Lesson 124

1 HOKKAIDOO:
Hokkaidoo is the second largest of Japan’s four major islands, but it has a total population of less than 5 million. A frontier left largely to the primitive Ainu until 1870, it is still sparsely settled with a density of 157.5 persons per square mile in comparison with 637 for the country as a whole. Although some land has been cleared for agriculture, much of the island is heavily forested. Crops include rice as well as barley, wheat, corn, and potatoes. Fir and spruce predominate over deciduous trees, which are of the same species as those found in northern Honshu. Fishing and coal mining are important industries.
Much of Hokkaidoo is a remote, majestic country, blanketed with coniferous and deciduous forests. Winters are long and cold. Individual farms tend to be much larger than in other parts of Japan; isolated farmhouses, in the American pattern, are commonplace, though unusual in nearly all other areas. Grazing areas support a thriving dairy industry.

SAPPORO:
Sapporo is a modern city of 882,000 inhabitants, situated in the middle of Hokkaido and accessible in two hours by airplane from Tokyo. The gentle sloping mountains on the outskirts of the city offer first-class skiing grounds. Sapporo in winter, with its famous "Snow Festival," is no less fascinating than in summer.
In the valley 30 kilometers from the central part of the city, there are the Joozankei hot springs, and the route from Joozankei Valley via Nakayama pass to Lake Tooya is regarded as a "golden course" for sightseeing in Hokkaidoo.

HAKODATE:
Hakodate city has a good natural port, which was opened as a trading port in 1859. There are such sight-seeing spots as Mt. Hakodateyama, Yunokawa Hot Springs, Goryookaku Park, which is famous as an old battlefield.

MURORAN:
Muroran is an industrial city on the southwestern coast of Hokkaidoo. It is situated at the mouth of Uchiura Bay and favored with a horseshoe-shaped good natural port.
The iron and steel, petrol and cement industries are the main industries of Muroran, and the total output ranks highest in Hokkaidoo, together with the total shipment amount at the well-equipped port of Muroran.
The Pacific coast side of Muroran forms precipices rising 100 meters above the sea and is rich in scenic spots.

OTARU:
The port of Otaru is a leading trading port in Hokkaidoo, and is rich in sightseeing spots. Asajugawa Hot Springs Resort , which is on the way to Sapporo is famous as a good skiing ground with hot springs.

AKAN National park:
Embracing the Kushiro and Kitami provinces in the eastern part of Hokkaido, the AKAN National park contains grand volcanic contours that deserve world-wide attention. Almost the whole of the park is occupied by composite volcanoes which are accompanied by the two grand Caldera lakes of AKAN and Kutcharo. Among other lakes, there is the awe-inspiring and mysterious-looking Lake Mashuu, whose transparent depth is 41.6 meters, the record depth known in the world.

7 SHIKOTSU-TOOYA National park:
Situated in the mid-southern part of Hokkaidoo, this park has various types of volcanoes and caldera lakes in addition to different scenic elements consisting of forests, valleys, and hot springs. Lake Shikotsu and Tooya are two lovely gems of nature. Of the volcanic mountains embracing the lakes, Mt. Yotei is most celebrated for its graceful contour. Also noteworthy are Mt. Tarumae with a lava hill in the central part of the crater and Mt. Showa Shinzan which was suddenly formed in 1944, a rare phenomenon.

DAISETSUZAN National park:
This park, lying in the middle of Hokkaidoo, is the second largest of Japan’s national parks. It occupies the mountainous districts known as the ”roof of Hokkaidoo” which consists of 3 big volcanic groups named Daisetsu, Tokachi, and Shikaribetsu, in addition to part of the Ishikari Range. The park’s popularity owes to the majestic figures of the lofty peaks covered all over with virgin forests of cold region conifers, the grand beauty of the many gorges and ravines and the numerous well-equipped spas including Sounkyoo, Tenninkyoo, Shirogane, etc.

SHIRETOKO National Park:
Shiretoko National park embraces an area around the Shiretoko Peninsula situated on the northeastern part of Hokkaidoo. This park was created on June 1, 1964. It covers an area of about 160 square miles.

10 NAICHI:
The people of Hokkaidoo call HONSHUU, SHIKOKU, and KYUUSHUU, ”Naichi,” which means ”a homeland,” or ”mainland.”

Guide for Free Conversation and Exercise

1 Topics:

a Talk about the following topics in Japanese:

(1) Climate in Hokkaidoo.

(2) Fishing industry in Hokkaidoo.

(3) Farming in Hokkaidoo.

(4) Cities in Hokkaidoo.

(5) National parks in Hokkaidoo.

2 Exercise:

a 次の 文章を 日本語に 訳してください。

(1) The oceans surrounding Hokkaidoo have become one of the four great fishing grounds of the world.

(2) There still is lingering snow even in the latter part of April.

(3) The bulk of raw material for foreign papers in Japan is supplied from Hokkaidoo.

(4) The life of Ainus is practically no different from the life of the people on the mainland.

Homework

1 Study the Narration thoroughly and memorize the vocabulary.

2 Read the Guide for Free Conversation and do the exercises given.

3 Learn to read and write new Kanji.

4 Read the Explanatory Notes.