Mnt. Fuji-san

Last weekend, Jesse, Kate, and I ventured off towards the 5 lakes region near Mount Fuji.  It was a great weekend full of udon noodles, onigiri, sight-seeing, and fun!

 

Saturday:

1:00- Arrived at lake Kawaguchiko

1:00-3:00- Ate onigiri (Japanese rice balls) by the lake and wandered around trying to find Mnt. Fuji

3:00- Checked into our Ryoken and discovered a partial view of Fuji hidden by clouds

4:30- Jesse wandered off to attempt some sunset pictures (still no Mountain) while Kate and I wandered around looking for a good place to eat Udon noodles (fat noodles famous in the fuji area) and drank some hot lemon tea instead

6:30- Dinner at the train station!  For Jesse, Udon Noodles with horse meat.   For Kate and I, Udon Noodles with veggies.

8:00- Firework display over the lake including never before seen (by us) fireworks in the shape of cats, frogs, smiley faces, flowers, ghosts (?), and hearts.

Sunday:

6:00-  Jesse gets up for some sunrise pics (success! Clear skies)

7:00- Teresa gets up to try and find Jesse and ends up on a nice long, cold, walk around the lake with perfect views of Fuji

9:00-  All 3 of us travel to Lake Saiko by bus for more great views of Fuji and some spelunking

10:00-  Spelunking in an ice cave.  Pretty impressive and great price with our discount thanks to the fujigoko enjoy ticket!

11:30-  Arrived in an old traditional village with more awesome views of Fuji.  J and K explored, while I sat and sketched

12:45ish- Attempt #1 getting on the bus to head back to Lake Kawaguchiko… (no show)

1:15ish-  Attempt #2  to board the bus…(still no show)

1:30- Gave up waiting at the bus stop and walked towards a tour bus / large group of Asians taking pictures around the corner in the most BREATH TAKING, GORGEOUS, STUNNING, view of the Mountain we had seen yet.  Definitely worth 2 busses not showing up on schedule J

2:00- finished eating our snack/lunch on the shore of the lake and headed back to the bus stop for Attempt #3…  success! 

3:00-  Arrived back at the train/bus station with enough time to grab some more food at the 7 eleven and wait for our 4:00 departure back to Tokyo.

 

So what are the things that go into making a great weekend?

Getting to spend time with Kate and my husband: check.   

Getting to see Mnt. Fuji on a clear day: check

Capturing some great mountain shots:  check 

Going caving in yet another country: check

Once in a lifetime experience:  check!