today we drove to oshika hanto where villages after villages got totally wiped out by the tsunami. this is the place where we spent a lot of our first missions because this was the last place that got any kind of help from the outside world. and it is here where we met some amazing people that became our friends. to see the smiles and to see everybody moving forward is so amazing.
Abe-san’s entire fishing village got wiped out. it’s been almost 3 years and he’s still living in the temporary housing. but every time i see him, he has such a big smile on his face. i remember after M1 when i told him “i’ll be back.” i don’t think he believed me. now i just walk to his door, knock, and he comes out as i say “Aloha!” and every time, he’s very surprised to see me. we hug, we talk, and i tell him as we drive off “i’ll see you again!” and now, he believes me.
then we drive to Kobuchihama. this is one fishing village that didn’t give up. right after the tsunami ruined their whole village, all the fisherman got together and bonded. they worked from morning to evening cleaning up the fishing port. there were buoys, houses, fishing nets, wood, trees, capsized boats, and even smashed cars all over the place. little by little, they got this village back into shape. now it’s functional again and business is starting back. a great story on dedication.
Kimura-san took us for a tour. he knows i love oysters so one of his fisherman friends grabbed some out of his bucket and opened it right there. omg, so fresh and so juicy!
Saito-san eating the most fresh oyster possible. one year growing in the ocean to 1 second in his stomach. i ended up eating about 15 and i swear i could have eating way more but i didn’t want to overdue it.
then Kimura-san told us to jump on his boat for a ride. we went out to sea to grab more fresh oysters and i couldn’t be a happier man. this is the very same boat he took out to sea right after the earthquake to get it out of the way of the tsunami. he ended up staying out at sea for 2 days with no water or food. what a chilling story. i’ll get into the rest later.
and yes, Kelia Moniz is 2x World Champion!!! she won the contest yesterday for the 2nd year straight and will bring back the ASP World Longboard Champion trophy to hawaii. good job Kelia! i knew you were going to be world champion once in your life, but i never thought twice. awesome girl!
