Taketomi-Jima Part One

Our second day in Ishigaki-Jima was rainy and a little chilly. We had planned to take the ferry to Taketomi-Jima but were a little uncertain. The Weather forecast showed the next 2 days would be as bad if not worse so we went for it.








I had imagined another rust bucket trip like before. We walked to the terminal and waited
for our boat. Kaji napped. Our boat arrived.

The boat wasn't new and there was a little rust here and there but there were some powerful engines driving water jets because of the shallow areas.

We started off pretty fast even though we were not past the breakwater yet. I could see spray coming up the window and we were sitting pretty far back.






Soon there was so much spray I couldn't see outside any more! I estimate we were doing about
40 knots or so and I presume we were planning.

There were lots of interesting folks on the boat, mostly Japanese. At least they were Asian looking.
Eriko pointed this couple out to me and using her as cover I snapped a picture of them.

After the short but fast ride we found it was raining pretty good and decided on the glass bottom boat ride. I remember my parents taking me on such a ride when I was quite young and I still am impressed by the memory. This ride was too short, apparently the tide was falling and we would have been stuck on the reef for hours had we stayed.

Here are some photos. See if you can spot 'Nemo'.

It had stopped raining when we returned to the island so we got a map and began to explore.

                                                                                                  

Leaving Irabu-jima Arrive at Ishigaki-Jima

The next day after the 'Peace' march we had to get up at 5am to get ready to drive across the island and catch the 7am ferry back to Miyako-Jima and the airport for a 10am flight. We had set up the laptop with Skype so Eriko's dad could call us since the guest house had no alarm clock. Sometime about 2am or so a friend of ours saw we had Skype on so he called us. We awoke thinking it was time to get up. We were never able to really sleep again what with the call and and the mosquitos.


Luckily we left in plenty of time because we ended up on a road that ran the perimeter of the island rather than across as we needed. Even in my sleepy state I sensed a wrong direction. I told Eriko we should turn right as soon as possible. After we had gone a short distance she said "why is it I should believe you instead of the directions we were given and the GPS?" I had no answer to that but just a moment later she flagged down a small truck heading the other way. The man said yes this is a good route to the ferry, in 1.8 km there will be a house, turn left there and you will be on the highway. This saved us missing the ferry.


We took the same rust bucket back to Miyako-Jima. This time it was a calm trip. When we got to the other side there was a fish market in progress on the dock.

This is the best Tuna for sushi. It is called maguro and sliced up looks like rich steak. Each fish cost $3.00

There was also Dorado and lots of small fish I didn't recognize.




We were tired and hungry and looked around for a breakfast place. There was one we liked that had a good cheap breakfast that we had seen when we were here before. When we got there they didn't serve breakfast until 9:30am. Very odd!

We found this place, called the Joyful Cafe.
You could wash your hands as you walked in or 
were waiting for a table. Interesting idea.










This was our breakfast before heading to the
Airport.

Japanese style for Eriko and Western for me. Coffee was from a machine that ground and served with or without sugar,cream. Or could be espresso, cappuchino, green tea etc.
























We were all beat and Emma fell asleep on the plane ride but it was only 25 minutes long. We had to fly because the ferry had been discontinued because of bankruptcy.

Once we got to our guest house Eriko and the kids took a nap. I should have too but I'm often tired but not particularly sleepy. I walked around our neighbourhood and took some photos.

We were near a marina and I checked it out. 
It was really a working place not so much a marina
in our sense. 
The ramp is 100's of yards long and people pull 
the boats out with small SUVs and a long rope.

Typical island fishing boat.




















Walking along I saw some senior citizens playing a kind of put-put golf. They were using a club with a large sickle shaped head and hitting a large coloured plastic ball toward flags on poles.










Since this was a working boat area there were
shops that catered to working boats. 
There were welders, engine rebuilders, 
plumbing supplies and best of all the greatest hardware store I've ever seen. There were every type of fitting, gasket, screw in every size imaginable.

When I returned to the guest house everyone was still tired and a little cranky, which was to be expected.
We decided to eat out and began a walk towards the 'eating' district. Eriko flagged down on a older man-she says older guys always know the best food at the cheapest prices. He walked us to this place. We were to find all the people on Ishigaki-jima to be very friendly.

Here is are tired family having just sat down at the restaurant.

The wait person was pretty trendy. He turned out to be the barman. The waitress was older, tired too and not very friendly.

After this we walked a little bit but were too tired still so we made it back to the guest house which wasn't so comfortable and the room was really tiny but we all went to sleep. So much for our first day.

Irabu-Jima, the bridge and the fake airport

Irabu is not all roses and turquise water. There are a lot of run down houses with cars on blocks. Reminds me of rural Vermont.

This is a storage shed for sugar cane, the number one crop on the islands.

The folks at the guest house were getting excited because there was going to be a 'Peace' demonstration. It turns out this little island has a functioning airport with a long runway for 747's. It is only used for practice by all the Japanese airlines. I had been wondering why we didn't fly out of here rather than take the ferry back to Miyako-Jima since I saw lots of passenger jets. Now I know.

So it seems the US government along with the Japanese one have been thinking of moving the controversial base from Okinawa to here. It would totally destroy this peaceful place. That and the Bridge that is going to be done in 2012. Here is the approach to the airport, the landing lights stretch into the beautiful water.

So the protest was about that and I joined about 30 other folks in chanting and holding hands while people gave speeches that were probably boring but since I could not understand it was ok by me.
I was happy to be the only foreigner there. I don't have any photos of myself there which may be a good thing. Here are some I took.

At the end I got a cool 'Peace' button. The organizer actually drove to the guest house later in the day to find me, shake my hand and give me the button.

Funky Tour of Iruba-Jima

Later on our first afternoon two more guests arrived. A pianist in her 80's and her adult pianist daughter.

The next day Raito-San took us all on a tour of the island. He used in small pick-up truck with a pallet in the back to sit on and since there were so many of us and we had a car we followed him. Now back home people sitting in the back of a pick-up at speed is a no-no, but then no one wore seat belts or used infant car seats in the islands.















We went by pretty beaches at low tide until we got to a small parking area where there was a board walk.

It looked like a moonscape. I imagine the rock to have originally been volcanic with a mix of limestone from the coral which eventually washed away from acid rain and left this really weird black, sharp pockmarked rock.

As we approached our goal we saw the first of the seawater filled caves.  Of course there was a fence.

When  we got to the end of the board walk our guide handed out gloves to everyone who wanted to hop the fence and go down to the cave.

You can just make out the scuba divers in the cave we are heading to.




















In order to make our way down we had to go into a small cave ourselves that led to the larger one.
I was apprehensive.

The person behind me

Looking back to the small entrance

Getting closer

Now we can talk to the divers.

Afterwards we visited some beaches

Then we went to what seemed like an abandoned UFO but it turned out to be in the shape of a seagull. It looked abandoned as much does on the island. Lots of wind and salt contribute to rust and stains. However the bathroom had running water so it couldn't be to bad.

These are the views from the "seagull". You can see the bridge they are building which will obsolete the ferries in just two years.

It was an exciting day but there was more in store for tomorrow.