Photo-stitching

Have been doing some photo-stitching and here's what I've got!

The first photo was taken from the park opposite the campus. The tallest brown building in the middle is the Japanese Language Center; the one to the left is our dorm; the one to the right is the cafeteria.

(Stitched from 7 photos)

This photo was taken in Asakusa. Those boats on the right are waterbuses. It takes you all the way to Odaiba (大台場). I tried another photo-stitch of the opposite side of the river but it didn't turn out well.

(Stitched from 4 photos)

Taken in Musashi Kokubunji Koen (武蔵国分寺公園).

(Stitched from 6 photos)

Well, these may not be the best photos because they have not been edited; just some trimming here and there, that's all. I like them anyway.

Summer Plans

Various countdowns:

1. End-term exam - 14~19 July (5 days to go!)
2. Marine Day - 17 July (3 days to go!)
3. Summer holiday - 22 July ~ 31 August (8 days to go!)
4. Scholarship pay day - 25 July (11 days to go!)
5. Trip to Kamakura etc with host family - 25~26 July (11 days to go!)
6. Nasu (那須) English Summer Camp - 28~31 July (14 days to go!)
7. Rusutsu-mura, Hokkaido (留寿都村、北海道) homestay - 18~28 August (34 days to go!)
8. Malaysian National Day - 31 August (37 days to go!)
9. Autumn term - 1 September (28 days to go!)

For those who are curious about where the heck I'm going during the summer holiday, here you go. Believe it or not, this is edited using the antediluvian MS Paint!

A. Hokkaido (北海道）

Hokkaido (北海道) is known for its cool summer. I'll be going to Rusutsu-mura (留寿都村) from 18 to 28 August for a homestay programme. (Phew, glad to escape from the scorching heat in Tokyo!) The town is a famous spot for skiing during winter.

Will take a plane to Sapporo (札幌), Hokkaido's major city and spend the first night there in a youth hostel before leaving for Rusutsu-mura by bus the next morning.

B. Tokyo (東京) and neighbouring prefectures

Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, TUFS (東京外国語大学), that's where I'm currently studying. It's about 30 minutes by densha from central Tokyo; located in the middle of nowhere between Chofu and Fuchu.

Will be going to Kamakura (鎌倉) with my host family, tentatively from 25 to 26 July. Kamakura is famous for being one of the ancient cities in Japan which were influenced by Buddhism from China. Thus, old temples scattered across the city. One famous spot in Kamakura is the Big Buddha in Kotokuin. Originally housed in a temple, the building was destroyed in a tsunami in the 15th century. Ever since then, the statue remained outdoors.

Taking part in an English Summer Camp in Nasu, Tochigi Prefecture (那須、栃木県) from 28~31 July. The camp actually starts on 29 July but we have to attend a briefing for foreign staff a day before. Oh yeah, the camp is for Junior High School kids and we're there to help running the activities. And we get 20k yen as the renumeration!

Nasu is a famous with its lush greenery and hills. Besides, Nikko (日光) is also located in the same prefecture. Waterfalls, lakes, temples... I hope I'll have the chance to go around the place!

Besides the plans mentioned above, of course I'm planning to make day trips to several other places. And maybe I should also find time to register to the Malaysian Embassy. (Yes, I haven't.) National Day is coming soon. Who knows we might get invited for the celebration?

Oh man! Come, come, summer holiday!

Narusawa Icicle Cave

After the Mount Fuji hike, we set off to Narusawa icicle cave (鳴沢氷穴), in Narusawa Village, Yamanashi Prefecture (山梨県鳴沢村).

This place is a volcanic cave, from which ancient Japanese mine for natural ice. It's literally cool!

The entrance to the icicle cave.

The descend.

A mini shrine.

It's hard to imagine how the ice could form though it's summer now and the place was situated at the foot of Mount Fuji.

Now, this was cool!

Natural icicles hanging from the cave.

- 02 June 2006, Friday -

Mount Fuji

Mount Fuji is Japan's most famous landmark which can always be seen in photographs and postcards. But seeing it for real is another matter. June is the raining season in Japan, so I was kind of worried whether we really get to go to Mount Fuji. Because if it rained, we would have just gone to Ueno instead. But, thanks to this little buddy the day was rather fine enough for hiking, although there were clouds.

This guy is not a voodoo doll, mind you. He's a teru teru bōu zu (てるてる坊主), which we made during Multicultural Communication class a few weeks earlier to wish for fine weather.

We left at 8.30am sharp and reached Mount Fuji's Visitor Center some two hours later.

Trivia: Foreigners were not allowed to climb Mount Fuji because it was considered sacred by the locals.

Trivia: Japan once applied for Mount Fuji to be included as a world heritage site but was rejected because of the startling amount of trash left behind by hikers on the mountain.

Mt. Fuji has five lakes around it: Lake Kawaguchi, Lake Yamanaka, Lake Sai, Lake Motosu and Lake Shoji. They, and nearby Lake Ashi, provide excellent views of the mountain. It is part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park.

Trivia: Women were prohibited from climbing Mount Fuji during olden days. The first woman who accomplished the feat was Tatsu Takayama who disguised herself as a guy in order to achieve the feat.

Stone samples taken from Mount Fuji.

There are various access points to the summit of Mount Fuji and we took the Fuji Subaru Line.

We haven't started climbing yet but we're already 2305m above sea level, which is the fifth station.

Meet Bowo from Indonesia, who rejoice in the nickname 危ない人 (dangerous guy), courtesy of 金子先生 (Kaneko Sensei).

It wasn't cold (15ºC) or so but there was snow (残雪, zan setsu)! The guy in front is Tunchis from Peru, a.k.a. Arturo, a.k.a. Camas. The reason he goes by so many names is merely to confuse the others.

Romantic, huh? Good enough for me considering that this is my first time seeing snow, even though it wasn't exactly snow white.

The higher we went, the barren the landscape.

Uh oh. We were busy taking photos and were left behind by the others...

God Almighty Fujisan, please accept these modest offerings from thy humble subjects and do point us to the right path!

An abandoned shack.

Finally, here's everyone! Too bad this was as far as we would go for this hiking trip. Here's where we had lunch eating bentō (弁当, that's very Japanese, for your information).

Hmm, Mount Fuji looks better from afar. Especially from its five lakes (富士山五湖). It is said that only good persons can see Mount Fuji. The peak can only be half-seen in this photo. I'm a good guy, no doubt. It's just my camera which isn't good enough.

The hiking track is accessible only from July to August, when the temperature is the highest all year round, 5ºC. I'll be back, then, with a new camera to take photos from the lakes and to make it to the summit at 3776m above sea level, of course.

But, I think the summit is as barren as it is on moon, just like this. With all those loose volcanic stones, it was difficult to climb up the slope, although it wasn't that steep. But, after the cliff-hanging stunt we used to do back on Penang Hill, what's the big deal?

Class photo taken by TST. Then, we took group photos of everyone from the center and started the descend.

Ah, Engrish.

Another perfect animal-looking tree stump ideal for pagan worshippers?

Pine cones.

The fifth station (2305m above sea level), where I bought enough postcards to open a gallery.

Just fooling around...

After everyone got satisfied emptying his wallet, we headed for Narusawa Volcanic Icicle Cave (鳴沢氷穴), which was literally cooler than Gua Tempurung in Perak, Malaysia...

- 02 June 2006, Friday -