June 13

Travel Day to Hakodate


Well, that was an easy day!  We rode about 4 km (in a light rain) to the ferry terminal in Aomori.




We were there by about 9:15 for a 10:15 ferry departure.  The ferry ride itself was almost four hours.  Very uneventful.  Got lots of reading done.  I love that the ferries have many large rooms available for people to lie down, stretch, sleep, etc.  More comfortable for me than sitting in a chair for that long.  

At the Hakodate end, we rode about another 6 km to our hotel.  Checked in, etc. and were ready to go and explore a bit by about 4.  Apparently Hakodate is known for Lucky Pierrot burger places, so we stopped at one on the way to our little hike.  Not many burgers available, but all manner of other meats on buns; I had Chinese Chicken.  The most surprising element was the place itself.  Just a little hole in the wall, but absolutely overrun with Christmas characters and knick-knacks.  And - Christmas music playing.  Apparently not all locations have the Christmas theme, but the one we stopped at is known for it.





Then we were off to Mount Hakodate.  There is a gondola up, but four of us chose to walk up - about 2.5 km and 300m.  There was a really good trail through a beautiful lush forest; very nice.  Just as we got up there, the clouds started to roll in.  The other three left after a bit, but I stuck around until after sunset.  Glad I did; the cloud totally dissipated and the views were lovely.  A sampling of the pics.









The place sure was crowded the darker it got.  I left just as the city lights were starting to come on.  It really is a nice view; said to be one of the top three in Japan.


No big plans for tomorrow.  Maybe rest a little bit on our last rest day of the trip.........



Hakodate

Population:  240,000

AI Overview:  Hakodate is a major, historic port city in southern Hokkaido, renowned for its spectacular night views from Mount Hakodate, fresh seafood (especially squid), and a unique blend of 19th-century Japanese and Western architecture.  Key attractions include the star-shaped Goryokaku Fort, the Motomachi district, and the bustling Morning Market.  Hakodate was one of the first Japanese ports opened to international trade in the mid-19th century.  

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