Another day on Mount Fuji, every second is different

One of my roommates had nightmares right above me and moaned terribly for half the night, but with a soft 'kssss' I was able to calm her down.

With daybreak, I set off again to admire Fuji, this time planning to walk all the way around the lake, counter-clockwise.

First, you arrive at Yagizaki Park, a spacious area right by the shore with many interesting plants. A kind of small bushes has just begun to glow bright red. In late summer, entire fields of lavender are said to bloom here. There is a small temple that a monk built out of admiration for Fuji around 1500 (it has since been destroyed and rebuilt several times) and wide open spaces with colorful maple trees on the edges, all offering a perfect backdrop for the mountain, which is visible from everywhere. The morning light was quite clear, but the light clouds in the sky blurred it a bit today.

I was able to observe gray herons and swans, cormorants, a kind of small white stork, and even an eagle. A fisherman shared his bread with a swan, which he fed from his hand while in the boat.

Next, I found a café that offered lavender soft serve ice cream in purple and white.

And on I went, further and further. When I arrived at the end of the lake after three and a half hours, I gave up the plan to hike back along the winding paths on the other side of the lake for the next four and a half hours and happily took the bus back. Overall, I have walked about 12 km each day now, which is enough.

In the town, I found a nice-looking restaurant where many people were sitting contentedly at the tables, and I decided to try the famous Japanese Wagyu beef today. Allegedly, only 500 cattle are raised and slaughtered this way each year. The meat is thoroughly marbled with fat, resembling pink marble, incredibly tender and soft, and it literally melts in your mouth. You have to add a little wasabi and soy sauce to it, otherwise, it is too fatty, but the flavor is truly fantastic.

For dessert, I treated myself to some Umeshu, the yellow plum wine, and then wobbled a bit tipsily back to the bus stop to check for interesting Fuji photo motives on the other side of the lake.

When I finally arrived back in town on foot, the sun was already setting; the wall of clouds or fog that had formed behind the volcano during the afternoon did not change to pink, much to my disappointment, but remained gray. However, the wonderful Fuji-san remained clearly visible until absolute darkness, and I thankfully said goodbye to him. I don't know if I will ever see him again, but somehow he's now inside me, I carry him with me.

By the way, in the afternoon, I had observed a large playground with many elementary school students, all running around happily and shrieking with delight, swinging, playing ball, boys and girls together, not separated by roles—everything quite normal, wild, and free, which comforted me about the horribly regimented school group at Ginkaku.

I am now waiting for my night bus back to Kyoto, where I will arrive tomorrow morning shortly after 5, and I hope to get a little sleep.