A trip to wooded hills ! Another Mountain Escape -Mount Takao explored!
Another magical pocket of Japan !
Located West of Tokyo, for more than 1200 years Japan had
people paying respect to Mount Takao San and to the Mountain Gods ! Mount Takao is one of the sacred mountain of Japan !
Dragged my lazy ass out of the bed early morning at around
7am and reached Shinjuku at around 8.30 am took Kieo line which took me straight
to takaosanguchi station in just 45 minutes..
In less than 45 minutes iam out of Tokyo into a National Reserve Park !Wow!
Amazing Transformation
At the base of the Mountain there are many restaurants where i grabbed my breakfast!
Enjoyed the Mountain Dance Performance at the Base of the Mountain.
You have a choice to hike 599m or take a cable car upto 400m
and then hike the rest ,
I enjoyed Hiking while going up while coming down i took a cable car from 400m.
The wooded mountain has Temples , waterfall ,nature park ,
Monkey Park
Bona-Fide Traffic Jam , half of Tokyo must have been hanging on the Mountain including me ! I love Mountains ! The Mountain Offers 6 trials , but the Trail 1 is the most fun way.
Trial 1 has lots of
fun things to see along the way- monkey zoo, octopus tree and
Yakuoin Yukiji Temple
Monkey Park !
Tako Sugi -This tree is 450 years old and there is a History behind the tree. It is believed that when woodsman tried to cut this tree , the tree twisted its roots like an octopus and saved itself , hence its worshiped.
On the way you can stop to admire the High Def Nature !
On the way there are temples and spooky faces of mountain Gods ..these Mountain Gods have been worshiped by the Japanese for more than 1200 Years ! Yes 1200 Years !
Most of the Japanese must be familiar with this spooky face with a long nose and crow face , they are called as Tengu the Mountain god of luck and fortune ! They are one of the Mountain Gods worshiped by the Japanese !
Tengu is supposed to have mastered the art of Mountain Worship and today mountain worship is symbolized by the Image of Tengu !
Well this face is familiar to me as well , i see a spooky face like this every day in my office with a HD Contact lens and a long nose and smoky lips ,is it Tengu ? let me Google? can we call him Tengu ? i got a new name "Tengu " ........nervous breakdown ..dont mess up with him ..i take a Bow !
Temple Premises
Admiring the Majestic Architecture! There is the History !
The Temple was ordered by emperor Shomu in 744 ..1200 years ago ! And Pilgrims have been coming here from 1200 years ! The temple have been renovated many times .
The temple is called as Yakuoin Temple
Rays of Sunshine always gives me a pleasant feeling !
The Dog Hike ! Yes they receive a lot of Love and Kindness on the way ! It is common in Tokyo.
Sweets called as Dango, these are rice cakes with sweet brushed on it ! Its Yummy !
Souvenir Shops on the way !
At 500 m ..Another 100 m more to Go!
Reached 599 M. Celebrate the Summit with an Ice-Cream.
Will you be my Friend Please ! Look who is greeting you on top !
Blessed with the Beauty of Nature
Appreciating the Other Side of Tokyo ! Wait iam not trying to flaunt my hair lolz....Yes iam turned around to see what is visible !
And then ....Here you go ! A million dollar shot ! Thats Tokyo !
The Vast Tokyo , the overcrowded Tokyo....the beautiful Tokyo from the Other Side !
Thats Mount Fuji -not clearly seen due to weather !
"Why do you think i dragged my lazy ass in the Morning for a Good Hike , you got to click my Pictures as well !"
Dog Hikes are not only common , even Dog Photography is very common in Tokyo.
On the way back !
Grass is always greener on the other side of Fence !
Welcome to Grass Land!
Japanese People are fashionable and hiking is no different, i shot it secretly lolz...
Whenever i visit a Mountain i vow that i will never come back and hang in there on the Mountain!
But by the end of the Day i see myself rubbing shoulders with many in the JR Yamanote Line , yes the same Yamanote Line that travels in a circle from Station to Station.. thankfully tomorrow is Off !
Back home relaxing and writing !
Hope you enjoyed Mount Takao San and will start to worship Tengu for better luck and fortune!
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