Day 05: Furano and Sapporo Beer Museum (Jul 2018)

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Thursday, 12th July 2018

We took a Lavender Express Train bounded for Furano this morning. We were half-expecting that there would perhaps be some lavender scent or even decorations onboard this Special Train Service (which there were none unfortunately).

Arrival at Furano station some 80 minutes later, we transferred to another local train that would bring us to the Nakafurano Station where the lavender fields are located.

We chose to visit Farm Tomita due to its proximity to public transportation. This was an easy 25 minutes walk from the station. Along the way, we passed by the Town Lavender Fields which gave us a preview of what was to be expected at Tomita later. We paused for a short lavender-flavoured ice-cream break before continuing our walk along the main road. This was a warm and sunny day which made it ideal for photography and outdoor activities.

Farm Tomita that greeted us was huge and it was crowded with visitors on a bright summer day. The lavender fields were located on the hill slopes behind the main building where the souvenir shops and eateries were. However, as it turned out, the most beautiful fields were located at the ground level, next to the main building. We had a field day taking in pictures of the surroundings.

After Farm Tomita, it was straight to the beautiful Asahikawa Train Station where we had a late lunch and Starbucks before continuing our journey back to Sapporo. We managed to squeeze in a quick visit to the Sapporo Beer Museum, an iconic red-bricked building that was opened to the public. Of course, no visit to the Museum would be complete without a small serving of Sapporo Beer.

Afterall, this was the very building where the whole brewery business started back in 1869!

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