I was up early, of course, and went to the ATM to get prepared for
Hakone. It seemed there wasn't going to be much in the way of convenience stores up there and the hostel’s website said they only accept cash as a form of payment.
Checkout at the Airbnb in Osaka wasn’t until noon but I wanted to get on my way. Something told me it was going to be a long trip with all the transfers I needed to make. I set off around 9:30am so that I could dawdle along the way, which I did. I took my time and carefully looked where I needed to go and if I wasn’t sure, I asked.
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| About to hop on the bullet train, Shinkansen |
I took a pink train line from Nippombashi station to Namba station. From there, I transferred trains again for
Shin-Osaka station. When I got off the train, the sign for the bullet train, the
Shinkansen, was right there. I bought a ticket for ¥12,000. This train stopped at most stations and would take three hours. I wasn’t too bothered as I couldn’t get into my room at the hostel until 3pm.
Upon arrival in
Odawara, Google Maps suggested I take a bus. I noticed a
Hakone tourist information center so I went there to find out. The lady spoke perfect English, gave me some maps and suggested taking the train. The ride would be one hour with one easy transfer.
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| The Hakone Tozan Train |
The train ride up was awesome! I went via the
Hakone Tozan Railway, which is the oldest mountain railway in Japan! The train zigzags its way up the mountain. It was a bit confusing at first as the train was moving forward and then after making a stop, we were moving backward and heading back to where we came from. The train makes a series of switchbacks to get up and down the mountain.
I arrived at the guesthouse,
Hakone Tent, around 4pm and was shown around and taken to my room immediately. It was a nice looking place and kept quite clean. When I got to the futon style dorm room that slept six girls, there was an Aussie girl sprawled out on the floor. She had just come back from bullet climbing Mt. Fuji and was exhausted. Her name was Jess. She was a riot and we hit it off immediately. She was fresh out of high school and had been doing an internship in Japan for six months. She was on her way back home to start university.
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| One of two private onsens (hot spring) at Hakone Tent which I used at least twice each day! |
After discussing Mt. Fuji and our time in Japan, I left her and went downstairs to inquire about the area. I needed food! This is when I met another Aussie girl named Demi who worked at the hostel. It was her day off. When I said I was going to look for a store to buy some cold beer and snacks, she asked if she could come with. She showed me around on the way to
Lawson’s and gave me some great tips for Hakone! I stocked up on beer and snacks. I was going to treat myself and eat at the hostel that night. I hadn’t had much to eat and was ready for a proper meal.
I ordered an avocado and smoked salmon pizza and a Caesar salad from the guesthouse for ¥1,600. Both were delicious and I had half the pizza leftover for the next day! Demi, Jess, myself and another girl from Denmark sat around in the common room and drank beer, ate and shared stories. It was a very fun night and it was nice to finally meet some folk. We were in bed somewhat earlyish after too many laughs and beers!
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