Hakodate, Japan (June 24)

In 1854, Hakodate on Hokkaido island was  the first Japanese port to be opened to international trade and it didn’t take long before the Americans, Russians, British, and French arrived and established themselves in an area of town called Motomachi at the foot of Mt. Hakodate. In Motomachi, a Buddhist temple butts up against the Catholic, Episcopal, and Russian Orthodox Churches and the houses look more Western than Japanese. Old warehouses along the waterfront have now been converted into shops selling everything from high end jewelry and clothing to tacky tourist trinkets. Near the cruise terminal is the morning market selling all manner of fresh fish and fruits (cantaloupes for $50), and a highlight was the squid tanks: customers were given a fishing pole, hooked a squid, which was immediately filleted for squid sushi.  I demurred.