Last Day on the Road!

Energised seeing the clear view of the Mountain, when we set off in the morning, we were happy to know it was the last long bus journey before we hit Tokyo, later in the day. While the bus was comfortable and we had plenty of comfort stops, some of the journeys were long and tedious.

The plan was to drive to Hakone, a lakeside resort under the slopes of Mount Fuji. As we drove up to the top of the Owakudani Valley, we passed lush countryside, an interesting golf course and many large beautiful homes with fabulous views! It seems as Hakone is only 90 kilometres from Tokyo  it is a weekend retreat for many from.the city who have holiday homes in the area.

We got to the top of what was a volcano to experience the sulphar impregnated air from the works going on there!!

I didn’t find that very pleasnt despite nice views down onto Lake Ashi, but all to soon we were winging our way down the Valley in a cable car with fine views of the area.

Then it was off for a jaunt in a ferry across the Lake. It was a beautiful sunny day with the lake a deep blue and many other craft, arge and small, sailing nearby.

Onto lunch in Odawara overlooking the Pacific Ocean and the last leg into Tokyo!!! Hooray!!!

Busy, buzzy city of nearly 50.million people, as always I was intrigued, as we drove through the suburbs, to see towers of modern high rise apartments stretching into the sky, traffic congestion beginning to build up and all the signs of a bustling metropolis, but more of that to come!!!