Golden week flew by faster than I could say "休み!"
Saturday: Mori Tower (Roppongi Hills), Dinner
Sunday: Mitake Hike (pics below)
Monday: Shinrinkoen (Cycling)
Tuesday: Akihabara, Harajuku, Ikebukuro
Sunday and Monday wore us out so decided to sleep in late on Tuesday and do *some* work before going downtown in the evening.
Mitake Hike (4 May)
"Mount Mitake (Mitakesan) is one of the many highlights of the Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park, which covers more than 1250 square kilometers of forested mountains, hills, gorges and some rural towns in the prefectures of Yamanashi, Saitama, Nagano and Tokyo.
Besides a popular shrine, Mount Mitake offers various walking and hiking opportunities in virtually unspoiled nature. Located in the Okutama region, the westernmost part of Tokyo, the mountain can be reached in less than two hours from central Tokyo, and is accordingly popular among people looking for a break from the city. "
Had planned to go to Meiji Shrine but it was hard to pass on a chance to finally get out of the city (but not exactly escape the crowd) for some fresh, mountain air! With other Singaporeans and their friends.
Some parts got quite steep and slippery but children and old folks thronged the place anyway too with their walking sticks and backpacks - so it shouldn't have been too much of a problem for us young people (right?).

About 2 hours' journey from Asakadai.



Cable car - a short but really steep ride that looked more like a rollercoaster ride

More like a densha than cable car

Climb, climb


20 minutes of steep downhill steps (and later back uphill) to reach this small waterfall

The climb back





Group pic before the hike - most of the smiles would have been replaced by tired faces by the end of it all
