good morning. 5:30am putting things back in my suitcase. got things spread all around in my room and starting to look like i live here. i know i have to make my next move. what is it? i don’t know. but the surf is changing and the train is waiting. i’m super sunburnt and don’t know if i could spend another day at the beach. sometimes feel like fainting. body feels week. taking deep breaths in this humid weather. it has to be the hottest summer since i’ve been coming here. it’s almost september and it’s not supposed to be like this. i’ve never sweat like this in my lifetime. i miss the cool tradewinds and i’d pay money for it to blow for us today. anyway, get ready for another hot day!
each trip i come to japan, i learn and learn. this time, i learned more about surf culture and localism. i’ve mentioned before that japan has some of the heaviest localized surf spots in the world. even thought i’ve been coming here for year after year, i’m still the outsider. i’m still the foreigner. i’m still at the bottom of the pecking order. i paddle out, i see old friends, make new ones. i’m always in full respect mode and stay clear. i’ve learned by traveling that if you respect others, others will respect you. i’ve seen good situations, i’ve seen bad ones. but this past trip opened my eyes even more about localism. localism use to be a negative word to me, not anymore. to see the bond between surfers of all ages at every spot i go to, it makes me feel like i’m living in old hawaii. these guys have a special thing going on. they watch out for each other, they respect each other, and they are just super stoked on surfing. the day we took this photo happened to be the best surf session i’ve ever witnessed in japan. the local knowledge these guys have is amazing. i can hear them yelling from the beach. it’s like kids in the most amazing playground in the world. they know their spot so well. they give me tips, they help me, they encourage me into waves, and i couldn’t be a happier foreigner surfer. sometime i’m in japan, i feel like i’m pure japanese, sometimes i’m in japan, i feel like i’m a pure foreigner. this trip, i was a foreigner. i learned more on the deep roots of localism. i like it and hope it never goes away. and for me to be able to share experiences with these amazing surfers is like a dream. after we all rode waves of our lives, it was beer time. happy locals with happy memories. welcome to japan!
i’ve taken lots of photos and if you’re wondering why you don’t see more, it’s because i don’t want to overdo it. there is no way i want to expose surf spots in japan. i just want to use a few here and there to show you the beauty of japan. show you what i love to do. and show you why i’m the happy guy i am. if you could live the life of one day in my shoes, you will know why. but until then, come back and forth to japan hundreds of times for 20 years and you might finally figure it out just like how i just did. keep on surfing.
and to all the local surfers throughout japan, thank you again and again for sharing waves and memories with me. you guys rip!!!!
