I'm home and COLD!

Since climbing Mount Fuji I have been busy packing, giving farewell speeches, leaving Iiyama, having a blast at Fuji Rock, singing karaoke in Tokyo and then finally boarding the BA flight home to Scotland!


Me with some 3rd years, just after my last lesson.

Saying goodbye to Iiyama, the students and my friends there was harder than I had anticipated. My speeches in Japanese went well (thank you Makoto) and when I finished, some students presented me with some money and then the audience parted and had me walk down the middle as the cheered, clapped and even cried! Waiting for the train to arrive on the platform for the very last time sent butterflies jumping around in my tummy. Once the train pulled away and my farewell party was out of sight, I travelled past my apartment only to see some students standing outside jumping and waving at the train. Needless to say, I continued bubbling away to myself all the way to Nagano!


Iiyama


Dinner with Makoto, Tamie, Jo and Matt.


Leaving enkai with school - Yumoto Sensei and I murdered a Michael Jackson song!

Still, there was no time to dwell on everything and be sad because the very next day Belinda and I were heading to Fuji Rock for 3 days to see some live music. The line-up was amazing and I managed to see Jarvis Cocker (who was VERY rude and smelly when I met him after), Groove Armada, Muse, Kings of Leon, Ocean Colour Scene, Kula Shaker, Kaiser Chiefs, Lily Allen, Mika, G Love and Special Sauce, Beastie Boys, Pigeon Detectives plus some Japanese bands (including Boom Boom Satellites... google them, they were brilliant!) and a few randoms like The Cure, !!! (Chk Chk Chk) and Juliette and the Licks!




Bel and me with the "tresspassers"...


Muse


Grove Armada


The campsite was spread over a ski run and a golf course, so flat ground was actually hard to find!



Festival food on offer...


... including fish and chips!


Bel and me just before Mika


At the end of the festival, the rain closed in!

The weather was amazing (a bit too amazing for my factor 8 as it turned out...) and only rained as we were packing up to leave. The site was spotless, the toilets were clean and there was even an onsen. We had a fantastic few days.

After Fuji Rock, there was just enough time to clean our clothes before I jumped on the shink to Tokyo for the very last time. Bidding farewell to the mountains, I started to get really excited about going home - and there was still 3 days to enjoy in Tokyo first!


Kat and me moments after going blonde at Tony & Guy!


Me, Kat and Bel just outside Pizza Express for the last time.




Last ever Japan karaoke session!



Bel and Kat on the Metro


Shibuya

Kat, Bel and I stayed at Jimbocho for the first two nights before Bel caught her flight home to Oz for a wee holiday, and then Kat and I met Kyla for my last night for a quiet evening and Falafels! My flight was delayed by 3 1/2 hours so I had to hang around the airport for a while before I finally left Japan. I got a little bit emotional when I handed in my "gaijin" ID at immigration when the man asked me if I was returning to Japan and when I said no, he stood up, bowed and said "sayonara"! The flight itself was uneventful, with plenty meals and movies to keep me occupied on the rare moment I was even awake. I landed in Heathrow first, before my connecting flight to Edinburgh where David was waiting for me with a "welcome home" banner!

I have been home a week now and it has been great. I have been super busy with job interviews and hobbling around Glasgow and Edinburgh in high heels ( a year in the mountains has killed my ability to walk in pretty shoes) and even managed to squeeze in a Taiko drumming performance at the Edinburgh Festival.

23rd July - Fuje is HUGE!

Well, I did it! I climbed Mount Fuji. All 3776 metres of it and boy was it tough! At the time it felt like the WORST thing ever, but now it's over I can honestly say it is the highlight of my year in Japan and the perfect way to say goodbye.

We started at the 5th station which is already a third of the way up at about 2300m. Getting off the bus you can feel the air is thinner and it's a bit chilly too! We piled on our layers and waterproofs and set off at 9pm on the dot.






Within about 10 minutes of walking downhill, we had to strip back down to t-shirts. Already we were feeling the strain! Still, we remained positive, overtook some OAPS (who, not suprisingly, then overtook us at a later stage), chatted about horror movies and even sang a few songs.

The first aim was to get to the 6th station which according to our map was about 2 hours away. The cloud was closing in on us but it was pitch black with nothing to see but the flickering headlamps of all the other climbers. Oh yeah, the other climbers - apparently around 300,000 people climb Mount Fuji every year (with the majority of them climbing during official climbing season July and August) and because of the typhoon last weekend many people, including us, had to cancel and re-schedule for the following weekend. So it turned out, Mount Fuji was rather busy and by the time we reached the 7th station we realised that we could be climbing nose-to-bumper with all the other climbers...





...and we were! I don't think there is any other mountain in the world where you have to queue to climb to the top. Although it may sound off-putting it actually added to the whole experience as most of these climbers were Japanese people and didn't make it feel like a tourist attraction.


Kat and a sleeping climber






7th station and ready for oxygen (and not skooshi cream as it may look like!)

So, on with the hike. We reached the 8th station about 1am... about 5 hours after our departure and a little behind schedule.


8th station - already up in the clouds

Most of the climbing thus far had involved scrambling over rocks and using hands and feet. We hadn't taken into account all the stopping and starting when climbing with hundreds of other people and by about 3am we realied we might not make it to the top by sunrise. Still, it had started to get lighter by that point and we thought we could see the top from where we were. The sky was clear though and the stars were beautiful. I even saw two shooting stars!





But after we climbed up an extra steep part, we saw rows upon rows of MORE zig-zag paths emerging. The top was still a few hours away yet.


This is the point where I told Kat that there was at least another 2 hours worth of climbing...

So, when we realised we wouldn't make it to the top for sunrise, we decided to get comfy on some rocks and just wait (and have our first official rest in the 7 hours we had been climbing).


Matt, charlie and me - all feeling a bit worse for wear


Me looking like the Ghost of Christmas Past - just before sunrise.






Goose bump stuff when the sun broke through


The crowds below


The crowds to the side

When the sun broke through, all my aches and pains temporarily disappeared and I joined in with hundreds of Japanese people shouting "BANZAI! BANZAI! BANZAI!". It was really magical... until I remembered I had more climbing to do.

The last hour and a half was the worst. The end was in sight but every step was a sting. The crowds had all slowed down significantly but I found my 2nd (maybe actually my 3rd) wind and picked up the pace for the last stretch to the top. I think I may have even pushed some people out of the way... whoops! I just wanted to get there after 9 long hours of climbing.





At the top! Woooohoooo!








Proof that the Japanese can sleep anywhere... and maybe proof that you can still climb Fuji and be fashionable.




Cool wave cloud for my dad!


Matt, Charlie and me at the top!


Onwards and eh... downwards!



After some hot chocolate, cup noodles and a bit of a rest, we started the hike down. I can actually go as far as to say this was worse than the climb up because by this point our knees were about ready to give way. The path was gravel mixed with rocks and sand and with every step it was difficult to keep your balance. It took us 3 1/2 hours to get down and the last 2kms were the longest of my life! Towards the end, we stumbled across a very eerie scene of men and some horses - still not entirely convinced they were real...



So exactly 14 hours and 10 minutes after we left the 5th station on Saturday night - we arrived back again tired, uncomfortable, in pain and not feeling the love for Mount Fuji.


Kat - feeling the love for flat ground!

It has taken me a few days to be able to walk up and down stairs again but now I have fully recovered I'm ready to do it again!!! What was that famous saying again...