An Afternoon Hike at Mt. Takao

We had a wonderful afternoon hike at Mt. Takao two weekends ago.

Cherry blossoms were beautiful at the Cable Car Station.

The Cable Car is slanted to accommodate the steep slope.

A path leading to the top.

There were signs like this one - warning climbers not to feed monkies.

Green leaves of trees were beautiful.

Wonderful views were seen from the trail to the top.

The main Buddhist temple of the mountain.Yakuo-In.

A Shinto shrine resides in this temple.

The top of the mountain.

The view at the top.

A beautiful cherry blossom by a tea house.

Walking in the mountain was wonderful.

 A typical of the view of the trail.

There was a suspension bridge on the way back to the cable car station.

It is not very far from Tokyo - I highly recommend to visit it.

Hanoi Scenic and Traffic Run

Last Friday morning, I had a long run in Hanoi, Vietnam.  The weather was overcast and warm.

Thu Le Lake of the park right by my hotel.

A Children's zoo in the park.

An elephant at the zoo.

Badminton seemed to be a popular sport.

I learned that 30 April is a celebration day in Vietnam - Fall of Saigon.

The Mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh - there were many people there although early in the morning.

A government office by the mausoleum.

Nobody seemed to care for once a great leader of Soviet Union.

Street Gallery?

Bay Mau Lake.

There were so many motorbikes.

I had to be very careful try not to get hit by motorbikes.

Hong Kong Jungle Run

Last Wednesday morning, I went for a run in Hong Kong. I tried to find the way to Aberdeen, but got lost on the way.

I made it up to Bowen Road OK.

This is a view of the skyscrapers from Bowen Road.

Wanchai Gap is a very steep hill.

Going up these steps was my mistake.

It turned out to be a jungle up there.

Steps were covered with wild plants.

I ended up going down in rain drain gutters.

Finally came back down to the road - looking up towards where I had been.

Found Black's Link - a paved trail towards Aberdeen.

Even on this path, I saw some unpleasant warning signs.

A view of tall buildings and HK Football Club from Black's Link.

I could get to the point where I could see Aberdeen - but ran out of time to get there.

Wish I had more time to run, but at least it was a very good hill workout.

A Very Pleasant Run in Kashihara

On the last day in Nara last week, I had a very nice run in Kashihara.

Beautiful sunrise seen from my hotel window.

Close from my hotel was Mausoleum of Kogen Tenno - the Eighth Emperor of Japan.

There were still some cherry blossoms left.

Little Jizo statues standing by a road.

Old Fujiwara Kyo ruins.

Excavation was on-going there.

Ofusa Kannon Temple - famous for its rose garden.

Mausoleum of Jimmu Tenno - First Emperor of Japan.

Kashihara Jingu Shrine.

A beautiful lake by the shrine.

Nara is a beautiful and peaceful place.  I am so glad I could spend some time there.