Distance Walked - 20km
Breakfast today was a buffet so I had as much fresh vegetables as I could. I also tried to have bacon and scrambled eggs, but the eggs turned out to be creamed corn. I finished with yoghurt topped with crunchy granola (just a topping as there wasn't enough to eat) and some poached apple. No more fish! Although I did kind of miss rice with nori.
Then we set off. First stop a French bakery where I bought two savory rolls - one cheese topped and the other with roasted veg through it, plus a chocolate croissant. Proper bread too, not a Japanese interpretation.
Next we started our last hike for the trip. It was sunny but very cold and with a strong wind which made it colder. I finally got to wear my fleece vest and gloves. We first climbed to the top of yet another pass. This one was again gentle and slow and not very high. Again, at the top the views were spectacular. If ther had been fewer clouds we might even have been able to see Mt Fuji. We certainly got to see several snow capped peaks. There were a lot of tourists at this look out as many people get a taxi to take them to the top and then either walk down or even get driven back down. We stood our a little in all our hiking gear.
Next we left the tourists behind and went on a long, slow descent into the next valley. This stretch was about 8km long so we sopped in a small shelter for lunch. It didn't do much to cut the wind so we only stopped briefly.
Once we got to the next town we were going to get 2 trains to Tokyo. We almost got there in time to catch the 2:10om but Tom has his first guide failure. We had to cross a busy road winding up the mountain. Tom and the first bunch went across, while the rest of us got stuck waiting for a gap in the traffic. Once across to a small flat area we took the obvious path to the left. Once we got to the bottom and couldn't see anyone we realised we'd gone the wrong way. Diane tried to called Tom but his phone wasn't accepting calls (turns out he was in a tunnel). By some miracle Paula was in the lead bunch but Doug was with us so were able to make contact. We had to head all the way back up to the road and then down to the right and through tunnels following the path of an old, disused railway. Tom should have made sure we were all safely across the road before heading off.
Finally, we rejoined the group at a rest stop with covered seating, toilets and vending machines. I went to buy myself a coffee but just as I'd put my money in the machine some horrid toddler (3 or 4 at a guess) randomly pushed as many buttons as it could reach. I ended up with a grade flavoured bubble tea that even Bruce wouldn't drink.
We then walked on. We never got to see bears but we did get to see monkeys. There were several near and on the path who basically ignored all the cooing and photographing tourists. The mother with the baby clinging to her was just so sweet.
When we got to the railway station we all got soft serve ice cream. I had the wasabi flavoured one which was just as expected. A lovely contrast between cold ice cream and spicy, hot wasabi. Then we all piled on the 3:10pm tain to a bigger town where we got the shinkansen to Tokyo.
Tokyo is nowhere near as busy and crowded as I expected. In particular, there are surprisingly few cars. it is a public holiday long weekend and we did see a long line of barely moving cars leaving Tokyo earlier in the day. I arrived at the right time. I had been worried.
We walked a very short stretch of the Nakasendo Way here until we got to the end/start point. We all took photos and then piled on the subway to our hotel. I have two nights here with my second night being in a superior room, rather than a standard. However, I've chosen to stay in the same room both nights. I can't face the fuss of packing up yet again when I can avoid it. My room is perhaps a little cramped but otherwise perfectly comfortable and I won't be spending much time in it. A Western room with a comfortable bed! What more could I want?
Dinner was in the Italian restaurant in the hotel. Antipasto was mortadella, proscuitto, baccala with mashed potatoes on bread (!) plus fugu (?) sashimi. Then came French onion soup - delicious, followed by linguine with clams (sigh). Next were two slices of margherita pizza (good but out of place) followed by some roast pork with one think slice of potato as the only veg. Dessert was ricotta curd pudding with orange pieces. We washed this down with 3 bottles of Chianti. I have a hangover now.
Finally there were lots of hugs goodbye and then we all toddled off to bed. No nightclubs or bar hopping for us.
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