It is a rainy day at first. Tiny little drops hit my face like a thousand cold needles. I head south again. There is not much land left. I have to get to Nichinan where....you guessed right, a friend offered me a roof over my head. Muqing is her name and her town is 115km away. I start making circles with my legs only after 11am. Terribly late. That whole thing last night was really not worth it. I have basically 5hrs before sun-down, so I should average a constant speed of around 30km per hour with stops. Really fast. Unsustainably fast (probably not a real word). I bolt through the streets of Kyushu. This whole island feels like a victory lap to me. My spirit is jubilant and my legs are strong.
Into the Warm South
The air is strangely tepid here. The palms look all wet from the moisture present in today's air. I push on hard. Incredibly, I keep a high speed for hours. It's because of the anticipation. It's so close.....I can feel it!
Throughout the day, I take pictures of some of the simple things I have seen over and over. Like the convenience stores: Lawson, 7-Eleven, Family Mart, Daily Yamagazi, Seico Mart, Mini Stop and I even see a new one called Every One. How many combinis did I see while here! So much junk eaten......not a single pound put on. In my last days, I will continue taking pictures of the things that filled my days. As a memory for myself more than anything....nothing exciting really.
The Treasure Shop
I am late....as usual. The sun in the sky and I fight our usual battle to see who can get to his destination first. I push and push constantly, but between red lights, drink stops, a 5min lunch and peeing breaks, I fall more and more behind schedule. Two hours left....65kms to go?! Impossible, I think to myself. Regardless, I keep going.
Then, out of nowhere.....I see a home full of strange junk sitting outside. A collector of weird items, I think....imagining some odd old man. My time is short, but I have been looking for one of these for several islands now.........I stop.
A very old couple eventually sees me perusing through the maze of old and strange objects. The woman is missing half of her teeth, while the man is hunched over almost a 90-degree angle. I am looking for masks......but she tells me they have none. Ah! That would have been perfect to give to my brother. It would have been just like going into the world of Zelda and grabbing one of those magical items. Sorry for the geekyness....it stops now. Back to the story.
Anyways, eventually I drop about 50 bucks for some cool stuff. Forget souvenirs....this is what you want to get on your adventure............. relics. Ancient artifacts only a traveler from far away lands would desire. Satisfied, I leave. The only reason why I don't completely plunder the place is because I have zero space for this stuff. I save the location on my map in case I find some time once I go to the airport.
I push on. I am super late. No more stopping. As I pedal..........I look at all that surrounds me. To my right........a chain of mountains follows me like a wild snake, dangerous, but too afraid to strike. Yama (mountain).....I laugh, don't try. To my left....the sea, companion of some of the most beautiful moments...it's violent waves crash unto the shores of Kyushu, excited just like me. Above me....ominous dark clouds churn.........Amē (rain)......holds its waters back for me as Kazē (wind) rests its powerful gusts....almost to let me pass, in sign of respect. Under me....one more hard surface to traverse, one more street man has forged in his powerful machines....unto mother Earth, beautiful and mighty, as always. Behind me.....all of the places, people, challenges and memories I have made. I leave them all behind like my past days, like my younger moments, and the life I will never have again. And in front of me............in front of me...the promise of victory, over all that stood in my way.
I push on hard. I am the lone wolf in the night, the tiger in the thick jungle, the lion under the African sun....once again.
Stop! Damn You! Stop!
I pass the last major city remaining on the map. Miyazaki. I rush through, not stopping. It's hopeless now. I will travel in the darkness of night, probably in forest areas. Hmm...I stop and hesitate. I look up. I get back on my bike and continue anyways. I have seen it all. It will be alright....whatever the future holds.
Then....(I laugh as I am writing this from my hotel room)....just as the city ends and I enter the outer roads....I drop my bike down a large curb unto the road, pushing my right pedal hard to stay in balance......and CLANK......my pedals go loose. I look down.....my chain is on the ground. The main component of my bike...what makes all the cogs and parts move lies on the ground fully stretched like some dead worm.
I stop. Get off. ......No cursing. No getting mad either. I get off and lean against the rail of the highway I find myself on. I don't even look at my bike at this point. My mind goes blank......I am relaxing. Not a thought is in my mind. I am resting. First time all day. It feels good. The breeze caresses my messy hair for the first time as I take off my helmet and place it on my bike. The universe's many mechanisms clank and turn away, and my destiny changes. I am not going to Nichinan tonight. I will go back to Miyazaki, with a bike that doesn't pedal. And it's ok. I will get to Sata regardless.
Japanese Kindness
I walk my jitensha on the streets I just traversed a bit earlier, in the opposite direction of my final destination. I see an old man walking. I stop him and ask him where a bike shop is as I show him my broken chain. He tells me to follow him to his home. He then tells me to put my bike in his car. He then brings me all the way to a bike shop and translates to the owner my problem. The shop keeper tries and tries again and again to fix it. No go. Tries another chain. Too short. Tries another, tinkers with it over and over and eventually he fixes my bike! Fantastic! And on the first try! The kind old man speaks good English and tells me his story. We then go together to my favorite type of restaurant ....a sushi train joint.
We eat and eat. I tell him I am paying since he helped me out so much. He disagrees. We keep eating. I laugh with the 75 year old. He tells me he is glad to have met me. Glad? I'm the one that is glad! He's the one that fixed my whole situation!
Eventually we leave but the kind man insists and manages to get the waitress to take his money instead of mine. Damn it! That's what I get for not speaking any Japanese!
He even keeps asking me if I really want to go to the hotel...I am guessing he really means I can stay at his house. But his offer is never explicit enough, and I just can't muster up enough cowardly shame to ask him for a place to rest tonight. Saddened he even brings me to the hotel. What was I supposed to do?! I feel terrible but I can't ask him one more favor! We say our goodbyes but not before he gives me his card. What a kind old man. I decided to help Japan after the disaster....but in the end, I feel like Japan ended up helping me more than I ever helped it. What an idiot!
I enter my hotel room and here I am. I bathe, blog and just chill. Sigh.....but oh well.
Plus! Muahahaha! I look at the site's map and see how close I am to the southern-most point of mainland Japan. 2 days before it all ends.
77km
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