And then on to Harajuku with another temple and the park where bands were set up along the pathways playing their wares. It was great just to stand and listen to then as they were all pretty decent.

And there's Totoro, watching over the place and making sure none of the riff-raff get in. Oh and the ticket you get for the place is three frames from the original films, I got My Neighbour Totoro ^_^

The next day I wandered over to Ryogoku in the hopes of grabbing a ticket for the big Sumo Tournament around middle of the month but unfortunately the only tickets left were right at the back or very expensive because they were private boxes at the ringside.

Not knowing what to do next I headed over towards the bay and the Rainbow Bridge. On the other side I found a huge shopping complex and the unique Fuji TV Station building. There was an observation deck but the queue was about 1 hour long just to get into the building and I couldn't be bothered, not when just the other day I'd been up the Mori Tower in Roppongi Hills. Just like the Tokyo Tower I also found here a Statue of Liberty (in miniature of course) which was a little weird I must admit but was a easy way to finish the days adventures.

Actually I need to go back here as I haven't seen the statue of the dog yet. I explain that later.

Travelling up to the fifth station by bus (I would be severely under-equipped for such a hike before anyone asks) took an hour winding back and forth around the hillside of Fuji-san. Arriving at the station you are greeted by a gaudy faux-swiss cabin pandering to the tourists (the Japanese ones more than anything I think). After marveling at being so close and wandering around the gift shop there isn't much to do but head back down. I'm sure that at the height of summer when the upper half of the mountain is open it will be brimming with activity but for the moment I think the best way to enjoy Fuji is from afar where you can get pictures of it reflecting in the lakes - when it's not surrounded by cloud!



I found out while I was there that Fujikyu Highland, a theme park just a five minute train ride away and one you have to pass on your way to Kawaguchiko, has the worlds highest 4D rollercoaster that holds a world record for the most number of inversions. For those trying to work out the physics of a 4D rollercoaster, it is one where the seats rotate independently of the car that moves along the track and as a result this one, where the track only inverts three times, inverts the riders 14 times during the course of the experience.

Needless to say, since the weather was cooling off by this point and the wind was picking up a bit, I decided to spend the afternoon at the park - the coasters offered superb views of the mountain before you were plunged over the top.

They also had an awesome haunted house based on a derelict hospital just like those from a Japanese horror movie.

The next day I got up early and rented a bike from the hostel and thankfully, unlike the one I rented back in Nagasaki, this one was a mountain bike with actual gears! (Shock! Horror!) I cycled around two of the five lakes and visited a Lava cave and an Ice cave - I missed the Bat cave because it wasn't sign posted as such near the site, despite the whole route around the second lake being littered with signs for the 'Bat Cave' - where I met an American that taught English and his Japanese friend who were visiting the Lava Cave because the forest in which it was located was has the highest suicide rate of all of Japan. It was mentioned in a novel I think a while back and  ever since has had a following of youths who come here to kill themselves.

This girls shoes made it though the cave, even later on when it turn more into pot-holing and the floor icy.

And that was Fuji-san. Oh, I went over the handlebars of the bike once (I braked too hard after my dad's camera leap from the moving vehicle  - at first I thought I'd run over a stick from the sound of it hitting the ground. Don't worry it's in perfect working order, although I did loose the two AA batteries) but I was fine, it was more the aching muscles from a day of cycling that I was concerned with.

And back in Osaka I did the unthinkable and went to Universal Studios for a lazy, familiar afternoon out.

Off in the mountains at Koya-san, between getting lost I did manage to take some photos; temples, mountain views, a graveyard where huge companies own plots for their employees when they pop their clogs, and me doing the whole ryokan thing. Mind you I've worn a yukata (that's basically a bath robe btw) in other places too, like here in Tokyo.

Briefly back in Tokyo after cutting Ise short before heading off to Fuji-san I stayed at Juyoh again. Here's a shot of the house out back with the roof garden - a month can make a big difference, here's the original image from when I arrived in Tokyo.


I hope that makes up for the wait (you know who you are ^_^)

They were really great to wander around and took up most of the afternoon, leave just enough time too visit an onsen. It's one of those things you really have to do while in Beppu. The bath house had lots of different kinds of spa including the waterfall; which pounds down on you from a height and is great for relieving stress and aches across your shoulders and back, and of course the outdoor onsen (it was raining at the time and felt great with all the heat from the pool) surrounded by rocks and plants.

A couple of hours later and I was done and dusted. An early night.

The next day I headed up into the mountains around the city and caught a cable car up to the top where I was afforded some great views of the coast and the mountains.

It's a beautiful, beautiful place. But time waits for no man and I'm off to Hiroshima.

That's me, posing, with Naka-dake in the background. And these are the guy's I was out with.

We walked our way back to the crater to see if it was open yet since they open and close the observation point depending on the winds direct and the concentration of gases in what they class as zones A, B, C, and D.

It was still closed. We waited to see if it would change, and since we had to wait an hour for the next bus, it wasn't like there was much else to do. Back down in Aso-town we grab the train back around and got off a few stops early to have a look for some water springs that had been recommended. A great little trek through a sleepy village/'collection of relatively close houses and farms' got us to two wonderfully peaceful and picturesque streams.

And that was the first full day at Aso-san. We went back to the pension and relaxed in the onsen, then spent the evening in the bar with the owners (we were the only three guests then).

The next day, just as the others were setting off for Sakurajima brought the news that Zones A, B, and C were open at the crater. I rushed to get my things together and caught the ride to the JR in Tateno with them where we said goodbye and went opposite ways on the train line. Arriving at Naka-dake 2 hours after getting to Tateno station - don't ask - I was half expecting it to already be closed again but it wasn't and I caught the ropeway up to the crater.

It felt hyped after all I'd been through to see it, but was still a spectacular sight. I don't think the photos really do it justice but there's one of me in there since a police official was kind enough to offer to take one for me.

So there you have it, I've finally made it to the crater. The internet going slow, so I'm going to cut the one short now. To sum up I found a beautiful river, a lovely Japanese lady with two kids offered me a lift to the station in her car, and I had to walk an hour to the pension from the station at Takamori because in the rush that morning I forgot the piece of paper with their telephone number on it so I couldn't call them to pick me up. I wasn't too bad anyway, and I enjoyed the look through town.