First light over Fuji-san

The mighty, the sacred, the eternally mysterious - central to the identity of Japan and her people.

For me, a pilgrimage of sorts; to finally stand before this most beautiful of natural wonders, a deeply moving 24 hours in my life. Fuji-san leaves one breathless and bewildered. Parting earth and sky with remarkable symmetry, its beauty beyond description in text or letter, no poem powerful enough to create the emotion in one's heart and mind upon seeing for the first time, in person and close at hand.

I arose the second morning at 5am to witness first light falling on the sleeping giant, and the sunrise upon Lake Kawaguchiko before me.

Mount Fuji is an active stratovolcano and the tallest mountain in Japan, standing at 3,776 meters (12,380 feet).