Mount Fuji

We had been crossing our fingers for good weather all week long.  When we started out on our day long bus tour of Mount Fuji-the weather was perfect.  What luck!  

The first place we visited was the shrine at the foot of Mount Fuji.  It was beautiful.  Our tour guide spoke excellent English and had grown up in the area around Mount Fuji.  The things we learned about the history regarding the mountain were fascinating. 

We learned many things about Mount Fuji.  At the visitors center there was a video-in English-that explained how the volcanoes through out the centuries formed MountFuji.  It was fascinating. 

Mount Fuji is the largest mountain in Japan at 3776 meters (12,389 ft) The official climbing seasons is limited to July and August.  The top of the mountain is cold all year round and gets lots of snow, making it extremely dangerous to climb during the off season.  Professionals do climb it all year round, though it isn’t recommended due to the danger.  (But that’s why they are rock climbers, right?)

During our visit, we were able to drive up to the fourth of eight stations.  Most climbers start hiking from the fifth station.  When hiking from the fifth station, it takes an average paced hiker about six hour to reach the summit.  

Karl and I will be back to hike by the end of our time here in Japan.  I’m excited.

After coming down from the mountain, we made our way to two caves.  These two caves had been formed due to the lava from Mount Fuji’s past eruptions.  The first cave was an ice cave.  The caverns in the middle of the forest act as natural freezer.  The ice stays all year round.  

The second cave was a little walk into the famous Aokigahara forest.  This one was called the wind cave because of the two openings, which create a wind tunnel. 

Because we had a little extra time we were able to also go see some beautiful waterfalls.  They were part of the largest opening of natural spring water in the area of Mount Fuji.   Fortunately for me, the lighting was perfect at that time.

After about nine hours on the tour, we were ready to get back to K’s House and head over to the bar next door to relax. 

Leaving Kyoto

You know the type of place you visit for the first time and are just amazed?  When it comes time to leave you are already making plans to return?  I have lots of places like that.  And Kyoto is one of them. 

On the morning of the day we had to leave Kyoto, we had just enough time to go see one of the most famous temples in Japan-and probably the world.  The Temple of the Golden Paviliion-Kinkakuji （金閣寺）in Japanese.   

We got there by bus from Kyoto station-which I do not recommend.  It was hot, extremely crowded, and took more than an hour.  But any suffering we put up with on the bus was made up for when we got to the temple.

It was beautiful.  Picturesque in a way that almost didn't seem real.  The weather was perfect-the brilliant blue sky reflected in the calm pool that surrounds the temple.   It was breathtaking. 

When the time came to leave, we took a taxi.  Totally worth it.  We had to make to the train station to catch our shinkansen (bullet train) to our next destination. 

We finally reached Kawaguchiko station around 6 that evening, after the train ride and a long bus ride. 

Kawaguchiko Station lies right at the foot of Mount Fuji.  The next day, we would take a day long bus tour around the mountain and the five lakes of Mount Fuji-the “Fuji go ko.”  We were staying at another branch of K’sHouse-it was fabulous.  Excellent service and rooms. 

Exhausted from all of our travel, we managed to rally and go out in search of dinner.  The fates smiled on us: right around the corner, we found an Indian restaurant.  It was perfect.  (I looooove Indian food. Love it.)

Drinking Indian beer-the same kind we drank in India a few months ago.