Over the Sosei River

Sapporo – the prefectural capital of Hokkaido, Japan’s snow country.  Powdery snow coats all surfaces and where people or vehicles travel, it is packed down into a slippery layer, forcing people to step carefully.  Despite this, people wear normal shoes with seemingly little grip and not boots, cycle around and run to catch buses in heels.

Sapporo’s population is roughly the same as Metro Vancouver’s.  Downtown is centred around its Japan Rail Station and the city is easily walkable with its grid layout.

Wherever we went, be it a university or museum, the people spoke proudly of Hokkaido’s “frontier spirit” as a defining characteristic of the region.  At first, I  thought it sounded a bit antiquated in placing a bygone era on a pedestal, but upon reflection I see that this spirit is still alive today.

The snow that covers Sapporo for a solid few months is problematic is so many ways, but people here have overcome the unique challenges associated with it in order to live.  Major roads and intersections are heated to melt ice and prevent accidents.  Roofs are flat so snow blows off of them, instead of slanted, which would pile snow into a neighbour’s lot.  Snow that is cleared off roads and other places by the morning rush hour is trucked away to a dumping ground just outside the city.  

I think all the pains taken to resolve these problems, as opposed to simply moving away, shows that Sapporo’s population has some sense of pride and belonging to the city.  

And here, a few more shots depicting Sapporo’s “frontier spirit”.

A common sight in Sapporo

Sapporo Clock Tower, built in 1878. Its design follows American frontier lands architecture of its time.