Japan Exodus - Day 17: Happy I Don't Get Sea Sick

Do you know the satisfaction of which I speak? It is not something that you can trade, so neither is it something you can buy or be bargained with. It is the sweet satisfaction of a well deserved, well completed sleep.

No one to wake you up before you need to, no reason. No alarms, noisy radios, no need to move the car. No garbage trucks or birds, and no sneaking child inconspicuously claiming to verify the authenticity of your sleepy state of relaxation under the guise of innocent curiosity. That last comment is not so much a jab at younger children and siblings, as it is a take on commercial attendants.

And so without interruption, I slept. I threw off my watch at some point in the night, up above the small holding section above my bed cot, so I do not know what time is when I awoke. Enough time, I suppose, to gather my bearings in the real world for a few moments and (re)collect the hazy images that were recent dreams, before falling once again into a place where the Gregorian calendar on the wall or ticking clock somewhere above my head held no authority.

There are really so few things that can instantly bring up the feeling of immediate comfort. Comfy, snug, warm, these are all excellent words to indicate my level of exquisite comfort at the moment. And still I have to remind myself that if it were not all those times I slept outside on a a park bench, or under a bus stop, in an emergency room plastic chair sans the emergency, behind some country shrubbery, behind a billboard or on a white sand beach in the middle of nowhere, that this feeling would not feel as good as it does.  

I don't know how the coordinators expect people to be fed on this ship, the shop always seems closed. My previous ferry boat experience reminded me that snacks and water were a must even for short cruises. I extrapolated and adjusted for twenty four hours worth of snacks and water, and was so happy that I did so. A whole day on banana chips, raisins, bread and cheese is not easy, but totally doable.

When I was board of staying in bed, I moved to another part of the ship. There were not too many places to hide. Besides your room, you could spend time in the lounge, but the TV proved too distracting. There was the outside observation deck that you could catch some fresh air and salty mist on, although no chairs ensure that no one stood outside for too long. You could migrate to a small area where the vending machines offered up some drinks, chips, soup and what not. Thats there I stayed a few times. Thats where this picture is from. 

The long twenty-four hour ride was interrupted five times by small island stops to pick up and drop off passengers. There are more islands between Kagoshima and Okinawa, but we made only five stops. I wish I could have gotten off and explored for a day, however these ferry boats don't run every day. I don't know what I would do for four days on a small island, maybe I would love it. 

The ferry ship approaching land. Already the beaches and lush green flora make me want to jump into the ocean as soon as anchor hits!

One of the more interesting things, I found, to do in the twenty minutes the ferry docked at a port, is to get up to the top observation level and take in the entire scape of giant steel cargo containers being loaded and unloaded in meticulous fashion. There were three or four forklift operators who didn't require any help from any conductor to move in sync with each other moving on and off the ship, lifting and dropping off these green square containers in order, stacking them, and driving backwards down the ramp before swinging around back into position to grab the next crate. The whole orchestration happened beautifully, as if their movements played to music, like ballerinas.  

Holy wow, the store opened just in time. Not the best meal I've had in Japan, but considering the circumstances and limited choice, this bento box tasted five stars. My chips and snacks were long gone at lunch, and I was HUNGRY. I was dreaming about what kind of food we might find out on the island. From what I could expect from my time in Hawai'i and the Galapagos, either the food there will be chain restaurants, or nothing spectacular. Growing vegetation and raising livestock for consumption is difficult on islands, I knew this. Yet, Okinawa is a big island and populated for centuries, maybe they've figured something out.... 

Yay! I've arrived (safely)! If you don't know where Okinawa Japan is, indeed how small the island are in comparison, or even how far away from main island Japan I currently am, I hope this map will help orient your image.

And so now I must say good bye. I want to explore the island immediately although the sky is dark and I am very tired. I don't know the lay of the land yet, so that is a really bad idea. Although, I did try it in Malaysia...and then dogs chased me down the freeway. Ok, I have a campsite, I'm happy, four days to get lost on this island and find my private beach.

White sand love,

-A