Ishigaki: Part 1

It took some doing getting here. . . my flight last night got in later than expected to Osaka, and I immediately discovered that I booked a hotel near the wrong airport (I've lived in Japan for a long time, and I still wasn't aware that Osaka has two airports!) --- so, I had to book another hotel, take two trains, and walk in the rain for about 40 minutes -- arriving around midnight, and I had to wake up a little before 5 am to get back to the airport and catch the flight to Ishigaki...

But sometimes, travel is like that!

Especially, good experiences, I think, usually happen when you've had something unoptimal happen beforehand.

I'm not on island time yet, as I still just arrived to Ishigaki (an island I've wanted to visit for a long long time), but I can feel my body slowly starting to relax and release all kinds of tension I've been holding in.

Today, I couldn't check in until 2 pm and I arrived around noon, so I took some time to utilize the 5 day bus pass I bought (only 2000 yen -- about $20 USD) and get a feel for the island. I basically just went to the supermarket to buy some vegetables, as I'm staying in an amazing place where there is not one but TWO kitchens to cook in (ironically, I've also met two chefs since I've been here)-- and I went to the main touristy area, just to see... I'm not a fan of those kinds of areas in general, but I'm always curious to get a glimpse of "what does touristy mean in this specific place?" --- and here, it was a small area, but actually pretty cute--- and just seeing it was enough.

The main impression I've gotten though from riding the bus today is that-- this island is MUCH bigger than I thought it was.

A lot to explore ---- I have 3 days or so --- we'll see how much I can do!

Here are some photos of today: