Trip to Hakone and Mount Fujiyama

Mt Fuji looks very majestic. It's a perfectly formed Volcano.

I don't think anyone traveling to Japan for leisure would like to miss out on Mt Fujiyama. Fortunately the Hakone region from where the sighting is very good is not too far from Tokyo. Many people do Hakone area trip in one day. They leave early in morning and come back the same evening. But we were not the types to start very early so we had decided to stay overnight in the region. I would recommend staying in the area for at least a night if not more .

The best way of travelling to this region from Tokyo is by a card called ‘ Hakone 2 day free pass.’ One has to travel to this region by a train line called the ‘Odakyu Line.’ This is a private rail line and is different from Japanese Railway (JR). There is no problem in getting to Hakone region as this line starts from Shinjuku station and pass is available from the vending machine for Yen 5200 each. A railway official helped us with making this transaction as we were unsure about it. Most people are very helpful there. The other way is that if you want to save money and if you have JR pass then go by JR trains till a place called Odawara and from there the pass cost is Yen 4000.

We boarded an Odakyu train from Shinjuku after buying the pass and reached Odawara. As you leave Tokyo some lovely countryside and green mountains welcome you. It’s a scenic journey. From Odawara we changed a train and this took us to Hakone. Another change is required here and we boarded a compact train which took us up the hills through the forests and the train terminated at Gora station. All this may sound complicated but it was quite simple and we had no trouble changing trains and it appeared very seamless. Gora was a tiny station and from there they had a tramway going up the hill waiting to take passengers up the mountain further. But we had to check into our hotel first so I called up the hotel and they fetched a car to get us. It was just a 5 minute drive to a lovely hotel which was a traditional Japanese hotel and had been highly rated on tripadvisor. com.

Near Gora station in Hakone region

We checked into Laforet Club Hakone Gora and were happy to note that our family room consisted of two huge rooms. After the tiny rooms in Tokyo this was a big surprise. It was actually a 1 bed room place with attached Tatami area. Tatami mats are traditional Japanese mats which are put on floor for people to sit just as shown in photograph. They are made very scientifically and have prescribed length and width. They are also made out of material which keeps it cool in summer and warm in winter. Shoes were not allowed inside the hotel so we took them off and put them in a locker provided by the hotel.

The Tatami area.

We didn’t spend much time in the hotel as we were told that trams and rope way stop working at 4.45 PM. We had to go and come back before this time. The tram station was 10 minutes walk away and trams coming from Gora station stopped here. The tram took us up the hill on a steep incline till we reached the rope way. As the rope way moved upwards we could see smoke coming from sulphur fields and the odor was pungent. They had been kind enough to give us masks but I didn’t use it. Devicka did as she is more sensitive to smoke. And suddenly just as the rope way hurtled upwards and crossed a mountain, Mt Fuji appeared from nowhere . It was an impressive sight as it towered over everything else. It looked so very tall and Majestic.

The Rope way to Owakudani

Now we had reached Owakudani which means the 'great boiling valley.' Some refer to it as the 'death valley.' By the time we got off and walked to the spot from where we would get a good view- haze started settling in and Mt Fuji lost its luster. We hadn’t had lunch so ordered some food and it was our worst meal in Japan. There is another rope way which takes you down to Lake Ashi area but that was shut for maintenance so buses were being provided for transportation. We decided to do that trip the next day and went down the rope way and tram towards our hotel before the rope way would shut down for the day.

The great boiling Valley

I had read somewhere that this area became dead in evening and it was difficult to find dinner. Our hotel was serving dinner at 7 PM and that too was fixed menu with exorbitant price. Nothing suited us (neither the timings , nor the menu and not the price), so Devicka and I went for a walk to look for a restaurant. It was a lovely walk in the hills and the weather was quite nippy. It was nice and crisp actually. We found a charming little Japanese eatery not far from the hotel and the owner showed us the menu and told us that he would take last order at 9 PM. This was too good to be true.We immediately made reservations and went to enjoy the 'onsen' at the hotel.

Onsen means hot springs. Hakone has been the most popular hot spring resort in Japan for centuries. Hot spring baths are provided by some good hotels and one of the reason why I had selected this hotel was due to them having an onsen. Many people go to Hakone just for spas as they have these hot spring baths.

In Yukatas

As mentioned earlier, our hotel was a traditional Japanese hotel. They provided the guests summer robe called Yukatas. Most people were roaming around in the hotel in their Yukatas and we followed suit. It felt perfectly normal. We went to the onsen for soaking in warm spring water after a tiring day. We had walked quite a bit and this being a hilly area, you tend to walk a lot. A large bath was provided indoors and another hot tub was out in the open. We tried both. It felt great. The Japanese dinner after that tasted even better.

Our dinner place. Nice restaurant near the hotel.

Quite a variety of skewers.

Next morning we had breakfast at the hotel and checked out. We had traveled to Hakone just with bag packs but we left them at the hotel . Here we missed a trick. Had we carried our bags, we could have left from Lake Ashi area directly as they had buses from there to Hakone station. To get our bagpacks we had to come all the way back to the hotel.

Once again we caught the sight of Mt Fuji on the way up but this time it was more breathtaking as there was no haze and the snow at the peak was glistening. Mt fuji is a perfectly formed Volcano which erupted 3 centuries ago. It is on an island and many people do travel to Japan to climb it. There is another pass and I think it's called 'Fuji Hakone pass' which one should buy if going near Mt Fuji.

We were at Owakudani which is is famous for the black eggs which have black shells as they are cooked in sulphur aided boiling water. Legend holds that eating just one egg adds 7 years to your life! So it was time for black eggs and black vanilla Ice cream before we boarded the bus to Lake Ashi.

If it's Owakudani then there has to be black eggs.

Black Vanilla Ice cream anyone ?

Lake Ashi (Ashinoko) is a lake formed in Caldera of Mount Hakone almost 3000 years back after the eruption of Mount Hakone. It is a very scenic lake with clean water and is very popular with tourists. There are many sites nearby where people do their hiking and camping. The small towns around it are very picturesque and several hotels have come up around the lake. If you are lucky you could see Mt Fuji from here and we were lucky. A cruise on the lake is covered by the Hakone free pass and its a lovely cruise from one end to another in a very pretty boat. Information is provided in English as well over the PA system as you cruise along and this is very helpful to know about the lake and the region. The weather was perfect for a boat ride and it was very comfortable standing on the top deck as sun wasn't too sharp. The landscape consists of green mountains and you could spot some lovely buildings and Torii gates.

The pirate ship for a Lake Ashi cruise

Such buildings dot the landscape

Cruising along. Very scenic boat ride.

We reached the other end - had some squids, corn on the cob and coke and roamed around the charming little town. We saw the buses leave for Hakone station. We hadn't got our bags so couldn't board these buses but instead we had to take the cruise back to the originating end. Then we took the bus back to Owakudani followed by rope way and tram to our hotel to pick up bagpacks. Then followed the train after train trip till we reached our hotel in Tokyo in the evening.

Many would think that we would have been exhausted after all this and would have called it a day. On the contrary it was time to party as we met up friends and family members and partied till late. My friend Amit Bagga was traveling to Japan from Singapore for work and he introduced me to different kinds of Japanese liquor and a great dish called Hiroshima Pancake made at a famous teppanyaki restaurant called the 'Teppan Baby !'