March 28 - Sore feet
Woke up refreshed. Choked down another packaged meal, paid my respects (and bill) to the inn keepers and headed out the door.
I stopped at Kotohiki Park on my way to temples 68 & 69. Actually it's kind of hard to avoid it since the henro trail skirts up against it. From a view point I took a photo of a giant coin made of sand. I'm sure there are millions of these photos floating around, but I wanted to share mine with you. Enjoy.
Stopped at temples 68, 69 & 70. Shortly thereafter my feet started to hurt and it became painful to walk. With the day just beginning and a long walk ahead of me, I did the smart thing and decided to walk off the pain. It was one of those times where I should have listened to my body, but my brain overruled it.
I got lost outside of Temple 71. Not a big loss (1 or 2 km) but definitely not pleasant with painful feet.
Arrived at Temple 75 at 5:05PM. Too late to get my nokyocho signed, but I did say my prayers at the main shrine.
Walking towards the station hotel (always a safe bet) I saw an older women standing on the sidewalk. She mentioned something in Japanese which didn't register with me until I had walked a block or so. Basically she asked "would you like to stay at my inn?". I wasn't expecting to hear this because I didn't see a ryokan on the map at this position. I looked up at the sign and sure enough it read "YamamotoYa" inn. It's interesting that I put so much trust in a map that I'm unwilling to believe what I'm seeing.
Anyway, the Yamamoto Ya was a nice place. Great hostess, great food and decent price (6500 yen). A clean, safe place to stay just outside the temple was very welcome after the pain of walking.
I aslo met up with my friend Mr. Nozawa. We had a lively dinner conversation, bantering with the hostess. I slept like a drunken baby aftwards.
Thought for the Day
"Pain and weariness can cause me to miss the obvious."
March 29 - Final Day of Walking
Woke up refreshed. I'd say Yamamoto Ya was the best place next to HakuChisou this trip.
I exchanged emails with Mr. Nozawa and headed out. Backtracking to Temple 75 to get my nokyo cho signed.
My feet began to hurt before noon. Although I was in pain with every step I did get a chance to appreciate some wonderful sights. I was particularly fascinated with some of the older trees I saw. Here are photos of the two that struck me the most. How many human lifetimes have passed by like the seasons during the lives of these two giants?
I made it to Temple 79 and was done for the day and the trip. I caught the train back to Marugame for the evening because that was where I would catch a bus back to Osaka. I will return to Marugame next trip and start my journey from Temple 79.
Thought for the Day
"Not Sure"