The wake up was rough this morning! The alarm was set for 7:30, but as I rolled over I smashed on the snooze! I managed to somehow wake to check the clock only to see itilluminate 8:25! I jumped out of bed faster than a couple of the days I was late for work. Reason being breakfast closed at 8:30! Quickly slip into some pants, pull a shirt over my head and bolt it downstairs! Who cares about brushing your teeth or washing my face, even having the shirt on backwards; breakfast was calling! The shock on the servers face was priceless as she runs back into the kitchen to bring out the food she had already packing away from the breakfast floor. It was really nice of her to bring the rest of it back me, they could have just said no.
Hakone is part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, less than 100 kilometers from Tokyo. Famous for hot springs, outdoor activities, natural beauty and the view of nearby Mt. Fuji.Hakone close popular destinations among Japanese looking for a break from Tokyo. No trip to Hakone would be complete without a dip at a Japanese hot springs though. If you’re planning to stay overnight, your lodgings may include bathing facilities, but if not many hotels open up their baths to visitors for around ¥500 or so. The volcanically active Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park, centered around Lake Ashinoko is an all day event which takes you on a trip across the park via train, trolley, gondola and a Disney decked out pirate ship across the lake itself. Beware though, the JR pass will not provide free access to these attractions without extra cost. The first leg consists of a lot of tram transfers as they all work together to get you to the top of the mountain. Each stop has it’s own small detour consisting of food/beverage stands and a couple souvenirs shops families can look around through. As you ride the gondola up and over the final peak you will find yourself over a volcanic hot spring full of sulfur springs called the Great Boiling Valley (Owakudani). The valley is open for public viewing and if your like me traveling during the winter, the 80 degree pools make for a warm up stop. Careful though the paths are narrow and constantly filled with tours; falling into one will burn your senors before your brain gets a chance to respond in pain. Owakudani also serves up it’s own delicacy known locally as kurotamago or black-egg. The name is derived from the color of the eggshell which is black from boiling in the thermal hot spring. It is worth mentioning that while the shell is blackened, the content remains the same like in any other egg. Myth says eating one of these eggs can add seven years to your lifespan. Priced at 6 for 500 yen that’s one hell of a deal to extend life!
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From here it’s time to take the gondola down to Ashinoko for the final trip across the lake in a pirate ship. I apologize for the lack of photos but I remember dozing off for most of the voyage across the lake. Fatigue had finally caught up to me today! As we all started boarding off, the day was coming to an end and the sun was in the perfect position to photograph Mount Fuji. When this ship docked, I made sure to be the first one off and quickly made my way around to dock to perch myself in the best possible position. In one of the photographs I include the Hakone Jinja Shrine to the composition. If you do a search about this landmark you’ll notice the same composition comes up as the most popular photograph in that area. As I photographed away, a local who spoke really good English told me on most occasions Fuji is really hard to see because of haze and sometimes caused by fog that builds up around the lake. Even he came out to grab a bunch of photographs as a scene like this normally doesn’t come out – lucky me 
. As the sun dropped over the horizon the a cold breeze started to pick up from the lake and the temperature absolutely dropped. If it wasn’t for the view I would have fled the scene only to hide in a convince store and sipping away on hot tea!
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Hakone is situated at higher elevation then most of the cities I’ve visited in Japan, so at night it became uncomfortably cold. Beijing’s recorded temperature drop of -15C was by far the worst, but I’d give Hakone a close second. On the way back from Lake Ashinoko the travel guide featured Tenzan as being the best hot spring in the area; I’d be up for anything to warm me up at this point though. Tenzan is not just an onsen facility, but hosts a wide range of amenities. A relaxation room overlooks a river where you can unwind while reading or even catch up on some Zzz’s. They have an excellent shabu restaurant which serves up some of the best tasting beer you can buy on tap. It’s a kind of place you can either enjoy it with a family, some friends, or even go solo. In the main hot spring itself, the atmosphere Tenza projected was soothing. Candles were lit during the night to establish a sense of relaxation and probably minimize the visibility of all that naked ass – that was a first for me! You could choose from a handful of different saunas, cold wash bays, four different temperature Jacuzzi and a main hot spring designed entirely using stones and rocks. Nothing I have ever experienced before, this really felt Japanese. I remember walking over to this one Jacuzzi which was occupied by two individuals; trying to blend in and act cool I stepped into the pool only to feel as though the skin on my legs would burn off ! No clue how those two survive because I could’ve realistically boiled food in there.
I wandered around the spa for about two hours and decided to call it a night. When I got back to my hotel in Odawara, the first I did was undress and fall over onto the bed face first.