Business Hotel Konen Fuji

... weird, but once you crack them they just look a regular old hard boiled egg. They give you some salt but no pepper!
After that we took a cruise on Lake Ashi which is a lake made by a volcanic eruption thousands of years ago. It was a little rough on the lake due to a windy day so we rode in the enlosed part of the boat.
Lunch was at a local restaurant and we tried some interesting foods ...

... had baths with views of Mount Fuji- oh yea, we managed to get one of the 100/365 days when you can get a clear view of the Fuje- but it also had a proper outdoor bit with a bubbly spa pool, hot lake pool, ceramic bathtub pool and bamboo bath pool- spoilt for choice really and absolutely gorgeous after a long day hiking! We also got their taster dinner one ...

Hakone wreszcie pozwoliło nam odpocząć od świątyń i uciec od betonowego Tokio. Jest to popularny górski kurort położony dość blisko stolicy. Cały teren to wnętrze wielkiego, starego 40 km krateru wulkanicznego. Główną atrakcją oprócz samych gór są onseny – japoński gorące źródła i ryokany -tradycyjne japońskie hotele, zajazdy, których początki datuje się na XVII wiek ...

... habia fuegos artificiales en el Lago Kawaguchi, para celebrar el comienzo de la temporada de escalada del Monte Fuji, asi que nos fuimos para alla.

Por el camino compramos pasteles de arroz para cenar y nos dimos una vuelta por el lago. Me recordo al Lake District en Inglaterra. Habia muchos botes de recreo y patines en forma de pato, para adentrarse al lago. Nosotras nos sentamos en un banquito a la orilla, cenamos y nos pusimos a disfrutar de las vistas, hasta que nos dimos ...

... Cave

On the way to the Peace Park we started getting glimpses of Fuji, and with my amazing skillz of taking pictures of mountains from a bus that I developed while in Switzerland with the MRD's I think I actually got a couple cool shots from the bus. lol Mickey also tried to give us quizzes on the bus. It was a little ...

... views of the surrounding mountains and forest. We decided to take advantage of the nearby village onsen (a communal outdoor hot spring bath, found everywhere in Japan). Upon finding slippers and a yukata (traditional Japanese gown) in our wardrobe we followed the cue of the other guests and got dressed. After receiving some confusing directions from the guesthouse manager (who spoke limited English, and in retrospect, did seem to be laughing at us) we soon became lost, dressed ...

... and walked back to the bus station. We had a bit of a wait for the bus back to Tokyo so we caught up on a couple of things on the internet, we also had a nervous moment when we thought our bus had gone without us, but it was just turning around! Back in Tokyo we bought a veritable feast of things to eat, took them back to the hotel as we needed to pack for going to China tomorrow! Chris and Kate

... hut was safe and wise indeed. I got really scared while I was trying to sleep on the thin and damp futon mattress of mountain hut, bothered by the noise of strong winds swirling outside. Prior to clmbing, we also discussed about the weather and we knew that it would be raining the next day. As soon as we left the top, it drizzled as we were heading toward hevy mist. The rain was getting harder as we were descending ...

Life is getting busy here in Fuji. Lots of goodbyes, and lots of packing to do! Rainy season is coming to an end, and the summer heat and humidity are settling in. School life still goes on, though at a lighter pace since exams have just finished. Fiona had the chance to visit a local kindergarten with cute little kids. She also partook in her first ikebana class. Sebastian, on the other hand had his hands full at a memorable enkai. He had this to say ...

... sickness, sharing a bed (the beds are more like one big long mattress, with separate pillows for each person), noisy climbers outside etc, sleep is almost inconceivable, but rest will have to suffice. The best cure for altitude sickness is allowing your body to get used to it's conditions, and this 5 hour rest definatly did that. Previously I had struggled badly, taking rests at every corner (about 20 metres apart), but after the rest I felt ...