Obihiro City

　　We were supposed to get together with another motorcycle freak in Obihiro, which is 250km east of Yoichi today. The new member was to fly into Hokkaido in the same way as us. I found a variety of interesting goods in the gift shop of the distillery, but I didn't have time to examine and pick them up. I wished I could have stayed a night in Yoichi, and I would have visited another museum concerning space and astronomy. Anyway, we left for Obihiro in the rain. We passed through Otaru City, one of the historic cities in Hokkaido without our feet setting on soil.
　　We got on the expressway at Otaru City and headed for Obihiro City. To tell the truth, I don't like riding on the expressway, because motorcycle riding on it requires more attention than driving cars due to its high speed. However, there was no other way to save time. The weather became worse, and thick fog started to cloud the shield of my helmet. We had to take a rest at least once an hour.
　　No sooner had we arrived at the hotel than another friend came to us. He must have ridden faster than us. After taking our possessions to each room, we set out for dinner in the downtown of Obihiro City. The downtown was so boisterous and it made us cheerful even in the rain.

(Vocabulary from comments)
obnoxious
1 〈人・発言などが〉 ひどく不愉快な, 鼻持ちならない
2 〈においが〉 とても臭い

Comments

[KUMO]

Thank you for your comment! As you thought, it's the very early form of Pachinko. I was really impressed by the sentence starting from "Basic respect...".

[Shiroi Tora]

I used to love the street food vendors and the side street restaurants. That last picture is so colorful. To me...such areas represent some of the best places in a city to eat (other than high up with the view of the city lights). I used to regularly stop at a street vendor after I had taken the subway home in Osaka. It was always so good...especially in cold weather.

The third picture reminds me how such a gathering is difficult in the U.S.. Over here...especially wherever alcohol is served...there always seems to be so many who wish to fight and to be loud and obnoxious. Basic respect shown to one another in public gatherings is something which is sorely lacking in America. I always felt so comfortable in Japan no matter where I went. Except during the rush hours on the subway and at the stations, I could always count on basic courtesy shown to others.

Is the second picture a very early form of Pachinko? Perhaps a Midway Carnival type of activity?

Anyway, I love that last picture.