I took a trip to Atami on Saturday. I think it is the first time I’ve been there is about 7 years. I took the Bullet Train from Shinagawa (in Tokyo) to Atami, which took about 45 minutes. The bullet train, as always, was exactly on time and provided a good view of Mt. Fuji along the way.
Atami is an old resort town next to the ocean. It has a small beach and waterfront area. As you can see from the picture the whole city is basically built on the side of a hill between the mountains and the ocean.
I stayed at the Ryokan Horai, mentioned in one of my earlier posts. It has a beautiful if very simple entrance. It has a long history going back over 150 years.
The room had a great view over the trees and down to the ocean. It was all Japanese style of course, with tatami floors and low tables.
The food was very traditional and everything had a very delicate taste. The place mat itself was actually a sheet of paper with original (each one was different) caligraphy on it.
The only tiring thing about Horai are the stairs. No elevators of course and since it is built on the side of a hill you walk up and down stairs to get everywhere. My room was on the 3rd floor and the hot spring baths were on something like sub level 3. This picture should give you an idea.
A very relaxing and fun trip. You can find more pictures on my Flickr page here.