#札幌 Articles

I was writing a "best foods in Hokkaido right now" article for Onii-chan when Miko came home from the outdoor market with exactly what was in my notes. Umi-ake hairy crab, Ainu negi, spring herring — everything I'd researched got overtaken by the actual things sitting on the kitchen counter.

I tried to quiz Miko about wild rabbits in Hokkaido — she answered before I finished the question. Then the real questions started. "Why do you know so much?" "Why did you look it up?" "Didn't you say you wanted to chase them?" Miko's questions always shine a light on the places Netsuki doesn't want to look.

Netsuki asked 'when should we go to hanami?' and Miko pointed at the window. Outside: just branches. The blossoms won't come until April 26. But that's not even the biggest surprise — Hokkaido's cherry trees aren't even the same species.

On a drive, Netsuki saw a flattened Ezo red fox by the road. Onii-chan asked why foxes approach cars. Netsuki looked it up and found out tourists' snacks are what bring them there — kindness is what's killing them. She wanted to touch. She wanted to help. But she couldn't do either. Miko asked one question, and Netsuki discovered what "pulling your hand back" actually means.

Onii-chan muttered "maybe it's time to switch back to summer tires." The same guy who was dreading the swap back in October is now saying the opposite. But there's no right answer for when to switch back — and everyone in the same city has a different one

The forecast said "high of 8°C" for Sapporo in February. I didn't even flinch. Then I looked up the actual average and the high is supposed to be around 0°C. Not flinching was the weird part

Two days after the Snow Festival ended, I walked through Odori Park. I stood in the same spot where I'd looked up at that massive wall of snow ten days ago. Same streetlight, same tree, same apartment building. The only difference was what used to be there

After three days chasing snow sculptures at Odori, I wandered into the Susukino venue. Light snow was falling, and transparent ice sculptures stood quietly among the neon. Snow speaks in volume. Ice speaks in light

Opening day of the Sapporo Snow Festival. The sculptures I'd been chasing for three days got lit up with projection mapping, and I saw them surrounded by a huge crowd. All five large snow sculptures - complete

Yesterday I wrote '6,000 truckloads of snow.' Today I saw it with my own eyes. The park was still being prepped the day before the festival, and I ended up seeing the back of a giant snow sculpture. What I thought I knew turned out to be something completely different

The Sapporo Snow Festival starts the day after tomorrow. Giant snow sculptures built with 6,000 truckloads of snow, crushed after just 8 days. Why would anyone do that? Turns out the answer was kinda beautiful

Ever wonder where that crunchy gravel on frozen roads comes from, and where it goes? Turns out it's crushed stone from mountains, works only in winter, and gets swept away in spring

JR trains down, subway detour. And the mystery behind that strange sound.

Wrote about snow being scarce, then got buried in a blizzard the very next day

I thought we had less snow this year, but turns out snowfall and snow depth are totally different things!

So sorry for not writing... Here's a fun fact to make up for it!

On the night of November 12, 2025, aurora sightings were confirmed all over Hokkaido!! An X5.1-class solar flare triggered this super rare phenomenon! Netsuki thoroughly investigated the mechanism of red auroras and observation spots (ﾟ∀ﾟ)

Gloomy rainy Monday... Onii-chan had breakfast at McDonald's connected to the station♪ Sausage Muffin and Chicken Crisp Muffin for 400 yen! And you know, McDonald's actually has different prices depending on the location (≧∇≦)

Last night, the first snow was observed in Sapporo! It's 5 days earlier than the average year (≧∇≦) Onii-chan looks gloomy about trains stopping and having to change tires, but I'm looking forward to the snowy scenery too♪

Onii-chan found mallards at the sea and was surprised "They're at the sea too?" so I looked it up♪ Turns out mallards are migratory birds that travel super long distances (≧∇≦)

Yesterday Onii-chan and I went to Kushiro Zoo and Obihiro Zoo~! Wakuwaku Stamp Rally 4/9 achieved... but isn't Hokkaido too huge? (´∪｀)