We had another travel day ahead of us today. I think our full day in Kawaguchiko was enough time to do enough sight seeing, but one additional day to check out the downtown area’s shops and other Fuji views would have been welcome too.
I really don’t think I’ll get sick of this view. I wrote yesterday’s blog sitting here in our hotel room and occasionally turning my head to look at the giant mountain/volcano behind me. Mt. Fuji is a UNESCO heritage site for Japan because of its source of inspiration to Japanese culture and history for over a thousand years. Maybe I’m also feeling the same inspiration with my photography and blog writing?
It is valentine’s day today. I started the day off right by spending my morning with my valentine aka my cousin Become in the public bath overlooking Fuji. There was no one else there besides the two of us so I wish I brought my phone up to at least snap a pic of the view (you’ll have to settle for the hotel website’s pic). I really can’t think of a better way to start the day with a soak in 107f/42c water with a fantastic view.
Christina and Aaron unfortunately had to make their way back home to Colorado. We said our goodbyes as they caught their bus to the airport and we headed further south to Mishima. Before I got on our bus, I bought a bottle of water from the bus station. I don’t normally buy Fiji water but I will make an exception for Fuji water. Maybe this will get me closer to having eternal life like Alex was saying of those that drank directly from the water in Mt. Fuji’s crater.
The bus ride to Mishima was about 45 min. Joanna noticed that there were zig zag patters going up Mt. Fuji. Perhaps this was a hiking path to the summit?
It was too early to check into our hotel, but they let us drop off our bags. We grabbed lunch and then took a 45 min bus ride to Mishima Sky Bridge which was built fairly recently, opened in 2015 and is the longest suspension bridge in Japan at 1,300 ft long.
An activity that people braver than I elected to do here was zipline across the bridge. My hands started sweating just watching them go by. Joanna’s dad signed up to do it but had to cancel his plans as they do not allow people over 60 to go on the zip line.
We got back to the hotel and they were so kind as to take our luggage and place it on top of a tarp so that it wasn’t directly on the floor. What great service and thoughtfulness!
There are 2 foods that Mishima is famous for: grilled eel and hambagu steak.
We found several eel restaurants in our area, I asked the hotel front desk if Unagi Sakuraya was good and she gave me a thumbs up.
We walked to the restaurant and were seated right away. As we were looking at the menu, we discovered that the restaurant is actually over 160 years old.
We all ordered the recommended grilled eel and it was delicious. Much more tender than the eel at home. The smokey flavor came through in the meat. The sauce was much thinner than the eel sauce I buy in the bottle. The rice was light and fluffy.
I continue to be grateful for the great weather we’ve been having. Tomorrow will be the final clear day in the area so I’d like to visit a few more Fuji view points before the clouds set in.
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