This goes under the “only in Japan” department.

The "Segway Ski" enables skiing on flat dry surfaces like concrete.

This fancy set of kicks features auto-balancing technology similar to the Segway. Hopefully they will have it perfected by May in time for the snow melt!

Check out Engaget’s article on the technology at work.

Some days it is rather hard to find a blogworthy topic. Today is not one such day.

Introducing Furano Parkside Chalet’s American-style BBQ. I will let the photos do the speaking.

FLAME ON! This unit has heavy cast-iron, adjustable diffusers for maximum grilling satisfaction.

Hiro is grillin' and chillin' Hokkaido style. Note the teppan on the left and the California grill on the right... two handed action for pros like Hiro only!

Bobby Flay wishes he could get onions as phat as in Furano. On the left hand side we have a big pile of Hokkaido's definitive summer dish, Genghis Khan lamb and veggies.

Dessert anyone? The cherry tree in our private garden is ripe for the picking (so to speak)

Hello blog readers, just thought you might want to know that the Furano Shizen Juku Ecological Interpretation Park English website is now fully online. You can see details of their programs here:

http://furano-shizenjuku.yosanet.com/english.html

I had the opportunity to tour the park and be one of the first participants in the “forest restoration” project a few years ago. The goal of the program is to return an old golf course to a natural forested state, paying special attention to the natural growth patterns of trees in this climate. Compared to square grid “reforestation”, the results of this “forest restoration” are astounding, and it is hoped that this technique will result in more advanced ecological restoration techniques, that can even be used to add natural green space in the middle of cities.

Forest Restoration Project

Did you know that you too, like the three little pigs of legend, can build a house out of bales of straw? (Visitors to the area can see a small example of this form of eco-architecture inside Furano’s Alpine Visitor Center.)

Toby, our Niseko Manager from last season, is going to attempt to build his new house in Higashikawa (near Asahi-dake) using this method. He’ll be hosting a straw bale architecture workshop on August 1-3, in collaboration with Stefan Bell, who is not only an expert in the field of building with straw, earth plaster and other materials, but also a professional juggler. This has the makings of an environmental, educational, and entertaining event — contact Toby through his blog if you’re interested in attending!

SWEET UPDATE: Check Toby’s Blog for a number of action shots… congrats on the roof and the brew!

Hope it drinks as well as it keeps the rain off!

The fall leaves began changing about 2 weeks ago, and now they are almost finished. That can only mean one thing…snow is just around the corner. The Furano Ropeway (the fastest 100-person gondola in Japan!) is closing summer operations this Sunday, October 19th. I’m thinking of going up tomorrow with my new digital SLR, hiking around a bit, and snapping a few pics of the ski runs without snow on them. Once the snow hits it hits hard.

The Yuki Mushi or Snow Bugs were out in full force yesterday. According to local folklore, these are a “reliable” predictor of the first snow fall. After seeing the yuki mushi, the snow will reportedly come within 7-10 days. Stay tuned, and we’ll report back with scientific accuracy to verify this for you.

Yuki Mushi!

I’ve just finished participating in a local drama production of King Lear. This was a modern, Japanese adaptation, full of rock music, and Lear dressed as a biker. I played the Fool, got to dress in a kimono, and pretended to be a traditional Japanese comedian. Had a great time. That’s all I’ve got to say about that.

On Furano Ropeway

We planned our holiday to Furano in summer for a mix of relaxation, fun for our two year old daughter Sienna, and showing my mother the local flowers. We were blessed with beautiful weather that woke us up (at 4.00am, or should I say woke up Sienna our daughter) with sunshine every morning. Coming from Hong Kong we appreciated the clear fresh skies, and low humidity. Our regular morning walks had us saying hello to the locals, smelling the fresh bread for sale at the farmers market, and hearing the rush of gas as the hot air balloon lifted up high to capture a view of the township below.

Braving the single track with Chuck

We had a week to enjoy the flowers that make Furano famous, taste all the yummy food and appreciate the magnificent scenery around. Well we accomplished all! My husband even snuck in a cheeky mountain bike ride under the guidance of Chuck the local instructor. The single track looked amazing in his photos, passing by rivers and through forests.

The girls set off to tour the local farms, in search of lavender along with the bus loads of other tourists also in the area. Farm Tomita was our first stop, and by far and away the best of them all. My mother wandered off to marvel at the colours and smells of the lavender (really the main reason everyone is there, there are other flowers too but these aren’t rated as highly). Sienna (our two year old) and I went straight to the ice cream vendor. Ice cream is highly decorated in Japan in summer, and in Furano they make lavender flavoured ice cream to celebrate the lavender season. We stuck to vanilla, and thoroughly enjoyed sitting on the bench overlooking the fields of flowers with ice cream melting down our faces and hands. There are plenty of souvenir stalls also selling everything possible in lavender (soaps, pens, cakes) and this is where we found my mother, a bag overflowing of lavender perfume, notebooks and pencils.

Flowerland was another farm we found that’s worth a visit. It had a little petting farm for Sienna to play with a few animals, and a tractor pulling a train around the area for people who wanted to save their legs. Mum rated the flowers there pretty highly, and once again they had a farmers market to buy corn, potatoes, pumpkin and ice cream.

We got excited on one drive just out of town when we passed Lake Takisato. It was fabulous, a huge lake (actually a dammed part of the Sorachi River which passes through Furano). There was a massive campground right beside this gorgeous lake and we stood there planning a camping trip there next year. It seems on further research that you can only camp during August, quite strange since the summer months of June, July and September would be great for camping too.

Our food tour of Furano took us to the best sushi train going round. The freshest, most tender and delicious sushi is available there at super reasonable prices. Masaya’s was our second restaurant stop another night for unforgettable okonomiyaki. Ordering the flame cooked spare rib was a treat as Masaya cooks it up on hot plates right before your eyes. The radish salad was also a knockout.

A highlight of our week was the Heso (or Bellybutton) Festival. It’s an annual event where locals form teams (usually corporate or sports teams) and paint their chests to represent a face. All sorts of faces appear, some smiling, some poking their tongues out. Participants then cover their heads with a big hat and do a dance in unison with their team mates while walking down the main street of Furano. The town stops for this event, which is held over two consecutive evenings. Music, food and local produce stalls make the event full of excitement and colour.

We had the pleasure of cheering on my husband who joined a local team and had a great time mixing with the locals for an evening (and dressing up in body paint!) The international team, sponsored by the Furano Tourist Association, also made a big appearance with dozens of visitors from overseas joining in the festivities.