Days 12-13: Hakone

A very rainy day. We took the Shinkansen, or bullet train to Odawara, where we got on a slow train to Hakone Yumoto, then an even slower train (which was supposed to be scenic, but with the rain and fog, we saw nothing) to Gora Station. Luckily our hotel was close to that station, but we still had to walk about 7 minutes in the pouring rain dragging our suitcases through puddles to get to our hotel. Once inside, we didn’t leave again for the night. I had wanted to do some touristy stuff around there that day, but the rain cancelled our plans. The hotel, Hakone Yutowa is an onsen family resort. Onsens in Japan are hot spring baths. We were given yukatas to wear, which are basically fancier bathrobes and slippers. There is a lounge area with lots of different seating areas, free snacks and drinks, public baths and outdoor spaces to enjoy, plus a spa to have massages. So we weren’t too sad it was raining. We lounged around, and read our books. In Japan, when using a hot spring bath, you have to shower before using and no clothes or bathing suits are allowed in, they also frown upon tattoos. None of us used the onsen, except Kyle who sat in the rain outside and used the footbath that was on the deck. It was a relaxing afternoon/evening. Dinner was buffet style, plus a main course that was cooked at our table. There wasn’t as much gluten free food as I had hoped for in the buffet, but I didn’t starve, and wine was on tap, so I didn’t go thirsty either! The best part is everyone is wearing these yukatas and slippers all around the resort and to dinner. My kind of place! Here we shared one room, we had 3 beds, 2 couches/futons and one mattress to use on the tatami mats. Kyle was anxious to try out the traditional Japanese bed, so he opted for the mattress on the floor-in the morning he was glad he only had to do it the one night-it wasn't very comfortable!

The sun is shining so we have a quick breakfast, pack up our bags, leave them at the hotel lobby to be transferred to the train station for us, then set out for the Hakone Loop. We did the train on Sunday, so the first part of the loop for us today is the cablecar, or as we would call it, a funicular. Again, couldn’t see much out the windows. At the top we switch to the ropeway (gondola for us Americans), it started off pretty, but then got scary as we crested over a lower mountain and the winds hit us. It appeared that there was a small gap between the doors allowing the wind to come in which we feared was going to rip the doors open. Kyle was closest to the doors and hung on to them tightly, pulling them shut! It was a bit nerve-wracking. At the top, we were supposed to have views of Mt. Fuji, but it was too cloudy, and the wind was horrific. Owakudani area is a volcanic area and has sulfur vents, so when we walked outside it stunk of sulfur. We quickly went into the big store up there to buy the famous black eggs that are boiled in sulfurous hot springs, they are known to cure many ailments. We only spent several minutes at the top, because the wind was so vicious we couldn’t stand without the fear of it blowing us away. Also, I didn’t want the ropeway to close down before we managed to get back down the mountain. There was a different ropeway to bring us to the other side of the mountain and down to Lake Ashi. This started off a bit scary, but we quickly descended and the trees blocked the wind creating a serene ride down. The lake was beautiful surrounded by these hills and mountains. Here we boarded a “pirate ship” cruise, it was actually a very elaborate boat, with wood paneling inside. On the cruise Kyle and I devoured the 4 Black Eggs that we bought, for some reason Paul and Braydon didn’t want any. It was a pretty and nicely warm cruise inside this boat. When we reached the other side of the lake, we started walking around the small town, and stopping in a big touristy store, which ended up having sake tasting. It was a self-pour system, where we bought a little cup and 3 coins from a nearby vending machine, then used our coins to get 3 separate Sake tastings. Paul and I enjoyed trying a few different ones, while the boys shopped. As we were walking by one of the windows we saw Mt. Fuji-the clouds had blown away and we could see it. We were very excited and a bit surprised that we were able to see Mt. Fuji from a tourist shop at the bottom of the lake and not any of the other means we traversed to try and spot it. We continued walking through an old checkpoint which was used to tax goods that were coming into the city for trading. Apparently back in the Edo period people walked from Tokyo to Kyoto to trade goods and there were many of these checkpoints along the way, only a few still stand or have been replicated. We walked through a nice park and some wooded areas, coming to an observation deck with great views of Mt. Fuji again. Then continued around the lake a bit to another small town. This one was bustling with people. We ended up splitting up and getting food separately. I found a German restaurant and was able to get a sausage and salad and glass of wine in this 8 seater little space. Braydon went to a coffee shop to get a coffee with a lady who yelled everything-she was a bit intimidating. Paul and Kyle went to another little place, where Kyle was able to get pasta, Paul got some sort of toast pizza, then Braydon joined them at the lure of pasta. We had to wait about 30 minutes or so to get on a bus to bring us back to the train station, where we gathered our luggage, took a few more trains and eventually an Uber to get to our next Airbnb in Tokyo. All in all Hakone was a nice little area, very scenic and would be wonderful to explore at a more leisurely pace during off-season, so less people around, I'm sure we'd love it. Just doing "The Loop" I felt didn't give us the whole feeling of the place. But we didn't have much time there unfortunately.