Hokkaido university tour

I took a tour of the Hokkaido University campus in Sapporo, Japan, Aug. 31, 2016. Participating with me on the guided tour were seven Japanese nationals and a man from Berlin, Germany. Flags were used to help us all stay together.

The walk took about one-and-a-half to two hours. We each were provided a detailed map in English. Volunteers were also available to help guide in numerous languages.

Hokkaido University was established in 1876 as Sapporo Agricultural College. It is a comprehensive university, with 12 undergraduate schools, 22 graduate schools and 23 research institutes and centers. The university employs almost 4,000 staff members, and about 18,000 students attend.

The tour was very informative and included diverse topics such as the “first artificial snowflake” (created there in 1936) and a Nobel prize-winning professor from the university.

Among the many things we saw and were told, we learned that Dr. William Smith Clark arrived in Sapporo in 1876, where he taught and served as vice-president for eight months to help establish the university, setting up American methods of farming. In 1877, another American, William Wheeler, was appointed as vice-president of the college.

Most walkways at the university are fairly narrow, but we were shown one wide street on which food was transported via railcars to Sapporo’s main rail station during World War II.

The famous poplar trees have always been a big tourist attraction, not to mention the “swamp” next to them that required us to walk on planks.

Several old buildings once housed classrooms for thousands of students. 

Behind the huge agricultural compound, we saw what looked like a farmer. He was, in fact, a professor working on a research farm.

Given in Japanese and English, tours are free and begin at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, June through October, at the Hokkaido University Information Center (Kita 8, Nishi 5, Kita-ku, Sapporo), near the main gate. No reservation is necessary, but be sure to arrive five minutes early. 

According to the flier we were given, provided by the Sapporo International Communication Plaza Foreign Language Volunteer Network (Sapporo MN Building 3F, Kita 1, Nishi 3, Chuo-ku, Sapporo; email city-guide@sapporo-flv.com or visit http://sapporo-flv.com), “This is a rain-or-shine event except stormy weather. In case of cancellation, the notice shall be shown in our Facebook… by 9 a.m. (www.facebook.com/sapporoflv.cityguide).”

STANLEY OSUR

Hawthorne, NJ