Christy Gamache: Sapporo Snow Fest 2006!

After two months of snow accumulating on the ground, I was beginning to get a little tired of the stuff...no more warm fuzzy feelings when I saw it starting to fall outside my window. So, it was high time for some serious snow appreciation events. The Sapporo Snow Festival was the first to kick off my snow festival tour. For one full week, Sapporo residents and people from all over the world showcase amazing snow and ice sculptures...big and small...in three different locations- Odori Park ( a big park that runs down 12 blocks of the city), Satoland (a family oriented park in Eastern Sapporo) and Susukino (the entertainment district). Many of the large sculptures have stages in front of them and there is entertainment day and night. It was incredible, and definitely succeeded in increasing my appreciation for snow!
Five of my friends came down to Sapporo for the weekend to join me in taking in the snow festival. Here's some pictures to show you some of the highlights of our day.

Me and Lori at the subway station...getting ready for the 57th Sapporo Snow Festival!

Enjoying a little Italian food before braving the cold weather in Odori Park.

Dave, Jenn and Julie in front of the "Narnia" stage. You can only see about half of it here. In real life it was huge, and absolutely amazing.

The "Okinawa" stage, with taiko drummers performing.

And taking a little break in our day to go to the chocolate factory. What's a day in Sapporo without the chocolate factory? Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, the buffet was already finished for the day. So, we had to settle for the three piece plate.