We started our trip in Houston so we had a non-stop flight
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Japan is famous for its hi-tech toilets
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This toilet seat needs electrical power and its own water line
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Here's the control panel
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We took a bullet train to Odawara Station: 162 miles per hour!
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Taking a taxi to the Yoshidaguchi Fifth Station
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Mick at the Fifth Station
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The trail upwards
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Trying to encourage gay climbers?
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Imagine, climbing Fuji 7 months pregnant
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That yellow mark shows the trail
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Each station hut has its own brand
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The coke on the mountain was expensive, but cheaper than the minibar in our hotel
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Mick is well-equipped for the climb
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Another group of hikers carries even more stuff than we did
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Each brand was ¥200 (about $1.70)
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Dee with Fujisan behind her
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Mick has bad knees, so he needed two climbing sticks
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Mick and Dee
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Nearing the top just before sunrise
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Japanese climbers hurry to make it to the top before the sun peeks over the clouds
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The torii at the summit, lit by the pre-dawn glow about 20 minutes before sunrise
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Mick and Dee watch the sun rise just north of the summit camp
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Looking down on the clouds around the mountain
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The sun peeks over the clouds at 4:45am
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Check out the GPS altitude: 12,196 feet
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The sun rises higher
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The eastern summit has an extensive souvenir shop
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Looking across the volcano crater to the west rim (height 12,388 feet)
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The trail down is 5 miles of this steep, loose lava gravel
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Of course, while we trudged down slowly, these runners passed us wearing only light clothes and running shoes
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And most of them had water bottles
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Here's the crowd of enthusiastic people getting ready to make their own ascent, with the summit hidden in clouds
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Mick ritually purifies himself before visiting the Meiji Shrine in Shibuya
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These torii are the largest in Japan, and are made from 1,500 year old timbers harvested in Taiwan
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Mick and Dee in the Meiji Shrine
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Don't know what they're selling, but these girls in Shinjuku wear traditional kimono
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Beware of the Luffy Pirates (form a t-shirt in Harajuku)
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The front of a costume store on Takeshita Street in Harajuku
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You know you've been in country too long when McDonald's looks appealing
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Osada Steve's supplies on th floor at Studio Six
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Osada Steve and Nami-chan
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Osada Steve
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Rope magic during a newaza-bondage
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Osada Steve as cello player
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Fast hands tying a takate-kote
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Attention to detail...
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...is the mark of a professional
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Intense concentration
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End of a session
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This asymmetrical pattern is a teppo-shibari
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The master at work
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