Yamanakako

We’ve had a change of plans today. We were going to Matsumoto to see the castle but we decided to start heading back to Tokyo instead and have a look at Mt Fuji.
Sunday traffic was a bit hectic in places and because we didn’t want to go on the expressway it took about an hour longer to get there.

It was quite interesting travelling down the valley. Mt Fuji came into sight fairly quickly and we weren’t sure if that was it or not, then it would disappear and reappear again.

The day was a bit cloudy as we left Narai but it started to get a few breaks in the clouds as we drove along. By the time we reached Chureito Pagoda clouds had gathered on the peak.

Nobody told me there were 398 steps up to the pagoda. Holy Moly my legs were still fragile from yesterday but nevertheless up we went. The climb was absolutely worth it. The view from up there was magic, even with all the Sunday traffic. The clouds had cleared again for a bit.

Had a well deserved ice cream when we got to the bottom again.

Next up we went looking for the street in town with Mt Fuji at the end but we got distracted by a brewery sign and ended up with a flight of beers and surprise surprise, some Australians for company.

We did eventually find the street and a few other shots. By this time the Sunday afternoon traffic was thick so we found our hotel for a rest.Read more