Day 7 – Hakone to Kyoto

A new day, a very dark, foggy and ominous sky. 

My first stop was Togendai for a cruise across lake Ashino-ko in a bizarrely themed pirate ship, I am not sure what the theme was other than it gave a good excuse for grown men to dress as pirates and blackmail parents into parting with 2000 yen for having a photo taken with their children – £20 for a photo is piracy on the high seas in anyone's book.

The lake cruise was good and I was reliably informed by the English commentary that behind the thick blanket of fog were sights to behold that would have had Sinbad himself swooning. The fog did eventually start to clear as we completed an hour long lap of the lake in time to arrive back at Togendai for a cable car ride up the mountain for stunning views of Mt. Fuji or perhaps, more fog.

I must have arrived at Owakudani at the same time as Budda because as I stepped off the cable car the fog completely cleared and Mt.Fuji stood alone against a perfect blue sky. Judging by the delighted screams of the Japanese tourists around me this is a rare privilege indeed.

Owakuni itself is a mountain-side doom-laden wasteland of boiling volcanic waters, sulphuric gases and teeming tourists. A long time ago, some bright spark hit upon the idea of boiling eggs in the volcanic waters, the resulting eggs (there shells turned black by the sulphur) change hands faster than drugs at a Led Zepplin gig.

Toxic gases and black eggs are can only keep one entertained for so long, so I head to the train station in Odawara – where I am delighted to find a bakery for the first time in a week – and catch the Shinkansen bullet train into Kyoto late in the evening.