High on Andy’s to-do list was a driving experience like no other: a Nissan GTR, a full tank of petrol and Mt Fuji as the backdrop. We braved a cold Tokyo morning at 4 am, and found our bus to the fun2drive office. Nestled in the mountains, the drive down to Gotemba gave us a jaw-dropping close-up view of Mt Fuji. Four hours of driving through beautiful mountain passes and around to Lake Yamanaka – the largest of Fuji-go-ko (Fuji five lakes).
In a total contrast, toward the end of our trip, in Yakushima we also hired a car. There is almost no public transport on there, so car really was the best way to get around. Rather than a thirsty GTR though, this time we went for that other truly Japanese car – the Kei Car. With a maximum 600cc engine, what this car lacked in speed it made up for in hilarity.
It’s 9 am, and -1 degrees outside. Lets get going!
Also on our tour, an American couple in the R34 – a real rarity in the US, they’d travelled to Japan especially for this experience!
Best experience in our 4 week trip? I think Andy has decided
We decided Toyota must be testing new tyres today on the skid pad
Fuji is often hiding behind a veil of cloud – we were very lucky to see her stretching above Yamanaka-ko
Before we knew it, our 4 hour drive through mountain passes was over! We followed our tour guide back to the office – what a great view on the way back, though!
In sharp contrast, lush green Yakushima is ringed by a narrow road – just 130km around the whole island!
Our car couldn’t be more different either!
Kei cars, denoted by their yellow license plates, have restrictions on engine size and maximum dimensions. They’re also a lot scarier at 80 kph than a regular sized car!
