19/12/18 Weds: Potato planned to take train all the way to Kawaguchiko station at first, but Ian found us another route by bus which would save us some money. So, we took the train to Shinjuku Express Bus Terminal (380￥) at 8am, and bought the 10.15am Express bus tickets (1750￥) to Kawaguchiko station.
Can't remember how long it took us there but Potato fell asleep on the highway, and there were a few other stops before it reached our final stop. After alighting, we decided tp take the "green" bus (about S$10 single trip) to Fugaku-Fuketsu Wind Cave first.
It is a lava cave made after Mt Fuji erupted. There is said to be about 80 caves in the area, but Fuketsu wind cave is one of the more famous ones.
It was near freezing in there, and so it's deemed a "natural fridge" for sericulture and storage of tree seeds.
Before we proceeded to the 15 minutes' walk towards Narusawa Ice Cave, Potato bought these octopus takoyaki and I don't know if it was due to the cold while we walk towards Ice Cave or what, but they tasted heavenly haha!
It was shorter than the Wind Cave, not as much to see except for lots of ice and ice blocks, but there were parts of the cave where one has to bend down to walk, and the tightest was 0.9m wide I think. *I was struggling to squat down and waddle over with my big bagpack sia~*
Walked back to the bus stop to take the "blue" shuttle bus back to Kawaguchiko station. And, our shuttle towards Kukuna Hotel was finally here in the afternoon to pick us up.
The blueberry juice served at the lobby was nice. Potato helped confirmed our dietary restrictions with the staff, and the booking of the private onsen (3000￥ for 50 minutes) from 5.30-6.20pm. We got a half-ryokan, half-western style room on the fifth floor, courtesy of Ian. *The private onsen's just a few steps away!*
One could request for the area overlooking Mt Fuji to be transformed into a Futon sleeping area but that would require additional charges for the staff to help move the furnitures, remove the two single beds and to place the mattress. We caught some Japanese variety shows on the TV, and also happen to see a channel where it showed multiple CCTV images around Kawaguchiko!
Yes we can see Mt Fuji right across from our balcony! *Almost frozed trying to take a photo with Mt Fuji as the backdrop only to turn out that dark... lol.*
Changed into the outer wears and we walked over to explore the hotel a bit more, as well as visiting the public onsen on the 9th floor.
All the shower necessities for men and women were nicely placed in a cupboard in the private onsen. *Oh we could see Mt Fuji from across too when we opened the panels~ but damn it was so cold, even when you are soaked in a 40 degrees Celcius onsen!*
It was my first onsen experience, and time flies without even knowing! It does feel a bit hot at first, but our bodies adjust to the heat pretty quickly. We had to inform the hotel staff that we would be going for dinner at 7pm, I guess so they could get ready for our individual course meals as the buffet for all guests were already there.
The buffet was a spread! I liked how the Japanese listed down ingredients used in different dishes so diners would be aware, in case of any allergies. There was also the 4-course meal for individuals... the salmon confit and avocado rice salad was yummy~ it literally "melted" in my mouth! Potato had beef steak while I had the pork one. The red snapper was a bit salty to me though.
Ian must have informed the hotel about our trip there, and there you have the "Happy Honeymoon" ice-cream haha! The staff also took a photo of us on the spot too, and gave us a hard copy the next morning during breakfast. *很贴心的服务态度。*
It was nice of the hotel to prepare these for guests who wish to go out at night as it was -1 degrees Celcius then. Potato and I braved the cold and snapped a few shots outside.
Nope we gave up the idea of walking around the lake and went back to our room to chill instead. One can still make out the snow-capped Mt Fuji at night even though it's dark! *Ended the night with Kirin beer in the room! The one Potato thought was "apple" flavour turned out to be plum, and it tasted like almond omg...*
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