Life Lessons Learned From Climbing Mount Fuji in Japan

Life Lessons Learned From Climbing Mount Fuji in Japan

by Wen Japan

Beginner’s Guide to Climbing Mount Fuji

Let me start off by saying I am not an experienced hiker. Also I don’t exercise regularly (kinda out of shape). I don’t know the technical ins and outs of hiking. All I know was I had always wanted to hike Mount Fuji but never got around to it. Climbing Mount Fuji was one of the hardest, yet most rewarding experiences I have had in my life. I was glad I did it, pushed myself to the limit and felt more alive. 🙂

Official Climbing Mount Fuji Season:
Yoshida Trail: July 1 to September 10, 2017

Two Day Climbing Mount Fuji Equipment List: Backpack, sunglasses, gloves, sun hat, warm hat, thermal underwear, waterproof trousers, warm fleece jacket, waterproof jacket with an attached hood, hiking boots, wool socks, gaiters, head lamps, hiking Stick, etc.

Fuji Subaru 5th station 富士山五合目

Altitude: 2305 meters
There were tons of people in the Subaru 5th station. We took Yoshida trail (吉田). There are 4 main trails leading up to the summit of Mt. Fuji. If you are a more experienced climber and prefer it to be less-crowded, consider taking other paths such as Fujinomiya (富士宮), Subashiri (須走口) and Gotemba (御殿場駅) trails.

Even if you have no intention climbing Mount Fuji, you can spend some time in the Fuji Five Lakes area. It is a really nice resort area. Lake Yamanaka, Lake Kawaguchi, Lake Saiko, Lake Shoji, Lake Motosu.

Yoshida trail – Started climbing Mount Fuji! Departed at 11:17am.

Mt. Fuji 6th Station 富士山六合目

Arrived at 12:18pm. Altitude: 2390 meters
Mostly pebbles and red soil trail. The walk from 6th – 7th Station was wide enough to fit the crowd, to pass others and climb at your own pace.

Mt. Fuji 7th Station 富士山七合目

Arrived at 2:04pm. Departed at 2:40pm. Altitude: 2700 meters
My level of commitment increased as we approached station 7. There was no turning back you just had to move forward. Station 7 was almost all giant rocks where you need to use some arm works like rock climbing but still manageable. Getting difficult!

Toilets cost 200 yen entrance fee. Like most places in Japan the toilets worked and were clean, although no fancy high-tech toilets.

Mt. Fuji 8th Station 富士山八合目

Arrived at 6:08pm. Departed at 6:18pm. Altitude: 3250 meters
This was where weather changes drastically, I added three layers of top and wore snow hat here.

The sun had almost set and the clouds had completely enveloped the world below.

Mt. Fuji 8th Station Tomoe Kan 富士山八合目トモエ館

Arrived at 8:25pm. Altitude: 3400 meters
By the time we reached our mountain hut, it was already dark. We checked in and were given bags to put our shoes in. Ate curry rice for dinner and got ready for bed. There were not much water to brush teeth or wash hands. The hut had no private bed, just a sleeping area with a pillow, sleeping bag and a hook to hang your bag above your head. I didn’t know if I’d be able to sleep (turned out I slept for about an hour).

Sunrise from 8th Station Tomoe Kan 富士山本八合目トモエ館

A sunrise with clouds was so beautiful. Watching it from Mt Fuji was magic. The view made it worth all of the effort!


Breakfast

Departed at 5:50am.
After hiking for not too long this morning, my chest was instantly a little tight due to the altitude. I was having more trouble breathing. We tried to walk slowly and took multiple stops and it helped.

Mt. Fuji 8.5th Station 富士山八合五勺

Arrived at 6:17am. Departed at 6:22am. Altitude: 3450 meters

Mt. Fuji 9th Station 富士山九合目

Arrived at 7:15am. Depart at 7:20am. Altitude: 3600 meters

Top of Mt. Fuji 富士山山頂

Arrived at 8:10am. Departed at 9:25am. Altitude: 3756 meters
Finally, after our legs had started to give out from the long ascent, we approached the summit. Unfortunately the post office and restroom were not opened yet…

Back Down | Mt. Fuji 8th Station – 5th Station 富士山八合目 – 五合目

Arrived at 11:20am. Departed at noon. The hard part was just beginning! The climb down took us almost 6 hours since we took a lot of short and long breaks. There were tons of volcanic rocks everywhere causing you to slip and slide down the hill. At some points, I lost patience and tried to run down like other people did and sprained my ankle. Tendon strength took about 3 months longer to build up. My tendon was still relatively weak to support myself and the weight I was carrying. The hike down sucked. I just wanted it to be over. Also no place to purchase water after the 8th Station. I was hydrated for too long. Afterwards we were absolutely exhausted.

Lessons Learned from climbing Mount Fuji: Always takes your time (slow down especially when hiking down hill), be patient. It takes time to get strong. It takes patience to keep with it until you get there. Don’t give up, take a break whenever you need it. When I sprained my ankle I was ready to call an ambulance but it seemed to be a lot of trouble to get one. Afterwards we managed to walked down slowly. Trust yourself, you can do it!

Checked in Hotel Konanso Yamanashi

After we arrived Ryokan I was vomiting and couldn’t keep anything down. It was still hard to believe that we had actually climbed it. Glad we made it back safely! Climbing Mount Fuji was on my bucket list and I was glad I did it. Every step was worth it. This is something you’ll never forget in your life!


Ekstedt | Stockholm | New Nordic Cuisine

Ekstedt | Stockholm | New Nordic Cuisine

by Wen Sweden

3 of us had the 4 course menu and 2 had the 6 course. We got to try everything. I also did a non-alcohol drink pairing and it was great. The restaurant uses fire as its key ingredient. Cook in old Scandinavian ways,  giving flavor to meat and fish through fire and smoke.

Reindeer heart taco

Reindeer heart taco

Cold smoked mackerel, kohlrabi and pine

Oysters (served complimentary)

Bread / Dried deer, vendace roe and charcoal cream

Juniper baked turbot, white asparagus and bottarga

hay-flamed dairy cow, wood-fired oven baked cabbage and salsify

Birch fired pork, turnip and lovage

Wood fired oven baked almond cake, rhubarb and herbs

Donuts

Stockholm | Vasa Museum

Stockholm | Vasa Museum

by Wen Sweden

Vasa Museum

It’s a must see in Stockholm! Even if you have little interest in ships, this is definitely worth seeing. The Vasa is the most well preserved 17 century warship in the world. More than 98 percent of the ship is original, and it is decorated with hundreds of carved sculptures. Vasa never made it out of Stockholm harbor. It sank on its maiden voyage in 1628. Nearly 400 years later, it is magnificently displayed to light your imagination.

The museum is well designed to allow visitors to experience the ship at different levels. To maximize the visit, do a guided tour (about 30 minutes) and also watch the movie in the auditorium. It will bring you even closer to the whole story.

Vasa Museum Stockholm

Stockholm Food Festival

The food festival occurs during the first week of June (1 – 6 June 2017) in the King’s Garden Park. Many of Stockholm’s local restaurants serves food during the festival and cover everything from traditional dishes to international cuisines around the world.

Strandvagen

After visiting the food festival at King’s Garden Park, we took a stroll along Standvagen. It was also on the way to the Vasa Museum. This seemed to the center for cruises, buses and water taxis. From here you will get a European city feel. Beautiful view of fine architecture on one side and the seaside on the other.

2017 ASICS Stockholm Marathon

The course is regarded as one of the world’s most scenic marathon routes. Runners pass buildings such as the Royal Palace, the Royal Opera, the City Hall and the Houses of Parliament.

Stockholm Old Town

This was our 2nd time to visited the old town, strolling down the various cobblestone streets and alleys is a must. Lots of nice souvenirs shops and cafes around. If you have time you might as well explore the Noble Academia Museum. Changing of the guard is also well worth seeing in the royal palace.

Mathias Dahlgren | Stockholm, Sweden

Mathias Dahlgren | Stockholm, Sweden

by Wen Sweden

This was our second visit. The menu is an a la carte, offer small plate selections. We each ordered 1 at a time and swapped so we got to try more. In total we ordered 6 dishes. We left feeling satiated but not overly so.

Beef tartar / Swedish squid

Langoustines from Bohuslän

Charcoal grilled lamb

White asparagus & artichokes

Variation of passion fruit & cape gooseberry

Fäviken Magasinet | Jämtland, Sweden

Fäviken Magasinet | Jämtland, Sweden

by Wen Sweden

Most exciting and unique food experience

We flew from the States and committed 2 days out of our 10 days in Scandinavia for this experience. We had 6 months of anticipation after the initial booking to begin our journey. This was my second visit to Fäviken. With very scenic drive through the countryside, we arrived Fäviken around 5pm. 

Östersund airport to Fäviken

In June the weather here was still cold. It was snowing for about 5 minutes after we arrived. You can’t tell! The sky looks so blue!

Complimentary drinks & reindeer sausage while you relax in sauna before dinner

Pig’s head, dipped in sourdough & deep fried, gooseberry, tarragon salt

At dinner time all guest gathered outside and inside the restaurants lower level to start the dinner at 7pm. Didn’t get to see chef Nilsson at the door this time. We were seated downstairs to share a big table (8 people total) where the appetizers and the rest of the dinner was served. 

flaxseed and vinegar crisps

Roe

Tofu

Bread

Scallop

All ingredients came from this region of Sweden or Norway. The scallop is the dish chef Nilsson is most famous for. It had been cooked in its own shell without any seasoning over burning juniper branches. The texture of the scallop was so good not to mention its delicate sweetness.

King Crab

Pork

Markerl

The food came with exciting flavors and big contrasts in modern presentations meeting traditional ingredients. I felt it was like the future of food steeped in the past.

Clam

Egg

Asparagus

Pork

What was him making?

Dessert

Ice cream

maccrron

Dessert

cream brulee

meat pie

sweets

duck egg drink

sweets

The box of snus marks the end of the meal

From a bone marrow brulée, a savory meat pie (so good!!!) , a box of candy, to duck egg liqueur and homemade snus. These will be an experience I will not forget!

Tipi & Fire & Cigar

Outside, there is a tipi complete with a bonfire burning inside. At the end of dinner, you are offered cigars that you can smoke in a fire lit tipi. It was my first time to smoke cigar inside a Tipi. What a special night!

It was 11:48pm! June, the month of endless days

Good morning! Time for breakfast 🙂

Happily arrived our breakfast table

breakfast

breakfast

Warm yogurt/grains

breakfast

People said this was a “once-in-a-lifetime” trip, and we were lucky enough to experience it twice! I would have loved to have done it all over again, will have to wait for another season for different ingredients.

Bye Fäviken! See you next time!

Bergen One Day Sightseeing | Norway

Bergen One Day Sightseeing | Norway

by Wen Norway

Bryggen Hanseatic Wharf | UNESCO World Heritage Site

Bryggen means “wharf” in Norwegian. It was where Bergen was founded nearly 1000 years ago. Bryggen was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979. The original buildings were destroyed by fire in 1702. It was then built and rebuilt over the centuries

The wharf buildings have been converted to shops but kept their character. It was definitely very touristy.

Take your time to go through the alley, stop at some of the shops or maybe get a drink.

Bryggen is charming and picturesque!

Trekroneren

Bergen’s best sausages” since 1946. Yes, do as the Norwegians do – have a reindeer sausage?!

Extra-long reindeer sausage with lingonberry, mustard and fried onions.
Tasted like pork!

Fjellskal Fisketorget (Fish Market)

The fist market has a very wide variety of fish and other seafood to eat in or take out. Just strolling through is a treat!

Many decisions to make…

Fjellskål Fisketorget AS

The seafood was fresh and plentiful. We were there around 2pm and it was hectic and busy with lots of tourists.

Fish soup

Crayfish/Langustines
Marinated with garlic and chili oil

Spiced and pan fried Tuna / Fresh scallops

Kitchen & Table Bergen

We stayed at the Clarion Hotel and decided to “eat in” since the Kitchen & Table is the house restaurant also we are fans of Marcus Samuelsson. We had a big lunch so decided to order a bunch of appetizers.

Bread

Tomato basil salad

Local cheese plate

Pate

Carrot cake

Borgund Stave Church | The Oldest Stave Church in Norway

Borgund Stave Church | The Oldest Stave Church in Norway

by Wen Norway

Borgund Stave Church

We made this short detour to see the Borgund Stave Church before heading to Flam. This was a very well preserved stave church (medieval wooden Christian church) built around 12th century. The Borgund Stave Church is the oldest and the most authentic stave church in Norway.

Built like upside-down Viking ship. It was once burned down and archaeologists dug it up and put the parts back together.

Visitor Center

Flåm Railway Norway – the most scenic and beautiful train rides in the world

Flåm Railway Norway – the most scenic and beautiful train rides in the world

by Wen Norway

The Flam Railway

We did a round trip from Flam to Myrdal. Every tourism website told people to go to Flam and take the train to Myrdal when staying in Norway so we did! The train journey took about an hour in each direction and included tons of impressive views of the valley and waterfalls.

Brief stop at Kjosfossen waterfall for breath taking view of waterfalls. We had the opportunity to get off the train and spend some time at the foot of this amazing waterfall. While looking up, some music began and then a woman dressed in red appeared dancing, further up next to the top of the waterfall. It was such a great surprise!



We chose the right hand side which had the more scenic views and for the return journey the waterfall was on the other side.

From the windows the scenery was breathtaking! Lots of little farms dotted about along the way.

Fretheim Hotel

After a great trip on the Flam railway the hotel was just a few steps away. Flam was a small town, everything was central to square where the station and marina were located.

Dinner
We had the buffet dinner. There were plenty of local seafood and even had Mink whale meat.

Breakfast
The breakfast buffet was large and of excellent quality with many local ingredients.

Norway’s Top Attractions: Geirangerfjord & Trollstigen

Norway’s Top Attractions: Geirangerfjord & Trollstigen

by Wen Norway

We had an amazing and unforgettable road trip throughout Norway. This was definitely the place to fall in love with the country. In this trip we have visited 3 UNESCO World Heritage Sites (Borgund Stave Church, Bryggen, and Geirangerfjord). We drove from Ålesund to Trollstigen and then to Geirangerfjord in a day. The scenery was outstanding and I was so pleased to have experienced it. We literally stopped every 10 meters taking amazing photos!

Aksla Utsiktspunkt in Ålesund

The view from the top of Aksla mountain is fantastic! You can see the harbor, the city, and surrounding islands. We drove up to the top. If you have time, it’s 418 steps up.

Trollstigen (the “Troll Ladder”)

This is one of Norway’s National Tourist Roads. The road twists through 11 hairpin bends as it climbs up to 858 meters above sea level. The road is closed in the winter and opens in late May or June. Definitely a must-see while in Norway!
Sunrise ~4:02am
Sunset ~10:54pm

The view of the waterfalls from the zigzag road are spectacular.

The visitor center is well done. The cement walkways is very modernistic provide you with easy access to lookout points with incredible views.

When I saw pictures of the Trollstigen viewing platform, I knew this place would be a great part of our Scandinavian road trip. The views from up high offering an amazing view point on the opposite cliff road. Jaw dropping views everywhere!

UNESCO Heritage Geirangerfjord

It was one of the two fjords that are UNESCO World Heritage Natural Sites. We took a 1.5 hour ferry around the fjord (May to Sept. only). While it was still cold during May, we tried as much as we could to stay outside on the deck so we could fully appreciate the fjord.

You can take a ferry along the fjord and enjoy the massive landscape towering on either side. Ferry took about an hour and half.

The view of the fjords is definitely breathtaking. Highlight for most is the “Seven sisters Waterfall”.

Driving to Olden

We saw Glacier!

Bunnpris, Olden (Airbnb)

We stayed in an modern apartment with a breathtaking view over the river. The location from the front was not so attractive as it was part of a supermarket shopping complex. But it was right at a glacial river with awesome views of the mountains!


Great day to start with a homemade breakfast!

Hurtigruten Cruise | Norwegian Fjords

Hurtigruten Cruise | Norwegian Fjords

by Wen Norway

Trondheim to Ålesund

We took the Hurtigruten boat from Trondheim to Ålesund. The staff were thoroughly professional and friendly. The scenery was beautiful (if the weather is good) but there was not much to do on board. I would recommend this cruise as a good short experience.

There are several lounges with comfortable seats and nice view.

The cabin (inside cabin with window) is clean and comfortable; there is a bathroom with shower and toilet.

Dinner

We enjoyed great food and quite stunning views of fjords and mountains. The staff are accommodating: if you have special dietary requirements they will go out of their way to help you.

Trondheim, Norway

Trondheim, Norway

by Wen Sweden

Trondheim is Norway’s third largest city. We flew with SAS Airlines from Oslo to Trondheim then took a bus to the hotel. The view was beautiful. Got to the hotel around 9pm. It was still bright outside. Our plan was to stay in Trondheim for one night and taking the scenic Hurtigruten coastal cruise to Ålesund next day morning.

Old Town Bridge

A must do in Trondheim is a visit to the city’s old port area at the mouth of the Nidelv River. There are a lot of colorful old wooden warehouses built on piles above the water. The best view of these stunning buildings is from the bridge.

Restaurant Nidelven

Better come hungry to the Norwegian breakfast table! The title “Best Breakfast in Norway” is well deserved. We chose to stay at Scandic Nidelven Hotel simply because of the breakfast. 🙂

There are a lot of choices. Cheese, salami, smoked salmon, tomato mackerel, home made liver pate, freshly made omelet, Cereals, freshly baked bread & pastries, yogurt, smoothies, juices, pancakes, etc. Don’t forget to try their brunost (brown cheese).

Definitely overfed myself again…

Oslo, Norway

Oslo, Norway

by Wen Norway

Vigeland Sculpture Park

We had exceptionally good weather while in Oslo. We were actually here looking for the ‘Angry Baby’ and found out this place was very interesting. The sculptures were excellent and took you through the human emotions of life from birth through death.

Viking Ship Museum

We took the ferry over to Bygdoy (about 15 minutes). The Viking Museum was easily accessible via the ferry boat on the city waterside, with just a short walk to the museum from the docking point on the other side of the bay.

The Viking Ship Museum contained 3 ancient Viking ships over 1100 yrs old along with multiple artifacts found with them. Only place where you can see a real viking ship from the 900s. The museum was not big, which made it very manageable.

The Norwegian Folkesmuseum

We walked about 5 minutes from the Viking Ship museum to the Norwegian Folk Museum. The museum was an outdoor collection of historic buildings and villages. It showed how Norwegians used to live from medieval times until quite recently.

Really interesting and well presented collection that gave a sense of life in rural Norway through the years. Don’t miss the awesome Stave Church.


The Royal Palace

Beautiful palace and grounds. Changing of the guard takes place at 1:30 every afternoon. There is no gender requirement for being a guard.

The mounted guards lead a parade of marching guards and a full band up the Karl Johans Gate from Akershus Fortress to the palace. Once they reach the front of the palace, they perform a little concert and go through their military routine.

One of the guards passed out. Amazing how they can stay so official looking despite the sun beaming down and dozens of people taking photos of their every move.

The weather was beautiful when we visited. Lots of people were basking in the sun.

National Museum

We wanted to see Edvard Munch ‘The Scream’. If you are a Munch fan, you are in for a treat as a lot of his works are here. The Scream is obviously a hugely famous work of art and it was great to see it up close.