Japan: Hakone - Mt Fuji, Lake Ashi and Kaiseki dinners

Now that all the Fashion Week(s) for Autumn/Winter 2010 are finally over, thought I would share some more pics of my recent trip to Japan, in particular, of Hakone. Hakone is 100km away from Tokyo, and is one of the most popular onsen spots of Japan, near Mount Fuji and Lake Ashi. I absolutely loved Hotel Green Plaza, which I highly recommend, with its stunning view of Mt Fuji from my balcony and onsen (outdoor hot spring bath). If you are visiting Tokyo and have enough time to make a day trip (or preferably, are able to stay a night or two) to Hakone, I highly recommend doing so...


Mt Fuji view from my balcony - breathtaking (unfortunately pictures do not do it justice, it was incredibly majestic)

We stayed in a 'Japanese style room', where at night they move this table to the other 'room' to lay out your futon bed (so comfortable!)

The hotel also provides Yukata kimonos, vests & slippers so you can lounge around comfortably around the hotel as well as to and from the onsen.

These gardens must look spectacular in Springtime

If in Hakone, I highly recommend getting a Hakone Free Pass, which allows you to travel by cable car (as pictured above), boat (pictured below), train and local buses; definitely cost-effective.

The boat ride on the 'pirate ship' on Lake Ashi was an incredibly fun & beautiful experience, especially when seeing Mt Fuji from the lake.

My sister looked so cute in her outfit, I could not help but snap a pic, she is wearing:
Burberry tweed coat with bell sleevees
Burberry alpaca scarf
H&M hat (I think)
Burberry Beaton black quilted bag
Black leather riding boots (I forget by whom)
My Chanel sunglasses (I thought it went with her outfit)
Country Road ivory leather elbow-length gloves I gave her one year for her birthday

The Hakone Open Air museum was worth a visit (the wonderful weather definitely made the experience even more enjoyable)

The incredible stained glass in the 'lighthouse'

Loved all the colours...

Burberry Prorsum silk/wool quilted military coat
Akira silk/wool dress
Chloe flat buckle boots
Chloe 'Ava' bag in Mocha
Chanel sunglasses
SABA merino wool turtleneck (not shown) & Falke merino wool tights

Inside the cool wooden 'structure' above you will find:

This was an incredibly fun and beautiful part of the Museum, where children and adults alike had a blast...

Too cute for words

The highlight of my trip were the two Kaiseki dinners I had at the hotel, the beautifully presented dishes (almost too numerous) drew a sigh from me each and every time, shame I could not read the Japanese menu to know exactly what I was eating...

The attention to detail is incredible...cute Japanese paper under the little bowl on a carved tiny wooden tray.

This beautiful paper was wet and placed over a green ceramic square bowl, such a simple idea with a stunning effect...

I could seriously live in sashimi - love it!

There was a tasty and beautiful morsel in that cute ceramic 'container'

Every dish was a work of art...

These were beans!

Sake Ice Cream! It did not taste like Sake, but was so refreshing, light and absolutely delightful...