Enforced stops can be frustrating, but they always have an upside. At least we get to sample a little of of the local culture. Hishino is a modest sized town with fishing harbour, on Tanega Shima, one of the Nansei Islands just off the south-western tip of Japan.
Our first priority is to change some US dollars into Yen. Not as easy as you might think when all the signs on the buildings are in Japanese. We go into three places that look as though they may be banks, lured by familiar Automated Teller Machines in the entrances. One may have been a post office, while another could quite possibly have been some kind of social security office. Eventually we find ourselves in a bank with a foreign exchange desk.
Nobody speaks English, and whilst we manage to conclude the transaction without snags, it becomes a bit more difficult to make small talk, especially when it comes to trying to convince people we're not here for the World Cup. I finish up by drawing a small boat with a crude representation of the globe encircled by an arrow.
That done, we seek out a small restaurant, have a meal, and go and do some essential shopping. Somehow on our short abortive run yesterday out at the top of Tanega Shima, our all-important toilet bucket jumped off the back of the boat. And we need to try and cure some of the leaks.
On our way back to the harbour, we pass Jionji Temple, the oldest temple in the Nansei Islands. In 1552, Francisco Xavier, the first Christian missionary to Japan came to Tanega Shima while on his way to China. Over a hundred Portuguese and other traders spent six months here, establishing trading contacts. Guns, powder, camphor, and even scissors came into Japan through here.
Hishino is not what you might call a happening place on a Wednesday night. After Alan's daily call to weatherman Bertie, we finish up the night - just the three of us - in a karaoke bar. The resulting excruciating sounds make listening to fingernails down a blackboard pleasant by comparison. The lyrics of some of the songs are a bit dodgy, as well. I'll give an autographed postcard of Spirit of Cardiff to the first person to guess in which song we unexpectedly found Miss Miller.
The news from Bertie is not encouraging. He says this depression will be with us for another 72 hours. We're not going to risk trying to run all the way to Choshi. Instead, we're making a short dash north through mountainous seas to Miyazaki, on the mainland.
We get two advantages out of this. First of all it leaves us better lined up for a run to Choshi when the weather does improve, and second, Alan and Steve (so hopefully me too) will be welcomed here with open arms. Miyazaki is twinned with Portsmouth, and Alan and Steve are official envoys of the city - a special honour bestowed on them after one of their previous exploits.
Clive Tully
Copyright Clive Tully ©2002
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