FIVE-STORIED STUPA

Minobusan 身延山 Kuonji 久遠寺 which is the 108th temple of Kai 108 Reijō Pilgrimage is also the head temple of Nichirenshū 日蓮宗 to which about 5200 temples & about 3.3 million people belong. Its five-storied stupa 五重塔 was rebuilt in May this year, for the first time for about 130 years, and is 39 meters high.

Takashi Shikano 鹿野貴司, photographer, who had taken about 80 thousand pictures of the process of building the structure, carpenters, monks, changes of the seasons & various events of the temple for 2 years, holds the exhibition "The five-storied stupa coming back, Minobusan Kuonji 甦る五重塔 身延山久遠寺" where you can see 42 selected pictures. The venues are at Tokyo, Sapporo & Sendai.

- TOKYO -
Venue：Canon Gallery Ginza
Address：東京都中央区銀座3-9-7 トレランス銀座ビルディング1F (Google Map)
Term：July 2 ～ July 8, 2009
Hours：10:00 ～ 19:00（the final day : ～ 15:00）
Closed：Sunday
Admission：no charge

- SAPPORO -
Venue：Canon Gallery Sapporo
Address：北海道札幌市北区北7条西1-1-2 SE山京ビル1F (Google Map)
Term：August 17 ～ August 28, 2009
Hours：9:00 ～ 17:30（the final day : ～ 15:00）
Closed：Saturday & Sunday
Admission：no charge

- SENDAI -
Venue：Canon Gallery Sendai
Address：：宮城県仙台市青葉区国分町3-6-1 仙台パークビルヂング1F (Google Map)
Term：September 24 ～ October 2, 2009
Hours：9:00 ～ 17:30（the final day : ～ 15:00）
Closed：Saturday & Sunday
Admission：no charge

■ Link
・Takashi Shikano's official web site and official blog site

View Mt.Fuji from Lake Motosu

Would you know what is printed on the reverse side of one thousand yen notes (or old five thousand yen notes[used from 1984 to 2007])?
If you have it now, please check it on.

You are able to see Mt.Fuji & its inverted reflection on the surface of the lake on it. The reflection is called "Sakasa Fuji 逆さ富士."

The image is made on the model of a picture which was taken at the edge of Lake Motosu 本栖湖 by KŌYŌ OKADA 岡田紅陽 (1895-1972) and is called "Kohan no Haru (Spring by the lake) 湖畔の春".

■Photos on the WEB
Mt.Fuji from Lake Motosu, on Flickr

■ EDIT :
・BUS TIMETABLE(Fujikyū Bus) (Fuji Station / Shimobe hot springs / Motosuko - Shojiko - Kawaguchiko station - Fujikyūhighland - Fujiyoshida station) Japanese version only / The nearest bus stop to Lake Motosu is Motosu Iriguchi 本栖入口 or Motosuko 本栖湖.
・Lake Motosu excursion boat 'MOGURAN もぐらん' (translated by Yahoo!Japan Translation Service)

■Shiki-no-Mori Oshino Park Koyo Okada Photo Museum　四季の杜 おしの公園　岡田紅陽写真美術館 　(Japanese version only)
The admission fee (only Permanent exhibition) is Adult : 500 yen / Elementary & Middle school student : 300 yen / preschool-age : charge-free (the other exhibitions : extra costs).
HOURS: 9:00-17:00 (Entry permitted up to 16:30)
CLOSED: The regular closing day is Tuesday, the day following a national holiday (except Saturday and Sunday), during the year-end and New Year holidays (December 28 to January 1) and so on. When Tuesday falls on a national holiday, the museum will be closed instead on the following day. But because these are with some exceptions, please view Closed days calendar on the above link for details (Procedure : visiting the museum ご利用案内 → 休館日カレンダー[yellow button]).
ACCESS : a) Take about 15min from Kawaguchiko I.C.[Exit] (Chūō Expressway) via National Route 138 by car
b) Take about 30min from Gotenba I.C. [Exit] (Tōmei Expressway) via National Route 138 by car
c) Take buses bound for Uchino 内野 or Hirano 平野 (via Uchino) from Fuji Kyūkō Line Fujiyoshida Station and drop off the bus at Shiki-no-Mori Oshino Kōen bus stop. You have immediate access to the Museum from there.
d) Take buses bound for Fujiyoshida Station or Kawaguchiko Station (not via Zentana 膳棚 (Oshino Hakkai 忍野八海)) from JR Mishima Station and drop off the bus at Oshino Iriguchi 忍野入口 bus stop. The museum is 10 minutes walk from the bus stop. But if you take buses via Zentana, drop off the bus at Shiki-no-Mori Oshino Kōen bus stop. You have immediate access to the Museum from there.
BUS TIMETABLE(Fujikyū Bus) (Japanese version only) Shiki-no-Mori Oshino Kōen bus stop is between Oshino Iriguchi and Omiyabashi お宮橋 / Zentana (Oshino Hakkai).
・ Fujiyoshida Station - Oshino Hakkai - Uchino
・ Mishima Station - Gotemba Station - (Yamanakako / Oshino Hakkai) - Fujiyoshida Station - Fujikyūhighland - Kawaguchiko station

■View View Mt.Fuji from Lake Motosu on Google My Maps

■Reference data
新旧お札・逆さ富士の不思議 on "地域探検！ナビィシティー" (Japanese version only)

YAMANASHI PEACH CAFE (Shinjuku, Tokyo)

"Yamanashi Momo(peach) Cafe やまなし桃カフェ" opens, for a limited time only, from today to 31th July at Shinjuku Southern Terrace shop 新宿サザンテラス店 of TRAVEL CAFE. You can eat a parfait and drink juices & cocktails, made from peaches grown in Yamanashi.

■HOURS : Weekday & Saturday 10:00～23:00 / Sunday & National Holiday 10:00～22:00

■MENU
Day Time Menu
Night Time Menu(17:30~)
(Japanese versions only)

■View Yamanashi Momo(peach) Cafe やまなし桃カフェ on Google My Maps

Climbing Mt.Fuji

Do you remember what I said to you about the climbing condition in the Southern Alps the other day? I heard, this year, there are a lot of snow on climbing routes in the vicinity of the summit of Mt.Fuji, too. Therefore, though Yamabiraki 山開き ceremony will be held today, Yoshidaguchi Trail 吉田口登山道 is permitted (to climb) only up to 8 1/2th Station(8.5合目)and three climbing routes in Shizuoka Pref are also under the similar conditions. According to newspapers, the concerned people are removing snow and, as early as today early evening, you would be able to start to climb up to the summit on the Yoshidaguchi trail, but full-opening of the other three is nowhere in sight.

■INFORMATION
・Fuji Visitor Center
・Climbing Mount Fuji on "japan-guide.com"
・Climbing Mount Fuji: Guide for Getting Lost in Japan on "The Gray's in Japan"

■EDIT (July 1, 2009)
Right now (at noon July 1st), you can climb up to the summit of Mt.Fuji on the Yoshidaguchi trail due to removing snow, but the other three routes in Shizuoka Pref remain shut down in the vicinity of the summit and, because descent routes (from the summit to the 5th station) remains shut down due to potential avalanches, the climbing (ascent) route will be used as descent route FTTB.

■EDIT2 (July 5, 2009)
- Information -
・Mt.Fuji Navi (Lodge / Access Map / Traffic Information)
- Closure Areas-
・Yoshida(-guchi) Trail : the descent route from the summit to the 5th station (the ascent route will be used as descent route FTTB)
・Fujinomiya Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 8th station to the summit
・Gotenba Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 6th station to the summit
・Subashiri Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 5th station to the summit

■EDIT3 (July 8, 2009)
From today at noon, the blocked descent route on Yoshida(-guchi) Trail has been opened.
- Closure Areas-
・Fujinomiya Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 8th station to the summit
・Gotenba Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 6th station to the summit
・Subashiri Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 5th station to the summit

■EDIT4 (July 9, 2009)
Tomorrow (July 10 at 0:00 A.M.), all of the blocked route on Subashiri Trail and the blocked route from 8th to 9th station on Fujinomiya Trail will be opened.
- Closure Areas- (July 10 or later)
・Fujinomiya Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 9th station to the summit
・Gotenba Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 6th station to the summit

■EDIT5 (July 10, 2009)
- Information -
・Mount Fuji Guide (Mt.Fuji News (update) / Travel / Event / Forum etc )
- Closure Areas- (July 10 or later)
・Fujinomiya Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 9th station to the summit
・Gotenba Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 6th station to the summit

■EDIT6 (July 13, 2009)
Tomorrow (July 14 at 0:00 A.M.), all of the blocked route on Fujinomiya Trail will be opened.
- Closure Areas- (July 14 or later)
・Gotenba Trail : All along the ascent & descent routes from the 6th station to the summit

■EDIT7 (July 17, 2009)
Today (at noon on July 17), all of the blocked route on Gotenba Trail will be opened.

■EDIT8 (July 25, 2009)
How to apply the climbing mountain certificate of Mt. Fuji (Yamanashi Prefecture Tourist Association)

* If you'd like to get the up-to-date information, please refer to Fuji Visitor Center.

WARNING! Although the rainy season has been over in Kanto region, Yamanashi & Nagano, the weather conditions have still continued to be poor. When climbing, you have to put on the appropriate clothes and carry the proper equipments. Please beware of your physical condition & the weather.

Goshuin

The above is a "Goshuin 御朱印 (red seal)" of Kai Zenkōji. You will be able to get Goshuins at a certain size of temples & shrines if you make an offering, called "Ofuse お布施."

■Refer to Kōfu-Gozan & Kai Zenkōji and Kai Pilgrimage

■View A Brief Lesson on Goshuin by LazyBuyu on YOUTUBE

■Reference data
・Ginkakuji goshuin07Apr06 on "troutfactory notebook"
・Chris's Japan Page
・goshuin 御朱印 (kyoto, japan) on "sorafoto 空フォト"

THE BOOM

This year is the 20th anniversary of THE BOOM, being famous for their song "Shima Uta 島唄 *". The band which consists of 3 persons (Kazufumi Miyazawa 宮沢和史, Takashi Kobayashi 小林孝至 and Hiromasa Yamakawa 山川浩正) from Kōfu and a person (Takao Tochigi 栃木孝夫) from Chiba Pref, was set up in November 1986. They started up their performance at Hokoten ホコ天 (pedestrian zone), Harajuku 原宿 in the following year and came out with the single "Kimi wa TV-kko 君はTVっ子" & the album "A Peacetime Boom" in 1989. "JAPANESKA" in which "Shima Uta" is included was released　in 1990. From that time, THE BOOM's music was changing its style and sound, absorbing ska, Brazilian music, Okinawa's sound and so on. They had suspended their activities from 2006, but have taken them up again since 2008.

There are some lyrics associated with their home, Yamanashi, in their songs.
・On "Soko ga Boku no Furusato (That is my home town) そこが僕のふるさと", included in their 9th original album "LOVIBE" (released in 2000), Mt.Atago 愛宕山 in Kōfu appears. They sing, 'Let's get (friends) together to climb' the mountain.
・In "Hoshi no Love Letter (Love letter of stars) 星のラブレター", they sing, 'In Asahi street at evening the familiar stray dogs sometimes used to tell me something about you that I didn't know.' Kazufumi Miyazawa, main vocals of the band, said in an interview** that he had bought his guitar in fifth grade in elementary school at a shop in Asahi street*** and the girl who he had loved had lived there.
・"Chūōsen 中央線"(refer to Chūō Line) whose lyrics are wistful and painful is one of my most favorite songs and has been covered by various artists (Akiko Yano 矢野顕子, Izumi Katō 加藤いづみ and so on).

■You can listen to the samples(only of "The Boom Collection 1989-2009 ") or buy the CDs from the below links.

LOVIBE
including "Soko ga Boku no Furusato そこが僕のふるさと"

89-09 The Boom Collection 1989-2009
including "Hoshi no Love Letter 星のラブレター", "Chūōsen 中央線"　& "Shima Uta 島唄"

■THE BOOM's official web site (Japanese version only, but you can read only the articles about Miyazawa in English or Portuguese)

* The song was hit in Argentina in 2001, sung by Alfredo Casero
** The program "Utti na Mokuyōbi ウッティ（UTY）な木曜日" in which the interview was included was put on the air in March 2008.
*** I introduced the spot on "Wagashi." You can know the location of the shop on the below map.
View Mt. Atago 愛宕山 & Musical instrument shop in Asahi Street 朝日通り on Google My Maps

Mountain Photographer

Shiro Shirahata 白籏史朗 (1933-) is a photographer of mountains, who was born at Ōtsuki city 大月市. There are a lot of mountain photo books which was taken by him. In my school days, I used to hold dreams of going to Himalaya and trekking the mountains, looking at his photos in "Mountain and canyon 山と渓谷(the short name : "Yamakei")" which is one of the most famous climbing magazines in Japan. The dreams still haven't come true, but these photos still cheer me up.

・The works of Shiro Shirahata on "FUJIFILM WEB PHOTO MUSEUM"

・Minami-Alps Moutain Photo Studio / Shiro Shirahata Memorial Hall 南アルプス山岳写真館・白籏史朗記念館 (Japanese version only)
View Shiro Shirahata Memorial Hall 白籏史朗記念館 on Google My Maps
The admission fee is Adult : 500 yen / Elementary & Middle school student : 250 yen.
PLACE: Narada, Hayakawa-cho
HOURS: 9:00-17:00 (Entry permitted up to 16:30)
CLOSED: The regular closing day is Wednesday & during the year-end and New Year holidays. When Wednesday falls on a national holiday, the facility will be closed instead on the following day.
There is free parking space available for about 40 cars.
I recommend you to stop off at the Memorial Hall on the way back from a trip to (climbing) the Southern Alps & Hirogawara.
The timetable of the buses for Narada(Minobu Station 身延駅 ~ Narada 奈良田)(Japanese version only)

■EDIT (July 2, 2009)
Photograph exhibition "Mt.Fuji of Shiro Shirahata 白籏史朗の富士" will be held at Shiki-no-Mori Oshino Park Koyo Okada Photo Museum　四季の杜 おしの公園　岡田紅陽写真美術館, from July 22th to August 31th, 2009. The admission fee is Adult : 300 yen / Elementary & Middle school student : 200 yen / preschool-age : charge-free (Permanent or the other exhibitions : extra costs). HOURS: 9:00-17:00 (Entry permitted up to 16:30) The Museum is open each day during the exhibition.
Refer to View Mt.Fuji from Lake Motosu on Google My Maps / View Mt.Fuji from Lake Motosu on my site

SOUTHERN ALPS OF JAPAN

The summer season is coming nearer. Climbers must not have been able to wait for it. Though "Yamabiraki 山開き(the summer climbing season opening ceremony)” of Mt. Fuji will be held after about a week, the Southern Alps's season will start a little before it (maybe the ceremony will be held tomorrow(June 27)).

From yesterday(June 25) to November 9th this year, the buses bound for Hirogawara 広河原 operate from Kōfu Station 甲府駅, municipal Ashiyasu parking 市営芦安駐車場 and Minobu Station 身延駅 (via Narada 奈良田 where there is a car park). Hirogawara is a departure point for climbing Mt.Kita(-dake) 北岳 which is the 2nd highest mountain in Japan and a transfer point for the bus bound for Kitazawa-tōge(pass) 北沢峠 which is a departure point for climbing Mt.Kaikoma(-gatake) 甲斐駒ヶ岳 & Mt. Senjō 仙丈ヶ岳.

Be aware that entrance by private automobile is prohibited from June 25th to November 9th in the following areas. It is possible to get to Hirogawara only by bus or taxi.
・Ashiyasu 芦安 (Minami Alps city) ～ Hirogawara ～ Kitazawa-tōge
・Narada 奈良田 (Hayakawa town) ～ Hirogawara
There are car parks at Ashiyasu & Narada. Travelers who use privately owned vehicles have to switch to buses or taxis there.

・Bus timetable for Hirogawara 広河原 & Kitazawa-tōge(pass) 北沢峠(Japanese version only) *Be aware that the timetable varies depending on the day of the week, the season and so on.

BUS FARE (one-way) :
Kōfu Station ~ Hirogawara 1900 yen
Kōfu Station ~ Yashajin-tōge-tozanguchi 1380 yen
Municipal Ashiyasu parking ~ Hirogawara 1000 yen
Municipal Ashiyasu parking ~ Yashajin-tōge-tozanguchi 510 yen
Minobu Station ~ Hirogawara 2300 yen
Narada ~ Hirogawara 1000 yen

*Be aware that you have to pay, per one-way trip, an additional charge of 100 yen (elementary school age : 50 yen / preschool-age : charge-free) for traffic administration cost, when you ride buses or taxis.

- Climbing informations on "Hiking in Japan" / Surrounding mountains of Hirogawara & Yashajin-tōge 夜叉神峠 -
・Kita-dake (北岳)
・Mt. Kai-Komagatake (甲斐駒ヶ岳）
・Mt. Senjō (仙丈ヶ岳)
・Mt. Houou (鳳凰山）(Houou-Sanzan 鳳凰三山)

- Photo Albums on Flickr -
・Kitadake trip, taken by Snowlet
・Kitadake on July 19-20, 2008, taken by Miha Cucek
・Senjōkatake 仙丈ヶ岳, taken by mutilation
・Kaikomagatake 甲斐駒ヶ岳
・Houou Sanzan 鳳凰三山
・Hirogawara 広河原

Refer to Panoramic viewing from peaks at home

View The southern Alps(Minami Alps) 南アルプス on Google My Maps

***** Reference data *****
"Minami Alps information" on the web site of Minami-Alps City's tourist association 南アルプス市観光協会 (Japanese version only)

EDIT (June 28, 2009)
I heard that there is exceptionally a lot of remaining snow this year, and especially the snow covers most of the climbing route at Ōkanbasawa 大樺沢(elevation 2000~2900m) of Mt.Kita(-dake). The concerned organizations urge climbers to carry an ice axe and crampons which can be helpful for walking on the snow.

WARNING! Although the rainy season has been over in Kanto region, Yamanashi & Nagano, the weather conditions have still continued to be poor. When climbing, you have to put on the appropriate clothes and carry the proper equipments. Please beware of your physical condition & the weather.