Hola amigos! This weekend, it was one of the first warm weekends we have had in a while but I was stuck inside since I was in two performances my dance company annually puts on. The shows went well and I had a great time, but I had some regrets that I couldn’t be outside in the sun more often. This made me think back to a time that was jam packed with vitamin D; summer and my adventure to Japan. During my fam’s stay, we traveled other places than just crowded Tokyo, including the rural area North of Mount Fuji, called the Yamanashi Prefecture. Looking back, this was one of the best days of the entire trip. My family and I saw the looming mountain from a multitude of different angles and with a changing scenery in front of it each time. Maybe writing about this beautiful place will distract me from the fact that I’ll be locked up in the theatre all weekend as well. Worth a shot at least!

The fist location of the day was way up in the hills, overlooking Lake Kawaguchi and Mt Fuji (duhh). The area had a kimono museum and a tightly wooded area filled with Japanese maple, little streams, and waterfalls.The kimonos were insanely elaborate and detailed, illustrating scenes of colorful sunsets and intracite flower feilds. The main attraction was the view, however, and we spent some time sitting on the terrace and sipping on bad coffee to appreciate it. Fuji was comeplety unveiled from the clouds that were previously covering it, which is apparently rare, and exerted this powerful feeling on me. I don’t really know how to explain it, it’s just a mountain, but there is really something about it that steals your attention. What that is, I have no idea, and I know that’s not a very strong case to compel you to see it, but I promise it will be worth your time if you can see Fuji while its uncovered.

We took a small boat ride on a glassy lake that was closer to the base of the mountain and had lunch in a traditional resteraunt that served one of the best meals of the trip. The waiter came out with what I believe was the only thing on the menu; a large pot of thick soba noodles and a delicous broth for each of us with steam flowing out the top. After our lunch, we drove one last viewing place that was overlooking a smaller lake from the Eastern side. The mountain was close to being covered but we still got a beautiful glimpse there before leaving to the final stop of the day. The final destination was about an hour away, so close to the base of Fuji, you could no longer see it in the heavily wooded area. Upon arrival, we walked up a long path lined with tall trees and large, stone lanterns. At the top, there was a shrine and a temple adorned with many prayer flags and figures of worship. We cleansed our hands and mouths with the pure water in the fashion we were earlier taught in Tokyo before walking around the grounds. There were various pathways in back of the temple, filled with maple and hundreds of red flags with scripture adorning them. If we were to walk farther up the trail, it would lead us to Fuji itself and a hike leading up it. This was one of my favorite shrines and temples I visited and it wasn’t crowded, allowing you to appreciate it’s beauty.

This more secluded version of Japan was almost more enjoyable for me compared to the packed cities. I recommend this area to anyone traveling here that wants to surround themselves with serene nature and experience the feeling you will get seeing Mt Fuji. Nature is powerful, get out in it more!