Sapporo & Otaru

Otaru grew rich as a port and herring-fishing town, and its canal was completed in 1923 so that small boats could ferry goods between ships and the waterfront warehouses. When the herring industry declined in the mid-twentieth century, local glassmakers who had produced fishing-net buoys and oil lamps turned to tableware, and the town is now known for its glass. The canal-side warehouses were restored in the 1980s and given new uses.

Sapporo's Snow Festival began modestly in 1950, when local middle and high school students built six snow sculptures in Odori Park. Japan's Self-Defense Forces joined the sculpting in 1955, and an international snow sculpture contest was added in 1974. The festival has since grown into one of Japan's best-known winter events.

Snow shapes daily life in Sapporo for several months a year, and residents embrace it with festivals, winter sports and warming food such as ramen. Odori Park works as the city's living room, filling with locals at lunchtime in summer and at seasonal events throughout the year. Otaru keeps a proud port-town identity, with craft traditions in glass and music boxes, a strong sushi culture built on the local catch, and an affection for its restored canal.