 |
| Mt. Fuji, not to be confused with Mt. Fiji, which evidently does not exist |
Also according to that website of accumulated knowledge, "Fuji, located on Honshu Island, is the highest mountain in Japan at 3,776.24 m (12,389 ft).[1] "
Like my mother, I am a carrier of malaprops and ignorance, which can make for great hilarity, except when it doesn't. So when I casually mentioned that I was really looking forward to seeing "Mt. Fiji" to one of the very kind individuals who was on Saturday's train excursion to the Hakone area about 2 hours south of Tokyo, I knew from the look on his face that I had ventured into this familiar and compromising arena and suspected that "Fiji" was the source of his confusion. And, clearly, mine. In an admirable display of diplomacy, he responded by delivering a few details about the area and worked "Mt. Fuji" into his response just enough to save me from my ignorant self and him from coming off as a pedantic jerk. Yes, diplomacy has its role in everyday life. I salute his gifts for such and with that let's move on.
In an early move I do not regret, I signed up for a three month membership with an international organization that organizes events for expats. Yesterday, we journeyed to Hakone for a day of sightseeing and camaraderie. In the event anyone wants to reenact yesterday's journey, I am going to attempt to explain how to get from Tokyo to Hakone in an accurate way that neither guidebooks nor Google maps will not, dare not and cannot approximate.
1. Rise at 5 a.m.
2. Leave apartment by 5:45 a.m., in time to catch Yamamote line from Shibuya to Shinjuku.
3. At Shinjuku station, locate Okakyu line and, at gate, try to purchase "FreePass" that is both a round trip ticket to and from Hakone and a discount pass to a number of attractions. It is not "free." Despite having studied how to do this on line the night before, you will still screw it up and create a long line of Japanese-appearing-patient, but you know they are thinking, "#@%-this-idiot." Spend no less than 10 minutes trying, cancel transaction, trying agin, cancel transaction...and so it goes. Finally, you get to a screen asking for 51,100 Yen. Ordinarily, such an amount would be a reason to pause, but it's not real money to you anyway. Deposit what you think is 60,000 Yen and receive back a small black and white ticket and a LOT of 10,000 Yen bills. Evidently you gave the machine a lot more than you had intended.
4. Head to gate. (Do not make the mistake of looking back at line of faces as you slink away. The Japanese are good at hiding their emotions, but they're not THAT good.)
5. Take Yamomote line to Shinjuku.
6. At Shinjuku station, you have approximately six minutes to find the 6:31 a.m. Odakyu line for the train to Odawara. Shinjuku is the biggest station in Tokyo.
7. Follow as quickly as possible--no running--signs pointing to the Odakyu line. At Odakyu gate entrance, feed your FreePass into fare slot and proceed to Platform 14. The train is already there. You are to meet your group in "Wagon 4" but every sign posted in front of each car has two numbers so you're not sure which one to use. Scurry along the train until the number 4 begins to appear and then look for anyone who looks familiar.
8. Spy a tall white guy up ahead standing on the platform and enter the car. Wherever two or more people who aren't Japanese are together, that's probably where you need to be. Smile at your fellow excursioners (10 of them) and settle into a warm seat. Say prayer of thanksgiving to the Japanese appreciation for temperatures that come in contact with your bottom. More on that at another time.
9. At 7:59, train arrives in Odawara. Exit train, go across platform, enter another train.
10. In about 15 minutes, at Odawara station, exit train again, go across platform, enter another train for Hakoneyumoto. (I may be a bit off of these times, but the outcome and process are solid. As per advice in previous posts, follow the crowd.)
11. In about 40 minutes, exit train again at Hakoneyumoto, go across platform, enter another train to Gora.
12. Stay on train until you come to an outpost in the middle of no where. Exit train, enter small gage railway car.
13. Ride small gage railway car up very, very steep terrain until you come to what the Japanese call "rope cars." We call them gondola's.
14. Have I mentioned how increasingly crowded the stations and trains are becoming?
 |
| Gondola bound for mountaintop |
15. Get in line for gondola. It's Japan. Expect lines. Get used to them. Get over your American self. Ride gondola up beautiful mountain side, eventually crossing over very deep pit filled with loud machinery and spewing heavy sulfur mist from naturally occurring sulfur hot springs, to arrive at top where gift shops, restaurants, convenience stores, overlooks and did I mention gift shops, await you. No one can tell you what they are doing down below in the pit. You suspect it is a Japanese version of fracking but you do not say this out loud.
 |
| Sulfur hot springs erupting |
 |
| Mt. Fuji in background of sulfur fumes |
16. Orient yourself to the beautiful view of Mt. Fuji and enjoy the mystical fog from the sulfur hot springs. (Yes, it smells like sulfur.)
17. Wander up to a higher level of elevation and investigate a small market selling eggs cooked in the sulfur hot springs' waters. The chemical reaction between the egg's shell and the water turns the eggs black. People everywhere are eating them. One inquires, "Does cooking in the sulfur water change the egg's flavor?" The answer is, "No. They taste just like a hard boiled egg." One is left admiring the enterprising mind that discovered this phenomenon and then created a business model selling black cooked eggs to tourists. Try to imagine this being allowed in America.
18. Enjoy rest of day with a companionable group of ten other international expats. Discover wonderful young woman who now lives near your daughter in Cambridge, MA, but once lived just across the freeway from you in San Francisco.
17. Wander up to a higher level of elevation and investigate a small market selling eggs cooked in the sulfur hot springs' waters. The chemical reaction between the egg's shell and the water turns the eggs black. People everywhere are eating them. One inquires, "Does cooking in the sulfur water change the egg's flavor?" The answer is, "No. They taste just like a hard boiled egg." One is left admiring the enterprising mind that discovered this phenomenon and then created a business model selling black cooked eggs to tourists. Try to imagine this being allowed in America.
18. Enjoy rest of day with a companionable group of ten other international expats. Discover wonderful young woman who now lives near your daughter in Cambridge, MA, but once lived just across the freeway from you in San Francisco.
19. Talk to a guy from Poland who recalls his favorite mountain climb eight years ago in the Rockies near your Denver, CO daughter.
20. Meet a tall, very handsome German in his mid-40's who tells you that the best time of his life was as a 23-year old attending UCLA.
21. Trade British comedy show tips with a Brit.
22. Accept one of the black eggs from a sweet Irish girl who bought a half dozen because, "The sign said that you turn back 10 years of your life for every egg you eat." You take it home with uncertain intent.
23. Take the advice of a gay couple who tell you where to find good bread, excellent cheese and a decent wine store in Tokyo. Don't mention you've been buying wine mostly at the 7-11 because they carry some French cabs for around $8. You've bought all of them and they have not been restocked in the past week. You are getting nervous.
24. Be grateful to the kind and generous spirit of Nils, the gifted organizer of this fine and memorable day in Hakone, under the shadow of Mt. Fuji/Fiji.
A couple more photos, just for fun.
 |
| Sign on wall in gift shop |
 |
| Needs no explanation |
 |
| I so wish I could do this |
 |
| A gift for sleeping on the trains |
This was a great summary! By the way the train station we met at was Shinjuku, not Shimbashi (in case anyone attempts to follow the directions).
ReplyDelete