Monday Monkeys

Mondays are kind of slower with respect to Dave’s work because the rest of the Navy is still enjoying Sunday. It is a great opportunity for him to get a head start in the week and enjoy lunch with me! I had a pretty serious craving for a chicken Caesar salad and so, I met him on base and we went to the CPO club. The salad hit the spot. While at lunch, I told him my plans of hiking around Zushi to find the monkeys. Seriously. The monkeys. He thought I was being silly (we have a running joke of the loud noises we hear in the forest by our house being howler monkeys) and told me I had a better chance of seeing a snake. From there we discussed the Japanese Viper. One was recently seen in the campground near our house. I looked it up online, it is a brown venomous snake with diamond markings. He also asked me if I knew what to dial for an emergency on and off base. Yes, love. Off base – 119. On base – 911. 

We finished our lunch and I headed back home. I parked the car by the train station and rode the train one stop to Zushi. From there, I walked about 1.5 miles to the unmarked trail head. A neighbor told me about the trail and I was following her verbal guidance. Turn right after the shrine / temple and keep going up. Once you get to Hiroyama Park, you will see the monkeys & Mt. Fuji, on a clear day. 

 

From here it was one flight of stairs after another. 

Once I made it to the top, I was treated to a nice view of Zushi Beach. 

By this point, I was a little warm and ready for a beverage. No worries. In Japan a vending machine (or four) is always close by! 

Walking around Hiroyama Park, I found peacocks, bunnies, guinea pigs, ducks and chickens. 

After a quick shot of the view, I saw the monkeys. 

Honestly, the monkeys were a little weird. Kind of made me a little sad. They seemed so lethargic. They had a large area in which they were contained. Although, it had no vegetation. 

I walked down to enjoy the view from a different angle and when I came back to the monkeys, they were running around and playing. That made me feel a little better. 

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I also climbed the observation tower. 

This map helped a lot. The clouds prevented me from getting a good Mt. Fuji sighting. However, if you look beyond the island with the tower, you can kind of make out a mountain, maybe? 

I found this map, showing me the way to Ōsaki Park – 15 minute walk. I mean I’m here, might as well. 

The Gardens walking there were lovely. Just as impressive was the beautifully manicured neighborhood with gigantic houses! 

Ōsaki Park didn’t disappoint. Here I think I actually could see Mt. Fuji. 

I’m not really sure what I’m looking at in this picture. I see the little peak sticking out above the island tower. However, I also see a peak floating half way up the picture. Is that Mt. Fuji? Just because I have climbed it, doesn’t mean I know what it looks like!! More research is required, on a clear day. 

In the park was also a rabbit shrine and cool walkway. 

The view from the other direction highlighted Zushi Beach. 

The road on the left of this picture is where we run. The buildings along the beach are where we had dinner Sunday night! 

My return trip took me back through the fancy neighborhood, past a shrine and down all the stairs. This time I also saw a small waterfall. 

My favorite part of the hike was finding / taking this picture. The sunlight shining through the clouds lighting the peace sign was beautiful. 

This move has been challenging at times and I find myself struggling with peace. Finding this huge peace sign at the top of the overlook really spoke to me. It served as a reminder to find peace in this journey and always. Peace, friends!