Snow Light Gleaming Festival in Otaru

The folks over in the little town of Otaru always know how to come together for a great little festival! When compared with the Sapporo Snow Festival, the Otaru Snow Light Gleaming Festival is definitely the favorite of mine. Little community-made ice lanterns, snow sculptures, illuminated lanes, and the like fill the downtown area and making it a romantic, winter wonderland!

Unlike last year's light rain, this year the cold was bitter...seriously chilling right to the bone! Good thing the ice bar stepped in to satisfy all of our hot wine needs:

Of course, the old warehouse and canal area was as pretty as it usually is:

And to finish off the evening, beers and warmth were waiting for us at the Otaru Brewery:

If you're ever in Hokkaido for the Sapporo Snow Festival, make sure to make the 30 minute trek over to Otaru for this magical event! Definitely one of the highlights of the winter festivals here!