By Chase Bayless ’15
THE ROUNDUP

When Ms. Jessica Mason isn’t teaching math, she can be found traveling the world.

She has been overseas on many trips throughout her life.

From visiting Paris and Scotland as a student, to recently spending two months backpacking alone throughout the unfamiliar territories of Europe, she has seen many foreign places.

She also spent a month in Japan, starting and ending her journey in Tokyo.

“I did big cities and I did little cities,” Ms. Mason said.

In some places smaller cities like Beppu, she said there were some instances where no one spoke English and she had to use her broken Japanese to figure out how to navigate the city.

On her second and most recent trip to Japan she went during the summer and hiked Mount Fuji.

She set out at night to get to the summit in time for sunrise with a few other tourists she did not know.

Ms. Mason said she used a Mt. Fuji hiking stick, which hikers can get at the start of the trail.

She said throughout the hike there are 10 stations where they brand a stamp into your stick marking the station and elevation.

When you arrive at the last station you get a stamp proving you have reached the summit of Mt. Fuji.

She said the hiking stick was a cool way to remember the trip.

Ms. Mason said New Zealand, Egypt and Greece are some of the other places in the world that she wants to visit, but she also would love to bring a friend or family member to show them Japan.