Thirty Seven Views of Mount Fuji Poem by Paul Hartal

From the window of my hotel in Tokyo,
on a translucent day, I could clearly see
the snow covered symmetrical cone of Mount Fuji.
A sacred mountain for the Japapanese,
Mount Fuji is rising to a height of 3,776 meters
on the island of Honshu, which is located
labout 100 kilometers from Tokyo.

A cultural icon of Japan, the mountain
is frequently featured in art and poetry.
Also, every year it is visited by huge crowds of
sightseers, hikers and climbers.
As a matter of fact, Mount Fuji is an active volcano
that last erupted in 1707-1708.
In March 1966 a British Airways Boing 707
crashed near Mount Fuji with the loss of
all 113 passangers and 11crew members.

The famous Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai
(1760-1849) , was fascinated by Mount Fuji,
which he also associated with immortality.
In 1830-32 Hokusai created
a series of woodblock prints
that became known as Thirty Six Views
of Mount Fuji. These images show
the mountain from multiple viewpoints,
through different seasons, framed by
stormy seas with huge waves, but also
with charming scenes and pretty umbrellas.