We woke up nice and early to rain. I love rain but, kind of makes it annoying on travels. So we went to the local convenience store ‘combini’ Lawson and bought some umbrellas. Then we headed off, it was about a 2 hours drive today to Furano. On the way we stopped for a toilet break and a little walk to see a river rapids set against the beautiful Hokkaido forests.
Then we got to Furano, it was pouring rain so there wasn’t much we could do. We went to the hotel which is in fact the largest in the area with flower gardens, golf courses, ski resort, ropeway, village of arts & crafts and hot springs. So it kinda was okay for entertainment. It isn’t winter yet though so there was no snow to enjoy the ski stuff. We had lunch and ate Furano’s special, Omelette Curry then we checked into our rooms. In our rooms a Teru Teru Bozu (literally meaning ‘Shine Shine Monk’) sat there which is a Japanese quirk in wishing for the rain to go away.
After the rain settled down a little we decided to go to the cheese, pizza and ice cream factory as it’ll be indoors. It wasn’t too flash but the cheese ice cream was delicious and so was the freshly wood-fired pizza.
Squid Ink Cheese
Wine Cheddar
Then we went back to the hotel to investigate the forest next door. There, nestled amongst trees sits a famous cafe which was the scene for a famous drama in Japan. It was adorable. I loved the branch handrails. We enjoyed tea and coffee and a warm room to rest in. I personally want to steal all the ceramics still….. these tea cups oh my.
I decided to go for a lonely stroll as everyone else shaded away from the rain. I found myself in a field of flowers and then a little village called Ningle Terrace where fifteen log cabins sat with different arts and crafts in each one. Just my area. ‘Ningle’ apparently is a name for the little people of Hokkaido that live in the forest and are 15cm tall. They are known as the ‘wise people of the forest’ and are obviously fairytale creatures before anyone gets carried away. Haha, I loved it though – I thought I stumbled into a real life set of a movie made by Studio Ghibli.
Understandably, I wasn’t able to take most of the personal crafts in each of the lodges but there was leather craft, wool craft, metal work, cards, candles, woodwork, percussion instruments, string, silver etc. absolutely amazing and talented.
Then we went back to enjoy a dinner degustation at the hotel. It was surprisingly really delicious. I was allergic to a lot of things so I had to get it swapped out but damn I still got a reaction. I really can’t live in Hokkaido with my sensitivity which is a shame because it is a beautiful place. At the end of the meals I got to enjoy a lavender tea which is one of my favourites. It reminded me that I have to go and get some more lavender tea leaves while I’m here (I was gifted my current bag which is when I fell in love with the tea).
After being stuffed to the brim, these little porky pigs had to go boil up and tenderise in the hot springs. It was so refreshing and the facilities here were clean and large. For anyone looking to come to Furano, Prince Hotel was pretty well accommodating.
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