Fuefuki, Lake Ashi, Nagoya -- Land Tour Day 4

August 8, 2015 -- Yamanashi-Lake Ashi-Nagoya Heiwa Park and Shrine

This will be a long day on the bus as we will be driving down to Nagoya area for the night. Breakfast at the Hotel Isawa Hot Spring was again a spread of multiple dishes that were appealing to the eyes. Even though the food served was not quite to our taste but we all enjoyed this special breakfast nonetheless.

At least 11 dishes per person.

hot miso goup

vegetables

Salmon and egg

salad

silver fish, cabbage, seaweed

Fish cake, I think, fruit cocktail, and green tea.

A little bit of everything!

Hotel lobby 

shops

Our luggage waiting by the front desk.

Restaurant on the left and the onsen on the right.

Exterior of the hotel

Lake Ashi

Due to the continuous volcanic activities in Hakone, road closures and traffic control kept us from going to the main attractions there. We were only able to make a brief stop at a pier on Lake Ashi. There was hardly anyone there so it was very quiet and empty.

I guess this is the ferry terminal.

Still pretty though.

We were surprised at how big the fish were.

Some tour boats/ferries were still sailing on the lake.

We just took some pictures and shopped a little inside the store at the terminal.

While on the bus I noticed all these lush green along the highway.

Very pretty!

Heiwa Park and Shrine, Nagoya

After a couple of hours on the road, we arrived at the city of Nagoya. Then we were taken to Heiwa Park (Peace Park) up on the hill. Again, this place was packed with tourists, mainly from China. Probably because we were making good time, we were given a lot of time to explore this park.

The Bell of Prayers

The shrine

This shrine is very Tibetan looking.

A small shrine in the back.

The back side of the main shrine.

Path of the Thirty-three Quangyins

I imagine there are 33 statues of Quanyin down this path which we did not get to.

Bell Tower

"Bell of Peace"

Observation Deck for the best view of Mt. Fuji, but not today...

After the Peace Park we were taken to a tourist restaurant for a Japanese type lunch. It was like a dining hall and the whole place was already set up with rows and rows of tables and food. 

Once again, we were the first group there and it was nice to be enjoying our lunch in peace and quiet.

Just a simple lunch.

After lunch we were taken to yet another Duty Free shop in town where we found the clerks to be quite rude. Not a good place to shop so came out empty handed.

Chiryu

After the shopping stop, we were on the bus again for another couple of hours and arrived at a city called Chiryu, south east of Nagoya. There didn't seem to have much in this city. I suppose we stopped here because of the hotel rate. Our guide told us in the morning that we will have to find dinner on our own this evening and they will reimburse 1000Y per person for the cost of dinner. Soon we found out why. 

We checked into Hotel Crown Palais in Chiryu, which seemed to be one of the tallest buildings in the city. We were told that we could just walk towards the train station and we will be able to find many eateries in that area.

Basic hotel with everything we needed for the night.

Before we set out to look for dinner, I went to the front desk and asked for restaurant suggestions. The clerk was very helpful in pointing out several restaurants he recommended and gave us a map of the city. Little did we know that dinner that night was so difficult to find. Not only because it was a Saturday, it was also the beginning of a week-long national holiday. I was told that it was also the Japanese Father's Day. Well, I knew that it was the Taiwanese Father's Day being that it was August 8, but I didn't know that it's also celebrated in Japan on this day. We first went to the restaurants that the clerk suggested, none of them could take us since we did not have reservations. Then we checked the other restaurants nearby, they all responded with the same line, "Sorry, can't take you with no reservations." Maybe that was why we had to find dinner on our own because the tour company couldn't get a restaurant that can accommodate us.

After walking around the train station area for an hour or so, looking into all the restaurants which were packed with customers, we almost gave up. I couldn't believe a small city like this could have that many people eating out on a Saturday evening!

Chiryu train station

Main square in front of the station. Our hotel in the background.

Thank goodness we finally found a little ramen place hiding next to the Mister Donut near the train station. By now, anything would be welcomed. Yes, we had to buy out tickets from the machine again. The Japanese really like their vending machines, I suppose.

A picture of the condiments on the counter as we waited.

We didn't even pay attention to the name of the restaurant until we saw the word "Hallelujah" on the bowls. 

Hallelujah! God had used this little bowl of ramen to remind us that He is with us and He provides.

Thank you, Lord!

A good bowl of ramen!

After our simple meal we strolled back to the hotel a few blocks away.This is a terrible picture but I just wanted to capture the night view of this hotel on this unusual evening.