Ishigaki

The sleep last night was dismal. April’s upper back and shoulders went out as a result of the swimming and tension caused by our fight with ANA over their baggage charge yesterday.

 We have her on Robaxacet and Naproxen to reduce the swelling and relax the muscles and she has been sleeping all of this morning and now into the afternoon. Not fun to get after one is just getting over stomach issues, too.

Bill made breakfast: some instant porridge, sliced canned peaches, and some yoghurt and we went back to sleep. Bill got up and wrote our complaint letter to ANA. We had eggs and toast for lunch and it was nice to have eggs that are solid (rather than runny) for the first time in a month. April went back to sleep and appears to be getting a little bit better and is in less pain. Bill sent off the complaint letter and has been writing blog entries.

Our hotel room at the Rasso Ishigaki. Palatial.

View from the plane of Ishigaki.

Swimming at the ANA resort near to our hotel. No coral or sea snakes here.

We love ANA!

Bill shows his best island style at the ANA resort.

Okinawa to Ishigaki

We slept in today and went for breakfast at the hotel before checking out. We raced to the airport and checked in. We had a negative experience with checking in felt like we were being racially profiled and extorted for extra money because our bags were heavier than the limit (although we were fine on the other domestic leg).

We arrived at our little hotel and found the room to be much larger than anything else we have stayed at with the exception of our place in Noboribetsu. We went to the ANA resort beach, about a 10 minute walk from our hotel, and swam and enjoyed the late afternoon sun. It was enjoyable and cooled us off physically and mentally after our very unpleasant time flying with ANA.

We had some soba noodles at the restaurant next door for dinner. April’s neck began to hurt after dinner, so Bill went across the street to the grocery store to buy some supplies as we have a kitchenette and fridge with freezer in our room.

Sapporo Conference Day Two

Today was an interesting day.

We had a through overview of the Futenma airbase issue and Okinawa’s unique history and its relationship with mainland Japan. By chance I had lunch with Proffesors Sato (Okinawa lecture) and Furukawa (who presented yesterday). Professor Fukukawa is actually going to be in Ishigaki at the same time as April and I so we will try to organize a dinner or lunch together. He spent a year in Vanouver and is a Vancouver Canuks fan. We also had a lecture on the changing borders in central Europe, Schengenization, and Euroregions. It was a fairly basic overview but a good refresher on the issues.

Throughout the day my goal has been to try and get a phone call in through to April. It’s much more difficult than I had thought. The nice folks at 7-11 did their best to try and help me, but to no avail—the cards were only good for cell phones. Then the folks at the university said that I should try skype. I tried it, but the wireless networks and skype did not like each other, so I am going to have to resort to a collect call. I have investigated the process online, so I will attempt a “wake-up call” for April in a few minutes, as it’s nearly time for her to get up and go to work.

Dinner was fun. A group of us walked down to find a cheap sushi place and found one. It was pretty decent and good quality. Then we wandered with wonder through the heart of downtown Sapporo. All the lights remind me of Las Vegas. It really is quite something. It is truly unlike any other place I have ever been. I now know what my mother-in-law says about really feeling you’re not at home when you’re in Japan. Sapporo (only) has 1.8 million people, so I am both dreading and excited to see what Tokyo has to offer with its 13 million people.

We partook in some touristy activities like going up in a big ferris wheel, hanging out in a video arcade, and finding a bowling alley. All were on different stories in the same mall. I can’t wait to show April around when she gets here. It will be a lot of fun. I think the most fun can be found in simply people watching.

Replica of the border marker from Sakhalin Island. After the Japanese Russian war in 1905 the Japanese took possession of Sakhalin Island below the 50th parallel. They deported all the Russians and sent in settlers. After 1945 they gave up rights to the territory and the Russians deported all the Japanese. This is the Japanese side of the marker, represented by the Imperial Chrysanthemum.

This is the Russian side of the stone with the Imperial Russian double headed crest.

Here's some silly guy posing with it.

Bathroom with the heated toilet seat

Desk and hallway

The best translation yet. I have no idea what it means but its incomprehensibility is poetic.

The surprisingly comfortable bed