A Date with Mr. Fuji

Make sure you set off on your date on a fine day. Mr. Fuji will not show himself if even it's just a tiny bit cloudy. If you wake up in the morning and the weather is not perfect, cancel your date.

As I got to the station, the first thing I did was to set off into the woods.

The lake and Mr. Fuji could wait. First I wanted to surround myself with autumn.

When I finally got to the lake, Mr. Fuji was nowhere to be seen.

However, after I took a walk along the lake, feeling betrayed though, he finally peeked out from behind his little friend.

And then finally—voilà! My majestic date. Now, I have to mention that there are some discussions about whether my date is a Mr. or a Ms... Please let me continue to believe that it is a he! 

Mr. Fuji is the most romantic date ever. With the boats arranged like this in the foreground...

As you walk along the lake you can see maple leaves everywhere. I went to Kawaguchi-ko o the 14th of November and there couldn't be a better timing. Trees were on fire, the ground as well. However, the best part is that it was "raining" maple leaves right into your open palms (well, okay...you might need to make a bit of an effort there).

Finally Mr. Fuji leads me to the maple corridor (this is the actual name of the place), ... 

... which is absolutely beautiful, despite being a bit on the short side.

After that I took the bus back to the station. I needed to get some privacy with my date. So, instead of riding the cable car up to Mt. Tenjo, I hiked all the way up.

Let me share a secret with you: You can go up to the very top, it's fine (I did). There, use the rest room, soak your feet in the foot bath, eat the yaki dango, a grilled rice dumpling (the top priority), but then go towards the ropeway entrance, where you will see a sign signaling a hiking trail on the left hand side.

Go down the trail and within 15 minutes you will reach an observation deck. The view of Mr. Fuji is so unbelievable there, as well as the atmosphere—it will be only the two of you. Seriously, it was the most serene and beautiful sunset in my life. Hokusai would be so jealous of my secret spot.  

Mr. Fuji makes sure to see you off all the way down to the station. We made a promise to meet this year again!