I wanted to start this year off with a bang, photo-wise, and what better picture to post than one of the most impressive Japanese landforms of them all?
I love Mt Fuji. I love it in pictures, I love it in woodblock prints, but there is nothing that compares to the sheer thrill of seeing the massive mountain up close and personal.
On the second weekend in January, I convinced my husband that – although we have already visited many many places in Japan – we simply couldn’t leave this country without viewing Mt Fuji from where she looks best.
So we drove out to the Chureito Pagoda in Fujiyoshida (stay tuned for a Spotlight post on that soon), hiked up the 400 steps to the top of the hill, and took the impressive shots of Mt Fuji with the pagoda in the foreground.
Most people are content to stop there. But we wanted to check out part of the hike up the mountain just behind the pagoda, so we continued about five more minutes up the trail to another pavilion with equally impressive views. There was no pagoda but the way the pavilion framed Fujisan, just before she was covered with clouds, was memorable.
Uncover Japan 
A beautiful picture, Mt Fuji is a stunning mountain, just amazing!
It takes my breath away every time I see it up close, no matter how many times that is!
Fujiyoshida is still on my bucket list since it’s my hometown’s Sister City, but wow! I didn’t know there was a place quite like this.
What a cool connection! And it’s odd that for a pagoda that seems to be in so much promotional shots for Japan, there was hardly any info about it online.