Day 16: (88 km) Iwaki - Sakura

(08/14/06)

Today we met Joe. On the way into Sakura, we passed by a Japanese cyclist on a snazzy but well worn road bike. A few kilometers and one wrong turn later, we ran into him again and he offered to guide us into town. After showing us a supermarket, giving us camping advice, he took us to the town center, right in the middle of a matsuri concert where we grabbed some beers and rocked out to the sounds of American Graffiti, the hottest surf-rockers in Sakura town.

(Rockin the Plaza)

Deciding that we were a cool bunch, Joe invited all ten of us to stay at his house. It turns out that he's quite an experienced cyclist and hiker himself. Not only did he take a six month solo cycling trip around Europe, but he hiked up around the North Pole in Canada among other trips. At his house, Mary and Sorcha made tempura while others shared stories and Audrey and I watched the town fireworks from his balcony.

It was a good night, one that reminded me of the importance of random hospitality. It's the kind of hospitality that can't be paid back directly to the host, but needs to be passed on to others. Traveling and hosting are two sides of the same coin, and all of us are racking up a big travel karma debt, one that should be quite fun to pay back.