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| VIEW ACROSS LAKE ASHI |
THE EDO PERIOD
On the bus we are entertained by the Japanese guide who instructs us, The first things, please use the seat belt. We are going to Hakone National Park, I wanted to make sure everybody to National Park, right? Not Disney Sea. Another bus went to already Disney Sea. There is laughter and I'm relieved we're not going to Disney Sea. Right. And, on the way to Hakone National Park. From service are to Park takes about hour. But, it depend on traffic.
The weather is cold which makes it seem more like Scotland. I never in my life time see snow this late in April, the guide tells us, referring to the fresh snowfall on Mount Fuji.
I find I'm beginning to get used to his English. We are going to ride the ropeway. First we going to ride the ropeway. Then, we be arrive around 9...930. Then, after the hot spring we going to ride on the big ship.
VIEW FROM THE ROPEWAY
After a while, we arrive at the hot springs and are met with a sulfurous smell of rotten eggs. In fact, a big attraction are the black eggs that are boiled in the springs. Apparently,there is a belief that if you eat one of the eggs, you will extend your life by 7-years. As a result, people are eating several eggs in the hope they are going to live longer. Actually, the population of Japan is decreasing, so maybe these eggs aren't up to all that is said about them.
THE HOT SPRINGS
The Stage is Set to Bring the Edo Period Back to Life the blurb on the leaflet says. We have left the hotel and on our way to Hakone National Park a couple of hours out of Tokyo. Although the settlement dates from 1619,having been established by the Tokugawa Shogunate, it begins to feel like Scotland. Looking across the lake, one could almost feel that you are looking at Loch Lomond with the mountains in the distance and the greenery and trees in the foreground. Only the signs in Japanese remind you that you are in a foreign country.
The whole area has been preserved to allow the visitor to understand what life was like under the Shogun all these years ago. The checkpoint was established along with 52 others throughout Japan but the Hakone Sekisho seems to have been the biggest and most important, the purpose being to control the movement of arms and, strangely, to keep women from escaping from Edo. Why would women want to escape? I'm not sure of the answer to that, except that they were kept in thrall for the purpose of marriage or to entertain the men in the encampment.
On show are many of the features that would have been used on the encampment: a stable with stalls; private toilets use by the Sekisho officials; a shooting range; a lookout post; and a bathroom. All the features are painted black, although I'm not sure if this is to replicate the original colours.
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| THE TOILET |
The ship is a replica of a British warship. Everything seems pristine and to be unused; and the sails are rolled up as the engine below deck chugs away. Like many things in Japan, there seems to be a newness to everything, even the roads seem untouched as if they've been made the day before.
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| ONE OF THE SHIPS PLYING THE WATERS |
After the chaos of Nepal, I find I'm liking the order and regimentation of the country. Everything seems to work like clockwork and a certain predictability is a welcome change from the uncertainty of the facts of Kathmandu.
