Back again to busy Shinjuku station, we purchased our Hakone Free Pass and hopped aboard the "Romance Car" direct to Hakone, a hot springs resort town nestled in the mountains near Mt. Fuji. It was raining hard when we arrived so we opted for a taxi to our ryokan, Hotel Senkei, the highlight of our stay in Japan.
We were warmly greeted, given umbrellas, and led to our private apartment. Inside, we took off our shoes and stepped up onto the beautiful tatami mats. Warm tea and Japanese sweets awaited us around the table. Our hostess then fitted us each with robes (yukatas) to wear and went over proper procedures for using the onsite hot spring spa (onsen). She asked when we would like to be served dinner, and we arranged a time to allow us to relax in our beautiful room. We slid the silk screen inner doors open and took lots of pictures!
At the requested time, our hostess returned to escort us to a private dining room, where an amazing keiseki meal awaited us! These meals were indeed the highlight of our stay here; each place setting had perhaps 20 different dishes in front, all artfully presented and amazingly good! I was proud of my children who managed to try many new and unfamiliar things. After enjoying a leisurely meal, we all tried soaking in the onsen (Mark with Adam, and me with the girls). Then kids to bed in their prepared futons, a bit of sake for us, and everyone was happy. =)
In the morning, we donned our yukatas once more and enjoyed another amazing keiseki meal for breakfast. Then back to the station to store our bags for a day of sightseeing.
The tourist circuit around Hakone is very well organized, making it easy to hop from one mode of transportation to another. We began with a charming, small train that wove its way up the mountain, making switchbacks and crossing bridges along the way. Our first stop was at the Open Air Museum, a sculpture garden filled with delightful and creative works of art. We spent several hours there, and my kids had fun at the creative play spaces onsite. After, we ate a yummy lunch at Woody's Cafe (think
Toy Story!)
We continued with a cable car, then a ropeway up to Owakudani, a geologic area on the top of the mountain known for its sulpher vents. We took the short hike to an area where the vents were more visible, and there we bought some black eggs boiled onsite. Eating one is said to prolong one's life by seven years, so I just had to eat one!
Next it was down the other side of the mountain via ropeway, then onto a junk boat for a scenic trip across Lake Ashi. Normally this provides the best views of Mt. Fuji, but unfortunately due to fog and light drizzle, the mountain didn't show its face.
A bus ride in the dark took us back to the station, where we gathered our luggage and took the local train one stop back to Odawara. Here we bought our tickets for the Shinkansen to Kyoto. Indeed, this "bullet train" was fast and very smooth; though we couldn't see much out the window in the dark, we knew we were flying fast, and I marveled at the ingenuity of Japanese engineering.
Kyoto was like walking back through time, boasting a wealth of UNESCO sites to explore. We saw as much as possible in our two full days there, picking Hotel Sunline Kyoto for its close proximity to a bus stop and for its family-sized room (we all fit in one room, very rare in Asia!!). First, we visited Nijo-ji castle, displaying the opulence of the shoguns during the feudal era. I particularly liked the extensive landscaped gardens and the "nightingale floors" that squeaked to warn of intruders.
We also had fun visiting the Toei Kyoto Studio Park, where we watched a ninja show and explored the Japanese "village" used as backdrop for many samurai movies. Couldn't leave without buying Mark a ninja sword!
We completed the day in Gion Corner, wandering among houses where beautiful geisha hurried to their nightly appointments. Here we watched a cultural demonstration of various Japanese arts at Yasaka Hall, highlighting chado (the tea ceremony), koto (Japanese harp), kado (flower arrangement), gagaku (court music), kyogen (ancient comic plays), kyomai (Kyoto style dance), and bunraku (puppet play).
The next day we visited Kinkakuji, the famous Temple of the Golden Pavilion. Its image sparkling in the reflection lake was amazing to behold! After, we visited the most famous Zen rock garden in Japan, at Ryoanji temple. It was peaceful to sit quietly for awhile, meditating and soaking up the serenity.
In the late afternoon, we visited the Fushimi Inari shrine (featured in
Memoirs of a Geisha), which welcomed us with its giant vermillion torii gate. Behind the main temple grounds, hundreds of smaller orange torii gates snake upwards to the top of Mt. Inari, like the ribs of a long, colorful snake. It was a mesmerizing and surreal experience to walk through them, and though we didn't make it to the top (did I mention there are
hundreds?!!), this was one of my favorite shrines we visited in Japan. I just had to buy myself a miniature torii gate as a souvenir (and Christmas ornament)!
With a bit of difficulty due to lack of proper planning, we made our way to Osaka that night and to the airport in the morning. The wonderful week we spent in the Land of the Rising Sun will remain forever in our memories!
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