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People climbing Mount Fuji are served matcha tea in a special tea room after changing into kimonos, in this photo provided by Yuki Hatakeyama. On the right is Soyu Mori's apprentice.

A tea ceremony was held near the summit of Mount Fuji on Sept. 7, in a special tea room set up at the eighth station of the Yoshida trail, before the summer mountain climbing season ends on Sept. 10.

Though such tea ceremonies have been held in the past at Sengen shrine's inner shrine at the summit of Mount Fuji, it was the first time the event had been held in a portable tea room at the Eboshiiwa shrine on the Yamanashi Prefecture side of Japan's highest peak.

The cubic tea room measures 1.8 meters long on each side, and was made by weaving twisted yarn using traditional Gunnai textile techniques from the prefectural city of Fujiyoshida, and placing it over a stainless-steel frame.

Soyu Mori, a 45-year-old master of the Urasenke tea school, used an electric heater to boil snowmelt water that had seeped out from between rocks, and poured the tea into traditional Nara Prefecture Akahada ware, serving it in an elegant manner.

About 50 climbers attended despite the occasional rain. A 47-year-old woman from Tokyo who runs a restaurant said, "I thought it would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so I rushed here. The space was more beautiful than I had imagined, and I was surprised by the authenticity of the tea ceremony." A 22-year-old male university student from France commented with a smile, "The tea ceremony seemed difficult, but it was my first experience and I had a lot of fun."

Architect Shinichiro Hashiguchi, 49, who designed the tea ceremony room and planned the event, said, "I thought of holding a tea party to express my gratitude for the blessing of Mount Fuji. I was able to hear stories from people involved in Gunnai textiles, and I learned a lot. I would like to continue (holding such events)."

(Japanese original by Tatsuo Nanai, Contributing Writer)

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50 climbers attend Japanese tea ceremony in portable tea room on Mt. Fuji - The Mainichi - The Mainichi