Oshino Hakkai, the small countryside

The day before, Louis, Nico’s colleague, had to leave. We had a wonderful evening at the Montenashya three stars restaurant.

How could I explain you that in this restaurant… Well, nothing is translated in English, so we are lucky that some dishes are in pictures and for the rest, we guess… The price too.

It must be said that here, people speak so to speak no English at all. We manage to make ourselves understood with gestures, sometimes one way of expressing ourselves is not the other and there is a world of difference between our 2 cultures. That’s the beauty of it. Maybe that’s also why we discover good things to eat. Finally, it is clear that everything is ultra fresh!

The morning arrives and the sun too. And the view of the sacred mountain. Nico goes to work and I get ready to leave. I admit that I have a vague idea of what I will do but everything will depend on the first bus that comes.

On the point of departure, my companion contacts me to know if I am still at the hotel. By chance, yes!
He explains me that the park is closed, nobody warned him about a forced day off.
So, the itinerary is all set, direction Kitaguchi Hongu Sengen Shrine to make him discover this place of ancestral magic.

Under the sun of this day, this place does not give the same impression at all.

I explain to him the magic of the place, the torii and everything related to Mount Fuji.

On our way back, a couple of brides and grooms in traditional dresses cross the alley of stone lanterns.

From there, we return to Fujisan station to take a bus to Oshino Hakkai, a small picturesque village with several lakes in a dreamy countryside crossed by rivers with the mountain in the background.

It was a stressful moment when we arrived, there were a lot of tourists and it was very noisy. We took refuge in a museum which is revealed as a park with a small lake full of fish and in each house with thatched roofs are artefacts of sewing, paintings, coins or banknotes of the old Japanese eras. Beyond that, the typical houses are very well maintained.

Once the tour is done, we find a descent on the bank. We go along the river until we find ourselves in the countryside and we can’t pass anymore.

We walk in the surroundings and we discover a shinto temple from where music resounds. Soothing traditional songs, it is the hour of the prayers.

It is time to return, the last buses are going to show up. We walk until the ninja village, a tourist attraction for children and from there, we wait for the bus… In edge of road in a turning, what a risky idea!