We arrived back here on 9th March for our last month in Japan before we must export the vehicle.
Last time we were here we were very busy with 5 of us in the vehicle during the worst weather we have experienced in Japan so far! We were right in the blizzard which caused a number of deaths, and while it was exciting for us it was also quite uncomfortable, especially for Emma and Jono in the roof top tent. Condensation and cold were the main issues. In addition our heater failed in the last and coldest days.
We had a last minute change of plans as to where we would leave the vehicle while we went home. In the end we left it in a long term secure storage yard, right next door to an airport hotel in Narita. This was very convenient, and cheaper than we had been quoted elsewhere. The hotel was the Excel Hotel Narita. Both drop off and pickup went very smoothly so I do recommend this arrangement for anyone coming to Japan in their own vehicle.
This is the paperwork the long term car park gave us, with contact details and address in Japanese.Our first priority on arrival back in Japan was getting the heater fixed. Googling Webasto revealed a "number of Webasto branches in Japan, but initial attempts at contacting them before we left home got no response. So I went through Mark at Earthcruiser to get the Australian Webasto to contact the appropriate Japanese branch. Then it all went very smoothly.
We went to Webasto head office in Yokohama. Here the GM of Webasto Japan (Bartek Radzimski) took us under his wing. Whilst the heater was being inspected and fixed he took us out to lunch (vegan too!). He also invited along a journalist for an RV magazine. Bartek is also an Office-bearer in the Japanese RV industry association. We hope our story might encourage Japanese RVers to get out and about in their beautiful country, and that it might encourage Japan's RV industry a little too.
The heater problem was due to Cape York red dust (we had a lot of dust inside on that trip and under the seat where the heater goes is a place we rarely see) in combination with the condensation we had last year. This caused a electrical short. The Webasto tradesman fixed it, cleaned it all out, and then gave us a tutorial about our heater.
He suggested that since we usually run the heater on low this will eventually cause a build up of soot in the heater. We should occasionally run it on high for at least 15 minutes to burn off the soot. In addition, to avoid condensation we should increase the heater power, and leave a window open to vent the excess heat and moisture. This solves both the soot problem and the condensation problem. However it increases our power consumption. So we are looking for the optimal heater power and window opening arrangement.
Bartek also arranged a company deal on a hotel for the night -Prince Hotel in Yokohama. And the view of the city was worth every penny.
Bartek also gave us an idea of what to see in this part of Japan. So we headed South towards Mt. Fuji.
And WOW. Day 1 towards evening we saw the mountain. It was bitterly cold (by our standards) and I couldn't bear the pain outside on the wind. After only a few minutes I had to flee. But I do like the shots I got...
That night we found a camping spot on the shore of a lake. We set up camp and slept soundly until we were awoken by a couple of fishermen at dawn. And that brought our attention to the dawn view.
This was the view from the camper when we awoke. A short walk gave me this view..
And that was only the beginning! There is a Skyline drive with great views of Fuji, and 5 lakes each with its own great aspect on Fuji. I could bore you with the dozens of photos I took, but I can't resist a few of them...
Had enough of Fuji?
Our next priority is to get the vehicle serviced -It is overdue, and likely Japan is a good place to do this for a Fuso!
Followers of this blog will notice notice a couple of changes. There is now a button for Google translation to Japanese at the top right of the page, but I can't be responsible for the quality of the translation! Also the photos should be a little better. My new camera (Sony Cybershot HX400V.) is a bridge camera -between a point-and-shoot and a DLX. So I hope that pleases.
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