Daily Japanese word: Peach = Momo ( もも )
We got up bright and early to head over and meet our extended family to go on a tour bus to Mt. Fuji!
We didn’t really have time to go to a restaurant and have a sit down breakfast, so we popped into a convenience store and bought some salmon onigiri and iced drinks and just ate them quickly. I could eat those for breakfast every day 🙂 I love Japanese convenience stores so much. So. Much.
Many Japanese don’t eat sushi, they just like steak but the government controls the importation of beef from America
US doesn’t sell beef to Taiwan because they’re scared of China
Yokohama has 40,000 American people
Suicide bombers from Kagoshima
This bus driver talks a lot about war
Young women in Japan are very powerful because they don’t want to get married
On either side of the highway there’s curved walls to keep the sound in. Each panel costs $500USD
There are white strawberries in Japan that have been genetically modified
Coca Cola in Japan is sweeter and more carbonated because people in Japan love sweet things
Colorful flower sticker on car means a 75 years old or over driver
There are 4,000 tunnels in Japan that had artwork on the ceiling, but after the earthquake 8 years ago, the government decided to not put art on the tunnel ceilings anymore as a safety precaution
Rice is grown on tiered land
People don’t really say or like hearing “I love you, honey”
Asian people generally don’t believe in aliens. RIP Area 51.
Udon (a type of noodle) started on Mt. Fuji
People drink and take home water from the lakes of Mt. Fuji because it supposedly gives you long life
Steamed baths in Japanese are called onsen
We got a flat tire about an hour into the drive, so we waited another hour for help to arrive which was fun.
We also passed through a beautiful forest with the densest trees I’ve ever seen. I’m super excited to visit bamboo forest in Kyoto because they’re so beautifully symmetrical and a forest of them looks like something straight out of a painting or tapestry. I was really enjoying the beauty of the forests until the tour guide told us that the area was called the Suicide Forest because a lot of people come out here to kill themselves. Maybe it was mental (and it probably was), but there was something heavy about the air that even I could feel before I found out it was the infamous suicide forest. I honestly don’t believe in ghosts (although I do love Harold, my house ghost), but I do believe in spirits and spirituality. To me, the difference is that ghosts are tied to the location of their death and are actual manifestations of the person they once were who have unfinished business before they can pass over. Spirits, on the other hand, are basically whispers of the personalities of people and are naturally occurring, whether they have unfinished business or not.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t see the top of the mountain because there were a lot of clouds but apparently, that is pretty normal for a day on Mt. Fuji. We saw about 70% of the mountain and got multiple angles from the lake and from a viewpoint on a hill.
I hope to return one day and catch Mt. Fuji in its full form (wow it sounds like it’s a Pokemon)! This was such a relaxing experience and I’m so thankful I got to witness the natural beauty of Japan in one of the most gorgeous places in the world.
See you tomorrow!