2018 JAPAN

31 OCT 2018 WEDNESDAY

I was concerned about the tight schedule with immigration, luggage, JR Pass validation, and catching 3 trains to the Hilton but everything went so smoothly. I have NEVER NOT had to wait in a line to go through immigration before.

The JR office immediately told me the first train I planned to take was not valid with the pass but she easily rerouted me to catch the the right Shinkansen in Shinagawa.

Was unsure where to find the hotel shuttle so we took a cab to the isolated hotel on the top of a hill. It’s a very large resort where the HGV cottages share the grounds with the Hilton resort.

Very disappointed with boxed train station sushi.

01 NOV 2018 THURSDAY

Easily found SGG guide Akira Kanda in front of the Odawara West station entrance. I first noticed that he spoke better English than many Americans. He was an IT engineer with Mitsubishi and lived a year in the US on a technology exchange program with Westinghouse.

The Hakone Loop was a counterclockwise circular path around an old volcanic caldera that encompasses the Hakone area. We took various modes of transportation that included a historic rail car, a rope way cable car, a boat, a stroll through a forest and a bus ride. The Tozan Railway initially took us up the side of a beautiful forested mountain using four switchbacks where the train would reverse direction at the end of each switchback. We requested to see the Open Air Museum in Gora which was an outdoor display of mostly abstract sculptures that opened in 1969. It is highlighted by sculptures from Henry Moore and had a Picasso Pavilion with many pieces of his art. It was an enjoyable stroll around beautiful grounds with curious displays. The Rope Way took us up to a summit in Owakudani Valley with thermal vents spewing steam and also provided a clear view of Mt Fuji. We added 7 years to our lives by sampling their famous black eggs that are boiled in volcanic sulphuric water. Another cable car took us to the shore of Lake Ashi where we all had Tonkatsu Curry overlooking the lake before boarding for the cruise. The boat was crowded but the scenery beautiful. I felt like tackling five large Chinese women that tried crushing me into an elevator with room for only two. Everyone told them there was no room and they left only after I hip checked the leader out of the elevator. The next leg of the journey was a walk along the lake on a gravel path that was a little difficult for mom to the Torii Gate situated in the water on Lake Ashi. Had to wait in line for the photo op to stand on a ramp in the water under the gate. The bus ride back to Hakone Yumoto station was a curvy mountain road through a pretty forest.

Got back to Odawara in time to have soba tempura and pick up breakfast at the station before catching the last shuttle to the hotel. It was an over 6 mile, 17,000 step day.

2 NOV 2018 FRIDAY

Leaving too early for the hotel shuttle, we had to take a train from Nebukawa station to Odawara that is very convenient and just as quick. Too quick that we waited over half an hour for the Shinkansen and the 2 hour ride to Kyoto.

I should have anticipated having a hard time locating guide Yoriko Kanayama at a busy station with the only instructions being to meet in front of Central gate and wearing a blue jacket and blue purse. Eventually found her after 20 minutes not wearing a very blue jacket with a small purse.

Today’s destination was Arashiyama Park, a fifteen minute train ride from Kyoto station. Arrived at a small tourist town with a main street lined with food shops taking us to a view of Hozugawa River. Mary hinted to Yoriko that an earlier lunch would be nice so we had our first good sashimi on a nice second floor restaurant overlooking the Main Street. The Tenryuji Temple was a short walk away and we walked through some very beautiful, tranquil gardens with some fall colors that led us to a towering bamboo grove. A Kodak moment didn’t happen when Yoriko asked another guide to take a picture of our group. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t get the phone camera to snap. At the end of the bamboo grove Mary bought an amulet for good hair….go figure. We were lucky to get reserved seats on a historic mountain train on a very busy day. The train followed a beautiful river valley with small boats waving to us while riding some light rapids. The train dropped us off near some rice fields for a ten minute walk back to a train station that eventually took us back to Kyoto station. We declined another temple visit from the station so we said goodbye to Yoriko who was giddy after receiving our Mac nut omiyage. We waited a long fifty minutes for the Shinkansen back to Odawara. We struggled to find decent train station food before taking the Tokaido line back to Nebukawa and the waiting Hilton Shuttle. Long 13 hour day with lots of train stations.

3 NOV 2018 SATURDAY

Today is a national holiday, Culture Day, where Japan promotes the arts, academics and culture. We climbed up to Odawara Castle where they had a Chrysanthemum exhibit with children dressed in old feudal costumes. The original Odawara Castle was constructed in 1495 but was destroyed in 1872. A replica was later constructed but destroyed by an earthquake in 1923. Much of the current castle was reconstructed since 1950. The interior five levels look like a modern museum with the top level providing a 360 view of the city. The grounds included a cage of red faced Japanese Macaque or Snow Monkeys that didn’t look very healthy.

We found the medicine for Mary’s friend before having the best meal of the trip so far at Uogashi Den Sushi.

We heard about a Feudal Era parade at Hakone-Yumoto from Thursday’s visit so we took the Tozan railway back to see what it was about. The town was packed with people but the parade was quaint at best. Couple of small bands with a number of feudal costumed marchers completed the very home town like parade. Thought it would be more impressive considering the huge turnout of spectators. We did sample some mochi and honey tea drinks.

Shared a Sukiyaki and a waiter recommended hamburger at the Hilton restaurant.

4 NOV 2018 SUNDAY

Expected rain today but it wasn’t heavy and it drizzled only in the morning. Took the Tokaido Line from Nebukawa to Atami and easily found Taka and Shoko outside the station. Noticed a public hot spring foot bath nearby. Caught a bus to the Hana-No-Mai geisha show at the Geigi Kenban school. Atami is famous as one of the best geisha districts in Japan. Geishas or Geigi entertain in traditional forms of dance, art, and music and are hired as hosts for important business meetings. The show was not exciting but interesting nevertheless for its cultural aspects.

We walked a short way through old downtown to a ramen restaurant since I had mentioned wanting some good tonkotsu ramen earlier. It was delish. Another short walk brought us to the Kiunkaku Historic House which had a spectacular garden. The house was originally a private residence to a shipping magnate, later a ryokan, now owned by the city. It is historic due the varied architecture of the room additions over time showing many Western and East Asian influences. We opted to skip the Museum of Art for logistical reasons and jumped on a bus to the Kinomiya Shrine. One of the more popular city shrines, it had the familiar red gates that we’ve seen at prior shrines. It also is the home of the 2000 year old, sacred Okusu tree where you add a year to your life for every walk around the tree. Atami seemed similar to Odawara but boasts a McDonalds. Had some fish cakes on a stick at a food lined alley and picked up grocery store sushi plates at Lassco market near Atami Station. Another interesting day experiencing life in a small Japanese town.

5 NOV 2018 MONDAY

Very happy to have visited Disneysea today. The park is the only one in the world and has a nautical theme with “lands” reflecting different parts of the world. It is the 9th out of 12 Disney theme parks and the fastest park to reach 10M visitors which it did in less than 10 months.

The main entrance is a large globe in a bubbling spring. It leads to the main bay with Mediterranean architecture in front of a volcano in the distance. Venice is on the left and geological formations on the right. Going counterclockwise we found a Jules Verne land with a Journey to the Center of the Earth rollercoaster complete with Nautilus in the middle of Mysterious Island. Other lands included Sinbad in Baghdad, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,  the Lost River Delta, a Mermaid Lagoon, and a 1930s American waterfront.

Too bad the 20 Thousand Leagues ride was closed. Indiana Jones and Center of the Earth were too long of a wait. Finding Nemo would have been good for Alana. The Sinbad Voyage was similar to Its A Small World. We learned not to spend time in a show like the Magic Lamp Theater since only Japanese is spoken. The famous Gyoza Sausage Bun was not much different than an an elongated char siu bao. The 35th Anniversary celebration in the main lagoon was typically Disney cute with a ship of characters dancing and singing lively tunes.

Tokyo Disney is similar to Disney World with a Disneyland, Disneysea, and main resort complex connected by a monorail system. The park needs to restock their Stella Lou dolls after Mary’s shopping spree.

We made it back to Odawara by 4:30 and had a great sashimi lunch special at the restaurant next to the closed Uogashi Den. Picked up breakfast at a station donut shop before heading to the shuttle.

6 NOV 2018 TUESDAY

Originally planned as a relaxing spa and exercise day, nobody wanted to just stay at the hotel. After a daring Onsen experience in the morning we took advantage of our last JR Pass day to visit Ito and the Jogasaki lighthouse and suspension bridge. Ito is 50 minutes further south on the east side of the Izu Peninsula from Atami. The entire coast appeared to be mountainous terrain with many structures on steep hillsides. The Jogasakikaigan station resembled a log cabin and was a 1.5 KM walk away from the lighthouse. The coast had a large network of trails and had rugged cliffs that reminded me of Big Sur and mom of Halona blowhole in Hawaii. The suspension bridge had a solid walkway and no sway that made it easy to cross. The coast line provided many beautiful views.

We had another great sashimi lunch in Atami at a storefront along the food alley before heading back to Nebukawa.

After just a couple hours of rest it was time for more sushi. We shared a fabulous sushi platter and sukiyaki at the Lobby Lounge.

7 NOV 2018 WEDNESDAY

What a great trip. Kept very busy every day. The JR Pass was invaluable from a convenience standpoint and probably from cost also. The Amazon pre-paid unlimited data 8 day SIM card for the phone is a must have and the Japan Travel app helped so much when planning train routes. The SGG guides were all very informative and made it so much easier to get around the cities and finding good food.