Capturing Tokyo on Film
I really love the grainy texture of photos taken on film. For some reason, Japan has always felt like a place that naturally suits film photography. Part of it is probably because I’m not great at taking photos, so the distinct tones and grain of a film camera help add a nice touch of character to otherwise ordinary snapshots.
This trip was a post-military freedom getaway. In just over a week, I got a bit ambitious (yokubari) and packed Tokyo, Hakone, Kamakura, and Karuizawa into the itinerary. My miscalculation was staying in Karuizawa for too long. Karuizawa covers a vast area, and after watching Terrace House: Opening New Doors, I was determined to experience it all. But without a car, the central area really just comes down to an outlet mall and a ski resort, so we ended up wandering around the station for days.
Kamakura & Enoshima
Our first stop was Kamakura. The guesthouse host who welcomed us was super friendly, and when we got back in the evening, we ordered drinks at the bar counter and chatted with him. Kamakura is famous for its long history—home to sights like the Great Buddha, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, and Kotoku-in—but due to limited time, we mostly hung out around Enoshima.
Enoshima is a popular destination for surfers in the summer, but we happened to visit in early February when it was still freezing cold. Visiting Enoshima in summer would probably be a blast, especially walking near the Enoshima Sea Candle lighthouse with a gentle ocean breeze blowing. In the dead of winter, though, it’s just bitterly cold. Also, whitebait (shirasu) rice bowls are everywhere on Enoshima. Honestly, the taste was pretty average—tasting just like you’d expect whitebait to—and quite overpriced.
After that, we headed off to Hakone! Our itinerary was:
- Visit the Museum of The Little Prince
- Take the ropeway up to Owakudani
- Head to Togendai Port to catch the pirate sightseeing ship
- Visit Hakone Shrine and check out the Torii of Peace
Owakudani is famous for its black hot spring eggs; legend has it that eating one will add seven years to your life.
Following our Hakone leg, we originally planned to visit the Gotemba Premium Outlets. But we figured, since we were already in Gotemba, why not head over to Lake Kawaguchi instead? So we hopped on a bus and headed that way.
The Lake Kawaguchi photos weren’t taken on film, so I’ll share them another time when I get the chance.
Tokyo
Next, we returned to Tokyo. We wandered around the University of Tokyo (Todai) campus and had some delicious Sichuan food nearby.
Karuizawa
And then came Karuizawa! While options in Karuizawa are limited without a car, you can still have a very fulfilling one- or two-day trip. Here’s what we did in Karuizawa:
- Karuizawa Prince Shopping Plaza
- DELiCiA: The supermarket featured in Terrace House: Opening New Doors—the in-store jingle was a total earworm
- Hawaiian burgers
- Sonmin-Shokudo and Harunire Terrace
- Maruyama Coffee
- Kyu-Karuizawa Ginza Street
Because we spent too much time in Karuizawa on this trip, we actually ran out of places to go in the final days and could only stroll around the shopping outlet.