Sapporo Snow Festival Part III

Finally, my last group of photos from the Sapporo Snow Festival. I wanted to include some things I'll never forget, like this amazing demo area for Japanese snowboarders and skiers.

There was some true talent but I'll never forget this lady, a girl who grew up in Hokkaido. She was amazing!

Sculptures of just about everything...

Including Disney's Frozen, obviously. There were about half a dozen Olafs.

These American Sailors with the US Navy who sculpted the USS Constitution.

Huddling around the heaters for warmth in the standing-room-only dining tents. Oh and speaking of survival - if you go, bring your own paper and hand towels for the loos. Public places, especially parks, don't provide. Yes, I just went there.

Milk Land! Hey, when in Hokkaido... (this is where most Japanese milk comes from, it is not unlike visiting Wisconsin if you're American)

How it inspires everyone - these were our Aussie neighbors and their masterpieces in Niseko

And this guy, who pretty much summarizes how I feel whenever I'm behind the wheel... just kidding.

Hope you enjoyed the little tour of the Sapporo Snow Festival!

Sapporo Snow Festival Part II

Hello again! Some more photos from the 66th Annual Sapporo Snow Festival. I love the realism in snow. They had snow artists from all over the world come and participate. Here are some more amazing sculptures. The scale is so hard to convey on this one, but it is about three stories tall



Rice harvest, one of my favorites

This is the snowy version of this Cathedral of Manila. source

The realism is shocking.

And then there are my favorite things I'll always remember, like this guy. I think he was representing wildlife preservation interest group, but I'm not sure since my language skills are not so refined.  He was a pretty great sport about posing for me!

And there's ice slides for the kids

The ice slides are sponsored by Cup Noodles

And this guy, I mean this in all seriousness, he is very dapper. I believe he is Sapporo's very own Ron Burgundy.

Sapporo Snow Festival Part I

It has been a crazy month trying to get things sorted for the move. It is insane how early you need to start with the logistics when you're moving stuff, family, pets, etc. Anyways, during the past month we managed to take a week off from all of that and head to Sapporo for the 66th Annual Snow Festival.

Now I know you're thinking, "what, isn't it almost Spring? I don't want to see snow!" but trust me, the snow sculptures were amazing. So amazing that I really took tons of photos. For the sake of sanity and not breaking blogspot, I will divide them into multiple posts and just include my favorites. So let's start at the head of Odori Park, the Shiryokan, a former courthouse.

We started at the farthest end and made our way to the the Sapporo TV Tower at the base of the park. The most northern portion are independent sculptures created by artists and volunteers. These were my favorite - so creative and detailed. Like this shrine:

Or this temple (if you are curious about Japanese temple design, this is actually a great starting point)

This guy is very popular (judging by his presence in McDonald's marketing over here) but I have no idea who he is:

Then come the main attractions.

This one below is an ice sculpture of Lungshan Temple in Taipei sponsored by the Taiwanese. Road to Parnassus, I thought of you!

Here's the original, for a good comparison. source

Then one of the more popular sculptures... I think this measures (just a guess) about three stories.

For scale

A couple more ice sculptures

Some odds and ends from around town. I couldn't find a sign but this building was amazing.

Sapporo TV Tower

More photos of Sapporo to come!

Seeking Peace and a Makeover

Lately I've felt a bit bombarded with to-do's, events and just general chaos. So sadly, I haven't had much down time to think about architecture or interiors. Niseko was a nice respite but getting back to the quotidian grind has been exhausting. I'm generally not one to complain but boy, I could use a nap! This looks like a good spot.

In spite of my best intentions, I find myself surfing the web in the few quiet moments I have. I've been really drawn to ivories, whites and neutrals lately. This is my favorite new scarf.

Some inexpensive vases I've been thinking about

Maybe a little comfort food while we're at it? I've been wanting to try this clafoutis recipe from one of my favorite food bloggers, Mimi Thorisson. By the way, have you seen her book? My copy finally arrived and it is sumptuous.

I have been starting to shop online a bit for somethings for our US House. I'm absolutely over our Japanese apartment. I once read that babies were usually the end of blogs. I can see that, they certainly require undivided attention for many hours of the day. But I think more so my decline in frequency is attributable to life being more complicated, and really not being excited about our very utilitarian house here in Japan. I find myself surrounded by what was a normal, even Spartan, amount of stuff which suddenly seems overwhelming. I'm not sure if you've ever shopped in Japan at places like Homac or Nitori but furniture here is more of the Ikea variety, maybe not as nicely made. I would say Muji is the exception as their things are very nicely made, but even they are quite minimalist. Occasionally I'll stumble upon a handmade furniture maker of cabinets or chairs or even the odd antique shop. These are exciting finds but otherwise, function tends to dominate form. But in that spirit, did you know Muji Japan keeps a design blog? It is called Idea Park and I saw this makeover the other day.

Before:

After:

Alright, off to finally get that nap!

Unpainted Inspiration - A Farm in Tuscany

After a long holiday in snowy Niseko, I've got pure whites on the brain! I saw this Tuscan farm, Villa Stabbia, of Danish born Tine Pedersen recently from The Horse Rider's Journal.

The couple, Tine and her husband Mario, turned their family home (documented to at least the 17th century) into a thriving equestrian business. What a great work-life balance.

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