Mt. Fuji was another breathtaking site! I’m so happy I got to go this time around! Another scenic view I can cross off my list. =)

*****

So to begin: Donna and I had to get up early that morning after 4hrs of sleep the night before. (And someone was slightly hungover, heehee.) We hopped on the trains and got to Shinjuku, then we had to walk to find Keio Hotel, which was where our bus would pick us up from. After getting directions, we made it to the hotel a little bit ahead of schedule and went downstairs to buy some breakfast. When we got back up, more people had arrived in the lobby and the tour guides were handing out packages to us before loading us onto buses. Luckily, the tour guide we got did not actually accompany us on the trip. He only dropped us off at the main bus station where we switched buses and got our new tour guide, Mari-chan.

Donna and I were dozing on the bus when Mari began explaining the details of Mt. Fuji. She held up these really awesome hand drawings depicting the mountain and we were extremely impressed by her informational design abilities. She probably thought we were making fun of her by taking photos of her holding the drawings, but they were really, really cute! The weather that day was perfect and we could already view the top of Mt. Fuji from our bus window.

Our first stop that day was at the visitor’s centre. We took some pictures with Mt. Fuji in the background, before we hopped back on the bus which took us to the first station. There was still snow up top, so the first station was the highest point on Mt. Fuji we were allowed to go to. Afterwards we made a stop at the hotel for lunch, then we headed out towards Hakone.

The weather was still nice in the afternoon. Mari had told us that usually when you get on the other side of the mountain where Hakone is, it would be hard to see the top of Mt. Fuji. So according to her, we were really really lucky that the peak of the mountain was still visible by the time we loaded ourselves onto the boat at Lake Ashi off the docks at Togendai. The boat ride was refreshing and the scenary surrounding the lake was just breathtaking. When we got off the boat, we once again had to hop back onto the bus, which took us BACK to Togendai.

We then boarded the Hakone Ropeway up towards Owakudani, where the sulphorous fumes and hot springs still remain from the volcanos that erupted on Mt. Hakone many years ago. It was hard getting pictures through the glass windows, but it was a relaxing ride up the ropeway since the winds were not very strong that day. After making it up, we immediately began climbing up towards the craters. The closer we approached, the stronger the sulphorous fumes got. As we were walking, we noticed these crates that were being hauled overhead by a ropeline. Once we got closer, we realized these crates held fresh eggs, which were boiled in the sulphorous waters from the ground. The shells were completely black, but otherwise the insides looked like normal eggs. A couple we had met during lunch bought half of dozen eggs, so they gave us one each, which was really nice. Apparently the eggs are suppose to prolong your life by seven years. I don’t know if it’s true, but it tasted like a regular egg to me. Heehee.

After Owakudani, the bus dropped us off at our hotel, which was the last stop of the day. We checked into our rooms then began exploring and planning out our route for the next day. We ate dinner at the buffet inside the hotel, but our exhaustion caught up with us and I swear I could have fallen asleep on my plate of food. After dinner we rested a bit before heading down to the hot springs. Hot springs were just as I remember, very warm and relaxing. I also love wearing the yukatas. =)

*****

The next day we got up and had breakfast at the hotel. It was raining pretty hard in the morning, but nevertheless, we braved the rain and took a local bus out towards Moto-Hakone to see the Hakone Shrine. It was pretty wet out and my shoes were completely soaked by the time we found the Hakone Shrine, but it was totally worth it. We walked around for a bit before making our way out to the lake to see the torii gate. Luckily, the rain stopped when we got there and a little bit of light was coming out. Donna and I took a bajillion photos of the torii gate. So pretty!!

Afterwards we followed the path along the lake towards the Hakone Detached Palace Garden. The walk was really nice, although wet shoes made it a tad bit uncomfortable. We walked through the gardens then made our way to the Old Hakone Checkpoint at Hakonemachi, which was where we stopped for lunch. After eating and souvenir purchasing, we hopped back onto the Hakone Tozan bus, which took us to Odawara Station to board the shinkansen to Tokyo (during which I changed to dry socks).

*****

I think that pretty much sums up Mt. Fuji and Hakone. More travels out on my own tomorrow!