Held from February 6 to 11, the opening of 2016 Asahikawa Winter Festival is an excellent event with remarkable fireworks and laser shows that last around 20 minutes in the opening and finale.
On February 6, I travelled over 5 hours from Hakodate to Asahikawa on train. The train was on time and it was sunny when I arrived. That was a good start. Asahikawa can get very cold and windy but it was not. Not on that day. I was lucky.
The park was beautiful in the winter with picturesque snow scenery just like the last time I visited. Just follow the sign and the snowmen along the path will lead you to the snow festival. You may also take a shuttle bus from the JR station but it goes every 20 minutes and there may be a long line.
The gigantic stage was a pair of snow bears, the mascots. It was much more crowded than the last time I visited but not nearly as crowded as other winter festivals which are more popular among tourists. It was still easy to walk around and the lines for the games are short.
歡迎來到 2016 旭川冬祭。
每年旭川冬祭都在常磐公園內近石狩川旭橋河畔，有穿梭巴士來回旭川站和會場，但也可以徒步半小時左右，當然視乎你的速度和停留多久拍照。
冬祭的吉祥物：大白熊。
2月6日和7日有馬拉雪橇！這匹馬真漂亮，長長毛髮，小腿像穿了白褲子一樣！
每年，雪祭會場內都有幾十座中型雪雕比賽，主題大部份是小朋友熟識的卡通漫畫人物。
銀獎（第三獎）是這座有滑梯的卡通片人物雕塑。
吉祥物的雪像獲雪雕金獎（第二獎）。
櫻木獎（第一獎）是今年受歡迎的 Minions.
星球大戰中的黑武士是受歡迎的雪滑梯。
小朋友可以設計雪人，所有作品會擺設在公園展示。
有些雪人造型比較特別，相信是一些學生作品。
旭川冬祭最吸引的遊戲是這條100米長的冰滑梯。
- A view from the top of the slider is very nice. There are two sliders, one straight down, one with a curve. I had tried both. It was fun!
從滑梯上看下來，一條是直的滑梯，一條是彎的滑梯，我兩條都滑過，好好玩。
Snow rafting is a paid activity. ¥300 each. The snowmobile will make several twists and turns, making it an exciting game for children.
會場內有雪上橡膠艇玩，每人¥300，雪地車會拖著橡膠艇盤旋不定向轉急彎，驚險刺激。
When you are getting too cold or tired, you may head over to the food kiosks area where there are quite a lot of choices of food and a place to sit down to eat and rest up.
如果覺得冷或餓，可以到飲食區，有許多小吃選擇和有休息區，內有暖氣及桌椅，可以進食和休息。
這裡有串燒、炸雞塊、湯、麵等等。
當然不少得的是小朋友至愛的糖果和小吃。
朱古力香蕉是每個雪祭會場都有的小吃，容易做又吸引，應該是熱賣。
2月6日，旭川雪祭開幕的一天，天氣晴朗，風不大，不太冷。
太陽大約下午5時左右開始下山，還有兩個小時才是開幕典禮。
開幕當天不時會有音樂和唱歌表演。
旭川會場的設計很好，面對主臺的觀眾席（站著看的）分三層，讓每位觀眾都可看到舞台。
我站在最高的位置，這裡可以拍到舞台及煙花全景。這是一張沒有電腦修飾的照片，「one shot」。
雪祭開幕和閉幕都有煙花表演，即2月6日和11日。煙花和 LED 鐳射燈光表演十分精彩！
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