L i f e i n B o n i n I s l a n d


After living a monotonous life, commuting for 3 hours a day, getting all the new viruses available, confused and tired; decision time hit my life. Traveled for 3 months in search of answers and guidance. It was Chichijima were the flow took us to and now it is our home. Time has stopped and now we LIVE life.

Sep 12, 2012

Good bye


And we all move on...
It has been a while since I have posted on my blog, I got married, went to my honey moon and later on my camera broke. I am saying good bye to this blog because I am moving to a new place in Japan called Beppu.

WHAT TO DO IN OGASAWARA (CHICHIJIMA ISLAND)

If you are someone interested in coming to visit the beautiful islands of Ogasawara, I do sincerely recommend you to hop on that 25 hour boat ride and see its beauty with your own eyes. Now, I am going to be completely honest with my recommendations, I will be as objective as possible. 

First of all, do not come during winter time, it is mostly cloudy and when the clouds cover the ocean everything is grey, VERY GREY. It is not that cold but the ocean temperatures are not pleasant. If you are looking to spend some time on your own to relax on a white sand beach with most likely no tourists around, come late June and early July! That is the most spectacular month, the sky stays blue, the ocean water is nice, there are not many tourists and the local islanders are buzzing with summer vibes. If you want to have a taste of what the island is when in peak time, come in August. The summer festival offers a variety of events, cultural, environmental and fun.

Places to stay: My number one place to stay if you have a bit of cash to splash and are looking for a retreat vibe with a more quaint environment go to TETSUYA. This place offers the best food in the island, local and healthy. It has an elegant air to its design and the rooms a very spacious. It has an outdoor bathtub that you cannot miss! If you walk for 5 minutes you arrive to one of the most isolated beaches in the island and it is also one of the most gorgeous beaches to be seen. 

If you are looking for a more down to earth, environmentally friendly place, stay at PELAN PELAN. My landlord owns the place and he is a very active and environmentally conscious person. The vibe is completely different here. It has solar showers, you cook a meal and share it with everybody at night, you poo in a bucket... etc. You will definitely get to feel the local island's slow life and friendliness. 

Both of these places are located 15 minutes away from town... a place that you don't really need to be at unless your purpose is to drink every night at the IZAKAYAs and buy souvenirs. Now, a bad thing about the island and also a good thing is that buses only run once an hour. 

A great thing to do is rent a scooter for a day! Go around the island, up to the mountains to see 360 degree views of green island and blue ocean. There are also some beaches you cannot reach by bus so take advantage of the scooter and go to beaches such as Miyano-hama where you can snorkle or to a private small white sand beach called Copepe. 

What to see: Take some snorkeling gear or goggles and swim. You really don't need to go scuba diving to see an amazing variety of colorful and interesting fishes. The best place to snorkel is Tsuri-hama, one thing to take into consideration are the tides. If the tide is low then it is a bit dangerous to swim into the ocean since the corals pop out. You will see another world!!

What not to miss: Sunsets! Every day the skies turn into magical canvases only to be seen on heaven. A camera will never take the image as it is, only the raw eyes can see it. Take a beer or wine and sit with a friend at a beach. Sakaiura beach or Kominato beach, depending on the month. 

Where to go: A lot of the mountain paths require of a guide. But some of the most amazing paths don't. Pack a lunch, trekking shoes and go to John Beach. It is a 2 hour walk each way through several mountains (that in the summer heat turn into challenging mountains), but the goal is very rewarding. If you are a bit adventurous check for the current movements and go to Jinny beach. This beach can only be reached by boat, kayak or swimming. The currents from one beach to the other can be very strong sometimes so make sure you are swimming along with them. As soon as you arrive you will see one of the whitest beaches ever to be seen. Your eyes will hurt from the reflection. 

What to drink: Don't miss on USK coffee. Located on your way to Kominato beach, the owner grows and makes the most flavorful coffee of the island. Sit at the deck overlooking at the nature, chickens and majestic mountains. Swing on the hammocks and read some of his great magazine collection. 

What to eat: Tofu, a local islander makes great tofu and sells it from his car. Take it home and eat it fresh. 
Ogasawara does not have much history and the food does not reflect it either.

Since the boat only comes once a week I recommend you stay until the next boat leaves and enjoy a long mellow time. Once you step into this island time is really slow and you will feel how you slowly notice the small things around you, like the birds, the trees, the stars etc. 

I hope you have a lovely stay. 









Apr 28, 2012

Extended winter

I posted about spring being here in Ogasawara but nop! It was a fake spring, it was cold until recently. It was like we were all tricked with a tiny sample of delicious sweets and then they were taken away from us. It was hard to see the beautiful things in life as we all waited for the real spring to come. It was a taboo, no one was mentioning spring anymore, we just went silent and waited patiently....

Mar 8, 2012

Spring!














Kasayama

360 degree viewpoint! 


small waves in ishiura (above)
 



Asahiyama

Asahiyama is a mountain located closer to town on the Northwestern side of the Island. 
It is a path that divides into two and leads you to two mountain tops. 
We went to the left mountain top and left the other mountain top for another day trip. 
It was an easy 15min walk each way to the top. 
Every time we go to a new mountain top view it is like we have traveled to another country and it is very refreshing! It has almost been 2 years since we moved to this island and it was my first time here. 






Free whale watching tour!

Yep, the government was sponsoring some free tours! 
They were several different ones and I went to two of them. 
The whale watching tour and the fauna tour. 

We saw, whales, turtles and a manta!




 

Mar 7, 2012

Baby Jack


Not mine but incredibly sweet, warm and tiny little baby "Jack". 

USK coffee

On saturdays and sundays there is a new local coffee shop that opens its doors to public. 
It is located closer to this side of the Island, further from town in a mellow valley that we like to call the rainbow valley of Ogasawara. Y is a young men who grows coffee and roasts different coffees from around the world. It is a bit expensive for coffee but it is a well brewed cup of jo. Mark and I will try and spend a couple of hours there and read the magazines they have on display and chat about. K also works there with Y and she is into farming. One of my favorite places in Ogasawara, well worth the money, if you are a coffee lover. 


Life is good...


That is where we live!


Sunset



Yakiba 

The endless and infinite horizon. If you set to move towards any direction, no matter which, you will for sure arrive somewhere. But even a small angle can make a huge difference in the ultimate goal you will achieve. You could go to Tokyo or to Peru. Life is all about making these kind of decisions, there is an infinite amount of choices that will take you to complete different places. It will for sure take you to a place, if you decide to paddle and even if you decided not to paddle you will arrive somewhere! wow... Do you choose to paddle or do you choose to let go and flow to where the ocean wants to take you to?

Break Routine

Winter has been a bit harsh on us. 
We have been trying to break routine to make things more exciting. 
The other night we went for a ride, we had a drink at the beach and looked for constellations. 
It was such a simple thing but it seemed to make a huge difference in our day. 
Just a simple break of routine can make such a big difference. 


kabocha soup

The best Kabocha soup!

Made by Mark 


Feb 21, 2012

Who moved my cheese

The public library of Ogasawara has a very little collection of English books. I found a book titled Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson, the other day and I brought it home with me. Read it before I went to bed and got so much from it. I really wanted my partner to read it so I could talk to him about the book. It uses analogies such as the maze in the cheese being life's journey, the cheese being your true desires or goals and the two mice being the ones who just went with their instincts. It made me think about my cheese and how often it changes and how often I have a fear to leave comfort and go to the maze. 

I recommend it :)

Our first eggs!


When I saw that one of our chickens was sitting still, I just thought she was depressed, bullied by the others but then (just like a light bulb switched on!) I decided to check under, and voila, I found our first 3 eggs. My heart stopped, I had been waiting for this day all winter and I thought it wouldn't happen until spring. I should have realized that if the rooster had started to show signs of puberty it was time for the hens to do so.

I felt so proud to have them at home. The warmth of the chickens filled me with comfort and inexplicable joy. Such a simple thing in life and to me it was a feeling I would treasure for life. Brownie, MarshMellow and Cafe con leche are the artisans of these beautiful eggs.

Thank you chickens for this wonderful experience!