Hakone

We got a late start this morning. We packed our things, ate breakfast, and rushed to the train station to catch our train to Hakone. We made it with about 5 minutes to spare, and we got on the first train to Hakone. We transferred lines at Odawara station, and got on a train to Hakone Yumoto, then transferred again onto another train to Gora station. Once we got off the final train, I recognized Tokinoyu Setsugetsuka, our ryokan, from the pictures on the Internet. It's literally a 1-2 minute walk from the Gora station. We were too early to check in, so we dropped off our bags and ate ramen across the street from the ryokan. From there, we went back to the train station to do some site seeing.

We purchased the Hakone free pass (unfortunately, it wasn't free) which gave us full access to Hakone's busses, trains, ropeways, cable cars, and boats. We got on the cable car from Gora, then got on the ropeway. While on the ropeway, we were able to see Mount Fuji. Unfortunately, it was cloudy, so it was not a perfect view (see picture to the right). We road on the ropeway until we reached Lake Ashi, and then hopped on a boat to Hakone Machi. The boat resembled a pirate ship and the crew dressed similar to how you would expect people on a pirate ship to dress in a Disney movie. Once we reached Hakone Machi, we walked around, grabbed some coffee, and then got on a bus and train back to Gora.

It was past 4PM, so we were able to check into our ryokan. After checking in, Alexis and I picked out yukata to wear later that evening. Our room is very interesting compared to all other hotels I've stayed at. For instance, our hotel room door is a sliding door, and not a door that swings back and forth. In addition, our bath and shower is outside on the balcony. Although there are some things that make this room unique, this hotel is very nice. They have great service, and the amenities are very nice. As I just mentioned, they have private baths on all balconies, and they have separate mens and womens onsens, and they have private onsens for people to use. Alexis and I changed into yukata, and relaxed in one of the private onsens this afternoon. It was very relaxing.