The day after climbing Mt. Fuji we woke up feeling surprisingly fresh. We loaded up our bikes and rode a blissfull 35 miles to Kofu achieving our first day`s goal. It began with a steady and challenging uphill around lakes, up gorges and then through a tunnell which was a bit scarryWith tractor trailors whizzing by. But once on the other side it was a steep ten-mile downhill all the way into Kofu. We cruized down it at around 30 mph. It only took us about two hours.
Once in Kofu we came upon a beautiful temple perched on a hillside with a massive staircase leading up to it from the street. We climbed up to check it out. The grounds were very well kept with a network of pathways leading all over the hillside and up into the forest where I found some small caves that from the inscents left on the ground, looked like they were used for meditating. But not a soul was there. We decided it was the perfect place to camp so we set up on little spot just off the temple grounds. It was great.
After cooking dinner we went looking for an Onsen we had heard about, a public bathhouse fed by a hotspring. We were disapointed to find it closed and headed back to camp resigned to go another day without a shower. But when we passed a building with the sound of splashing water and people laughing we got curious. We went inside and found it was a hotel that happened to have an onse. We told the Woman who ran it that we were from New York and that we were biking across Japan. She insisted on paying for our Onsen. We were dirty and tired from riding, and climbing Fuji, and from camping the last two days. We were inexperienced as far as public bathing goes but soaking in a hot onsen was truely wonderful. Something we could get used to.
We went to bed clean and relaxed.
Once in Kofu we came upon a beautiful temple perched on a hillside with a massive staircase leading up to it from the street. We climbed up to check it out. The grounds were very well kept with a network of pathways leading all over the hillside and up into the forest where I found some small caves that from the inscents left on the ground, looked like they were used for meditating. But not a soul was there. We decided it was the perfect place to camp so we set up on little spot just off the temple grounds. It was great.
After cooking dinner we went looking for an Onsen we had heard about, a public bathhouse fed by a hotspring. We were disapointed to find it closed and headed back to camp resigned to go another day without a shower. But when we passed a building with the sound of splashing water and people laughing we got curious. We went inside and found it was a hotel that happened to have an onse. We told the Woman who ran it that we were from New York and that we were biking across Japan. She insisted on paying for our Onsen. We were dirty and tired from riding, and climbing Fuji, and from camping the last two days. We were inexperienced as far as public bathing goes but soaking in a hot onsen was truely wonderful. Something we could get used to.
We went to bed clean and relaxed.
No comments:
Post a Comment