Hakone Getaway

After six months of packing, moving, and unpacking Mike and I knew that we desparately needed some alone time together. We finally got on the babysitter bandwagon and found someone who could watch the kids overnight. We decided to spend our first getaway up at Hakone near Mt. Fuji. I booked a room at the Hakone Kowaki-en Hotel and got tickets for Yunessun which is a Spa Entertainment Resort. The drive up to Hakone was beautiful as we drove along the coast almost the entire way. After we left the coast we headed up into the mountains and the views were spectacular. On a clear day we would have been able to see Mt. Fuji.

We spent the first afternoon walking the grounds of our hotel which were beautiful and then we walked down to the little town. We enjoyed exploring on our way down and we even found a small English Garden and a cool looking shrine. We also found a trail up the mountain to a viewing spot for Mt. Fuji. We knew that we would have to do that another time when the weather would allow us to actually see Mt. Fuji. In town we saw lots of cool shops including an old fashioned photography shop with lots of cool old cameras displayed inside and a shop with old clocks and such. I love old stuff. We stopped by the bread store and bought a yummy treat. They had these really cool pumpkin decorated rolls for the holiday that we were tempted to buy but didn't.

Even though it was nice to be out in the cool fresh air we were not in the mood to climb all the way back up the mountain to our hotel so we caught the bus instead. We made it just in time for our dinner reservation at the French Restaurant in the hotel called Fontain Bleau. We had the most amazing 5 course meal. The chef even came over to greet us and decorated our dessert plates with cool designs. It was exciting.

After dinner we headed back to our Japanese style room and put on our Yukata's (casual kimono type robe) and headed over to the Onsen. An Onsen is a Japanese Hot Spring. Technically, an Onsen in Japan is defined by the temperature of the water, usually with a temperature over 25 C and should contain 19 essential minerals designated by the Japanese Environmental Agency. The hot springs water of the Onsen is filled with minerals that are very good for a variety of ailments and it is very good for your skin so they say. The Hot Spring is divided by gender so I said goodbye to Mike at the entrance and designated a meeting time. I entered the onsen and washed before relaxing in the hot spring pools because it is required to do so. I enjoyed the outside Onsen as it was right in the middle of the woods with a great view and the cool breeze felt good. Onsens are just part of the Japanese culture and I can see how an outsider might think it is strange to be naked with a bunch of other Japanese people..same gender of course. I am totally comfortable with it and I am glad that Mike is too because it is quite the experience.

After sleeping on futons (which is way cool) we woke up refreshed. Thinking that we had slept in we looked at the clock only to realize it was only 7:45am. I guess that is what an early schedule does to you. Today we ate breakfast at the buffet and then headed over to Yunessun to relax at the Public Spas. This Spa Resort was very interesting. Part of it was almost like a mini indoor water theme park and all of the pools were warm. There was even a small water slide outside which we did do even though it was cold and raining outside. Thank goodness the water was warm. The most interesting part of Yunessun was the open air bath zone located in the valley of the mountain. They had a variety of spas including the Coffee Spa, Green Tea Spa, Wine Spa, and Charcoal Spa. Each one was colored just the same as its specified drink. It even smelled like the drink. My favorite was the charcoal spa as it was the highest up on the mountain and it smelt great and was covered in a small hut. We had fun running from spa to spa to stay warm. Mike's favorite was the coffee spa because he loves the smell of coffee. I don't like the smell but I sat in it anyways.

We weren't quite ready to leave after enjoying all of our alone time but there was a typhoon coming in and we needed to head back home. The drive back home was pretty smooth and we were just happy to see that the children were all alive and well.