Travel Japan Otaru

TRAVEL JAPAN OTARU

As you travel Japan, Otaru is not to be missed.   Fifty minutes to the north of JR Sapporo station in Hokkaido, and a 620 yen ticket will take you to Otaru port town.  Just to the left of the station main exit is the Sankaku Market, which cannot be missed because of the bright blue and red and white fishing flags displayed outside the entrance.  The people of Otaru are in this blogger’s opinion, some of the friendliest people in Japan.  As I asked directions to the Sankaku Market, a school girl most kindly went out of her way to walk us to the market.  The vendors were all very friendly, making us feel right at home.  What we found was a nice quantity and quality of seafood, both fresh and dried.  I purchased two king crabs to send to my relatives in Tokyo and Kumamoto.  The king crabs were live and swimming in the cold water, very large and full of crab meat and healthy.  The salmon was very fresh-probably just off the fishing boat that morning.  The seafood was very reasonably priced, as my delivery charge was more than the crab.  The oysters I saw looked very good, and the scallops were still alive in the tanks. 

We had lunch at a restaurant in the Sankaku market, a kaisen don or fresh seafood toppings arranged on a bowl of rice.  The toppings included botan ebi(peony shrimp sashimi), hotate(scallop sashimi), and lots of ikura(raw orange salmon roe).  The owner of the restaurant came in with the live scallops and the shrimp for the Kaisen don.  The toppings were so fresh and good that we forgot about the rice.  I ate the whole shrimps as the head and body were so sweet.  The scallops were full of flavor as they were alive only minutes earlier.  The orange salmon roe just popped in my mouth and released their great taste.  The kaisen don was reasonable too – only 1,300 yen.  It came with a steaming bowl  of seafood flavored miso soup and some shredded dried squid which the owner gave us as a side dish.  A one topping bowl of seafood on rice was as low as 400 yen, and quite a bargain.  The restaurant’s walls and ceiling were covered with pictures of happy people that had eaten at the restaurant. This is a Travel Japan Otaru recommended restaurant.

Several of the other vendors I visited were very friendly too. The ladies at both the fresh fish shop and  the sweets shop noticed that my wife walked with a cane and offered her a seat while I transacted the purchase and let us know the easiest way back to the station and that there was an elevator at the Otaru station.   Travel Japan in Otaru liked the small Sankaku market a lot. 

 

The Otaru canal was very nice as snow covered the enbankments of the canal.  The “orogoru” music box shop at the Otaru Bus Station had lots of interesting items for sale, and they offered “taiken” , a workshop where you could learn how to make a music box. 

On a previous trip to Otaru port, we visited a glass factory as Otaru is known for its glass making. Be sure to visit one when you're there.

As you travel Japan, Otaru is a must see!

For more information and pictures on Japan please visit http://www.traveljapan-us.com.