JOURNEY Across Japan: Day 3 - Rap Battle in Japan's Coldest Town ☃️ DIARY
Added 2023-02-25 04:49:23 +0000 UTCHey guys,
Before we get into the next diary entry of Journey Across Japan: Frozen Frontier, a few days back I did a live show on the Chris Abroad channel. Due to a busy evening I ended up starting it at midnight as opposed to my usual 10pm start time and I ended up feeling rather dead during the show!
As a result I hid the live stream afterwards so it was no longer visible publicly - however I know a few of you would like to watch it/listen into it, so here’s the link to it for anyone here on Patreon that wants to check it out!
Japan’s WORST Live Show:
🍿 Watch: https://www.youtube.com/live/pdXoNpgFqA4?feature=share
And now on to the diary!
DAY 3 | Journey Across Japan: Frozen Frontiers
Having survived our trip to Japan’s most Eastern point, today we headed in land to Japan’s coldest town of Rikubetsu.
Rikubetsu has the lowest average temperature of anywhere in Japan and was once recorded for dropping to an obscene -38 degrees celsius! Sure in Siberia or Canada, that’s your average Tuesday, but for Japan that’s a big deal.
So landlocked is Rikubetsu, we decided to stay overnight en route at Lake Akan, a frozen lake and popular ice fishing spot in the winter months. The town is also home to an Ainu village, celebrating the lost culture of Hokkaido’s indigenous people.
With streets lined with iconography and totem poles, it was visually strikingly and noticeably different from the rest of the Japanese town.
While there we indulged in the local dish - Deer meat and ramen - in an Ainu restaurant before heading to the most spectacular accommodation of the entire tip.
There’s always one day on Journey Across Japan where we stay in next level accommodation and for this trip, we stayed in a ryokan overlooking the frozen lake Akan, complete with an outdoor rotenburo bath.
It was absolutely stunning and while we got stuck into a game of poker in the evening, it seemed not everybody wanted to join in…
While at the ryokan Pete set Joey and Natsuki a challenge for the day to see who could make the best rap about Hokkaido in just 24 hours, to be performed in Rikubetsu the following day.
The loser would have to roll around in the snow topless. Ouch.
Hilariously, half the townsfolk of Rikubetsu came out to watch Natsuki and Joey rap battle it out by the local train station in what might be one of the stand out moments of the trip.
Who do you think won it?
As for Rikubetsu itself, ironically it ended up being the hottest day of our journey! While the day before on the most eastern point had been -16 degrees Celsius, in Rikubetsu it was -2!
Tune in tomorrow for the final entry in our Patreon diary where we hop on an icebreaker ship, stay in a swanky barn and fish our lunch out of a frozen lake.
Chris
Comments
Picture in the post show up broken. Did they get moved to another network location? Anyway, I'll try another browser
hurryupmode
2023-03-17 02:11:58 +0000 UTCIt's great that you are covering these areas that are otherwise overlooked by tourists (myself included!) No sweat about the livestream, can't wait to see the final entry!
Matt
2023-02-28 09:44:19 +0000 UTCWill we have a new ASO? Only time will tell! :D This day looks awesome, I cannot wait to live vicariously through your adventures!
Camilla Fontana
2023-02-26 12:28:41 +0000 UTCDay three sounds like it'll be a really good video again too! Venison ramen sounds yummy and Lake Akan sounded intriguing so I googled it. Turns out it's probably well worth a visit in summer too, especially if you're into biological wonders: it's famous for having colonies of marimo, algae that actually grow into 30-cm balls! Mind blown.
Nynke de Haas
2023-02-25 20:08:06 +0000 UTCCan’t wait to watch this! Looks like a blast! Also, thanks for reposting the livestream here. I would never judge you for being a bit sleepy, you’re still more entertaining than most other stuff out there 👍
Karen P
2023-02-25 16:02:56 +0000 UTCAlthough it was a different tone than we're used to on the livestream it was still fun!
Abroad in Japan
2023-02-25 10:01:49 +0000 UTCMy favourite content are always the (literally) hidden gems, they always feel incredibly genuine. Thank you Chris!
Javier Furus
2023-02-25 07:11:03 +0000 UTCAs a Canadian where average temperatures have been in the mid-minus 20s this week, I laughed out loud to the reference to an average Tuesday. 😁 -38C is most definitely obscene, no arguments here! (But -2C is comfy as long as you have a proper coat.)
Stacey
2023-02-25 05:47:21 +0000 UTCSeeing all this winter content helps me go through the hot summer in my country, can't wait for the videos!
Esteban Gaete Flores
2023-02-25 05:31:00 +0000 UTCThanks for the link to the Livestream. I was watching it when it went private and I was so confused, looking forward to finishing it!
Jacob Adam
2023-02-25 05:26:56 +0000 UTCMC Rapsuki definitely won that rap battle #ho-ho-kaido 🎤 Also, no worries on the livestream. Despite your energy levels and how you were feeling that night, I really enjoyed watching and it was nice to be able to ask you a question. 😊 It was morning for us in Vancouver and it was a nice way to start my day.
MikkiNB244
2023-02-25 04:53:29 +0000 UTC
