TeetooWe woke up to another beautiful morning with super blue cloudless skies. Great day for a stroll – so we decided to walk all the way to Cape Noshappu. We got some snacks and drinks from the tourist centre since the Seicomart konbini is still bare with no delivery since the earthquake.
We got some cute little bottles of Hokkaido milk (稚内牛乳) on the go too. That milk out to be the best milk we ever had – thick and creamy. Dunno the name but remember the bottle.
Walking along a small bike lane along the picturesque coastline, there were kelps (seaweed) being sun-dried, uni (sea urchin) shells and were constantly greeted by gawking sea birds. Dotted along too were old trawler boats, small quaint houses and fishermen hoping for a good catch. Serenity was in our hearts. It is a Japan the polar opposite of busy Tokyo. This is the holiday we wanted.
Soon we passed the JASDF Wakkanai Sub Base, a Japan Self Defence Force base but alas didn’t spot any military equipment coming in or out. As we neared Cape Noshappu – there were lots of small eateries but we were a tad too early. All of them were closed.
Turning a corner, we met a herd of wild ezo sika deers (Hokkaido-based deers which were much larger than those in Honshu) with a large male staring at us, while the lady deers were busy grazing. We waited awhile till they had their fill as they outnumber us – and with sharp horns.
Soon after the deer encounter, we finally reach Cape Noshappu (Noshappu Misaki ノシャップ岬). The cape area is unmistakable because there is a statue of a dolphin looking at a clock, which apparently is a “must see” place… nothing much.. just a statue.
Nearby there is the Noshappu Aquarium and Wakkanai Lighthouse which the 2nd tallest lighthouse in Japan. The candy-cane colours were in contrast to the azure blue sky and it was a sight to behold. There was a small tourist centre / eatery / souvenir all in one building and bought snacks and deliciously creamy ice cream. We had our little picnic together with the dolphin and nobody else. The whole place all to ourselves.
After our little santai (picnic), we made our way back via another loooooong straight road. We picked up more bites from the Seicomart konbini to fill our tummies. We were famished by the time we reached the Wakkanai Train station so we randomly sat ourselves to the nearest little ramen store and had the cheapest and largest ramen ever at 400y. As a filler, it worked perfectly.
For dinner, we wanted sushi since Wakkanai is a port town. So we scour the streets of Google maps for a seafood shop. There were two within walking distance. Not having an abundant of choices, we settled for a more “rustic-feel” entrance of a shop to dine. We later learnt the shop name is Seafood Izakaya Take-chan (location).
Once inside – smoke, sound and beer filled the place.. it was a seafood/izakaya place. We sat ourselves at the counter and a guy who was drinking and smoking approached at the counter – oh… he’s the chef himself. LOL.
When our food was served, we devoured the sushi and the wonderful hotate (scallop) soup like the raksaksa attacking the town while the chef was back to his drinking/smoking/chatting. The atmosphere was friendly / chatty with the local banter. According to the chef, it was uncommon, if any, Malaysians that come dine at his restaurant.
Amazing lazy day. And we clocked 15km too.