Photo
taken from Detective Conan Anime.
Any
detective conan lovers might remember this episode, “The Unsolvable Ice Trap,”
where Conan and company visited an “Ice Village”. An ice-themed episode that
makes you go awe and definitely, there is no village named after “Ice Village”
in Japan but it seems like the setting is inspired from Hokkaido Tomamu Ice
Village.
Photo Resource: Powder Snow Hokkaido
Situated
at Shimukappu town,
Hoshino Resort Tomamu
(星野リゾートトマム),
previously known as Alpha Resort Tomamu, is one of Hokkaido’s major ski resort.
Locating on the southern slopes of Mount Tomamu, it has been an attractive
destination for ski lovers.
It
was said that this is the world's highest twin skyscrapers
in a mountainous region [i].
To reach Hoshino Resort Tomamu, take JR Hokkaido
Sekisho Line to Tomamu Station, Hoshino Resort Tomamu
will be right in front of your eyes. There will be free shuttle bus that runs
in the train’s arrival time so the waiting time is quite short.
Ice
Village i
Photo Taken Detective Conan Anime
Through
the anime, the setting is an Ice Village. It does depict similarities from
Tomamu’s Ice Village. Ice Village is constructed entirely of snow and ice with
bright illuminations. It operates from 5pm after sunset till 10pm. If you would
like to visit this place, do arrive early, because it can be crowded, as the
sky turns darker. Within Ice Village, there are domes that house an Ice chapel,
Ice restaurant, Ice bar, Ice laboratory and shop, and Oasis
Rink. There is also
a small café and free activities around the village for everyone to ice skating
and snow sliding.
Researched,
and developed by Tsutomu Kokawa, Hokkaido Tokai University Lecturer, it became
possible to build huge ice domes that are safe and easy. The only requirement
for this original architectural technique is for the venue to be severely cold
and keeps at minus temperatures even in daytime. Tomamu fits the picture best.
The
original technique is to spray ice and snow on a big balloon with vinyl sheets
and ropes, and making the ice wall grow. With a temperature below -10, a dome
with a diameter of 15 metres can be completed in a few days. Till date, the
biggest ice dome built was one with a diameter of 30m. In addition, it is
possible to add soft lighting elements to the space because ice domes have
higher permeability than igloos.
Another
thing to note is the safety of the domes. Maintained by the intuitions and
skilled Tomamu’s production staff, they take care of the temperature and spray
snow frequently. To avoid direct sunlight, the dome’s face is covered by
moderate amount of snow.
Most
importantly, Tomamu Ice Village operates only in end-Dec to mid-March so do
check out its official website for the operating hours before visiting.
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Both
photos taken from Detective Conan Anime.
Photo Resource: Hoshino Resort Tomamu
Offical Web
Ice Hotel [ii]
(Genta misheard Ice Hotel (hoteru) as Ice
Firefly (hotaru) )
Photo
taken from Detective Conan Anime.
If you have watched the anime episode, you would have remembered
the crime scene to be in an Ice Hotel. Interestingly, the resort has operated
its annual ice hotel. It is believed to be Japan’s first and only hotel
constructed out of ice. The hotel is a 15 meter-wide dome where everything from
the bed to the table, even its outdoor bathtub is
expressed by ice.
Photo
taken from Detective Conan Anime.
Sadly,
I am unable to find any exterior photos of Tomamu Ice Hotel.
Room temperatures hover between minus three and minus
five degrees Celsius. You would feel like living within your freezer
compartment of your refrigerator. The hotel will provide one-piece sheepskin
outfit or guests can just keep their ski gear on through the night.
Furthermore, the resort has prepared guests with sleeping bags to sleep on the
ice bed so you do not need to worry about unable to bear its cold temperature.
Photo
taken from Detective Conan Anime.
Tomamu
Ice Hotel Photo: Reuters
It
does look nice and fluffy~
Photo
taken from Detective Conan Anime.
Photo: Yuriko Nakao/Reuters
With Ice Village closing its operations at 10pm, only
Ice Hotel’s guests can “monopolize” this village themselves, and enjoy an icy
night stroll. But be careful if you saw
ghost fire. >.<
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Both photo taken from Detective Conan Anime.
It may sound crazy to live in but many would find this
idea refreshing to spend the night icily and leaving a memorable experience. At
an approximate U$900 per night, an ice suite can accommodate two people. Guests
at the hotel must make reservations three days in advance.
As
the ice hotel is not recognized as a legitimate hotel, little information is
found through any website if it is still operating. Most of the above
information about Ice Hotel is found around year 2009 and it is mentioned that
it operates mid-Jan to mid-Feb. To live in Ice Hotel, one has to be a Tomamu’s
resort guest and need to pay an “experience fee,” thereby, the accommodation is
that pricey [iii].
If
it is still operating, do search around for any magnesium around your ice bed.
=D
Ice Chapel
Photo: 桔猪
Within
Ice Village, one of the famous features would be this Ice Chapel. It is a
limited winter edition of a wedding chapel where weddings can be held here. As
the “Something Blue” legend says, a bride with something blue at the wedding
will become happy, the dome is filled with glittering ice blue [i].
Photo: 桔猪
Ice Laboratory and shops
Photo: 桔猪
There is a dome called "Ice Glass Studio"
where you can make your own ice glass. If you would like to enjoy a cocktail in
the Ice Bar, you have to make your own glass here. Ice desks can be seen with
people chiseling a glass out of the ice block. Because this glass is disappeared
outside of the "Ice Village", most of people leave and exhibit it in
"Information Dome", but there are also some people trying to preserve
it at home and look forward to drink beer with their handmade ice glass in
summer [i].
Photo: 花子tt
At one of the shops’ entrance, you will be able to see
an ice mailbox. On the ice counter, there are various handmade glass cups, art
pieces for sale. Looking around the interior, it is as if the whole dome is a
clean and transparent world [iv].
Photo: 桔猪
Ice Bar
Photo: 桔猪
The
moment you have entered the Ice Bar, you would see tables, chairs, counter and
walls are made from frozen water. You can bring along your handmade ice glass
from Ice Studio to this Ice Bar and a bartender will pour liqueur into it.
People hold their glasses while sip their various colour cocktail, bringing
colours to the clear dome.
Photo: 桔猪
Ice Restaurant
Photo: 桔猪
Similarly, all
furniture you can find within the restaurant is made of ice. Consuming a warm
corn soup or eating a hot cheese fondue will be a great idea to warm yourself
up [iii].
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Both Photos Resource: 桔猪
Other than Ice Village, Hoshino Resort Tomamu has other attractions you can visit. If interested, you can read my article about Hoshino Resort Tomamu.
| Disclaimer: JKpopMomo do not own anything related to Detective Conan Anime. Please do support the anime by purchasing the manga and anime DVD. All photos used do not belong to JKpopMomo. Please do visit the the owners website if you would like to see more pictures. |
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