Into Japan’s famous “hell valley” to taste delicious black eggs

We came to Owakudani, also known as the “boiling valley”,  an active volcanic area of Hakone, south of Tokyo, to see Mt. Fuji from a boat on Lake Ashinoko, a crater lake formed by the volcanic eruption in 1170.

However, the weather did not cooperate and clouds obscured the shy mountain and we were forced to entertain ourselves with other highlights of the area.

One of them is tasting eggs with black shells, made black by being boiled for 60 minutes in hot springs that contain iron and sulphur and then steamed for 15 minutes in metal baskets.

The shells are black but the eggs are still safe to eat and delicious. The idea is that if you eat an egg, you get longer life. Just a bit of fun.

We also got to taste black ice cream, also very delicious.

The mountain slopes of Hakone were dotted with maple trees that were already showing wonderful autumn colour.

We expect to see even better displays as we move on to Takayama, Kanazawa and Kyoto, but that is coming a little later.

We also saw some beautiful autumn flowering camellias in full bloom on the banks of the lake.

Oawakudani is also called Jigokudani, the “valley of hell” because the hot water springs pump great clouds into the air with the distinct odour of sulphur.

The whole area is a favourite with the Japanese looking to find some rest and relaxation in luxury hot-spring hotels. John Lennon and Yoko Ono were regular visitors to this area and enjoyed the quiet and calm of the mountain scenery.

From the black-egg springs, where we were also able to buy lovely Hakone puzzle boxes, we board a pirate-style galleon to sail cross Lake Asi to Hakonemachi-ko where we stopped for lunch. 

Here we had the most delicious ramen in a tiny traditional restaurant where the service and the atmosphere was truly charming and gracious. We loved our time here.

Back in Tokyo, we took time to explore more of the city, this time going to the famous Shibuya Crossing area, which is a throbbing, vibrant hub of activities with tens of thousands of people, mostly young students and business people, having fun shopping and going to bars and restaurants.

The neon lights in this area are equal to all the ones we saw in Shinjuku. Who knows how the Japanese manage to find all the energy for the vast and impressive show of night lighting but it is a thrill to see. The city is also heavily decked out in Christmas fairy lights in trees and lining the clipped azalea hedges.

Apparently, the No.1 dinner of choice here for Christmas is Kentucky Fried Chicken. Go figure. But it is hugely popular and we even tested this by stopping people to do our our survey and it did indeed prove the popularity of KFC for their Christmas dinner.

Tomorrow, we will be our last day in Tokyo and we will be visiting some more key sights as well as doing some sushi making and doing our final shopping in the city’s magnificent department stores.

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