Mt. Fuji-Wednesday, 02.04.25

Today we will travel by bus towards Fuji san, the holy mountain, after a Japanese breakfast and take a boat tour on Lake Kawaguchi.

We will depart at 09:00, check out of the hotel, and stow our luggage in the coach. The weather is still rainy and cold, although at 8° Celsius it is twice as warm as yesterday. Then we drive about 2 hours to Lake Kawaguchi on the highway heading west. Upon arrival, we look for the mountain, which has a height of 3778 meters, but we only see its base as it is shrouded in clouds. Meanwhile, the rain has stopped, and the sun is coming out. Now, it is also 14° Celsius. We leave the bus at the parking lot of the very touristy place, Fujikawaguchi, and walk to the boat dock where our boat is already waiting. We sail for about 20 minutes on the lake, where we can admire the scenery from the upper deck. As mentioned, we cannot see Mt. Fuji but we can see other mountains. It must be impressive from the boat when it is clear of clouds. Back at the dock, we have some free time and stroll through the town. We are not hungry, so we visit the tourist shops and let the packaging guide us, buying green tea cookies that taste terrible. We also got green tea KitKat and I bought a delicious potato snack from the convenience store, which I enjoyed by the lake.

Then we got back on the bus and headed towards Lake Hamana, where we stopped at a sake brewery after about an hour and a half. There we received an introduction to the relatively complex process of sake production involving sake rice, fermentation, washing, and storage. The difficult issue of finding young talent in the industry was also discussed. After that, we went to the showroom where we had a tasting of four different types and had the option to buy some, but we didn’t because of the whole transportation situation; we had to check in our luggage and would also have to manage getting such bottles onto the plane. There were also many staff in the sales area as well as several traffic controllers from the parking lot to the street.

Then we continued for about 1.5 hours towards Lake Hasan, where we arrived at a beautiful wellness hotel where we received an introduction to the tradition of an onsen bath. We then received our room keys and arranged to meet downstairs at reception in about an hour in classic kimono attire. We went to our room, which is relatively large by Japanese standards. There, we found all sorts of bathing items in a closet. We then put on our kimonos, as well as two-toe socks and a small jacket, and went down to the lobby. Here, we checked out some shops and at 19:00 met the others for a group photo shoot. After that, we went to the restaurant. What awaited us we could not have guessed. It was pure abundance. We were all overwhelmed by the variety of food and drinks at the buffets. It was 'all you can eat' and we had 2 hours to try various appetizers. Starting from numerous types of raw fish to soups, salads, and all sorts of dishes. There were multiple courses we went through before we finished the appetizers. After that, we were so full that we unfortunately couldn't even eat a main dish, which also looked very delicious. From puffer fish to several types of meat and vegetables. The same with the drinks. There were various draft beers, bottled beers, non-alcoholic drinks, wines, sparkling wines, and several kinds of sake. It was a dream. At the end, we treated ourselves to the dessert buffet. It was just as overwhelming and tasted wonderful. And at 21:00, Anne and I went to our room. We then just put on the kimono and went to the onsen, which was a bit complicated because we couldn't read the Japanese characters and couldn't find the entrance. We wandered around for about 10 minutes before we found the entrance. Then we separated because unfortunately, it is divided by gender here. When I found my entrance, I was also uncertain because everyone was in kimono and had done their hair. I didn’t see anyone naked and didn’t know if I should take off my clothes. After about 3 minutes, however, a young man came in who undressed, and I decided to follow his lead, then went naked to the washing area, where first one must undergo a long washing gel procedure, which I also tried, it must not be done standing but only sitting to avoid splashing anyone. Then I went to the hot thermal bath. It was about 40-41° warm. I stayed for about 10 minutes and then went outside, where it was raining. In one outdoor pool, I stayed for about 10 minutes, also at 41°C. Then I returned, dried myself off, and went to my room, changing into my nightwear. The futon bed on the floor was a first for me and surprisingly comfortable.

That concluded this eventful day.