Frozen in Hokkaido

Exactly one year ago today, February 4, I was in the middle of what I could only describe as the most beautiful and, at the same time, excruciating experience of my life: Sapporo's Yuki Matsuri (Snow Festival).



Maybe it's because I’m from a tropical island or because I just have a really low tolerance for cold weather, but going around the city was just torture. Really.

I have actually experienced snow before. In fact, just days prior to this Hokkaido (where Sapporo is in) trip I was in another snowy prefecture in Japan (Gunma---I will write about that one day). But by God, the amount of snow I saw there was just on another level. Consider these: entire cars were buried under snow. Instead of walking two short blocks from the train station to our hotel, my friends and I opted to just pay JPY700 for cab fare for the simple reason that we felt like we were going to die from the cold. Even friends from European countries said they have never seen that much snow in their life.

The cold was so bad that I spent half the time I was outside wishing to go back inside where it was warm, cozy and there was no risk of losing my ears to frostbite.

But I didn't, of course. After all, I was there to see the gigantic snow sculptures, the ice castles, and everything else the Yuki Matsuri had to offer. Also, as I said, as great was the pain the snow and the cold caused me, Hokkaido in winter is just magical. 

I distinctly remember being on a train and being mesmerized by how white and pure everything looked like. Framed by the train window, the snow-covered field with the occasional leafless trees jutting out looked like a painting. It was beautiful.

This ice sculpture was awesome

The famour Otaru Canal

ice castle

This tiny cabin saved us from dying of the cold while waiting for the bus.