XploreJapan:Sapporo!

Sapporo (札幌, "important river flowing through a plain" in Ainu language) is the capital of Hokkaido and Japan's fifth largest city. Sapporo is also one of the nation's youngest major cities. In 1857, the city's population stood at just seven people.

In the beginning of the Meiji Period, when the development of Hokkaido was started on a large scale, Sapporo was chosen as the island's administrative center and enlarged according to the advice of foreign specialists. Consequently, Sapporo was built based on a North American style rectangular street system.

Sapporo became world famous in 1972 when the Olympic Winter Games were held there. Today, the city is well known for its ramen, beer, and the annual snow festival held in February

Hokkaido is the birthplace of beer in Japan. Sapporo Beer, one of the oldest and most popular beer brands in the country, has been brewed in Sapporo since 1877.The Sapporo Beer Museum (サッポロビール博物館, Sapporo Beer Hakubutsukan) was opened in 1987 in a former brewery from the Meiji Period. The museum introduces the history of beer in Japan and the process of beer making. After the exhibitions, beer tastings are available at a small fee. Alternatively, paid tours are held in Japanese tat include a tasting session at the end.Next to the museum is the Sapporo Beer Garden, which consists of a few restaurants. Among the restaurants are several, atmospheric beer halls, but also the more sophisticated Garden Grill restaurant. Popular in the beer halls are all-you-can-drink beer and all-you-can-eat mutton BBQ, a popular local dish named after the great Mongolian ruler Genghis Khan (Jingisukan in Japanese).

The Sapporo Snow Festival (Sapporo Yuki Matsuri) is held during one week every February in Hokkaido's capital Sapporo. It is one of Japan's most popular winter events.

The Sapporo Snow Festival was started in 1950, when high school students built a few snow statues in Odori Park. It has since developed into a large, commercialized event, featuring spectacular snow and ice sculptures and attracting more than two million visitors from Japan and across the world.The main site is the Odori Site in Sapporo's centrally located 1.5 kilometer long Odori Park. The festival's famous large snow sculptures, some measuring more than 25 meters wide and 15 meters high, are exhibited there. They are lit up daily until 22:00.Besides about a dozen large snow sculptures, the Odori Site exhibits more than one hundred smaller snow statues and hosts several concerts and events, many of which use the sculptures as their stage.A good view over the Odori Site can be enjoyed from the Sapporo TV Tower at the eastern end of Odori Park. The tower has extended hours (8:30 to 22:30) during the festival. Admission to the top observatory deck costs 720 yen per adult. A 1100 yen ticket allows a day visit and a night visit.

One of the parks at saporro is Moerenuma Park.Moerenuma Park (モエレ沼公園, Moerenuma Kōen) is a large park in the outskirts of Sapporo. Surrounded by a marsh, the park has a circumference of about four kilometers. The grounds are covered in attractive green space and there are massive, dramatic features that make the park a very unique public space.

The park owes its bold design to the renowned Japanese American sculptor Isamu Noguchi. Born in the United States, Noguchi spent a considerable part of his professional life in Japan and maintained a workshop in Takamatsu. In 1988 the city of Sapporo entrusted Noguchi with the creation of a park on the spacious grounds of a landfill. Shortly after the plans were completed, Noguchi passed away, but his designs were carried out and the park was opened to the public in 2005.

Shiroi Koibito Park is a famous theme park @Sapporo. The company's flagship product is the Shiroi Koibito cookie, which consists of two thin butter cookies and a layer of white chocolate in between. It is one of the most famous souvenirs from Hokkaido.

The park consists of a free area with a shop, cafe and restaurant and a paid area with various chocolate related exhibits and, most interestingly, a few large windows through which visitors can observe the cookie production process in the factory. It is also possible to create your own cookies in hands-on workshops. Another part of the Shiroi Koibito Park is a soccer field that serves as the practice ground for Consadole Sapporo, the local J-Leaguesoccer team.

Haskap.a local variety of edible honeysuckle, similar to blueberries, is a specialty in Sapporo. Other specialty dishes of Sapporo are soup curry, a soupy curry made with vegetables and chicken or other meats, and jingisukan, a barbecued lamb dish, named for Genghis Khan. Sapporo Sweets is a confectionery using many ingredients from Hokkaido and the Sapporo Sweets Competition is held annually.Sapporo is also well known for fresh seafood including salmon, sea urchin and crab.Sports

Thank You for reading this blog! Informations from Japanguide.com and Photos from google! regards ben!