We discover the real-life locations in Otaru that inspired scenes from the hit anime Golden Kamuy

Our reporter makes a pilgrimage to the north of a major port city in Hokkaido in search of runaway trains, skewers of sweet dumplings and much more..

Our Japanese journalist passionate about travel and anime Saya Togashi has recently been immersed in Golden Kamuy, a historical fiction manga originally serialized from 2014 to 2022 and adapted into an ongoing television anime series as well as a live-action film earlier this year. Located mainly on the northern island of Hokkaido after the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), his story follows that of a veteran Saichi Sugimoto and a local Ainu girl Asirpa on their race to find a stash of gold hidden in front of the 7th Division of the Imperial Japanese Army.

One of the reasons Saya loves the series so much is because the author Satoru Noda has conducted extensive research to accurately describe everything from indigenous Ainu cultural traditions to contemporary urban contexts. In particular, the town of Otaru in Hokkaido is known for being close to the center of Asirpa. kotan (village) as well as the base of operations for First Lieutenant Tsurumi of the 7th Division, and Noda actually modeled many of the locations depicted in his manga on real-world buildings and locations in Otaru.

That alone was enough for Saya to warrant a trip to Otaru to visit some of the places that inspired Noda. Read on to learn more about his findings, but please note that there are small spoilers for the upcoming manga/anime.

● Otaru Canal Area

As the city’s most famous tourist spot, it’s perhaps no surprise that the Otaru Channel appears over and over again inside Golden Kamuy. Although today the canal is considered a romantic strolling spot with many preserved warehouses and historic structures lining the embankment, it serves as a rough location for many action scenes in the manga.

For example, there is a scene in volume 4 of the manga where Tsurumi tests newly imported weapons. In the background is an old warehouse with a distinctive roof ornament made of shachihoko (a mythical sea monster with the head of a dragon and the body of a carp). Today, this building serves as Otaru History and Nature Museum. A century ago, you could board a boat directly from the canal dock to set sail.

It is also in this area that Sergeant Tsukishima throws away the lock of his former lover Igogusa’s hair that he received from Tsurumi in volume 15. This scene is important because it marks the moment when he hardens emotionally, ready to forget his past and move forward by serving loyally under Tsurumi. However, he cannot completely abandon his sympathy for the suffering of others, and his original empathetic personality still sometimes manifests itself during his interactions with certain people.

Finally, the Otaru Canal marks the place where the Lightning Bandit fled while being chased by Second Lieutenant Koito in volume 11. It is believed that the front of the Former Ohie warehousein the photo below, this is where the Lightning Bandit and his lover, O-gin the Pit Viper, finally achieve their goals. Saya particularly enjoyed this scene when she first read it because it adds some depth to Tsurumi’s villainous character, especially once the contents of Pit Viper’s bag are revealed and he notices that the couple must have been truly in love.

Speaking of Tsurumi, its base is supposed to be not far from the canal, although the building itself is modeled after the open-air museum called the Hokkaido Historic Villagelocated on the outskirts of Sapporo city.

● Hyakujusan Bank Otaru Branch

In volume 4, old Toshizo Hijikata, vice-commander of the Shinsengumi and current head of inmates at Abashiri Prisonrobs a bank with his men to recover his famous sword Izuminokami Kanesada. The bank represented is based on the Former Otaru Branch of Hyakujusan Bank (113), which is about a five-minute walk from the Otaru Canal area. Nowadays the building is a popular retail store called the Otaru Romankanwhich sells different types of glass decorations and accessories.

These twin windows look exactly like the spot in the scene where Hijikata and Tsurumi first cross paths.

There are a few historic photos remaining of the building from when it was once a bank, which show its exterior color and distinctive arch-shaped entrance, as in photo 7 below. The manga, however, seems to take inspiration from the modern appearance of the building. Saya was excited to recognize some of her different characteristics as a modern fan.

Right opposite the old bank is the Former Natori Takasaburo store.

Check out the udatsu (raised roof edges) on the first level roof, which historically served as a firewall to prevent flames from spreading to neighboring structures. Since only people with a lot of money could afford udatsu, the expression “Udatsu ga agaranai» (literally “Udatsu do not rise”) developed in Japanese, referring to a situation in which there is no hope of moving forward.

This building looks like the one in the background of a scene in volume 2 when the Nikaido Brothers confront Sugimoto inside a soba restaurant but are soon stopped by Tsurumi firing his gun. The real soba restaurant in real life was moved from Otaru to the previously mentioned historic village in Hokkaido. Plus, Saya thought the nishin (herring fish) soba that Sugimoto eats in this scene looked super tasty!

● Otaru City General Museum

Saya then headed a little towards the north, towards Otaru City General Museum, considered one of the most important railway museums in all of Japan. It preserves and displays dozens of wagons in indoor and outdoor spaces.

The steam locomotive Shizuka-go displayed inside is a must-see for any visitor.

This is the obvious inspiration from the exterior of the “runaway train heading straight to hell” introduced at the very end of volume 30 of the manga.

However, the interior of the first passenger car of the runaway train, as well as the interior of the train depicted in Volume 28 when Asirpa and the others attempt to decode the tattooed skins, are modeled after the I-1 practice at the museum. The manga features an almost exact replica of the site, right down to the same stove with its five-pointed star motif and the cozy-looking benches on which Sugimoto dozes for a while while reminiscing about his life in Tokyo.

According to the official Twitter/X account of the Otaru City General Museum, when Noda visited the museum for his research, he excitedly asked some staff engineers how locomotives could become runaway trains. Saya hoped they would be able to provide her with good advice for her storytelling.

● Herring Mansion (former Aoyama villa)

Herring has already appeared in this article once, and for good reason, as many former Otaru residents built their fortunes in the herring industry. Long ago, the ocean surrounding the city turned white and murky due to the annual herring run during which the fish spawned. The elegant house pictured below, today known as Old Aoyama Villa, was one of the so-called “herring mansions” that belonged to families who became rich from fish in the early 20th century .

When we think of herring in the history of Golden Kamuyyou probably think of a serial killer and an escaped convict Kazuo Henmi.

The interior of the ancient Aoyama Villa appears in Volume 5 as the house of the Henmi boss who oversees certain fishing grounds (Noda also partially modeled the house after another of the existing herring mansions, but at the time As of this writing, it is currently closed to the public). public). Tsurumi visits this residence looking for new investors and meets Sugimoto by chance.

In particular, the villa courtyard appears in the background of the scene where Tsurumi is playing the piano. This unusual skill is proof that he must have had a wealthy upbringing.

Photography is not allowed inside the villa, which is a registered tangible cultural property of Japan, but Saya was delighted to be able to see the Peony Room where Sugimoto fled from Maxim machine gun fire, the room Tenrai Hidai where the piano is, and even the Arita porcelain toilet which surprises Asirpa.

Ultimately, the fate of the house in the manga is quite different from the well-preserved state of the ancient Aoyama Villa today.

Finally, the adjoining Kihinkan property has a restaurant with herring soba on the menu.. Saya couldn’t help but try it herself and was delighted to see the sweet herring melt in her mouth, just like in the pages of the manga. It was a simple but effective combination with soba, something even someone who doesn’t usually like seafood, like her, could enjoy.

● Hanazono dango (Sweet Hanazono Dumplings)

The sweet ravioli skewer scene from volume 2 of the manga is (in)famous both in the Golden Kamuy manga as well as the live-action film adaptation. The dumplings in this scene are described as a specialty of Hanazono Park (now Otaru Park), and apparently there was actually a store selling them in the area during the Meiji period (1868-1912). Today you can enjoy this same style of Hanazono dango at a restaurant called Otaru Niikurayashown below.

This was the last stop on Otaru’s miniature tour of Saya. As she approached the door, she was delighted to see a Tsurumi keychain among the dumplings displayed through the window.

The dumplings themselves are exquisitely prepared and can be purchased to take away or eaten inside with a drink. Saya opted for two different flavors, both fluffy and light enough that she could keep eating them forever. The ones glazed with soy sauce had a sweet salty sweetness that whetted his appetite even more, and the ones with black sesame flavor were absolutely covered in ground seeds. She would recommend them to anyone, whether they have read Golden Kamuy or not. In the words of the Ainu, Hinna Hinna (“delicious, delicious”).

After finishing her snack, Saya couldn’t help but be wary of the empty skewer. She decided to get rid of it quickly before anyone could use it as a weapon.

In conclusion, even though many things about Otaru have changed over the decades, Saya was still able to recognize many of the locations depicted in the scenes from Golden Kamuy.

Saya would like to leave readers with a photo she took of the Otaru Canal after sunset. She hopes that you will have the opportunity to visit it one day and think of all the manga characters that you will encounter while wandering through history, modernity and fiction at the same time.

Related: Otaru Tourism Association
All images © SoraNews24
● Would you like to know the latest articles from SoraNews24 as soon as they are published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
(Read in Japanese)