Emily works that camera as daddy takes his first swim in the ocean for 2007. If you look closely you can spot the snow-capped summit of Mt. Fuji in the distance beyond the haze (look above and to the left of the spot where I jump in the water. In the video the top of the mountain looks a bit like a white cloud). This video was made on April 14th while Emily and I enjoyed a picnic together at the tip of the famous Miho peninsula near Shimizu, Japan. This six kilometer long spit of land juts far into the deep waters of Suruga Bay and is famous for its green pine groves, white sand beaches (black sands too!) and spectacular views of Mt. Fuji (much better on a clear day). The Miho peninsula is designated as one of the top three scenic places in all of Japan as well as one of the top 100 white sand beaches. This peninsula is also regarded as one of the best places to view Mt. Fuji and is also famous as the setting for the legend of Hagoromo (literally “plumage”), which relates the tale of a young fisherman who encounters a goddess bathing in the sea and how he witnesses her celestial dance. A well-visited Shinto shrine stands before the gnarled pine tree which legend tells us was used by the goddess to hang her gown (her plumage).
The famous Japanese artist Hiroshige Ando was a regular visitor to Miho and composed many of his most famous woodblock prints from this location. This artist also left comments in his diary regarding the quality of the seafood he enjoyed while visiting this area. A slightly less-famous Miho attraction is Emily’s favorite ramen noodle shop which Emily picked out for the family one afternoon as we were searching for a place for lunch. The noodles at this restaurant were so good that we have returned many times (often with the extended family in tow) and the restaurant is now referred to by our family as “Emimaruramen” meaning “Emily’s A-OK Ramen Shop”.
