Just DIY work and setting up equipment (portable sink, bed board/shelf) is like like putting the cart before the horse, so I decided to go out auto camping with the NV200. I wanted to check out the added stuff in real usage to see if it works. I departed Tokyo late afternoon and headed south towards Mt. Fuji without a specific destination in mind. I ended up heading towards Fujikawa Service Area (SA) on the Tomei Expressway which I read as having a nice view of Mt.Fuji and nice facilities. I ended up arriving in the dark at night unable to check whether my read was correct, but I decided to trust it.

Before arriving at my destination, I exited the expressway at Fuji interchange and headed to a public bath place for a dip. As the name Fuji-city says, Mt Fuji can be seen from just about anywhere in the city.

After getting dinner and dessert, I headed to Shimizu interchange to get on the expressway and headed towards Fujikawa SA.I later learned that I could have accessed this SA via local roads. Lesson learned.

Arriving at the SA, there were very few cars around, and the (annoying) trucks which keep their engines running all night were parked in their spots a distance away. A few camping cars ready to spend the night here were already parked. In the darkness not knowing which direction and where Mt.Fuji can be seen, I randomly picked a parking place away seeking silence from other cars. Though I ended up having to move the car to a different place early morning in order to enjoy the view of Mt. Fuji from the window, the initial place was also good since I was unexpectedly able to shoot a nice night view.

As I spent the night eating bento dinner in the car watching TV (no cooking, just boiling water for my instant miso soup and tea) and having dessert while checking my emails, I quickly became sleepy. (I guess that tennis in the afternoon followed by a hot relaxing bath did it.)
Using the sink unit which I filled water with before departure to wash my face and brush my teeth (fulfilled it's role perfectly) , I converted the space to bedroom mode by changing the rear shelf to the bed board. The switch was very easy being able to leave the sink as is. The legs attached to the bed board is a bit weak resulting in the board moving when I turned over, but that's nothing compared to the extended bed width achieved. It was still a chilly night but the FF heater made the van warm and comfortable to sleep in.

Getting out of the van midnight for restroom business, I was welcomed by a beautiful night view looking down at the lights of Fuji-city. Was able to catch a nice Instagram pic.

However on my second wake up as the sky was beginning to brighten, I discovered that the view of Mt. Fuji was blocked by a building and unseen from where I was parked. No wonder no one was parked around the area. After thinking about the burden of moving the car to another lot, I decided to do it out of strong desire to wake up to a view of Mt.Fuji though the van window. I went back to sleep for another couple of hours, and happily woke up to see what I had wanted to see.

Dripped coffee, roll sandwich and yogurt from the portable refrigerator powered throughout the night by the EFDELTA power brick (another equipment check item) was breakfast. Spent some lazy time in the van slowly packing up and tearing down my sleeping quarters until realizing that all the SA facilities and shops had been already open for a while, and visitors were already coming in waves. I went window shopping teasing the gift shops, enjoyed the full view of Mt.Fuji from the observation deck, and casually strolled around the area till the clock was telling me it was about lunch time. After purchasing a small cactus as my new traveling buddy at a local market booth, it was time to start the engine and leave the SA searching for lunch.

I ended up visiting a local seafood bowl eatery called "Sunzoku" near Tagonoura fishing port. The raw fish bowl included maguro tuna, raw and boiled whitebait, and sakura shrimp. Eating the bowl as recommended, I discovered that sesame oil (with a sprinkle of salt) goes well with whitebait.

I stopped by the river side of Fuji River for an after-meal cup of coffee, before heading home.