A Side Trip into the Mountains

Two weeks left before going back home, my friend and I decided to take a trip to Hakone. A trip to relax, take our minds off of finals, and to enjoy one of Japan's most famous areas. Hakone is located in a mountainous region and is mostly famous for its onsens, or hot springs. We actually didn't go for the onsens although we wanted to try one, but our funds were running low so we decided to explore the area instead. Our first stop was of course food. We visited a tradtional soba shop and ate cold noodles. It was pretty interesting because it was soba noodles on top of a wooden plated plate. You then dip it in raw egg mixed with soy sauce. It was absolutely delicious. After, we proceeded to head to the Hakone Open Air Museum. We had to take the train there since it was quite far from the area we were at. The trains took us through the mountains and the views were scenic and beautiful. It took my breath away.  I would ride it over again just to see the views from above the mountains.

After exploring the museum, we headed back to the station and walked around the shopping street. Hakone is a pretty interesting and strange place. At one point, we were grilling fish in the open for free. Grilling fish in the open! Where and when does that ever happen? People were huddled up on the side just grilling fish. We were laughing and talking while waiting for our cooked fish. There were cats on the side, people walking in the rain, and the smell of grilled fish in the air. Everything was just so strange! We later bought fish cakes on skewers. These were the best fish cakes ever. It is highly recommended if you were to come to Hakone. So many people were eating it on the streets and the smell of fish cakes flowed in the air. It was tempting and delicious that I even bought a second one. The entire trip was very relaxing with the mountains in the surroundings. I was glad to have made this trip before leaving Japan!