Connected in Fukue – sort of
Where Next?
Bob Williams
Fri 21 Mar 2014 11:28
Alongside Fukue
Wind: North west F4-5 moderate to fresh breeze
Weather: sunny, cool
Day's run: 17 nm
This morning I was wondering what to do. I was starting to get a little worried about falling behind in my studies due to the lack of an internet connection. It is pointless worrying about stuff if there is nothing that can be done, but sometimes we resign ourselves to our fate before thinking things through. The wind was too fresh from the north to continue in that direction, so I thought about going backwards to Fukue, which is a short way south of Kabashima. While I had entered Fukue in my itinerary, I had decided not to go there because it looked like just another largish town with nothing particularly appealing about it, but now that I was getting anxious about my studies it was looking a lot more appealing. At least if I sail there, I thought, I will be doing something practical towards solving my problem, rather than sitting here fretting pointlessly about it.
Once I had made up my mind, it did not take long to get Sylph ready for sea, and at a little before midday we were clear of Narao's harbour, close reaching to the fresh north westerly breeze. An enjoyable sail and three hours later we were secured to a pontoon recommended by “Bosun Bird” in their cruising notes. Unfortunately, no slight on Bosun Bird, but things can change pretty quickly in a city within the space of a couple of years, and when I arrived at the recommended pontoon a short while later a man came up to me and told me that I had to move. It seemed that another boat would be coming alongside where I had secured Sylph. I asked the man where I should go, but he did not know, and the language problem prevented us making any further progress in solving the problem. As fate would have it a lady was walking by who the man hailed and it turned out she spoke excellent English – apparently she had spent a few years living in California. They did not know each other, first of all I assumed they did, and when I realised that they did not I was surprised at the man's impertinence (I cannot think of another word to better describe his actions) in hailing a complete stranger the way he did. Fortunately the lady very graciously agreed to help and stuck around until everything was sorted out, which turned out to be nearly an hour..
I will not bore you with the details, but I have now ended up on the end of the pontoon I originally tied up to, so only a minor move but, unfortunately, the pontoon is being repaved with bitumen (it is a large pontoon), so everything is very messy. I am being charged to stay here, it is only a small amount so I am not dissatisfied, and ultimately the reason I came here, to get online to do some studies, has been realised. My mobile broadband device has no service but the ferry terminal does have a free wi-fi service. I can see I may be spending several hours in its capacious interior over the next couple of days catching up. At least the ferry terminal is nice and warm. It is a pity RC is not allowed in as I am sure he would love it.
All is well.