Mount Tsukuba (Sakuragawa, Ibaraki)

 mountain, interesting place, draw only border

Mount Tsukuba (筑波山 Tsukuba-san) is an 877 m (2,877 ft) mountain located near Tsukuba, Japan. It is one of the most famous mountains in Japan, particularly well known for its double peaks, Nyotai-san 877 m (2,877 ft) and Nantai-san 871 m (2,858 ft). Many people climb the so-called "purple mountain" every year for the panoramic view of the Kantō plain from the summit. On clear days the Tōkyō skyline, Lake Kasumigaura and even Mount Fuji are visible from the mountain top. Most mountains in Japan are volcanic, but Mount Tsukuba is composed of non-volcanic rocks such as granite and gabbro. The area surrounding the mountain is known to produce beautiful granite, and many rock quarries still mine it today.

As legend has it, thousands of years ago, a deity descended from the heavens and asked two mountains for a place to spend the night. With its great summit and almost perfect cone, Mt. Fuji refused, believing with pride and arrogance, that it does not need the deity's blessings. Mt. Tsukuba, on the other hand, humbly welcomed the honored guest, even offering food and water. Today, Mt. Fuji is a cold, lonely, and barren mountain, while Mt. Tsukuba bursts with vegetation, and is filled with colors as the seasons change.
Ancient chronicles say that the sacred progenitors of the Japanese race are enshrined here, the male divinity, Izanagi-no-Mikoto, at Mt. Nyotai, and the female divinity, Izanami-no-Mikoto, at Mt. Nantai. Legends say that the two deities wed and gave birth to other deities, and even to Japan herself.