Generally people will think of cherry blossoms when it comes to Japan. As a matter of fact, April is said to be the best time for it. However, visiting Hokkaido in the month of July, or may be early August is to witness different kind of blooming. There are a number of lavender fields across northern of Hokkaido but most famous is the one in Furano, or possibly the nearest to Sapporo which is about 2 hours drive away. For this next leg of journey, we rented a car for the ease of transporting as next few pitstops are scattered around the prefecture. Train can be still an option for intercity travel but personal car will give you more flexibility, with higher cost definitely.
Electronic bidet toilet would be the second thing when you ask me about Japam
I booked our car through tabirai.net and the confirmation was almost instant without any booking fee. No credit/debit card details was required. I was actually hesitant at first whether my booking did go through but afterwards I read that most of the car rentals sites in Japan rely on trust and honesty with their customers and hence, no prepayment for each booking. Surely enough, as we arrived at Times Car Rental in Otaru, we have our car ready, 8-seater Toyota Alphard. For the course of four days, the rental was 87, 320 yen (MYR 3313), insurance included. That excluded petrol and toll. We have a quick inspection on our car before commencing the journey further north. For Malaysians, international driving license is required, with a fee of MYR 150 (as of July 2019) and validity of one year.
Furano
Upon our arrival our arrival at Furano, we passed by Choei Lavender Farm and Nakafurano Flower Park and we decided to drop by. The hill was filled with multi-coloured flowers in which I didn't know their names with purple lavenders occupied the top of the hill. There was a chairlift that cost 400 yen for return trip to the top, alternative of walking up the slopy hill. Despite of the cloudy weather, the view from the top was still mesmerising, overviewing the green peaceful flat land of Furano. Not far from the park is the renowned Tomita Farm. The site seems to be more established with ample parking spaces, eateries and souvenirs shop. Obviously, there was more crowd at this farm compared to the previous park. The scale of the farm was way much bigger but it was unfortunate that the cloudy weather earlier progressed to shower hence we couldn't cover much. These farms were free to enter.
These green fields reminded me of Sekinchan
This is to use the chairlift to the top. Alternative is to walk up the hill.
Slowly ascending...
Posing against the magnificent serene view of Furano. There were few mountains in the background which were hidden by the clouds.
This park was smaller than Tomita Farm but not less charming. Minimal crowd allowed us to pace ourselves enjoying the flowers.
One of the sections for Tomita Farm
Lavender-flavoured Ice Cream to conclude our visit at the park
Asahikawa
Another hour drive away is the city of Asahikawa. Upon settling down at our stay, it was already dark and it was time for dinner. After much of searching, we decided to dine at one of the izakayas, which now I know it meant Japanese pub. That explained why the other customers were talking so loudly at the place because, essentially, that's what people do at the pub. We ordered hotpot and I found myself enjoyed grilling the squids.
Found this place through AirBnB. Japanese style home with only one toilet, with separated shower room.
Beef tongue. Nyums
Grilling squids. This wasn't my intended order but it turned out just as well.
The highlight of this part of Hokkaido was Asahiyama Zoo. The zoo was clean and the animals diversity was commendable; from penguins to seals; from monkeys to hawks, you name it. The park was accessible with 820 yen for adults. There was a crowd that was fascinated by "orang utan", native to our country. We strolled around the zoo for about three hours before driving off to another destination.
King Julian detected in Japan, and his clan
I think this was the first time I saw this species, and reminded me of Monkey character in Kung Fu Panda
Reindeer in the north, though Christmas duty was still months away.
I guess Ghost decided to retire here after Game of Thrones ended.
This polar bear was chilling at the edge after swimming around in front of the visitors
This penguin seemed to be going solo.
Trivia question: Can you tell the difference between emperor and king penguin?
You are able to see the animals up close, even when they are within their enclosure, like the seal here
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