the first ride is the coldest (i hope)



Morning Traffic on the H1


and just like that, I found myself back in Iizuka.

I never like coming back to Japan for many reasons.  The number one reason being, of course, that returning to Japan means I'm leaving home for at least another year.  I leave behind family and friends, and perfect weather.  Not to mention, travelling with a mountain bike back to Japan made travelling a little more cumbersome.   But eventually, before I knew it, I was back in my cold apartment in Iizuka.

Life is cold in Japan.  Life is (nearly) perfect in Hawaii.  I suppose I started the New Year right, by having the opportunity to continue to ride my bike, and ride my bike a lot.  Some unfortunate and surprising events took place on New Year's day itself, but luckily, everything is seemingly ok now.

My final 2 weeks in Hawaii didn't really see any rain or any hot temperatures.  I had the privilege of riding with friends and the owner of MAAP on my last Friday morning in Hawaii.  We rode up Tantalus at a nice pace and were treated to great views at Pu'u Ualaka'a State Park.  The ride finished with a stop at TheCurb in Kaimuki for a nice cup of coffee.




Two mornings later I decided to finally take my new MTB out for a spin.  I rode to the top of Waialae Iki Ridge to "attempt" to ride the Wiliwilinui Trail.  I forgot how muddy some areas were and by the end of the ride, both the bike and myself were covered in mud.  A great way to break in a new bike.  Luckily, it rode well and I had a blast riding not only down, but also up.


Later that day I had an easy ride out to Hawaii Kai.  The usual ride, but I knew it was going to be my last.  We stopped at Maunalua Bay and watched the sunset.


I didn't just ride my bike the entire time back home.  One thing that I tried to do, with the help and encouragement from my mom, was eat all of the local foods that I both missed and couldn't get in Japan.  That meant lots and lots of poke (although I could arguably attain poke in Japan if I made it myself.  Though, still, it's not the same).  It also meant eating Hawaiian food and Mexican food.  We even made a visit to Mitsuken for some garlic chicken.  I probably hadn't eaten Mitsuken since 2012, but just smelling it alone, was enough to remind me how much I missed it and how good it tastes.  We ate the mini bento at Ala Moana Beach Park as I looked at the city skyline and not recognizing it due to all of the construction in recent years.


And here are a few interesting things that happened.  I saw the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra perform a live score to Harry Potter.  I was surprised when we got there as there were many hard-core Harry Potter fans there.  It actually made me a little uncomfortable, but it as great to hear a live symphony again.  The movie was ok, I guess.


I also played tennis.  Normally that's nothing out of the ordinary, but I played with my family.  They were surprisingly better than I thought and I had a good time with them to close out my final day back home.  Having spent good times in Hawaii with family and friends and ending my time playing tennis with them made it difficult to leave.



But here I am in Iizuka now having been here for just over 1 week.  I rode my first morning back and forgot how cold it was to ride in 30 degree weather.  I also forgot how much it sucked to ride alone and in the dark before work.  Looking at a sunrise/sunset calendar unfortunately told me that I'll continue to ride in the dark until April/May.  

Adjusting back to the cold has given me a minor cold and I haven't ridden my bike as much as I would have liked since being back.  To that point, I haven't really enjoyed life very much either.  Waking up with chest congestion, a headache, and a sore throat is not the best way to start your morning.  My cycling clothes have been ready to go for 4 days straight but it hasn't been touched yet.  I'm hoping I'll get over this cold soon so that I can start riding in the cold again.

It also hasn't snowed yet.  Well, technically it snowed, but I'm sure it lasted for no more than 2 hours and none of it stuck.  I don't know if I'm hoping for snow or not this year.  Of course it's beautiful and fun to play in the snow, but it also means that I can't, or probably shouldn't ride.




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