Friday, September 6th.
One of the things Corrine and I both really wanted to do was stay in a traditional Japanese inn, called a Ryokan. Hakone was about an hour and change outside of Tokyo and is renowned for it’s Ryokan and Onsen, think hot spring baths.
hakone station
There was a service desk specifically for sending luggage to your ryokan so you could explore the town without having to worry about a later check-in than you arrived. Our check-in was not until 4 and it was still morning. Needless to say we took advantage of the service.
We took a bus to Lake Ashi port. Hakone is very mountainous, so the bus ride was on a very narrow road with lots of curves and twists and the bus was quite full. It was a little nauseating, if I’m being honest. It was also at least 20 minutes.
Once we got off the bus, we were greeted by this huge gate. Note the car going through it for scale.
Hakone is a scenic town known for its onsen. Really scenic.
Once we got off the entirely too long bus ride, we found a karaage chicken place. Some of the best fried chicken I have ever had. It was pet friendly too. One group had two of the biggest Great Danes I have ever seen.
Ended up getting a t-shirt to remember the place by. Plus, I really dig the design.
After eating, we headed to the port. We wanted to take the sightseeing cruise across Lake Ashi. It was something that Corrine marked on our list as a high priority and I am so glad she did. The boat was really cool, the water really calm, and the scenery really beautiful. Well worth the time.
Inside the port station on the other side of the lake, you were greeted by a statue and decor from Neon Genesis Evangelion, a very famous anime. Apparently this is the lake location featured in the series. It was quite a pleasant surprise. It has been quite some time since I watched it.
Passengers on the boat were given two options when they got to this station. They could return to the other side of the lake or go up the mountain side on the ropeway gondola. We chose ropeway.
The gondola was hot and smell of sulphur was strong. There is a reason there are so many onsen in this area.
After the ropeway, passengers needed to take a cable car down to the bus station.
After a short bus ride, we finally arrived at our Ryokan. More on that next time.
Honestly, the day was already a great adventure and it wasn’t even over. I’m so happy we did this trip.
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