Fuji-san thoughts:

On the way to Fuji-san: 9:30pm Friday/2pm Saturday
/Why am I taking a night bus, which I can’t sleep on, to go climb a mountain?/I’m tough, I don’t need to buy oxygen/Wahoo! I’m going to climb Mount Fuji!/Have either of my sisters had their babies yet?



Beginning the climb: 2pm-5pm
Hey, this isn’t so bad/Have either of my sisters had their babies yet?/We’re already half way up, look at us go! /Wahoo! I’m climbing Mount Fuji... along with quite a few others...


Rest period: 5pm-10:30pm
Ok, time for a nap to rest up for the climb that takes us to the summit at sunrise/Why can’t I sleep? I haven’t slept more than 2 hours since Thursday night, I need to sleep. Oh well, I’m a machine, I can make it./Have either of my sisters had their babies yet?/ This sunset above the clouds is beautiful/Wahoo, Mount Fuji sunrise at the summit, here I come!



The beginning of the dark time: 10:30pm Saturday- 2am Sunday
I can’t believe there are so many climbers…/If one more person with a walking stick almost hits me in the face, that walking stick is going over the edge of this mountain/I think this is the 8th station?/Have either of my sisters had their babies yet?/Yes, I will pay twice as much as usual for that chocolate bar and 400Yen for poorly mixed hot chocolate. /I’m liking this cool breeze.

The dark time: 2am-4am
This is worse than the bank or a theme park. I’m in a line to get to the top of a mountain, and I can’t figure out why on earth I’m taking a step, waiting a minute. Taking a step, waiting a minute. /Have either of my sisters had their babies yet?/I’m trapped in an Escher painting of Mount Fuji, walking in an never ending loop/This wind is evil/Where did my friends go?/Gahhh! Get out of my way! I just want to sit down at the summit!


Sunrise: 4am-6am
Hey, that sunrise is pretty beautiful/Sophie! Yea! Someone I know!!/Ahh! Have to pee, will pay 200Yen to pee!/Wait, there is more than 1 vending machine?/This place is a zoo/ There is no way I’m walking anywhere uphill from here/Have either of my sisters had their babies yet?/Holy crap, I’m on top of Mount Fuji.


Preparing for the way down: 6am-8am
Time to mail my letters from the top of Mount Fuji/Must. Write. Faster. Can’t. Feel. Fingers/holy crap, I’m cold in Japan and it’s July!/Where is Myrie? I hope she’s not dead, I haven’t seen her in hours…/Wait, there’s Myrie, she’s not dead! /Oh no, have to pee again, another line, another 200Yen…/Have either of my sisters had their babies yet? /There better not be a line going down the mountain…


Going down: 8am-10:30am
Sweet, no line /Volcanic mountains are desolate/Hmm, maybe I’ll try running…/This is so much fun/Have either of my sisters had their babies yet?/It’s warming up, time to take some layers off my body and add them to my backpack/I can’t believe my body is still functioning, let alone running down a mountain/I’m running down a mountain! /is this the end of the world? Am I trapped in another Escher painting? We’ve been walking in this cloud for ages…



Recovery: 10:30am Sunday/ Monday 5am
Onsen, food, karaoke, a perfect way to end this trip/I keep falling asleep when I blink for too long/Back on the bus.. ugh/One of my sister's had her baby!/Ok, so the trick to sleeping on an overnight bus is to not sleep for a night, climb a mountain and not sleep another night, got it/I climbed Mount Fuji. I actually did it. I didn’t need oxygen! Yatta!

(most photo credit goes to Myrie, my climbing buddy and photographer extraordinare)