Trip to Hakone and Odawara Part 1

At the beginning of February, Tomo and I went on a 2 day trip to 箱根(Hakone) and 小田原(Odawara). We got on the Odakyu line in Shinjuku on Friday afternoon, took the train until Odawara, then transferred to a bus. Then, for the next 40 minutes, we climbed up a winding, narrow road towards Hakone. The ride made me reminisce of the road to Poiana Brasov and other mountain passes in the Romanian Carpathian. Tomo, on the other hand, was not having too much of a blast, as she is prone to get sea sick...

When we finally arrived at the Hotel, a big surprise awaited me. Originally I had asked Tomo to look for a cheap ryokan (traditional style Japanese Inn). When she couldn't find one we agreed to go to a hotel. But I was not expecting this. Our hotel, on the shore of Ashi-Hakone Lake, was one of the most luxurious I have ever been to.

The view from the room wasn't bad either:




The next morning we got on a fake pirate ship (why did I not take a pic of it?!?!)which crossed the lake and offered gorgeous views of Mount Fuji.



Waiting for the boat




First good look at Mount Fuji




Mount Fuji with temple gate






The view from the Oowakudani gondola (the most used in the world according to the Guiness Book of Records)




The Oowakudani sulfur springs. This place is famous throughout Japan for its black eggs, which are boiled in the spring water. Once I smelled the sulfur coming from the springs, though, I was not too excited about eating the egg. Didn't taste bad in the end, but I was still suspicious.

Check out this video I took of the springs to see more sulfur fumes action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-ReZA4PkUY




One last view of mount Fuji




And one last view of the smoking springs




Uncensored and unexplained