Every grain of sand is a story of earth

God Bless the Japanese. Despite being insane workaholics 90% of the year, they at least recognize this tendency and have a healthy dose of national holidays scattered throughout the year- many more than the United States.

 

From May to mid-July is No-Man’s-Land though, so by the time Umi no Hi (Ocean Day) rolled around, I was going stir crazy from the heat and workload of the past few weeks.

 

Bye Bye Tokyo!

I ended up going to the Izu Islands with a group called Tokyo Gaijins. At first, when I saw the numbers of who would be going, I worried that it was going to be a trip filled with Gaijin Chasers and dudes with terminal Yellow Fever. Thankfully, with the exception of one irritating man, every person I met was really cool.

 

We left Tokyo on a ferry around 11 pm, and it was a mad scramble to claim a bit of the deck where we would be sleeping-essentially outside, but under a cover. It was cool enough that I was able to get a few hours of sleep on the hard floor, and the rocking of the boat helped.

 

Sleeping like vagrants on the deck

The assholes on the deck below us with bongos were not helpful-particularly at 3 am. Nor were the really drunk group of Japanese shouting random English phrases.

 

We pulled into Niijima Port around 7 am and loaded up the camping gear in a rental van that sped away while we acquired rental bicycles. It was overcast and humid, but still pleasant, and it was nice to wear shorts and a tank top without being stared at for showing my shoulders (See “Things That are Weirder”).

 

After pitching our tents (I am miserable at tent assembly; it rivals my incompetence for putting together flat pack furniture), a group of us road our bicycles around the island. We bought some snacks and finally came across an acceptable stretch of beach. The water was cool and ridiculously clear, and there was plenty of space for everyone to stretch out. After nearly a year away from the sea, it was heavenly to swim again. I have realized in the past year that I am definitely a beach girl. Man, I wish I hadn't taken all those summers for granted!

A free outdoor hot spring modeled after...Ancient Greece. Oh Japan.

The day was uneventful until I realized that I my skin was on fire. I completely forgot to protect the back of my legs and my knees turned an awful red color. Going into the hot spring for sunset-even though it was open air, Ancient Greek themed and right next to the beach-was torture. I spent the remainder of the day slathering on aloe cream and kicking myself for forgetting.

 After breakfast on Sunday, our big group took a ferry over to the neighboring island, Shikinejima, and spent the day lazing about on the beach again. I made sure to reapply sunscreen as often as I thought possible, and I stuck to the shade in between dips in the water.

 

Glorious leader taking a leap of faith

The cove we went to was beautiful. There were masks and snorkels available for rental, but again, the water was so clear that I just put my sunglasses on and went swimming out into the water. A few of the men in the group entertained themselves by jumping off rocks (and docks, and piers and concrete wave blockades).

It was like La Jolla Cove, but more serene

  After those blissful days, I really didn't want to come back to sweltering Tokyo. I spent the morning of our return at the hot springs, my stinging legs submerged in the cold-water pool with my beach towel draped over every inch of exposed skin in a vain attempt to prevent any further damage.

 

New friends from Canada and Belgium!

Sneak peak: I am liable to go into a homicidal rage if you so much to bump into me or hug me, and my ankles and calves have swollen.      

The ferry ride back was nice, mainly because I managed to score a reclining seat in the air conditioned cabin. With naps and lovely chats with the Scottish people next to me-one of whom I discovered knows my roommate's boyfriend in a crazy "It's a small world" moment-the 7 hours back to the mainland seemed significantly shorter.

So, despite being horrifically sunburned and not getting much sleep, the trip was a blast. I feel like my batteries have been recharged enough for me to sweat out the final days I have in Tokyo before I fly home and start my real summer vacation!