Day 15 should have begun with a leisurely breakfast followed by a visit
to the Yamaguchi Medical Association at 9:30am, however this plan turned
in to a mad scramble at 8:25am as we were informed by telephone that doctors,
staff, TV and journalists were awaiting our arrival at 8:30am. Thankfully
the building was just around the corner and in the European sense, I was
fashionably three minutes late, walking into the Association foyer flanked
by about 50 people, to another embarrassing round of applause. The Association
president Dr Fujiwara kindly ushered me inside as I tried to ignore the
swarm of journalists and cameras buzzing around me.
We were directed upstairs for an interesting round table chat about tobacco
problems with some of the doctors and one of the most warm-hearted and
caring local politicians I have ever met, Mr. Koizumi (no, not the prime
minister). We then fielded questions from the media, before departing the
building to another round of applause followed by a continued TV interview
outside with an “English speaking” reporter. This interview served to remind
us, as did the previous day, that it ’s not what is said in the interview,
which is so important, as what goes to air or print, as today ’s announcer
mistranslated my English into Japanese.
Quoting me as saying I wanted to destroy the number of smokers when I
actually said; “ I wanted to reduce the number of smokers in Japan”. If
I were cynical, I would say that they were trying to sensationalize the
story, though I can't complain that it made the lead story on NHK,Yamaguchi
TV.
We returned home to what was by now a cold cooked breakfast, before starting
the days walking at 11am. With my ankle not grumbling I decided to push
the pace, urged on by my friend Andrew calling from Bangkok to check on
my progress. At times jogging, I was able to cover a lot of ground, before
resting with Reiko by a small lake with our picnic lunch provided by Mrs.
Tsuha.
Pushing on in the afternoon, my progress was again impeded by two very
attractive young ladies working for KRY radio. They tracked me down along
the road, probably having seen NHK ’s lunch time news and proceeded to
do a live to air broadcast to a KRY studio announcer who told me straight-out
he was a smoker who couldn't understand what all the fuss was about. On
reflection he probably had heard the mistranslation about me wanting to
destroy smokers. Anyway, in my poor Japanese I tried to explain the dangers
of smoking and what I was trying to achieve by this walk. I didn't think
the interview went particularly well but the two young ladies were sympathetic
and many more drivers cheered me on through the afternoon. After saying
goodbye and heading down the road I began to rue the fact that I hadn't
taken a picture with the young ladies but I needn't have worried as two
hours later, there they were again, this time holding a video camera as
I emerged running from a tunnel. Apparently the response to my radio effort
had been good and KRY wanted some video for their TV news report. Thus
I was able to get my photo, this time with three young ladies who all hate
smoking.
Thus I finished the days walking at 7pm and checked into the Tokuyama Toyoko Business Hotel to guarantee internet access to my web blog.
The next day I reached lwakuni by late afternoon having made good use
of Dr Yamato's breathing mask through several tunnels including a 400m
train tunnel after miscalculating where a safer side road would take me.
At Iwakuni I walked across the famous wooden 5 arches, Kintai Bridge before
ending the day in an industrial part of town near a factory belching out
smoke from its many red and white smoke stacks, The symbolism was too tempting
to resist, so we took some video of me walking past them.
We returned across town to the home of Dr Himeno and his friendly City Councilor wife and sons.
Dr Himeno had to leave early this morning, so we followed him out the
door complete with a packed lunch and a gift of a beautiful pottery cup
from his nurse turned politician wife. Had to pass by Miyajima with its
famous floating torii and was met here by the friendly Dr Kawane at Miyajima-guchi
train station. For the next few hours he accompanied me, keeping up with
my brisk pace with his own unusually long legs. At his suggestion we enjoyed
a picnic lunch together at his University of Nursing campus with its fine
hillside location overlooking Miyajima and the Inland Sea. Arriving at
Peace Park we met our home stay host, Dr Tsuya who led us by car through
town to his clinic and home to refresh before our 6pm meeting at the Hiroshima
Medical Association.
A pleasant meeting with the President Dr Usui and the chief anti-smoking officer Dr Matsumura was followed by a sumptuous dinner reception served in the Medical Association building with 10 Doctors and ourselves, and an informal anti-tobacco discussion held whilst eating. Later we returned to Dr Tsuya ’s clinic, had coffee with him and his wife in their top floor apartment before retiring to bed, one floor down in his sleep apnoea laboratory/apartment.
Day 18 was an official rest day from walking, so to relax we took the
elevator up to the Tsuyas' apartment for a leisurely breakfast at 8:30
and then drove with Dr Tsuya to Hiroshima Peace Park where with the help
of some of his staff we handed out another 250 quit-smoking info-tissues,
gave an interview to a journalist and enjoyed a grilled eel and rice picnic
lunch, before walking a kilometre through town to the city campus of Hiroshima
International University, where Dr Tsuya was to give a one hour lecture
on how to quit smoking. This was followed by a short speech from me about
Walk Against Tobacco and then a panel discussion of tobacco issues hosted
by local RCC TV personality Ms Yoshida. The panel included Dr Tsuya, Dr
Kawane, local radio personality Ms Sera and myself with Reiko as my interpreter.
Many issues were raised and I was able to give input about Australia's
efforts to educate its smokers to the dangers of tobacco. Perhaps the best
question from the audience of 100 or so, came from a 14 year old junior
high school student who wanted to know how she could advise her friends
to stop smoking. So much, for the legal age of smoking and purchasing cigarettes
in Japan being 20 years of age. With 600,000 easily accessible tobacco
vending machines in this country, and very cheap cigarettes, its no wonder
you have 14 year olds and even elementary school children smoking. Anyway
I enjoyed my first panel discussion, and hope that it encouraged at least
some of the audience to quit and made others who saw it on the evening
news and in the newspaper the next morning think about the damage tobacco
is doing.
To finish the day we celebrated at a nice buffet style restaurant before
returning to the laboratory.
An unremarkable Day 19 of 52km of walking was highlighted by three acts of kindness. A sprightly old lady, picking roadside spring onions stopped me to say she had seen me in the morning paper and that she was also a walker, but didn't think she could keep up with my long legs.
Nonetheless she was happy to meet me and saw me on my way with some onions.
Around lunchtime Mr. Sasaki and I presume his wife stopped their car and
offered me some rice balls and a drink, which I took gratefully as my water
bottle, had run out. And in the late afternoon another woman, Atsuko pulled
up in her car to give me some bottles of juice, a small donation and a
plea to keep up the good work. Thus spirits lifted I jogged into Shinjo,
had some curry rice for dinner, checked into a hotel and fell fast asleep.
Day 20 became the day from hell, as about two hours into the walk, sharp
stabbing pains began to shoot up my left leg, modulating in intensity from
a bearable ache to severe pain, which would force me, on the verge of tears,
to rest for minutes at a time. Walking became so difficult that I had to
resort to my army training and march humming my regimental tune "The
Black Bear" and Waltzing Matilda.
This worked for a while but the pain eventually overtook that and I had to hobble along at a very slow pace. I can only think of describing this pain as some one trying to eat my leg for dinner, slicing their knife through my ankle and digging their fork into my shin muscles for better leverage. For the day's last 12km, my leg eventually became numb to the pain allowing me to pick up the pace into Fukuyama where we arrived at Dr Kodama's house and I was able to relieve the pain and swelling with ice packs and rest. We enjoyed a nice fresh seafood dinner with his family and the family of Dr Kimura in a restaurant next to his house, before returning home to ice-cream for my taste-buds and more ice for my leg.
I had half hoped that the ice and anti-inflammatories would cure the pain
but 15 minutes into the next day ’s walk, with four members of the Medical
Association, including the vice-president and Dr Kodama, I realised it
was going to be another meal on my leg. Within 30 minutes my traveling
companions had fallen by the wayside and I was again alone (a relative
term in Japan) until the 12km mark where I was joined by Mr. Takemoto,
a friend of Dr Sono (you'll meet him a little later). He lightened my load
by carrying the flag for the rest of the morning.
By lunchtime we had reached the 24km mark and were joined by my New Zealand friend Simon who now teaches in Okayama Prefecture. Simon was a godsend for the afternoon. His incessant talking allowed me to forget about the pain and walk for another 26km. So he has a new nickname, “pain killer Simon”
On our way through Kurashiki city our party of walkers grew to four with
the addition of Ms Bando, who I had first met in Tokushima city at the
start of my Shikoku Island mini-walk. She has recently moved to Okayama
and was keen to push me along, if only for the last hour.
Which she certainly did with her radiant smiling face, whilst Simon and
Mr. Takemoto dropped off the pace.
We finally arrived at Kawasaki Medical University, our goal for today, where we were applauded by Dr Kawane of Miyajima and Hiroshima fame, and our home stay provider for tonight. We were also greeted by his daughter and son-in-law, said goodbye to the others who were returning to their respective lodgings by train, and followed Dr Kawane to his house to be met at the door by his charming wife. A quick shower and soak in the bath, was followed by ice-packs to both legs now as the right ankle had started playing up and a sumptuous dinner with the well traveled Kawane family and then an early bed.
The care that these people have for life is certainly evident in the care
that they lavish on their 16 year old, blind and deaf dog "Bene",
so it is no surprise that they are trying hard to save people from a slow
tobacco death.
I hope their care of my legs will help me to get through the almost continuous
pain in my legs for it was now worrying me that, in this condition I would
not be able to meet my confident boast of walking the length of Japan in
88 days.
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4月28日、岩国の姫野ご夫妻宅にホームステイ
4月29日、広島平和公園での祈り
4月29日、広島県医師会の歓迎会
4月30日、平和公園にて津谷先生ご夫妻と支援者の皆さん
4月30日、タバコについて考えるセミナー
5月2日、児玉先生ところにホームステイ
5月3日、川崎医科大学到着、川根先生、サイモンさん、
武本さん、板東さん
川根先生とご家族の皆さん、ペットのベネちゃん
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