(476) 3 day trip to Hokkaido

I visited Sapporo and Otaru with my wife from April 15^th to 17^th.

1st Day:
When we changed airplanes at Haneda airport, I made a mistake. I missed the transfer sign and I lost sight of my wife too. I got lost. I walked outside from the exit. Then I got a phone call from her. She was inside the airport and I was outside. I hurried to enter the airport again through security check. I got a phone call again from my wife. She didn’t have her ticket with her. Yes, I had her ticket with me. So she had to go out from the exit too. So this time, she was outside without her ticket and I was inside.

Finally we could meet again with the help of the airport person.  We wasted a lot of time for my mistake but we could make it to fly to Chitose.

This was our first trouble.

We arrived Chitise airport safely. Next, we got on the JR train to Sapporo. Then we arrived Sapporo around 1 pm.

We were hungry. We asked for a nearby Ramen shop at the tourist information center.

 

We entered Shirakaba Sanso shop. This shop was in Ramen-Kyowakoku republic on the 10^th floor of Esta building besides JR tower.

According to the leaflet, The shop chef said “You can’t go home without eating here!” True Sapporo miso ramen.” So we ate miso ramen. The soup was thick and hot. The ramen’s bowl was bigger than normal one. My stomach became full.

“Where shall we go next?” While talking about next plan, we noticed we had forgotten to get ANA skyholiday wakuwaku tickets at Chitose airport. We could use the tickets at food shops and tourist facilities. “We are in Sapporo now?” “Must we go back to Chitose?” “It’s a waste of time and money.” This was the second trouble in our trip. Anyway I though I’d better call Chitose ANA tourist counter.  I got a good news from them. They said that we could get the tickets at Sapporo ANA hotel too.

So ANA hotel Sapporo was our next destination.

The City of Sapporo was built to a grid pattern, and is the largest city on the island.

We got to ANA hotel very easily because of its grid system.

Yotsuba-white-koji café. At paseo in JR tower.

We had to wait to enter this café more than 20 minutes. We used Wakuwaku tickets here.
The ideal environment to raise happy health, snow-covered Hidaka stress-free cows.

From the mountains to the north cod, crystal-clear waters wind their way down through to plain, enriching the fertile soils of their vast green landscape.

We used another wakuwaku tickets to enter JR tower.

 

Next, we went to Sapporo Clock Tower.

This house was built 1878. It was originally called “Embujo”  - meaning a ‘military drill hall.

In 1881 a large clock was installed to renovate the tower of this building. It was later called the clock tower.

It was served as a drill hall for the Sapporo Agricultural College, which was the first institution for Agricultural Studies in Japan.

The second floor was used for physical education training as well as a ceremony hall.

The former   Hokkaido Government  Office Building

This old building was made of bricks. There were several chimneys on the roof.

2nd Day:
Lake Shikotsu and Lake Toya Round Trip
• Sapporo Station bus terminal
• Lake Shikotsu
• Hokkaido Kinoko oukoku Kingdom
• Lake toya Manseikaku Hotel (lunch)
• Mt. Usu and Showa Shinzan mountain
• Lake Toya Viewing Platform
• Nakayama Pass
• Teizankei Valley

Lake Shikotsu Visitor Center

A crystal miniature of lake Shikotsu.

Animal: Brown bear

 

View of Lake Toya from Mount Usu Ropeway.
Lake Toya and Showa-shinzan mountain.

Japanese butterbur sprouts (Fukinotou)

Male flower and female flower.Wikipedia says the bulb-like shoots are picked fresh and fried as tempura.

We went to Mount Usu Summit station by the ropeway.
From the station we walked up to Crater Basin Viewing platform.

Mt. Usu Crater Basin Viewing Platform.

We can see the summit of mount Usu. It is 733 m high.

We can see white vaper from the crater basin.

The crater is called Ginnuma Crater, the largest crater created by the 1977 eruption. 

Mount Youtei looks like Mt. Fuji.
Nakajima island in Lake Toya.

Showa-shinzan mountain.

The field rose into the steaming mountain in a little more than two years after the 1943 eruption of Mount Usu. But now I cannot see any steaming from Showa-shinzan mountain.

 

蔓性の隠元豆>虎豆 tora-mame bean (tiger bean)

隠元豆＞斑紋種＞貝豆 (Shell bean)

Mount Youtei

Nakayama Pass

White birch trees

We returned to Sapporo.
At Daimaru Department store.
One of my favorite characters.

3rd Day: Otaru

We bought seafood as suevenirs.

ホッケ　     Okhotsk atka mackerel
イクラ       salmon roe
本シシャモ  Shishamo smelt

Otaru Historical Scenic Dstrict

Otaru’s ordinance designates scenic areas arears of historical ad cultural importance that evoke Otaru’s unique character as the “Otaru Historical Scenic Distorict”.

Keep Out sign has Russian too.

Signal lights’ design is different from what we see in Matsuyama.
 

Otaru Canal from Asakusa bridge.

Completed in 1923, the Otaru Canal served its original purpose until the decline of the shipping industry.　In the 1980s,promenades and gas lamps were instlled.

Amato is a shop best known for sweets such as “Cream Zenzai”, renowned Otaru favorite, and “Maron Coron”, a crisp, three-layer homemade sable.

 

Museum of Finance (Former Otaru Branch of the Bank of Japan)

The guardian of the building
The Shima owl is one of the guardian deities of the Ainu people.
Ainu is the indigenous people of Hokkaido. Carvings of owls are on the pillars of the building. These owls used to keep watching over the Otaru Branch at night.

Sea of Japan from the window of JR train in Otaru.

Soup Curry for breakfast at Hotel


Jingisukan at Chitose airport.
Jingisukan is a Japanese grilled mutton dish.

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(475) Kidney Dialysis

Kidney Dialysis
  I was asked to help an American tourist communicate to a doctor when he has dialysis treatment at M clinic, here in Matsuyama. I’ve been a volunteer helper for non-Japanese people speaking English, who live in or visit Matsuyama city. Today I’d like to talk about this experience and a little information about the dialysis.

  Do you know what kidney dialysis is? I didn’t know anything about dialysis so I did a little research on it on the internet and I met him on April 3rd.

 

PIC. 2: HD HDF  Hemodialysis   Hemodiafiltration

 Dialysis is a form of treatment for patients with kidney failure as a result of kidney disease. Those patients experience a constant build up of toxins as a part of everyday life (eating, drinking, exercising, etc,).  Those would normally be extracted and excreted by their kidneys, but they have left the building, they use dialysis machines to do much of this job for them. M clinic uses on-line HDF machines.

Pic. 3: automatic dialysis machine GC-110N

The dialysis treatment can be administered in a specialized clinic. Dialysis in a clinic is usually performed three times a week, and last around four hours. Patients travel from home to the clinic, where they are taken care of by specialized doctors and trained personnel throughout the entire treatment. When not at the clinic, patients can lead as normal lives as possible.

On Monday, April 3 at 8:30, I was waiting for him at M clinic with a woman of M Center who was very worried about his arrival. She tried to contact him the day before but failed.

We got a phone from the nearby hospital. It said that he got to the wrong hospital with his mother. He finally arrived at 9:30, one hour late. He brought a medical letter about his dialysis treatment in the U.S.

We went upstairs. There were a spacious dialysis treatment room, which had about 35 beds, and a lounge, where patients’ family or friends can wait for them. But his mother and I were the only people in the lounge.

At the beginning of the treatment, I entered the dialysis room with him. His bed was the very end of the row of beds. About twenty patients had already started the dialysis treatment there. At the entrance of the room he was weighed on the scale. The doctor decided how much water must be removed.

Pic. 4: HDF diagram

He seemed to get used to the treatment. He replied to the doctor he didn’t have anemia. Two needles were stuck on blood vessels of his left arm. These needles were connected to the dialysis machine by tubes. One was for taking out his blood to the machine, and the other was for returning the blood to his blood vessel. When the nurse taped the needles on his arm, he took out his own adhesive tape to use. He said, “I’m allergic to other tapes.” He had been having dialysis for seven years, now 48 years old. He had two tiny lumps on his left forearm.

Pic.5: HDF picture & diagram

During the dialysis treatment he can listen to music with earphones or enjoy DVD on the small display above his bed. After explaining to him I left him and got out of the room. I spent time with his mother talking about various things from family members to President Trump. I didn’t get bored while waiting his treatment was completed. Time pasted so soon.

Just before noon, I was called by the personnel. When I got to the patient, he looked a little bit weak. He complained something to the personnel. I could hear him say “dry” and “cramp”. I asked him, “Are you thirsty?”  He moved his legs and his right hand to his chest. I translate his complain to the personnel.

Pic. 6: HDF drain water

 He quickly understood the complain. He stopped taking out water from his blood and checked his blood pressure. He also increased replacement fluid. His treatment completed 1:40 pm safely.

I was very surprised at three things. First, the American tourist looked for the clinic to have dialysis treatment after arriving Japan. How brave, positive and active he was! Second, the number of people having kidney dialysis because of kidney failure is bigger than I had thought. While waiting for the American at the clinic, I saw many Japanese patients arrive one after another by taxi. Third, today’s kidney dialysis machines can do several complicated work automatically. HDF(Haemodiafiltration) machine simulates the work of the kidney very well. I really hope further development in kidney dialysis treatment for patients with kidney failure.
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