An Orchid Exhibition in Sapporo... Even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these...
When we told people on the southern tropical islands of Japan, that we were flying next to Sapporo, the biggest city on the island of Hokkaido, they braced themselves hugging their arms, mimicking that we should expect a freezing cold weather. Indeed, Sapporo is located on the Northernmost Island of Japan, which is fairly close to Russia. Hokkaido is a winter skiing destination with tall mountains and a lot of natural forest and hot springs. But summers in Sapporo are far from cold…. In fact, it is so damn hot today, that we needed to buy better hats to shelter ourselves from the bright sun, and we took frequent breaks inside the many air conditioned malls. Central Sapporo has many malls, because for most of the year the city is very cold, and people prefer to shop indoors, where it is heated and warm. We are staying at the Cross Hotel, which is very stylish and modern. The rooms are not very large, but comfortabl...