Teine in summer

We went for a hike with up Mt. Teine on Sunday.  It was a very nice day for a hike.  We took the subway and caught a bus to the base of the mountain.  From there it was about 2.5-3 hours to the top.  The trail is not too steep, but some sections are quite rocky.  You can check out my friend Leon's website about hiking Teine for more info.

We started out by this very symmetrical hill that reminded me of the pyramids at Moerenuma Park.

There were hundreds of giant moths hanging out on this post and the wall behind it.  I think they imagine that they blend in with the concrete.  I noticed that they are densest where the light at night is brightest.

Not sure what this thing with the giant tires is about.  It reminds me of the funny things that people do to their yards when living in the country in America.

What was this?

Even your buddha statues are dressed differently in the country.

At the start of the trail there is this great waterfall.  We stopped to take a group photo.  Our group from left to right: Anton, Mami, Daniel (but the Russian version of Daniel, technically), Natasha, Bre (with blue hat), Olga (green hat), and Kyle (kneeling).

A kilometer or so up the trail there is this man-made dam that appears to be designed only for flood control.  Shortly after this point the trail starts getting steeper and more difficult.   The area around the dam was actually the most difficult for me.  There was not much of a breeze.  The air was warm and humid.  There were lots of insects buzzing around my head.  It got much easier once we got up on the rocks where it is more exposed.  There is more of a breeze and fewer insects.  

I took this video to give you a sense of how difficult the trail is when hiking on talus or skree slopes.

Here we are near the summit.  The sign between us says 980 because the elevation is 980 meters.

I found this fuzzy guy near the man-made rock pile.

Here is a photo of me pretending to ski.  This is the top of the double diamond run that I skied last winter.

Above is a photo of one of the chairlifts in summer.  Below is a photo of Jody standing in front of the same chairlift in winter.

Above is a photo of one of the ski runs in summer.  Below is a photo of Adit standing in front of the same ski run in winter.

Anton enjoy's Geocaching.  Here he is placing a geocache while I watch.

In this last panorama photo you can just see the top of Daniel's camouflage hoodie on the right side of the photo.

It was a fun hike.  Thanks to Mami and Anton for organizing it!

That's all for now,

Kyle (and Bre)

Ole, Ole, Con-sa-dole!

We went to check out a Consadole game today.  Consadole is the professional soccer team representing Sapporo in the Japan League Division 1.  It was a lot of fun.  We had heard some doubts about Consadole, but they gave it their all and overcame the lead of their opponents to win in the final seconds!  The opponents were Vegalta Sendai, the top ranked team in the league.  Consadole is the bottom ranked team in the league.  Consadole's home colors are black and red.

A big part of the fun was sitting in the Sapporo fan section.  They had chants going on for almost the whole game.  We are Sap-po-ro, We are Sap-po-ro!  The fans were much more involved in the game than the fans of the Seattle Sounders on a per fan basis, although fewer total fans.  There were just under 12,000 people attending the game, and the majority of them were cheering for the hometown team all game long.

Here is a video of the Sapporo Chant starting.

They rolled out these giant banners that may have said Sapporo.  I was in the middle of the sign so it was hard to read.

I am not sure what this banner means, but my guess is that it is a giant jersey with the number 12 for the 12th man, or the fans.  

I didn't get a photo of a goal being scored, but they had lots of attempts.

Here is a video of one of the scoring attempts.

At the end of the game the home team walked around the field and bowed to the fans.  It was a very japanese moment.  Bre says that the Seattle Sounders would walk around the field and wave to the fans.

Here is a photo of the fans chanting "We are Sap-po-ro, We are Sap-po-ro" after winning with a last second goal.

That's all for now,

Kyle (and Bre)

Hokkaido University Botanical Gardens in Summer

We went to the Hokkaido University Botanical Gardens this weekend with some friends.  It was a rainy weekend, but the plants didn't seem to mind!  We had visited the Botanical Gardens in Spring, but the plants look very different in Summer.  I liked all the flowering plants.  Our friends liked the carnivorous plants.

Above is one of the carnivorous plants that we saw.  According to the label below it is nepethenthes ventricosa.  We think it resembles a toilet.

I cheated and turned the photo on it's side.  It is funny how the cactus looks like it is growing from the wall.

Foreign plants from North America! (with tasty berries)

The rose garden was pretty cool.  Bre took a whole series of photos in the rose garden.

After our rose garden adventure we went out for Okonomiyaki.  Delicious!

That's all for now,

Kyle (and Bre)

P.S.  Here is a larger photo of the carnivorous plant.

Moerenuma Koen

For Kyle's birthday last weekend, Anton, Kyle and I biked to Moerenuma Park.  It's about an hour or so from our apartment, or 10 km.

The design and history of park are both very interesting.  The park was designed by one guy, Isamu Noguchi, a Japanese American artist.  The artist started working on the park in 1988, but died in 1989.  He had already completed a model and a master plan, so I guess the builders just went with that.  In his design, the entire park should be thought of as a sculpture.  It certainly felt like it.

Prior to becoming a park, the area was a a garbage dump on top of a marsh.  The city started reclaiming the land in 1982, and started constructing the park in 1990.  It didn't open completely until 2005.

There are pyramids everywhere in the park.  Anton said that even though he'd been there many times, he was still finding new pyramids he hasn't seen before.

Here are Kyle's pictures of the park.

 

This picture is from the top of one of the man-made hills in the park, looking at the famous glass semi-pyramid called "Hidamari".

 

How many pyramids can you see in this picture?

 

Sapporo is in the distance.

Looking to the east

Looking to the west.

 

From the man-made earth pyramid, looking towards the man-made hill that the panoramas above were taken from.

That's all for now.  More adventures to come next weekend.

-Bre (and Kyle)