Tokyo Diaries Day 8

Our last full day in Japan. Today we went on the one day Mt Fuji Hakone and Mt Komagatake tour. We travelled to Mt Fuji by bus and came back on the Shinkansen (the bullet train).

Travelled down the expressway to Mt Fuji - the buildings are really packed in, especially the residental ones as you get out of the centre of Tokyo. As 75% of Japan is mountainous, wherever there is some relaatively flat land, you will see houses all jammed in and rice paddy fields. At the end of Winter, beginning of Spring it is quite depressing as everything is brown and dark.


We stopped at the Mt Fuji Visitor centre, where we couldn't resist taking this picture in the toilet, of how you are meant to use the toilet! The view of Mt Fuji is beautiful.


On to the fourth stop at Mt Fuji. Apparently it is unusual to be able to go past the first stop. Probably because of the snow. It has recently snowed here, but the roads are not covered. It was extremely cold at the fourth stop.







Lunch was a traditional Japanese llunch at one of the hotels at Mt Fuji, Dave was very happy, after lunch he found a Galaga Machine to play. The view of Mt Fuji from the hotel was also impressive.



Next stop was Hakone, for a cruise of Lake Ashi. They have these funny little duck boats. The girls would have been impressed if they were here!





Off the boat for a trip up to the top of Mt Komagatake on the Ropeway. The view of Lake Ashi and the Pacific Ocean was spectacular, but it was very cold.





Back on to the bus (after warming myself with a can of coffee from a drink vending machine), and off to the rail station near Hakone, to get the Shinkansen (bullet train) back to Tokyo Station. The speed of these things is phenomenal. They swoosh through the station doing over 270km/hour, you barely have time to blink. I could of stood there for a while and marvelled at their speed.




We ate dinner at the hotel once we got back - they had a five course dinner special, so we relaxed in their Italian Restaurant, before I went to bed early (very tired).
It is now Thursday - our last day. We will go back to Asakusa to have a better look before we come back and catch the Narita Express train to Narita Interntional Airport.