Unbelievable! I slept in to 8 a.m. Of course it meant I missed the early morning shots, but there wasn’t a sunrise, and the angles of the strange rocks probably favour a late afternoon photo. I walked round dumping my stuff where necessary to clamber over the rocks in search of a good typical photo. It is very hard to photograph waves, though I would like to be able to do so. A fisherman I was trying to catch kept moving, every time I approached. Maybe he didn’t wish to become famous.
The rocks were quite slippery, so as I went I kept saying: “Think safety.” I didn’t slip until the last few metres and then only sufficiently to wet my socks.
After a breakfast in the park, an English teacher gave me a ride to the highway. He will soon be leaving Japan, going to Australia, presumably in search of the surfing. Then two businessmen took me on to Takahara. I wrote my diary on scraps of paper during the journey. As I got out, one of them just gave me 2000 yen. I hadn’t even mentioned my budget and we had only talked very briefly. Nevertheless, I accepted gratefully.
A lady picked me up from the crossroads. She took me down to Miike pond, where she had often visited when she was younger. I was on my way to the outside hotspring I had come across last July, but decided I ought to call in on Kirishima shrine on the way. The lady was going there, too, so it was very convenient. I was very glad I did so – the cherry blossoms were just right. I tried using the macro facility on my camera, but the results were poor – slightly out of focus. I couldn’t see that at the time on the small screen. A group of amateur photographers gathered round and chatted
The next hitch, with three guys, got me to Maruo waterfall, but it’s clearly a morning photo place. I walked on through the woods, up to Iwaburo hot spring in the river, surprised to find the same three guys there. The water was muddy, warm – not hot -, and a thick layer of gray mud covered the bottom. It was quite different from last July. However, I stripped off, and jumped into one lukewarm pool. The pool that had been impossible to enter last time was still a little too hot. I balance myself over it, and sat in up to my waist only, jumping out after 5 seconds or so to recuperate from the heat. Usually one is supposed to wash before taking a bath, but I came out caked in gray mud, so washed myself afterwards.
The three boys managed to divert some water into the very hot pool, cooling it down. As I stooped to feel it, my pen fell out of my shirt pocket, and into the mud, to be lost forever. The boys undressed to their pants, and I could sense that perhaps they were a little shy to go in with me around. When I departed, I could hear them enjoying a good splash.
I put a sign on each side of the sign – just to see where I would end up. A couple stopped, going down. They went to a nearby play park area for something to eat. Spotting the sun beaming down, I asked if I could take some snaps, and rushed round to try and catch the effect. They treated me to some udon, so I showed them my photos. Finally, they took me on to the airport, where they figured I’d be able to get a lift into Kagoshima.
Indeed, I didn’t have to wait too long, with an extra large single sign. A gent took me all the way in, depositing me outside the park in front of Shiroyama. As I asked him to sign my visitors’ book, he donated a three-coloured pen to replace the one I’d lost.
I could find no suitable sockets in the toilets. It seemed to be a young people’s area, with some skateboarding, others dancing, and more on trick bicycles. I did my thing, and took snaps of the fountains. Night shots really do need a tripod, though. Perhaps I can pick up a cheap on in Taiwan.
I headed up the hill, finding a socket in the toilet at the top, where I was able to recharge my camera batteries while washing my hair. There were too many young people coming and going noisily, so I found a place in the woods to lie down, hoping that the black plastic rubbish bags would keep me from getting too dirty, and provide a barrier to any insects.