Karuizawa 2004

In 2004, my partner and I made our first trip down to Karuizawa, a mountain retreat in Japan. During the summer months, it's comfortably cool and a great way to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city. The first trip happened because we were invited by his straight married couple who recently found out he was gay. We stayed at their vacation home there and had a good time. I have to say that the bedroom we stayed in was bad and I could hardly sleep a wink. It was a single bed and dusty. As I'm allergic to dust, my eyes were swollen the next day and my sneezing wouldn't stop. There were also three large spiders in the bathroom. So the second time in Karuizawa, I agreed to go only if we could stay at a hotel. This first picture is the view from our hotel room. It's a famous hotel in Karuizawa and one of the oldest hotels in Japan. Service was impeccable and the accomodations were modern with a retro design. The Manpei Hotel is famous due to the fact that John Lennon used to stay there every year. He always reserved the same room and always had coffee in the same spot. In fact they used to reserve that seat in the coffee shop just for him when he was in residence. Although there was a long wait to get into the coffee shop, we waited for our seat. I order the same thing Mr Lennon used to order, a cup of cafe au lait and scones. I must admit that the scones were just so-so and I wouldn't order them again. I'm very picky about my scones and pastries.

What do people do in Karuizawa? Well during the summer, a lot of them go there to play tennis and ride bikes around town. The town itself isn't so big so it's easy to get around by bicycle.

Interesting sites include a famous waterfall, old historical buildings and museums. There are also many shops that sell homemade jams and jellys, organic dressings and other foodstuffs all made from the numerous fruits and vegetables that grow in nearby fields. On the main street, you can also find sidewalk cafes, fashion boutiques and international restaurants.