Construction animals, ski jumps, and the German Christmas Market

I took a day off blogging, so I have extra photos for this blog.  On Thursday (Thanksgiving Day) I went biking up to the Ski Jumps from the 1972 Winter Olympics.  It is up by Moerenuma Park where there is a zoo and many other things.  It was 3 kilometers from our apartment.  On the way there I found the fish market that Tanioka-san showed us when we moved into our apartment.  It is a block long area where they sell seafood, mostly crab and fish.

 I found another construction barrier animal.  I don't know what this animal is.  Bre says, "perhaps it is a fox.'  I think it might be a Tanuki.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanuki  In my search to find what this animal could be I found this fascinating collection of construction barrier animals of Japan: http://idleidol.net/construction-barrier-animals/

 I found this sign at the park.  It has lovely rust marks on it.  In my home state of Idaho this would be caused by bullets from people using the sign for target practice.  In Japan I can't imagine that is the case.  I think the sign is telling you what you are not supposed to do.  No fires, no selling rice balls, no dog poop, ect.

 I found this monument at the park.

 Here is one of the wild streams of Hokkaido.  I have not yet found a river or stream that looks like it is doing it's own thing.  They are all like this, planned, straightened, and more.

 Here is one of the ski jumps.  It was the only one I photographed.  The green area at the bottom of the jump is the landing area.  The white part is the jump itself. 

 I found this stream near our apartment.  Bre asked if I was standing in the stream when I took the photo.  It is just a optical illusion, I was too cold to stand in the stream.  It was 1 or 2 degrees C when I was taking the photo.  Not a time to go wading.

 I like the train crossing gate.  It is easy to see.  In the first photo the white SUV looks like it is very close to the train, so I included a second photo so that you can tell there was not a collision.

 These photos are from Odori park as we went to the German Christmas market.  They have set up many Christmas lights in the park.

 This is the Sapporo TV tower.  It is in the center of Odori Park.  It has a giant clock so that it is easy to see the time.  The tower is 147 meters tall and you can pay to take a ride up to the 90 meter observation deck.  It is literally the center of Sapporo.  Most of the addresses in the city are based off their location relative to this tower.  For example we live at 16 North (Kita), 15 West (Nishi).  The numbers are counting the blocks from our apartment to the TV tower.  So it is quite easy to find your way around if you have the address of the place you are going.

 Here is a photo of some of the food for sale at the German Christmas market.  I tried the butter filled pretzel, hot mulled wine, and a sausage/hot dog on sauerkraut.  Having been to an actual German Christmas market in Berlin I would have to say it was slightly different in Japan.  There was a Japanese take on the food.  The portions were smaller, The butter filled pretzel left me feeling very buttery, but the hot wine on a cold night was just the same, tasty!  On a side note for all of you who have never tried hot wine, don't drink it like tea.  If you breathe in while sipping you will want to cough.  I resisted the urge to cough, avoiding a potential hot wine accident.

On the way back from the Chirstmas market we were shown the underground walkway from Odori Park back to JR station.  Walking underground where it is warm when it is cold outside is very nice.  Good thinking Sapporo!

That's all for now,

Kyle (and Bre)