It was freezing. Below zero and the sun wasn't even above the horizon. I hadn't slept, and it took nearly 8 hours to get to the top. I was grumpy, to say the least. When the shops opened at 4 a.m. (oh, yeah, there are souvenir shops and food stalls on the sacred Fuji-san), I bolted inside for a chance to warm up on a tiny bowl of $10 udon noodles. It was a small price to pay for the opportunity to get feeling in my fingers again. As the sun peaked above the clouds I looked over to my right where other climbers were milling about, excited that we were all partaking in a once-in-a-lifetime zen moment. And then I saw it. A vending machine lit up like a Las Vegas Christmas tree. Five bucks for a cold green tea. Sacred, my ass.
To be fair, being on top of the mountain to see the sun come up was one of the highlights of my life thus far. The pictures don't even do it justice.
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