lets go to the countryside

We met this ace chick at our hostel, Moran, who was going to Nikko, and after some investigating we realised that it wouldnt be as expensive as we thought to go, so we decided to go with her just for the day. It was a ridiculously cold, but sunny day, and we had about a million steps to climb, but it was worth it! The World Heritage sites are amazing, and we saw a snake (a real one! In the wild!!), and the longest slide we've ever been on!!







After lunch we headed up towards the world heritage sites and had a look around. We went to Futarasan, Rennoji, and, er, another one? Sorry, all the names are blending into one another now. Me and Stace also went to Ieyasu's tomb, which was spooky but cool.









Its hard to explain the beauty of the area, and how serene it was in the last few temples/shrines. We headed back home and went to a ramen bar for dinner. There were a bunch of drunken salarymen there, who were shocked at the pointiness of Stacy's nose, and called him Charlie Sheen and made woody woodpecker noises at him. The bar owner gave us some free umeboshi (pickled plum) to try, and the drunk men whooped and cackled when we tried them, because they were so sour. Every time we took a bite of our food they would shout across the room "You like????" and "Oishii desu ka?!?!?!" LOL!



The next day we headed our for Kawaguchiko, which is a village on lake Kawaguchi near Mt Fuji. We got there around 1pm and had a day to relax. We took a bus around the lake, went to our hostel/ryokan, and bathed and read books. It felt like we were having a slumber party because the beds were rolled out on the floor and we were munching on mt fuji cookies (thanks May Lee!). The next day we set out in earnest, not having seen the elusive mt fuji the day before (thanks rain and clouds :( grrr), but it wasnt to be, because it was raining and cold, and we could practically touch the clouds from the ground. We actually COULD touch the clouds when we went up the ropeway/cable car, which took us up a nearby hill (not toooo tall - but still had good views!!). The cable car was themed with a story and the english translation that they provided was a crack up! So for your entertainment....

1. Once upon a time there are a old man and a old woman living together peacefully.
2. One day they found a raccoon eating the seeds that they just sown in the mountain. On the next day they laid the snare to catch the raccoon.
3. The caught racoon apologized for what he had done so they forgave him. However the raccoon betrayed them.
4. A rabbit, a friend of the old man and the old woman promised to revenge him.
5. The rabbit and the raccoon went to the mountain to gather the firewood. On the way they come back. the rabbit set a fire on the firewood of the raccoon's back and the raccoon got burned on his back.
6. The rabbit wasn't satisfied yet and on the next day they went into the river. However only raccoon's boat sank because his boat was made of mud. The rabbit got his revenge!











We met a couple of American ladies on the bus, one of whom lived in Kyoto for 18 years, and they had travelled from Kyoto to Kawaguchiko specifically to see a museum exhibiting the works of a world renowned Kimono dyer artist, Ichiku Kubota, so we thought we'd stop by and have a look. It was AMAZING! Anyone who comes here has to go, because the works were unbelievable, and also the whole gallery was amazing in that the architecture was art itself, and there was a huge garden out back which you could roam though (it was japanese style, so think rocks, moss, trees). He made kimonos to represent the seasons and the universe, and all the kimonos flow on from one another if you lay them side by side. Words really cant describe just how beautiful and intricate these kimono were. Unfortunately, no cameras allowed! So I guess you will have to come see for yourselves :) (or just google him)







on our way back we stumbled across a museum about a story book illustration who is quite popular in Japan, by a woman named Akkiko Ikeda. Dayan the cat is a children's series of book about a cat who gets up to mischief, and the artistry is really amazing. Japan has some really talented artists! We had a look around the museum, and then sat and had an icecream before heading back to town.






On the bus ride home that sneaky weasel Fuji-san peeked his head above the clouds and the whole busload whipped out their cameras and started snapping out the window. We got to the station and ran across the road to go up a few floors of our hostel to try and get a picture. Mt Fuji was only visible for about 5 mins, and I think stacy got the best pic of the whole day



and just in case that's too small for you, here's a close up:



Til next time!
xx Laura

Africa in 3 days!!!