When I was enjoying squid at the morning market, the old man who was still sleeping finally woke up and joined me. When I told him I had eaten squid, he started complaining. "It's your fault for not waking me up," he said with a laugh. At the old man's request, we went to Goryokaku. When you come to Goryokaku, you have to climb the tower to understand that pentagon shape. I thought it was okay since I had been here last year, but I didn't want to upset the old man any further, so I bought tickets and went up. Well, no matter how many times you see it, it's still impressive. I'm not really interested in history or knowledgeable about it, but I think it's amazing how they created such a beautiful shape with the surveying, civil engineering, and architectural technology of that time. Where did the people who fled have the time and resources to build this castle? But since I'm not interested, I didn't dwell on it and just looked around before going back down and browsing the souvenir corner. The old man bought some souvenirs for his grandchildren, and I bought a cider because I was thirsty. It was a practical purchase. It was a Shinsengumi cider, probably inspired by the blue of the Shinsengumi. It did have a slightly different taste from the usual cider, but I don't have the literary talent to describe it in words, so please just imagine it by looking at the bottle.笑笑

Everyone loves sakura soft serve ice cream! Some people may have preferences for sakura flavor, but sakura soft serve ice cream is really delicious~ I always order the mix, vanilla and sakura are the best combination. I love spring so much, and I'm glad I could come to Hakodate this year. I'll definitely come back next year to have it again (*^^*).

It's really starting to feel like spring. I took a walk along the Hirosegawa River and saw butterbur sprouting on the riverbank. I'm going to have butterbur tempura with a drink today (laughs). When I visited Goryokaku, I remembered that I had bought craft beer. It's called "Hop Sparkle" and it's made with 100% Hokkaido-sourced ingredients, with hops from Kamifurano, barley and wheat from Abashiri. It has a fresh hop aroma and a refreshing bitterness.

One of the top 100 famous castles, Goryokaku, can be reached by taking a streetcar from Hakodate Station. The streetcars come one after another, so the waiting time is short. It's not as frequent as the streetcars in Kochi, though (lol). First, let's climb up the Goryokaku Tower. You can see the beautiful star-shaped Goryokaku from above using the elevator. The history of Goryokaku is explained clearly through panels and models. There is a story about a warrior who caught a bullet with a chopping board... Is that true? The elevator is one-way, so you have to go down the stairs to the lower floor before taking it. There was a shop there. My grandchildren wanted to eat something, so we bought orange juice for the older one and crushed jelly soft serve for the younger one. However, there was no seating available. I thought we could go down and sit while eating, but it turns out that bringing soft serve into the elevator is prohibited. They should have told us in advance!! The grandchildren ended up eating while sitting on sticks, which was quite unstable (lol). The school trip students also hurriedly ate their soft serve and headed to the elevator. If you look closely at the menu, it says in small letters that you cannot bring soft serve into the elevator. I didn't read that far (T ^ T) Mistake! Mistake! Thank you for the meal.

This is the souvenir shop at Goryokaku Tower, located on the first floor and at the top of the tower. I tried the Shinsengumi soft serve ice cream, inspired by the light blue color of the Shinsengumi. It has a refreshing ramune flavor. Enjoying this soft serve while taking in the stunning view is truly a delightful experience.

During cherry blossom season, I visited Goryokaku and had tea time at the café inside Goryokaku Tower. I enjoyed a Sakura Latte while admiring the view of Hijikata Toshizo. The latte had a creamy texture with a hint of cherry blossom flavor, just as I had imagined.

After enjoying a burger at the first stop, "Rappy," and dropping off our luggage at the "Hakodate Kokusai Hotel," we set out to explore the city of Hakodate. We took a streetcar, reminiscent of the ones in Sendai, towards the Goryokaku Tower. Despite accidentally missing our stop due to chatting with my youngest daughter, we eventually arrived at the Goryokaku Tower after a 10-minute walk. The Goryokaku is a Western-style star-shaped fortress, known for its stunning view when the 1600 Somei Yoshino cherry blossoms bloom in spring. There's even a theory that the burial place of the Shinsengumi's Hijikata Toshizo is located there. We climbed up to the observation deck of the Goryokaku Tower to admire the view and take photos with the bronze statue of Hijikata Toshizo. However, the height made us a bit dizzy, so we quickly descended to the first floor to explore the souvenir shop. While there are large souvenir shops on the ground floor, we opted for items only available on the upper floors. My daughter particularly enjoyed the "Hokkaido Cheese Inpuff Tarako Flavor" and the "Goryokaku Tower Dream" chocolate, shaped like the Goryokaku fortress. The cheese puff with tarako seasoning was addictively delicious, and the chocolate was a delightful souvenir with detailed information about Hakodate. Little did we know that my condition would worsen on the elevator ride down, but at that moment, we were still enjoying our time at the Goryokaku Tower.

On November 4, 2018, at 4:57 (from the receipt), I visited the Hakodate Magistrate's Office and then went to the Goryokaku Tower in Hakodate. The tower offers a great 360-degree view, it's amazing! The temperature was close to 20°C, and it was quite hot inside, like a sauna. I tried the limited edition milk tart for 540 yen at the observation deck. It was delicious, with a moist cream filling.

Continuing from here... Zuzu~n! Now we're going up to Goryokaku Tower~ If you look closely, you can see the carp streamers swimming. [Note: The visit was on April 23rd.] We entered from the south entrance of Goryokaku Tower. Right after entering, there is a souvenir shop on the 1st floor. They sell souvenirs from Hakodate and Goryokaku, as well as original goods. There were many foreign visitors, making it lively. Chibitsunu is looking around the goods corner. This is the official mascot of Goryokaku Tower, GO-ta-kun plushie. Chibitsunu: "It's like the Noppon of Tokyo Tower, right?" This is Jin-kun plushie, who won first place in the 2014 Yuru-Chara Grand Prix Hokkaido division. Chibitsunu: "He's wearing a Genghis Khan pot on his head." Who's this person? A manju shop owner? Chibitsunu: "It's Vice-Commander Hijikata Toshizo of the Shinsengumi." I'll buy this and take it home. We purchased tickets to go up to the observation deck at the 1st-floor ticket counter. Chibitsunu: "There's also a stamp for Japan's Top 100 Castles here." With this, we have collected 6 stamps. (For stamp progress, click here.) We arrived at the observation deck on the 2nd floor at 90m above ground level. There was a photo spot, so we took a commemorative photo right away!! Oh, the manju shop owner from earlier has a bronze statue! Chibitsunu: "I told you, it's Vice-Commander Hijikata Toshizo of the Shinsengumi." From this spot, you can see Goryokaku well. You can clearly see the star-shaped fortress. There was also a miniature model of Goryokaku (1/250 scale). Chibitsunu: "It's a miniature of Goryokaku." [Trivia about Goryokaku] Japan's first Western-style fortress built as the Hakodate Magistrate's Office of the Edo Shogunate from 1857 to 1864. It is known as the site of the final battle between the government forces and the former shogunate forces, the Hakodate War. It is now a park and also a famous cherry blossom spot. You can see Mount Hakodate well too. We moved to the 1st observation deck (86m above ground level). Wow, there's a part of the floor that is see-through! Chibitsunu: "You can see the carp streamers from below." We took the elevator back to the 1st floor. The Atrium is a glass-covered plaza. There's a model of a cannon and, once again, a bronze statue of the manju shop owner. Chibitsunu: "It's Vice-Commander Hijikata Toshizo of the Shinsengumi, I told you!" Chibitsunu, that's a cannon! From the Atrium window, you can see the park with lots of cherry blossoms. There are about 1600 cherry trees planted inside Goryokaku Park. Since it was still early, there were just a few pink buds. It has its own charm this way. We headed to the special historic site, Goryokaku Park. There is a restored Hakodate Magistrate's Office inside the park. We took a commemorative photo in front of the office. Due to time constraints, we didn't go inside, but you can also visit the interior (for a fee). A seagull was perched on a utility pole. It's so typical of a port town. Chibitsunu: "Tsunukko-chan, I'm hungry~" Well, before moving on to the next sightseeing spot, let's have a snack time. There's a good shop nearby. ...To be continued. By the way, the manju that Tsunukko-chan bought at the Goryokaku souvenir shop was... we'll have it as a snack when we get home. But, wow, there's such a handsome manju shop owner. Chibitsunu: "I told you, it's Vice-Commander Hijikata Toshizo of the Shinsengumi!!" The manju had the words "Hijikata Toshizo" written on it. It's a manju with black sugar in the skin and sweet bean paste inside. The flavor of black sugar was good, with a refined sweetness.

The Shinsengumi soft serve ice cream, inspired by the color of Asagi's haori, is a refreshing ramune-flavored treat. It was perfect for the hot summer weather this year.

When I went sightseeing, I stopped by the souvenir corner and found something interesting, so I bought it. It was a beer called Hakodate Beer Meiji-kan Alt Beer, and it had three different types with unique colors. Alt Beer is a style of fermented beer, and "Alt" means "old" in German. It is made with dark malt, giving it a deep reddish-copper color. It has a deep flavor and a distinct bitterness. The beer has won an award for quality assurance in 2001. When I poured it into a glass back at the hotel, it did have a copper-like color. The taste was a bit heavy, and it had a unique bitterness. Maybe it would have been better with some snacks.

About 20 years ago, I used to buy and drink milk from the Yumekawa Milk direct sales store at Hakodate Station every week. I really liked it. It was cheap and delicious milk. Even now, when I drank it again, I still thought it was delicious. When I went to the station, I saw that the milk I always drank was being sold at Goryokaku Tower. Yum! There is a corner on the same floor as the store where they sell drinks and light snacks, and I bought it there, but I didn't register. This milk is rich, sweet, and tasty. I like it. However, it was a bit strange that they handed me the milk with the lid already opened... I really hope they stop doing that. Ah, because the lid was already opened, it's not like I touched it or anything. You see, with bottled milk, you peel off the cellophane on the top of the bottle, and then use your nail to lift the paper lid slightly... Sometimes there is creamy residue on the back of the round paper lid, and that excites me (I hope it's okay to get excited about that). Without that little joy, holding Yumekawa Milk for the first time in over 10 years was a bit of a shock... but the familiar taste made me involuntarily say, "Yep, it's delicious!" By the way, it's milk from Ohnuma. Yumekawa Ranch Natural Milk Direct Factory Store seems to be a direct operation. I've never been there, unfortunately. I really want to go next time. Thank you for handling the milk!

The facility located on the first floor of Goryokaku is a place where visitors aiming for Goryokaku Tower, as well as those who come to enjoy a stroll in Goryokaku Park or to try the famous salt ramen at "Ajisai" or the hamburgers at Lucky Pierrot, can easily stop by to buy souvenirs, take a break, and relax. The "souvenir" space has a considerable amount of space allocated for various products related to Hakodate and Goryokaku, such as pens, postcards, stuffed animals, etc. Additionally, there is a wide variety of food items available, including cookies, candies, cakes, ramen, soup mixes, local beer, juices, seafood, and more. Personally, I was drawn to the "caramels", which come in flavors like milk, butter, condensed milk, Hakodate 3.8 milk, cocoa, matcha, strawberry milk, Yubari melon, and unique flavors like potato (May Queen), kombu seaweed, azuki bean, Genghis Khan (lamb), salt/miso ramen, and even beer. While I can't guarantee the taste (especially for the beer!), the vibrant packaging makes them perfect for casual souvenirs. During peak tourist seasons like summer, there are tasting events held at multiple spots, attracting many visitors. This makes it a very convenient facility that can be used while waiting for a bus or seeking shelter from the rain.

From Sapporo on April 28, a 2-day bus tour to visit the cherry blossoms in Morihokuto, Hakodate, and Matsumae. The tour departed from Smile Hotel in Hakodate at 8:00 AM and returned to Sapporo at 8:00 PM, covering a round trip distance of about 435 km. The cherry blossoms in Hakodate had bloomed on the 26th. We visited Goryokaku Park for cherry blossom viewing, despite the cloudy and windy weather. We saw a bride taking photos in her white dress, looking a bit cold. The park's gift shop had unique souvenirs, and some tour members bought cherry blossom-themed sweets and processed squid products. I purchased a 230g squid dish cooked in a pot for 442 yen, which was delicious. Unfortunately, we had to rush as time was running out.

Soft serve ice cream with a traditional flavor, but the blue part tastes like ramune! It may sound a bit old-fashioned, but when you gaze at Goryokaku and reminisce, the taste experience gets a power-up! Just be careful with how you eat it on the observation floor of the tower, as it's narrow, so eat cleanly.

On September 14, 2019, I received a souvenir from my wife who went to Hakodate separately from me. It's not a perishable item, so I decided to try it today. It seems to be a popular souvenir here lately - the Five-Story Pagoda Tower souvenir shop. In simple terms, it's a snack, Cheese in Puff. It gives off a fancy vibe, but inside the snack, there's a cream-like tarako sauce. It's supposed to be tarako flavor, but it doesn't really taste like tarako. However, the flavor is quite strong and it might go well with alcohol! It's not greasy, so it's not easy to get tired of it. I didn't ask my wife how much it costs, but it's probably on the expensive side. While it might be a nice souvenir to receive, I feel like there are more Hakodate-like souvenirs out there. Either way, the taste gets a passing grade. It turned out to be a much appreciated souvenir!! Thank you for the meal♪

It's May 2019 in Hakodate. First stop is Goryokaku Park. I was worried if the cherry blossoms would hold up until this day, but they were almost in full bloom. I bought a classic beer on the first floor of Goryokaku Tower and enjoyed cherry blossom viewing. I'm not sure if it's okay to post this here, but I'll do it anyway. The cherry blossoms in Goryokaku Park are arranged in a star shape, with cherry blossom trees both above and below the earthworks, creating a stunningly beautiful overlapping view. I also tried the grilled asparagus sold at Goryokaku Tower, and it was delicious! The beer tasted even better. It was a wonderful experience. Thank you for the meal.

I enjoyed the water at Goryokaku Tower! It was delicious!