July 19, 1983, Tuesday
I started the run alone today at 11:00am to cover the 45km to the town of Tsuruoka. It was another nice run along the coast on a partly cloudy day with no rain. Yamagata is such a beautiful prefecture. People here are really down-to-earth. At times, it is difficult for me to understand their dialect, though.
As I was running along the coastline, I met a young man who is walking from Soya Point in Wakkanai to Kagoshima (He's going "downhill"). The man pulled out news clipping of me from his wallet. He said he had been looking around for me. It was great meeting up with him...now I don't feel so lonely knowing that I have a fellow traveler covering the same distance. This man really has guts. He quit his regular job to take this journey. People don't do that so much in this country.
Mr. Abe of Tsuruoka met me along the way in his car and following me in his vehicle as we approached town. I noticed signs welcoming me were posted in various parts of the town, on Mr. Abe's car, and even in Mr. Kageyama's house! I feel really grateful for the effort these folks made to make me feel so welcome.
I'm staying at Mr. Kageyama's house for the night. Earlier this evening, I drank so much beer that I started to feel sick. I need to learn to control my input of beer!
Photo: Finishing at City Hall in Central Honshu.
2 comments:
Wow! It seems like everyone was aware of your journey.
I was surprised. The family was super nice. Their little daughter poured the beer for me. I remember that she spilled some on the table and started to cry!
Post a Comment