SAKANA ISSIN （魚一心）| Conveyor Belt Sushi Bar | Otaru

Otaru is famous for its fresh seafood. Even Kaitenzushi bars serve unbelievably high-quality sushi. Today I'll show you one of the recommendable bars.

"SAKANA ISSIN （魚一心）" is in "WING BAY OTARU （ウィングベイ小樽）", a shopping mall adjacent to JR Otaruchikkou （小樽築港駅）↓

This reasonable sushi bar is on the 2nd floor at Gobangai （五番街） in the shopping mall.

-Useful information-
This shopping mall has been renovated recently, and we can enjoy this discount service from the 22nd to 28th of June!! Hurry up, everyone!!! Hahaha!!

Well, let's enter it!

First, I enjoyed today's specials, especially fish caught off this area. Actually, the first two dishes were treated as Ike jime （活〆）, a special skill to drain blood from a live fish (from the above the gills and at the base of the tail) to keep it fresh. Sounds perfect to me!! 

■Fox jacopever (caught off Habomai)

This is very local fresh, and I enjoyed this fresh fish texture and taste!! 

■Flounder (caught off Kamienai)
I usually enjoy white meat fish first, and then oily fish...............

■Splended alfonsino
How wonderful this subtle sweetness is!　　　

■Tokishake (Salmon) (caught off Hidaka)
Salmon season is Autumn, right? Salmon in this season is still young, and contains more nutrient and condensed delicious fat! I love it!!

■Sea bream
Did I eat a lot? But I cannot miss my favorite↓ I ate it with salt, not say sauce so that the original taste can easily stand out!

Next, I ordered three pieces series!

■Shellfish three brothers
Scallop, Sakhalin surf clam, and whelk are popular local shellfish! All of them are very fresh and tasty!

■Grilled fish three brothers
My favorite salmon, scallop, and fluke fin are slightly grilled, and topped with thinly-sliced Naganegi leek! I like raw sashimi, but always ordered grilled sushi so that I can compare the difference each other!

■Toro three brothers
This salmon tasted compeletely diffrent from Tokishake or grilled salmon! Interesting!!! Of course two kinds of chu toro (high-quality tuna) were very delcious!

Do you have any idea how much it is totally?

↓

↓

↓

It was about 2,000 yen!!!

Why don't you enjoy sushi at a reasonable price like this?

■Where is "WING BAY OTARU （ウィングベイ小樽）"?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Mathematics Walking Trail （数学の道）| Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園）

Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園） is located about 30 km north of Hakodate, the third largest city in Hokkaido. This park consists of Mt. Komagatake, an active volcano, and three lakes; Lake Onuma （大沼）, Lake Konuma （小沼）, and Lake Junsai （じゅんさい沼）, all of which were formed through a volcanic activity about three hundred years ago.

This park is so picturesque that a lot of tourists as well as artists and celebrities often visit this area!

See?? It's beautiful!!

One of the fans is Heisuke Hironaka （広中　平祐）, a worldwide mathematician who got a Fields prize! He loves this park, and named a walking trail by Lake Onuma the "Mathematics Walking Path （数学の道）"↓

Every year the "Ingenuity Seminar （創才セミナー）" is held at the "Hokkaido Onuma International Seminar House （大沼国際セミナーハウス）"↓, and elementary and junior high students, who are the winners of the Mathematics Olympics, are invited to this activity.

Let's walk along the walking path for a while!

Wow! We've found some holes which were made by brown beers!

Look at the hole made by black woodpeckers! Now a different bird is using it!

We really enjoyed the walking path with a nature guide!

P.S.
Would you like to try very local sweets? Located near JR Onuma Koen Station （JR大沼公園駅）,

Friendly Beer （フレンドリーベア）, a souvenir shop, serves very unique flavors of soft ice cream, such as

milk, chocolate, Toyoura Strawberry （豊浦いちご）, Yubari Melon （夕張メロン）, and Squid Ink （いかすみ）!!!!!

Of course, I tried it!!!Hahaha! It's really recommendable! Have you tried squid ink pasta? It's delicious, right? Why not squid ink soft ice cream???

■More information on the Park

Please refer to my other posts!

・ Island Tour Walking Path (50 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Sunset Walking Path (25 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Oshima Island Walking Path (15 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Sightseeing Boat Tour (30 minutes)→→Please click here!

・ Beef Restaurant→→→Please click here!

・ Microbrewery's beer→→→Please click here!

■Where is "Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園）"?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Oshima Island Course （大島の路）| Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園）

Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園） is known for its scenic beauty containing Mt. Komagatake （駒ケ岳） and lakes such as Lake Onuma （大沼）, Lake Konuma （小沼） and Lake Junsai （じゅんさい沼）. As one of the oldest quasi national parks in Japan covering an area, equivalent to Kanagawa prefecture, this park is refereed to as the birthplace of a resort in Hokkaido.

Four attractive walking courses let us explore the lakes' peninsulas and 126 islands, several of which are connected with each other by small bridges, in easy 15-60 minute walks. Now, I'll show you the "Oshima Island Course （大島の路）", which is the flattest and shortest walking trail of the four.

First let's cross Nishiooshima Bridge （西大島橋） near a sightseeing boat landing-place.

We can enjoy small islands and Mt. Komagatake along the walking trail.

Between Nishioshima Bridge （西大島橋） and Higashi Oshima Bridge （東大島橋）, there is a famous view point like this↓ Very beautiful, isn't it?

Do you know "Please do not stand at my grave and weep"? Writer unknown.

A then-12-year-old girl read this poem at Ground Zero for many who died in the 9/11 attacks, and instantly moved a lot of people throughout the world.

Man Arai （新井 満）, a famous writer, translated the poem into Japanese, while feeling a thousand winds in this park. "To be a thousand winds （千の風になって）" sung by Masashi Akikawa （秋川　雅史） was a big hit in Japan several years ago, and this monument was contracted in the view point by the lake↓

Just for reference.....................

Please Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep

I am not there, I do not sleep

I am in a thousand winds that blow

I am the softly falling snow

I am the gentle showers of rain

I am the fields of ripening grain

I am in the morning hush

I am in the graceful rush

of beautiful birds in circling flight

I am the star shine of the night

I am in the flowers that bloom

I am in a quiet room

I am the birds that sing

I am in each lovely thing

Do not stand at my grave and cry

I am not there, I do not die

We had a very peaceful moment in front of the monument for a while!

Well, well, well, let's move on to the walking tour!

The trail is very flat, and even children and elder people can enjoy this course.

Located near the end of this walking path, Tai Park （太公園） has a big fishing pond, where we can enjoy carp fishing!

Yes!!
Local high school students enjoyed fishing while we had the tour. They talked to my tour guests in English! Nice try!!!

It takes only 15 minutes to walk along the trail. Please enjoy the birch and maple forest along Lake Onuma!

■More information on the Park

Please refer to my other posts!

・ Island Tour Walking Path (50 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Sunset Walking Path (25 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Mathematics Walking Path→→→Please click here!

・ Sightseeing Boat Tour (30 minutes)→→Please click here!

・ Beef Restaurant→→→Please click here!

・ Microbrewery's beer→→→Please click here!

■Where is "Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園）"?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Sightseeing Boat Tour （遊覧船）: 30 minutes | Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園）

Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園） is dominated by Mt. Komagatake （駒ケ岳）, an active volcano about 1,200m high, which is the easiest recognizable feature of the landscape in this part of southern Hokkaido. The name Onuma refers to the large number of swamps, wetlands, and lakes at the base of the volcano.

There are sightseeing boat tours offered once a hour, lasting about 30 minutes (960 yen per person).

Scenery from the boat was marvelous!!

126 islands are dotted in the lakes. Amazing, aren't they?

Is it a rock or an island? Hahaha!

Voila!
Look at Mt. Komagatake (1,132m), which local people believe looks like a horse back.

If you book a sightseeing boat in advance, you can enjoy an English announcement service on the boat! My tour guests and I could learn a lot about this park through this service!

Each island has each characteristics! We had a wonderful experience to see these islands which we cannot see from the walking trails!

We enjoyed the mountain from several different angles!

Super beautiful, isn't it?

The boat has a small deck, and we can enjoy the wonderful scenery with comfortable fresh breeze! Now is the best season to see azaleas!

Time flies so quickly!

We really enjoyed the sightseeing boat tour!!

■More information on the Park

Please refer to my other posts!

・ Island Tour Walking Path (50 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Sunset Walking Path (25 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Oshima Island Walking Path (15 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Mathematics Walking Path→→→Please click here!

・ Beef Restaurant→→→Please click here!

・ Microbrewery's beer→→→Please click here!

■Where is "Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園）"?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?I'll guide you! Plz click here!

Sunset Course （夕日の道）| Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園）

Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園） is a 90.83 k㎡ on the Oshima Peninsula （渡島半島） in southwestern Hokkaido. The park encompasses Mt. Komagatake as well as Lake Onuma （大沼）, Lake Konuma （小沼）, and Lake Jyunsai （じゅんさい沼）, which abut against the west slope of the mountain.

These lakes were created when mudflows due to eruptions of Mt. Komagatake dammed up depressions at the base of the mountain, now are dotted with watershields, and surrounded with birch and maple forests.

The park's most attractive area is located among three lakes. Four attractive walking courses let us explore the lakes' peninsulas and 126 islands, several of which are connected with each other by small bredges, in easy 15-60 minute walks.

Now, I'll show you the "Sunset Course（夕日の道）" among the four! It takes about 25 minutes to walk around Lake Konuma.

Let's park a car near Pension KAZA （ペンション風）, and walk around the small lake!

Compared to Lake Onuma, there are not a lot of tourists here, and we can enjoy the nature in a peaceful atmosphere!

Look at the lake! We can easily find wildlife such as carps and

tadpoles in this lake.

This is Konuma Bridge （小沼橋）. There are two bridges in this area.

When you come to Lake Konuma, please make sure to visit this view point!

It is beautiful in the day time, but.......................

It is more beautiful at dusk. That's way this walking trail is named the "Sunset Path".

P.S.

Would you like to try local sweets? Located near JR Onuma Koen Station （大沼公園駅）,

there is Numanoya （沼の家), a long-established local sweets shop founded in 1905.

They serve dumplings with sweet soy sauce, sesame, and red bean paste like this↓ Personally I recommend soy sauce and sesame source combination (right) rather than soy sauce and bean paste combination (left)!

■More information on the Park

Please refer to my other posts!

・ Island Tour Walking Path (50 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Oshima Island Walking Path (15 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Mathematics Walking Path→→→Please click here!

・ Sightseeing Boat Tour (30 minutes)→→→Please click here!

・ Beef Restaurant→→→Please click here!

・ Microbrewery's beer→→→Please click here!

■Where is "Onuma Quasi National Park （大沼国定公園）"?

View Larger Map

■Tour guide information■

Do you need a nationally-licensed English-speaking tour guide when you travel to Hokkaido?I'll guide you! Plz click here!