Hello from Kushiro, Hokkaido
I am currently spending a few days in Kushiro, Hokkaido, for medical work.
Although it is a work-related trip, my role is to support the local holiday and nighttime emergency medical center, so I only work in the evenings. During the daytime, I am relatively free, which has given me the opportunity to travel a little farther and explore the surrounding area.
It is late July. In Kyoto, the temperature has been exceeding 35 degrees Celsius, but Kushiro feels remarkably comfortable compared with the Kansai region. Even when I go outside, I rarely break into a sweat, and simply walking in the breeze feels pleasant.
The city still has many old buildings and signs, giving it a faint atmosphere of the Showa era. Rather than being a lively tourist destination, Kushiro has a quietness that feels slightly faded or worn. Strangely, that atmosphere feels fresh and appealing to me.
Perhaps because the sea is so close, the cries of seagulls can be heard throughout the city. The smell of the ocean, the slightly weathered streets, and the voices of seagulls flying overhead all seem to overlap, creating a sense that time flows differently here in Kushiro.
I do not know much about the history of this region. However, as I walked around the city, I learned that Akira Ifukube, the composer best known for the music of the film Godzilla, and the poet Takuboku Ishikawa both had connections to Kushiro. Learning about the history of a place after experiencing its landscape somehow makes the streets appear slightly different.
To experience the natural environment of eastern Hokkaido more directly, I took a drive around Lake Mashu.
Along the way, I saw many signs warning visitors about brown bears, which made me feel a little uneasy. Nevertheless, the area was filled with extraordinary natural scenery, including Lake Mashu, Mount Iō, hot spring areas, and Kaminoko Pond.
A short visit is not enough to understand everything this region has to offer, but I would like to return one day with my family and explore it more slowly.
For now, I am sharing some photographs from my drive around Lake Mashu. I hope to continue posting more images and impressions from my stay in Kushiro.
