Day 4 - May 19 - Mt Diamoji

Day 4 Photographs

Elegance - "The elegance of simplicity--beauty to be found in the texture and grain of wood and stone, in visible architectural structure, also in the precise stroke of the inked brush, the perfect judo throw, the rightness of the placing of a single flower (Richie, 2007)."

First set of stairs on Mount Daimonji.

Second set of stairs on Mount Daimonji.

Third set of stairs on Mount Daimonji.

As I hiked up Mount Daimonji, I was surprised by the sets of stairs we encountered. I have never encountered cement stairs while hiking in the United States. While I made my ascent, I tried to determine why I found the stairs so curious. 

The experience was different from hiking in the United States in several ways. The hike was very strenuous and could be considered dangerous especially for the elderly. But the Japanese hikers we encountered ranged in age from very young to very old. In general, Japanese are in harmony with nature as opposed to Americans who try to conquer nature. This was apparent to me in the age range of hikers and number of students that were there on school outings. Apparently, strenuous hiking was an important part of education and people's lives.

Also, in the United States, it seems that many trails are switchback, snaking back and forth over the mountain. On this Japanese mountain, the solution was simple. Straight up in a simple line. The shortest   distance between two points. No handrails. No signage. 

Very simple. Very elegant.

A conscious design decision on the side of a mountain.