Little things just seemed to fall into place today. I had picked the perfect place to stay last night. It was right on the trail to temple 35. So I got up at 5 am and was on my way up by 5:30. The great thing was being able to leave my pack in my room and climb up the hill without any weight. It was such a beautiful morning and I was one of the first visitors to arrive.
I have been having a constant struggle with my hair. It is long and very fine. It is constantly windy so every night I feel like I tear half of it out trying to get rid of the tangles. I keep looking for a scarf so I can keep it out of the wind. When I got my temple book stamped the woman who signed it gave me a gift. She handed me a beautiful white scarf as osetai! I wrapped it around my hair and my problem was solved.
I have also been having a constant issue with my pointed straw hat. It has a woven straw headband inside that has always been terribly uncomfortable. On the way down from the temple 35 this morning, the band came loose. I figured I would need to get a new hat. But I found that by just removing the band altogether, and tying the ties directly to the hat, I suddenly had a very comfortable hat. So that was my second piece of good fortune.
The path was well marked to temple 36. At one point the road went into a tunnel but the walking trail went up over the mountain instead of through it. It was so tempting to simply follow the cars. But I'm glad I didn't because that was one of the most beautiful trails I have ever walked! It was through dense forest with flowers everywhere and magnificent views of the ocean. I would hate to have missed that even though it was quite a climb.
The trail ended in a small village and followed a road over a long bridge then it snaked its way around a rugged peninsula to Shoryuji number 36, another absolutely beautiful temple with a bright red pagoda surrounded by bright green trees. Waterfalls plunged off the cliffs into little pools surrounded by fascinating statues. A staircase that seemed endless led to the main temple building. My legs were tired but when I saw the tiniest little old bent over woman with a back brace and a single crutch working her way up all those steps, I didn't mind my aching legs anymore. The dedication of some of the elderly here in Japan is really an inspiration. They all seem to be so active, climbing long stairways to temples, working in their gardens or out in the fields. I see little old ladies who look to be in their 90's pushing carts, and even riding bicycles. They don't seem to allow their age to place any limitations on their activities. I find them very inspiring.
After Shoryuji I had to decide where to spend the night. I got back to the little village and hoped I could find a ferry that was listed on my map. It was very tricky to find but after asking numerous people, I finally found a small boat behind a warehouse. That turned out to be the ferry. A man who was waiting there told me it was leaving in 30 minutes. The next one was not for a couple more hours! That was really lucky. When he found out I was from Alaska he started taking pictures of me! Alaska seems to make a big hit around here.
The ferry ride around Uranouchi Bay was really fun and cut at least 15 miles of walking off of my trip. When we docked at Yokonami I called a hotel in Susaki City and managed to book a hotel for tonight. I tried Expedia.com first but their closest suggestion from my current location was Hilo, Hawaii! Really now Expedia, surely you can do better than that.
I still had over 10 kilometers to walk to my hotel but it was a nice walk even though my feet feel like they are going to fall off. I soaked them in cold water for a while when I finally got to my room.
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