Ishikawa Prefectural Office Live Cam

The prefectural office tower carries this webcam over Kanazawa, in Ishikawa Prefecture on the Sea of Japan coast. The Hokuriku Expressway runs on its viaduct across the middle of the frame, with the city under snow around it.

Kanazawa is an old castle town, best known for the Kenrokuen garden and a preserved district of samurai and teahouse streets. The Hokuriku coast takes heavy snow because cold air off the continent picks up moisture crossing the sea, and this frame shows what that looks like in an ordinary suburb.

The expressway runs 476 kilometres along the coast and is kept open through the winter by continuous clearing. In summer the same view is green hills behind the rooftops.