have eaten another two plates however, seeing the price tag, I stopped at one plate, paid and went to a local convenience store for dessert. I took my cake to my hotel room where I collapsed on the bed forgetting to either eat said cake or put it in the fridge. As I fought back my eye-lids I thought “...what a day!...” and tried to retrace all that I had done however, it was no good … I was asleep.

Sunday 8^th February

I had gone to bed around midnight and, though I was extremely tired, I found myself wide awake at 8:30am. Eight and a half hours sleep is pretty good however, I think it was the excitement of another day at the snow festival which stirred me from my sleep. I got ready and threw the fresh cream cake I'd bought yesterday into the bin. To rectify my catastrophic mistake, I swore that I would have cake for breakfast and, once ready, I left the hotel taking my bags with me.

I arrived back at the snow park around 10am and I still hadn't eaten breakfast. Of course I had walked past many cake shops along the way however, I wanted to eat breakfast within a café which I been to two years previously. This café's cakes weren't any better than the other places I'd already past; neither were it's drinks. The whole reason was because this café’s first floor eating area over-looked the ski jump and, at 10:30am, a performance was due to start. I went into the café ordering a sandwich, a hot chocolate and a chocolate cake. I sat down at a table next to a window slightly annoyed that, people who were more interested in reading their books / newspapers, had taken these 'prime viewing' seats too … even when they didn't want to watch what was happening outside. This lead to a lot of people, who wanted to watch the skiing, having to sit at the back of the building. I sat down and I ate my rather strange breakfast watching the action outside. Currently it was the juniors who were performing; obviously they weren't as good as the adults however, for their age, they put on a splendid show with many jumps and a few mid-air twists. My food had run out long before the performance had finished however, I kept in my seat nursing a glass of water.

Once finished I left the café noticing, for the first time today, that it was pretty windy and some snow was falling. I did one final loop of the snow park, seeing super-mario in his kart and the international tournament, before calling it a weekend. I was happy to see that, in the international tournament, Thailand had won with it's 'Tuk-tuk sculpture', Finland was second with Korea third, Poland fourth and Italy fifth. Once again the UK hadn't been represented.

With the snow being blown into my face by the wind, it was time to say goodbye to Sapporo once more. I found an entrance to the underground walkway and took my last look at the 'Star Wars' sculpture, which had dominated this years display, before proceeding down the steps.

Once at the train station I had time to grab lunch before taking the train back to the airport. I opted for more meat, ordering a beautiful steak dish. As I ate through the beautiful tender meat I realised that the food on this trip had been outstanding; every meal had been delicious and I will certainly pay more attention to food in the future.

With lunch over I purchased a ticket for the next train to the airport. Thankfully, for the first time this trip, I found a seat and so I crashed into it, occasionally chatting to a Singaporean couple across the isle from me. Once at the airport I found time to buy a few souvenirs and indulge in my final treat. When I arrived in Sapporo yesterday (was it only yesterday) I told you that I found a food stall I liked, only to loose it again. Well today I found it again and so I ordered an 'ice cream sunday' which came with a slice of cheese cake. Time was running out and so I ate it quickly before running to the gate however, it had been worth it; the cake was absolutely delicious.

As it turned out, I didn't need to rush the eating of my sunday; the boarding of my flight was delayed by about fifteen minutes. Apart from that – and a bit of turbulence as we ascended and descended through cloud - the flight was perfect (I even bought a drink). Once back at Sendai airport I left the terminal and walked back to my car. Above me dark clouds had formed however, they held off for most of the drive back to Miyako. Only when I was within an hour of home did they lower and produce a fog which reduced my visibility to only a few hundred feet. This added a little time to my journey however, I was back in my apartment by 10:30pm and tucked up in bed by 11pm with a cup of coco in hand. I didn't go to sleep straight away; the weekend had been so manic that I used this time to peer at my souvenirs and try to take everything in. I'd had a brilliant weekend however, I wished that I'd stayed one more night. With one more night I could have gone a little slower and really appreciated everything around me. Still; this is the second time I'd visited this snow festival in three years and, if this years event is anything to go by, I'll probably be back next year.

Toodle pip!

Homeward bound

Monday 11^th February 2013

MP3 track of the day: The littlest hobo

weather: Sunny and remarkably warm for this time of year.

There is a place reserved in hell for the guy who designed this train carriage. The seat was to short and it didn't recline enough. The window ledge was to high and to long to allow your arm to rest on it while propping your head; and yet it was to low and to short to rest your head directly onto it. However the worst thing, by a mile, was the leg room. There was enough leg room to get your legs 'in line' with your body however, that was it. A steel girder prevented me from stretching my legs out underneath the seat in front of me. This resulted in my legs being in the same position for seven hours. At the end of the trip my right knee was in total agony. When the train finally made it to Aomori, I got out of my seat and tried to walk normally. After a while my bones popped back into their usual positions and I changed trains bound for Aomori's Shinkansen station, which was only moments away. I sat down glad to see that this carriage was better designed.

Once at Aomori's shinkansen station I had a couple of hours to kill. I read more of my book (which is really good) and then went up onto the platform to greet my train when it arrived.

Being a Shinkansen train, the leg room almost had no limit; it was a shame that I was only on the train for a hour. I spent most of the time looking at the scenery. Even though I did this journey three days ago, it was at night; being able to see my surroundings allowed me to judge that, even though Northern Honshu was covered in snow, the depth was no way near of that of Hokkaido.

Once back in Morioka I had yet another long wait. You see, to get home I could use the bus which brought me to Morioka four days earlier, or I could use the train which I had never travelled on before. The time was 8:40am and the next train was at 11am. This left ample time for me to get some breakfast (at the same restaurant I went to before I left Morioka last Thursday) and to do some shopping before finding a seat on 'platform 2' to read more of my book and await my train.

The train, being only two carriages long, was dwarfed by the platform. I therefore had to leave my seat and walk to it. As Miyako is a small town I had fully expected this service to be a bit of a joke; indeed I had already thought of many humorous ways to describe the journey I was about to take however, in the end none were needed. Firstly I thought that only I, a tambourine, a penguin and a discarded chocolate bar wrapper would be the only passengers on the train, but no. Far from being full, the train had at least forty people on it. Also my seat was comfortable, my window was large, the temperature was perfect, the speed was quick and I had a lot of leg room. I sat back ready to enjoy the view.

At first the train parted company with the main road to Miyako and I saw a lot of small communities which I didn't even know existed. We were so far away from the road that I lost sight of it for long periods and I wondered if I had boarded the wrong train. Finally, after an hour, the train track and road meandered along as one and I relaxed. The views had been great, the ride had been comfortable and so I would defiantly use the train again.

As the train approached Miyako station I knew my holiday had ended. I walked into my apartment, unpacked my stuff and went shopping for food. Once at the local supermarket who should I bump into but three of my students: “...Hey Missster Mashu … what sports do you like...” said one student. I sighed; it could be worse I suppose.

Toodle Pip!

The final day

Sunday 10^th February 2013

MP3 track of the day: nice ice baby – Vanilla Ice

Weather: A beautiful crisp winters day with the sun out and a little breeze.

Today was my final day within Sapporo. Even so, an early start was not needed. During the previous two days I had hit all of my objectives for this weekend however, an early start still occurred due to my hotels 'check-out' time being 10am. I was therefore down at reception, handing over my 'key card', at around 9:30am with a large smile hiding my displeasure. I handed over my bags and, at around 10am, I headed out into the world.

For the next two hours 'my world' consisted of McDonald’s. There I ate a 'pancake breakfast' writing the first draft of yesterday's blog. A part from the occasional tannoy announcement, and American voice, I was never disturbed. After two hours I had written, and read through, the 9^th February's blog entry. I was content that, while a little editing was still needed, the main content was all there and in a logical order. I left McDonald's and headed out.

Yesterday I had discovered a labyrinth of underground passageways, some with shops and some without. As I was off to Otaru I had little time to explore the area but now, with a full day to fill I headed down into this underworld of retail and, more importantly, this underworld of warmth. Still wanting to look around the 'ice festival park', I explored the area always making sure that I was heading north.

Characterless, is the best way I would describe the underground shopping precinct. It had the usual line of clothe, food, phone and beauty shops that you could find anywhere in Japan. In fact, it was as if someone had highlighted the above shops, pressed 'copy', and pasted this format of shops throughout every passageway within the complex. I'm sure it comes as no surprise to find out that this endless boredom of modern branding did not keep my interest for long and I soon resurfaced into a world of light, music, cold but above all, a world of countless people. I had arrived at the snow festival park.

Being the weekend the park was packed with people. On Friday, I pretty much had the park to myself but now, I had to battle my way through crowds ten ranks deep, resulting in my feet only shuffling an inch at a time. As I moved I kept one eye on whatever snow sculpture was in front of me and one eye on the ground. Having so many people walking within the park was exacerbating the walkways. The authorities continually poured grit onto the surface however, no amount of grit could cope with the tens of thousands of feet trampling the snow into ice. It was at this point that I realised something; I wasn't really enjoying myself. I still looked up at these impressive snow sculptures in wonder however, I had already seen them six or seven times and with the thousands of people all around me, walking through the park felt like a chore. It felt as though I was there because I thought I should be; because I knew my trip was coming to an end and I would never see these sculptures again. To use a British expression, I felt as though I was there to 'get my monies worth', not for enjoyment. I soon realised this was stupid; I turned around and went back to the ski slope where I saw even more 'youths' throwing themselves down a snowy 'man-made' ramp with little care for themselves. After this I went away from the park looking for lunch and a place to think.

As I didn't have any particular restaurant in mind I decided to do a bit more 'bottom following' however, this time, I went to 'pro level'. 'Pro level' has the same rules as regular 'bottom following' however, you follow the best bottom wherever it takes you (again changing 'rear' periodically so you don't look weird). It's a great way to see a place and you end up seeing spots which aren't on the usual tourist route.

As luck would have it, my final 'rear' walked past a 'Moss Burger'. I went in and ordered a 'spicy burger with onion rings', whereas the 'rear' walked on by (it didn't look like a 'rear' which would eat burgers). As I finished my meal I sat their, gazing outside at the world but taking nothing in. I was struggling to think of things to do; add to this that Sapporo had taken its toll on me (I was shattered) and the list of possible activities was getting shorter and shorter. In the end I opted to have a walk around the east of the city, hopefully ending up at Sapporo's train station.

The walk was uneventful however, it wasn't too cold and there weren't too many people. A part from an old stone church nothing stood out and soon I was at Sapporo's train station. I found an underground entrance and went into another underground shopping centre.

This one was just as characterless as the last however, it was much more confusing. I remembered entering this underground labyrinth of retail outlets, but I could not find an exit. I looked around.

Seeing people of different ages gave me hope that there was a way out (if everyone was old and depressed I would have been worried); however, no matter how hard I tried, I could not find an exit. Maybe I had actually spent my whole life down here; maybe this 'entrance' I had used was just an image my brain kept as a strain of hope that one day I would surface into the outside world. Finally, heroically I made it to the surface. Had the world changed? Was the air breathable? Had man found a way to eradicate wasps from the earth? The answers to these questions I did not know. As my eyes adjusted to the light I took my first cautious steps into the 'outside world'.

I had resurfaced only meters from where I'd descended. I left the area and went back to the festival one final time. Again I wasn't enjoying myself. The time was 6pm and I was tired, cold and hungry. Even though I still had four hours until my train departed I left the park bound for my hotel. Once inside my hotel I picked up my bags, thanked the staff for the final time, checked my emails and left heading towards the train station.

Sapporo is Japan's 5^th largest city and yet, once you go through the train stations ticket barriers there is no waiting room. What there is are benches, dotted around sporadically, with little heat. One area did have two temporary heaters however, the 'size of the area to heat: size of heater' ratio meant that the heaters had already lost the battle before they were even switched on. Besides, the area was packed with people trying to keep warm. With every item of clothing I possessed on, I decided to 'go it alone' and sit on a bench, near a clock, where I read until twenty minutes before my trains departure time. As I read I tried not to let the Japanese person, frozen within a block of ice to my left, concern me.

With twenty minutes until departure time I boarded my train bound south for Aomori. Unfortunately I was not alone and every seat within my carriage was taken. I sat next to a young Japanese girl who sat in a position facing the seats adjacent to her (her friend was in one of those seats) presenting me with her back. I filled out my diary and tried to go to sleep as soon as possible. It had been a long day and, I feared with this amount of passengers, it would be a long night too.

Toodle Pip!

Sapporo's Snow festival is amazing!

Friday 8^th February 2013

MP3 track: Snow – White Christmas (Bing Crozby)

Weather: Piles of snow; more than I have ever seen within an urban area. Still it was pretty warm; until 3pm when a strong wind picked up creating a snow storm.

 

One thing that annoys me about 'cold climate countries' is there 'indoor temperature'. For some unknown reason, the colder the weather outside the hotter it is inside. I mean, within a cold climate I dress appropriately for the weather making sure I'm wearing a coat, fleece, hat gloves etc and yet, when I enter a train carriage, shopping center or any other building I have to change into shorts and a t-shirt so I don't drip with sweat. This leads to arms full of clothes and a rather annoyed demeanor. The overnight train was no exception.

A part from the heat I had a rather pleasant night. The man behind me finally stopped eating at midnight and, with no one sitting in the seat next to me, I must have had a good 4/5 hours sleep. I did wake up throughout the night however, on reflection, I don't think it affected the quality of my sleep. When I was a awake I looked out of the window eager to see what Hokkaido looked like. The view that presented itself was very different from the Northern part of Japan's main island. Even though I couldn't see far into the distance Hokkaido seemed flatted than it's southern neighbor; it also seemed like a barren snowy dessert with big buildings rising out of the snow like huge ships, which had got stuck in the arctics frozen waters. These views would never last for long; soon I was back asleep to wake up thirty minutes later to let the process repeat itself. As time dragged on within this endless cycle day braked; with this a few 'keen workers' could be seen driving their cars to work, with walls of snow on either side of them.

I arrived in Sapporo on time and switched onto the underground. With all signs in English this was a breeze and soon I found myself at the west exit of 'Nakajima-koen station'. Once I had got my bearings I headed north.

I seemed to have walked forever. Ice was on the pavement preventing my standard 'sprinting speed' however, I was sure the hotel should have been closer than this. Finding a convenience store my thoughts proved correct; the stores only member of staff told me to back-track and headed one block east. There I would find 'Marks Inn'; my hotel.

The receptionist looked baffled that I'd turned up at 7:00am to 'check-in'. Actually, I had turned up at 7:00am to put my bags within the hotel before heading out into town. Gradually the receptionist got the message and so I handed my bags over and headed back outside, thought not before checking my emails.

The amount of snow was so great that my feet must have been six inches off the normal tiled pathway. Walls of snow, waist height, stood proud either side of me giving me many photo opportunities. It therefore took me quite a while to head north. This wasn't a problem; the time was 8:00am and I wasn't that hungry.

I turned a corner to find a road with a center isle of snow. On said snow were many ice sculptures ranging from mythical dragons to normal animals. Each one was a marvel to view and each must have taken ages to cut. As I photographed each and every one I tried to appreciate the craftsmanship, the time and the fact that one little mistake and it would all be ruined. These sculptures were in three groups; at the end of each group was an 'ice pub'. The building was, you guessed it, made out of ice. I hadn't even reached the main event and I was as giddy as a school boy, as happy as a penguin and as excited as a Japanese elementary student when I say the word 'game'. As I went into McDonald's (for a pancake breakfast) I couldn't wait to get back out again.

I eagerly made my way towards the main event. Sapporo is designed like an American city; the buildings are arranged into 'blocks of buildings' and signs indicate which way is north, south, east or west. 'odori koen' (odori meaning 'old street' and 'koen' meaning park) was a street six blocks south of Sapporo's train station. It consisted of ten blocks, running east to west, of parkland. I reckon that during the summer, the office workers from the many skyscrapers looming overhead would visit here for their lunch. This week however, the ten parks were the main location of the snow festival.

I had arrived roughly in the middle of the street and, normally, I would take a moment to plan a 'walking route' around whatever I had come to see, making the most logical choice. As I stood at the corner of one of these blocks an ice sculpture, as high as a two story building (I am not joking), dominated my view. Logic went out of the window and, in my rush to get a better view, I walked through the exit; much to the annoyance of a Japanese security guard.

Mouth open I stared at this marvel in front of me. With a huge horse to my right, and a woman to my left, a ancient Japanese curved bridge was in the middle leading to an old Japanese temple high in up in the mountains. Now I know that I am not the best writer in the world and therefore I cannot begin to describe, in words, just how over-powering and magnificent this piece was. I must have stood their for ages just pondering at the work involved and telling my logical brain that the bridge in front of me, a good 10 meters up into the sky, was made out of snow and was wide enough for four people to cross it in one go.

As I went further west things got better and better. First of all though I corrected my mistake of entering the park on the wrong side. This being Japan, everything is well organised. Within each 'squared park' the sculptures, souvenir stalls and eating facilities are in the center. On the flanks are two walking paths; one for heading west and one for heading east. As the parks were individual blocks (with a road between them) there were always 'roadside footpaths' you could use to change direction. This was a well thought out plan; my only criticism being that, as you descended from the park path down onto 'street level' (the parks are slightly raised) the path down was very slippery indeed. The 'Sapporo Snow Festival' work force were continually gritting the area however, some sort of 'grippy mat' (or blow torching the snow away from these areas), I felt, would have been better.

Next up was a Japanese temple which, again, was two stories high. Unlike the first snow sculpture this was made out of blocks of ice, giving it a very 'aquatic blue' colour. The next park seemed to have been bought by the 'Thai tourist board'. Within the center of the square stood a 'Thai tourist information center' and it's snow sculpture was a Thai temple … life size! I couldn't believe it; the doors looked big enough for me to pass through, the windows seemed the right size and the lion guardians were as large as I remembered from my travels. At this point my logical brain had gone to sleep with my smaller creative brain jumping for joy; I felt as though I was in a dream, how could any of this be real … but it was.

Next up was a western looking house. The great thing about this was that each window had a small balcony that actually stood out; as the snow was falling it just looked like a normal white house with snow building up on the places you would expect.

The final big sculpture was an Hawaiian scene, two stories high, with cartoon characters (dressed in t-shirts), palm trees and the sea all made of snow. With Hawaiian music playing in the background I though it was all a bit ironic, but nether the less entertaining. The last two 'park blocks' consisted of a 'worldwide competition' and a garden. The competition has entries from ten countries including Malaysia, New Zealand and Sweden. Most either showed the counties cultural identity or were a modern piece to make people reflect on climate change and how the world is evolving. Personally these 'thought provoking pieces' were too much for me and so I liked the cultural ones, with Thailand's 'painting elephants' being my favourite closely followed by New Zealand's Maori legend. The final square had a restricted 'oval park' in the middle with a large house at the back. Around this oval were smaller 'face sculptures' of many different things though, this being the furthest 'block' in the park, the sculptures hadn't been cleared of the recent falling snow making some hard to work out what they were.

With this I switched lanes and headed past all the sculptures I had already seen, stopping to gaze upon them once more. I saw a few new things which included 'ice slides' for children and an Audi stand. Within this stand was a snow sculpture of a Audi car going up a hill; a simple but stylish piece.

Now I was heading east and into the last four 'blocks'. The first block consisted of a huge snow ramp where snowboarders would through themselves into the air and land only meters away from an onlooking audience. As no snowboarding was currently happening I watched a small TV advertisement of last years performance before checking out the viewing times.

The next 'block' had more ice sculptures with a whole castle made of ice (though this was a miniature castle) and more mythical creatures. The last 'block' consisted of an ice rink before Sapporo's 'TV tower' loomed high above me. At 147 meters high my guidebook informed me that this was an excellent place to view the festival at night. I checked the opening times and prices before promising myself that I would return later.

Now I had seen all the 'blocks', I returned back to the snowboarding slope to see 'Japanese youths' throwing themselves into the air without caution and landing (some gracefully, others not so) to an applauding audience. With some of the snowboarders doing tricks, watching these 'youths' repeatedly throwing themselves down this slope kept me entertained for ages. The time however, was coming up to 11am and so my stomach was rumbling for 'elevenses'. Fortunately a coffee shop was positioned with a commanding view of the action; I went in and order a slice of chocolate cake and a 'chilli hot chocolate' (which was a mistake; the chilli overpowered the chocolate … still I had never tried it before) to be surprised to find the place almost empty and a window seat waiting for me.

As I watched the snowboarders, ate my cake and drank my drink, I also flicked through my guidebook wondering what else Sapporo's city had to offer. Not a lot, was my answer. Being winter the botanical garden was closed and so there were only shops, the Ainu museum (located on the edge of the botanical garden), the 'Hokkaido Government building' and the station to view. There was a green house you could visit, but that sounded as much fun as punching myself in the face; repeatedly. Therefore with my cake ate, my drink drunk and the 'youths' having finished messing around, I picked up my bag and headed towards the government building.

The government building was built in the late nineteenth century and is a mix of European, 'new world' and Japanese architecture; or so my guidebook stated. I, on the other-hand, saw it as mostly European design with a little Japanese to remind you of where you were. Within the snow this red-bricked building looked beautiful and so my camera was red hot within no time. Behind the government building was the botanical gardens, the greenhouse and the Ainu museum. I walked past the closed botanical gardens entrance, ran past the open greenhouse entrance and started to search for the museum. Try as I might I could not find it; the wind was picking up and so I re-read my guidebook to find that the museum was IN the botanical gardens not CLOSE TO. I left the area, with a new appreciation for the smaller words within our language.

It was now 2pm and I was getting hungry. I ventured into Sapporo's huge train station in search of ramen. A friend of mine had said that there were a lot of stores, selling ramen, within the train station but, as I got up to the 6^th floor, all I could find were expensive restaurants, Japanese menu's and lines of hungry Japanese people. I left the station and found a small convenient restaurant near to the festival.

While eating my 'curry and rice', I planned my next moves. Being quite tired I fancied heading back to my hotel. Check-in was an hour away and so I had enough time to look through the park once more, buy some 'omiagi' (souvenir cakes) for two of my schools and see if there were any photo books. Once back at the hotel I would relax for a bit before leaving once more at around 6pm, to see the park at night. I finished my meal and went into the park, still not fully believing what I was seeing. I found a souvenir store with a rather attractive young Japanese lady. I inquired into a product for sale and asked if it was 'omiagi', how many were in a box and whether they tasted good … all in Japanese. It was all rather fun and she was smiling a lot; she however wasn't a true 'saleswoman' as she replied 'no' to whether they tasted good. After a bit more probing she said that 'she hadn't eaten them, so she didn't know'. Why she said 'iie' (no) instead of 'tabe-masen' (have not eat) I do not know, all I know is saying that her English was great (after she said it wasn't very good) brought out a laugh and a smile. This I noted as a good 'plan of attack' when it came to Japanese women; I suppose it's like saying their hair looks lovely, only more original. As the weather worsened we chatted a little longer; I asked if she had a picture book for sale but alas, none was available; they did have post cards which I decided to have a 'think about'. With the wind picking up I left her to resume her work; I went to the closest underground station, trying to think of a plausible way of giving her my mobile number.

My hotel room was small, functional and bland; I could have been anywhere in the world. It mattered not, only the lack of a strong internet connection annoyed me and so I sat down, chilled and wrote yesterday's blog. Once 6pm came I headed back to the underground and back to the park.

It was like I had arrived at a whole new snow festival; sure the sculptures were all the same but, now illuminated buy different coloured lights, they had an altogether different feel. The only annoyance was that the wind had picked up and minor snow storms would occur every so often. Still in awe a gazed up at these pieces of art until I found the Audi stand. Music was blaring out a projector was projecting stars over the sculpture. It was very impressive; and then everything went quite...

What followed was truly unbelievable; the music picked up once more however the projector now projected an image of a car which fitted the sculpture perfectly. It was truly amazing and it really did look as though this 'snow car' was moving upwards and through many 'space aged'

settings. Once again my mouth was open, filling with snow, as I watched this two minute display of genius wondering what was going to happen next. As the projector showed the wheels turning it actually looked like they were! All too soon the show ended; a round of applause went up (as no member of staff was there, the applause was directed at the snow car) and, as I looked to my right, I noticed an information board stating “... check out the making of this video on Audi's facebook page...” I shall do just that.

Moving on I viewed all the same sculptures I had viewed previously. The ice sculptures were particularly impressive as they were lit up by coloured lights which showed all the little details.

Once again Sapporo's TV tower rose up in front of me. On my way I past the 'youths' throwing themselves into the air once more, though this time lit by spot light. I joined the tower queue and waited around thirty minutes until it was my turn to take the elevator to the top. The whole 'waiting process' had been very 'Japanese'; very well thought out, very logical and not that boring due to information panels, about the tower, being dotted around the queue. There was one of those annoying 'we will take your photo and then stick it on a fake background so you, a year on from now, can wonder why you paid an extortionate amount for a cheap quality souvenir' photo booths. As I had to go through this 'photo session', to get to the elevator, I had no choice; I gave a 'I'm not going to buy this tack' smile before heading towards the elevator.

The elevator had a small young Japanese woman in there giving facts about the tower in Japanese. As the doors opened onto the observatory I thanked her as no one else had. Due to the snow and the wind and visibility wasn't as great as I had hoped. My initial thoughts were of regret; maybe I should have waited until tomorrow. However, having no idea what the weather would be like tomorrow, this thought faded quickly as, at least, I could see the 'youths' still messing around with pieces of wood stuck to their feet. I took a few photos but didn't stay long. I got back into the elevator, said thank you again to the woman and walked past the 'photograph stand' without even looking. Once outside the wind was stronger than ever; I left the park and headed to a restaurant for a quick meal.

The Japanese are usually very polite however, I am in Japan's 5^th largest city and it would appear that politeness is reserved for only certain people. People in the service industry, for example, seemed to be treated liked they are only there to serve. Take the woman in the elevator for example, and now the girl serving within the restaurant. Many business men came in and the only words they issued were what they wanted; no thanks for serving me, no thanks for wiping the table. No; they seemed to think that it was there right for these things to happen, even though they were only spending around £4 each. I, on the other-hand, thanked the girl at every opportunity. I think she was grateful as she smiled a lot; I left the restaurant determined that “... manors cost nothing...” would be the next Japanese phase that I would learn.

Once outside the snow was falling more than ever. The wind was picking up and so I did one last circuit of the park before calling it a night; I had been up fifteen hours, with little sleep the night before. I went past my favourite survivor shop though, alas, with a sea of people my 'girl' was busy. Maybe tomorrow I'll give her my number.

After I finished walking I took one last look at the park before diving into the underground station. I bought some chocolate, a bottle of orange and a hot chocolate before reaching my hotel. My room was pretty cold but that didn't matter; I put the 'do not disturb' sign on the door, eat and drank my recent purchases, before getting into bed. I read a chapter of my book before turning off the light. As soon as my head hit the pillow I was asleep, dreaming of what I shall do tomorrow.

Toodle Pip!