You may remember day 7; I know I do! That was when I ended up being saved by two knights in shining armour and stayed in a hotel. Well, what I didn't go into detail about was the hotel itself. It was a traditional Japanese Ryokan; very pretty indeed, with futon bed and paper walls.
It also meant it was freezing, too light, and the bed was like sleeping on rock. But at least it was a bed. All this meant that sleep was limited, meaning that last night I was absolutely exhausted. Was asleep by 9.30pm, in a comfortable bed.
I woke up naturally just after 5am to this gorgeous sun rise.
I then started the day as it should start every single day - with an outdoor hot spring bath. Can't believe it's been 9 days and I haven't done this before!! As for etiquette, I just copied what the other ladies did, and didn't get shouted at once! Woohoo! It was so hot I could only stay in it for about 10 mins before I felt like my blood was going to start boiling, so I headed back to the room to get my stuff together. I had a ferry to catch at 8.10am so I had to leave the hotel at the latest at 7.45am. This included breakfast, which I ate with a fork! I hadn't planned to, I've been going Japanese style this whole time, but a waitress, who had taken me under her wing, insisted. We spoke last night at dinner and it turns out she is originally from Thailand, and she doesn't like "Japanese stuff" (which is what she called the sushi I was having at the time).
Anyway, back to plan B that I mentioned yesterday. The plan now is to, unfortunately, bypass the Fuji Five Lakes and head straight for Hakone, and spend two nights there. The campsite better be open!
I wrote that last paragraph on the train. I'm currently in a hotel, not too far from Hakone. "What went wrong?!", I hear you cry! Too slow a ride from the ferry to the train station, bag issues, bike rack issues, and too many frickin' mountains! My legs simply can't take any more. By the time I was on the train to Gora, where I was going to cycle to the campsite from, it was 4.30pm, and then I would have to do a 10km ride with 350m elevation gain... That would've taken me about an hour and a half, meaning it'd be dark, again, when I reached the campsite.
So I got on Expedia and booked myself a room. Got off two stops before Gora, faffed around with my bike, or rather, the luggage on the bike, and headed up the hill. Oh, the hill!! After just less than 1km I had to get off and walk. Walk too far, ride back down. Walk up another hill, steeper this time, and this is where the hotel should be!! But nowhere to be found. I stand around for 5 minutes or so waiting for someone to appear who I can ask directions of, and eventually a man emerges from a nearby building. After a while we establish what hotel I'm looking for, he tells me (I think) that it's that building just there. "Massugu iku?" I ask. The translator app tells me that's 'straight ahead'. This results in the Japanese sign for 'no'. You have to go this way and that way and swim like a fish. At least that's what I understood from the game of charades we wear playing. "Soko ga dokoka chizu de oshiete kudasai?", I ask. No, he can't show me on the massive map of the area that is on the board in front of us.
In the end he tells me (I think) that he will get his car and drive there and I can follow him on my bike. His mate, who had recently joined in the fun, tells me "up, up, up, up". Gee, thanks for the warning. So I start pushing my luggage monster up the hill, in preparation for my friend in his car. Instead, he comes running up the hill, tells me he's drunk and in love with my mother (for all I knew), and helps push my bike up the hill. Turns out he's remembered a short cut that he can't take the car up! So, bless him, he walks all the way to the hotel with me, pushing the back of my bike as well. What a star! Makes up for the hundreds of people of have stared at my luggage mishaps during the course of the day, without moving a muscle to help.
Manabu reckons it's because people are scared of having to speak English, that's why they don't help. Well, pull yourselves together! I'm fluent in Japanese, don't you know! My mission for this evening is to find the roll of masking tape that appears to have gone missing. Tomorrow I might go for a bike ride. Not.
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