The mountains of Hakone have been a great little getaway within our getaway to Japan. At the moment I’m sitting on a second floor balcony outside overlooking a wide but shallow river as it tumbles down a short waterfall creating a constant rush of noise. It’s loud but it’s that prefect kind of background white noise that easily lulls you off to sleep.
I think I’ve actually camped out in the smoking balcony but the relaxation room downstairs and inside behind me has all the sliders that overlook the river shut tight and the sounds and smells of the mountain are blocked out. It’s not even cold out here, I’d guess probably in the high teens on the Celsius scale of temperature. As a Wellingtonian I find this to be an almost perfectly acceptable summer temperature even though it’s meant to be mid autumn. The only disappointing thing about the temperature is that the unseasonal warmth has meant that there has not really been any autumn change to speak of in the trees on the hillside that would often be aflame with red and orange colour by now.
Last night we stayed in the Fujiya Hotel up here in the mountains, just over the other Hill and round a few narrow bends. It’s an amazingly well kept place with over a hundred years of history. Built in the early Meiji period when Japan was opening up to the west the hotel was designed from the start to appeal to foreign guests and at the same time give them a taste of Japan. It served as a prison, in the loosest sense of the word, for diplomats during the war with dozens of European dignitaries and families confined to house arrest on the grounds of the lavish hotel. After the war it was re purposed for use by the occupying forces and then it was eventually returned and kept in the same style ever since. There’s been a lot more history than that but the place has a museum inside dedicated to just telling you about all the foreign and local high class people that have visited so I won’t even try to repeat that in this little blog in typing on my phone.
There’s been extra buildings added to the complex over the years so different parts of the place have a slightly different feel to them but mostly we got the feeling that it was like hanging out at the kind of place Gatsby would probably have rolled up to in his big old Rolls Royce then gone to the bar for a party. Sadly the bar was reserved for a private function last night so I couldn’t recreate this scene myself, I also mistakenly left the Rolls at home. I did get one of the staff to let me into the bar this morning for a tour though, here’s some of the photos:
The roof has even been tiled and decorated to represent billiard tables, billiards was after all what once occupied much of the floor space in the room.
And if I add a little filter to this one you can really feel the vibe…
Yesterday we set off from Shounandai then drove along the coast towards Odawara (I think I might have blogged about Odawara before so feel free to check back in the archives for that story) then we cut inland and up into the hills towards the Hakone township and lakeside. It’s a very picturesque place, the misty mountains around us were rumbling with deep chest rattling thunder and there was a fine drizzle of rain. Old men were out on the water in little boats and along the waters edge flicking out fishing lines in the hope of catching trout. I didn’t see any caught so I’m not sure if the Lake actually has any fish left. We had a look at the rebuilt 1600’s (Edo era) check point on the lake side. Check points were dotted around the Tokyo/Kanto region to make sure guns and explosives were kept out and the women folk were kept in. I guess they also did a handy trade in taxing goods brought in from the country to sell in the city too.
After looking around the lake a bit we then drove just round the next Bay to the Hakone Shrine and had a wander around up the steep hill the shrine sits on. We got our Temple and shrine visiting calligraphy and stamp books filled in with the shrines mark and offered Go-En or 5 yen coins to the shrines at the top. I couldn’t turn down the chance to pray for some luck at the 9 Dragon’s Head Shrine off to the side of the main shrine, sadly the rumble of thunder was a few moments after perfect timing but I take it as a sign they got my message.
Then we took a drive over to our hotel with its grand Gatsby look and feel. Dinner was priced way out of our range so we drove to the next town over and had a meal at a local Izakaya run by a husband and wife. The best kind of meals, where the local businessmen go to get fed if their wives agent home cooking for them. It was a delicious dinner but we didn’t get any photos to share sadly.
After dinner Naoko went and relaxed in the hot spring Bath at our hotel and I tried but failed to get into the bar because of the private reservation by some big bus company. I had a seat in the Orchid Lounge which is usually just a tea room but they served me a cask strength Highland Park Scotch to bide my time with. I watched the men from the bus company file out from their dinner room, the Junior members and lower level managers came out first then stood guard directing the upper management to the bar or their rooms as they wished. Then when the senior managers came out I wasn’t sure if the bus company idea may have just been a front for a more shady business as the bowing became much deeper and the use of very formal language stepped up several notches. The top boss was old and frail in a wheelchair that got carried down stairs by about 7 of his staff who all bowed after placing him carefully back on solid ground. Yea… a bus company for sure. Or it just proves that no matter what business you are in here in Japan but all that really matters is the hierarchy and status.
After we checked out this morning we had a seat in the Orchid Lounge again but this time for tea, coffee, and cake. Here’s a picture of my ‘Cake Set’ – What do you think it costs for Creme Brulle and a glass of Ice Tea in a place like this? Leave a comment here or on Facebook with your guess!
So that’s almost the end of our little trip away into the mountains. The balcony I’m sitting on is connected to a special hot spring where Naoko is off relaxing in its magical waters. It’s been nice sitting out listening to the river and watching a Hayabusa (Hawk) circle in the hills above but I’m sure she’ll be back in a moment and then we’re off for lunch at the restaurant downstairs. After lunch I think we’re headed to one of the surrounding towns to have a look around and buy some souvenirs.
Due to the magic of blog writing I can tell you we did do exactly what I said we’d do and had lunch downstairs then went to the small town down the hill. It really was like stepping back in time. Here’s a picture of one of the buildings:
We’re back in Shounandai now and off to dinner. Naoko’s going out for dinner with a friend and I’m being let loose on Shounandai by myself to hit up my old local haunts again. Wish me luck!