It definitely deserves its own spotlight, and post! We was originally only planning on doing a day trip to Mount Fuji from Tokyo but as part of my ‘slowing down’ period I decided to leave the others who went further south to Hiroshima, to begin my journey back north and spending a few days in Fujinomiya, meeting up again in Tokyo for the end of our adventure here! I woke up and headed out for some breakfast, it was simple but stunning; iced latte and a cheese & bacon toastie (tasted lush!) and then headed to the main station to begin my journey. Before getting onto Fuji though was something really exciting, I was getting the bullet train from Osaka to Shizuoka which was definitely a bucket list moment! Getting the Shinkansen bullet train across Japan, what an adventure, super spenny, but insane.

I arrived in Fuji late afternoon so just headed around the town to check the vibe and then headed for some dinner before settling in for the night. There are two main sides to Fuji (the north and the south), I was staying in the south but was planning on visiting the north, which was much more touristy. Where I was, it was quite local and quirky and it felt like really traditional vibes. My hostel was so lush here so I was really excited to have a shower and try all the different products they had, and put a film on afterwards with some snacks to settle in for the night, ready to begin exploring.

Little did I know that day one in Fuji would be a flop. The weather was rubbish, I felt rubbish, it wasn’t what I was aiming for. Bearing in mind there was so much I wanted to see and do here, the combination of rubbishness meant that I stayed in bed for the day feeling really sorry for myself and sleeping on and off with some films in the background. I headed out and grabbed some dinner and then facetimed home in the evening to try and make me feel a bit better. I spoke to family and a friend and it perked me up a bit. I was more than ready for some sleep again now though so headed to bed and hoped for better tomorrow.

Next day I managed to get myself up and explored Fujinomiya, first up I visited the Mt. Fuji World Heritage Centre which was awesome. The building for starters was an architects dream! How cool was this. It looked like an upside Mount Fuji, which I think was the aim, and the inside was really cool too. The different levels of the centre were reached with a gentle ascent up a spiral, which aimed to mimic you ascending the mountain, with some really cool scenes on a screen on the sides, taking you through the different parts of the climb, from ground level right to the summit when you reach the top. When I got to the top (of the centre!) you stepped outside and saw Mount Fuji in all of its glory right in front of you. There was a bit of cloud so it was kinda covered but still looked beautiful with the whole town below it.

You got to hear and find out about the different reasons people climb Fuji, some of the Japanese traditions for climbing and when climbing. The nature you will come across whilst climbing, as well as learning about the stones and the volcano element to it, because it is of course an active volcano, which is insane! I learnt so much and really enjoyed my time here, there was also a special exhibition there when I visited which had some unbelievable artwork, traditional kimonos and more as part of it, which was amazing to see.

From here I headed over to Fujisanhongu Sengentaisha which is a shrine but also there was the most beautiful park and scenery with a river flowing all the way through it and to the town on Fujinomiya. These places I find amazing, no matter how many I’ve seen, they all look so wonderful and are so well looked after. They are incredibly tranquil and just super calming and I spent a little while walking around taking it in and taking some snaps too. I am really fascinated by the arches which are typically red, it is like seeing a real life emoji everytime I see one and I just think they’re proper awesome. I watched the sunset here which was lovely which finished off a really nice day.

Finished the day with a trip to Omiya Alley for some incredible street food, you just cannot go wrong with this in Japan, all of the street food is incredible and no matter you try you pretty much going to like it as it’s top quality! Had a few different bits and then strolled back to my hostel with some music playing and had another pinch me moment. Never going to get over the fact that this is my life currently. Once I got back to my accommodation I needed to do some boring bits like laundry and packing, all the really unfun things of travelling. In South East Asia most hostels will do your washing for you for so cheap so it’s really nice but on the occasion you have to do it yourself, it’s time consuming and boring. Most of the time I just put a film on and wait.

Last day in Fuji and I headed to Fujikawaguchiko for the day before catching the bus back to Tokyo, this was the north side of Fuji and another cool area with loads to check out and see. It’s a bit of a nightmare travelling around Fuji, transport isn’t frequent and takes ages, because obviously there’s a mountain right in the middle, so it all has to go around. Whichever way I decided to go, it was going to be a long travel day! The views en route made up for it though, views of Fuji the whole way did not disappoint.

After my two and a half hour trip from Fujinomiya to Fujiyoshida, via both train and bus, I dumped my bags in a locker and headed straight to my first stop of the day which was a visit Lake Kawaguchi, which was stunning. So much green which was lush to see, surrounding this huge body of water. Everything that morning with the early start and long travel was worth it for my first views, which I knew were only going to get better as the day went on. You could see Fuji in the distance and it was just stunning, genuinely did not get bored of looking at it.

I also managed to ride the Mt. Fuji Panoramic Ropeway which was really cool. It’s like a cable car which takes you up higher into Fujimidai where you have some of the most sensational views of Fuji, and all other surrounding mountains and areas. It begins down by the lake and is quite a steep, but quick incline to get you to the top where there is some sensational view points, as well as a café and a route towards one of the other mountains in the area which you can climb. As well as Arakurayama Sengen Park. I stayed herre for a little while and ventured into the woods to see what was happening before jumping back in to go back round to some of the other parts to explore.

I found so many people trying to get a photo outside of a Lawson store (convenience store over here) and heard that apparently it’s one of the most famous ‘insta spots’ to capture a cool and quirky pic with the mountain. I got it, it did look really cool, but with a main road in the middle and crossings being stopped due to the sheer amount of visitors and the problems caused with traffic, it seemed like a lot of effort and faff for a pic.

I instead walked around the corner and found a cool little alleyway which led to a train line and beyond to a village, where there was hardly anyone! It was picture perfect views of Mount Fuji and I sat here taking it in for a little while. I really enjoyed just being in nature with the only real noise of the train coming by occasionally. I grabbed some snaps and headed around the village just to see what else was around. It was more touristy here and lots of souvenir shops as well as some cool street food (of course), but it was nice to wander round for a little while.

I definitely could have spent even longer here exploring and seeing all the different parts around Mt. Fuji but time was getting on and I needed to catch my bus to Shinjuku. It was another two hour journey so it was going to be a late one! Heading back to Tokyo for some more exploring for a few days, this is also our final stop in Japan. See you there, Mads x