Kamakura and Fuji Winter Holidays Part 4 (2004)

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Jan 4 This is the beginning of our travel back to Osaka. Vivianne and I met Sophie at the train station and we all went to Kamakura. We left our luggage in the train station lockers and we went traipsing around Kamakura. Kamakura was a capital in early Japan and its famous for all these temples. and it also houses the 2nd biggest buddha in Japan.


When we got there, Sophie went mad and wanted to see the ocean so we went to the beach and took photos and laughed and wondered how cold the water was. After that we went on a speed visit to as many temples and shrines we could see, which is approximately 4 temples. We saw the 11 headed buddha and the daibutsu (big buddha) the shrines we went to were so simple and yet so peaceful.


We were also able to go to this temple with a huge bamboo garden. We were in such a hurry we literally rushed the entire thing. We entered the bamboo garden and took pictures of each other then made a dash for it. Going back to the train station was a nightmare coz my backpack was so heavy and Sophie was moving like the Shinkansen itself and I couldn’t catch up. I literally had to skip all the way so I can catch up. Viviane was left somewhere behind coz she couldn’t stop laughing watching me skip with my huge backpack. Strangely, I think I resembled a skipping turtle. But still, it was such a pity we had to leave.


Sophie got the train schedules from the internet so we had to move on a preset schedule to catch all the trains. By around 3 pm we had to leave Kamakura to go to Fuji. So we took on the trains and got to Fuji at around 8. It was so dark so we couldn’t see the mountain. We stayed at the Fujiyoshida youth hostel and it was pretty nice. It was small but very cozy and they gave us a japanese room with futons and a TV. We took a shower and weighed ourselves on the scale (i think its the most stupid weighing scale on the planet) and we all gained weight! We were so alarmed that we started calling ourselves the fat trio and we took photos of ourselves with our faces blown up like blowfishes! It was so funny the way we were trying not to get depressed by our weight. Later on I was so tired I slept as soon as my head touched the pillow (which continues to amaze Sophie and Viviane until today)



Jan 5 - We woke up early to go around Fuji, we were walking out to the main road (The hostel was in this small alley) with Viviane wondering how we can see Mt Fuji when as we turned the corner to the main road! There was Fujisan! (Mt Fuji is called Fuji san in Japan) and it was really beautiful, but it wasnt as snow covered as i imagined but still really pretty.



We goggled at it until we got to the train station and then we rode the train to see a famous lake and to ride a cable car that will give us a better view of Fuji. But when we got there, the cable car was still closed and we didnt have enough time to wait for it so we just walked along the lake and went back to the hostel to stare at Fuji san.



After a while it made me wonder what the big deal was, it looked just like any mountain, it just had snow on top plus i think Mt mayon has a prettier shape. anyways, it was still fun. At around 11 we rode a train to get out of Fuji go ken and into the main train lines. And so after 11 hours and 8 train line changes we finally arrived in Osaka Gaidai at around 11 pm and we just slept

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Photos

Going crazy over Water
Sophie, me and Viviane going crazy over the ocean.. winters are dangerous things...

The Daibutsu
or big buddha (dai means big, butsu means buddha) this is only the 2nd biggest one as the biggest is in Nara

fuji san
turning the corner from the alley of our youth hostel, this is the site that will greet you

lovely temple of Kamakura
Just one of many

giant slippers
for the daibutsu's night outs

take garden
bamboos everywhere

in the train
on the way to the lake in Fujigoken

fujiyoshida hostel
our home in fuji

fuugu trio
looking like blowfishes

fujigoken lake
sooo pretty