Izari is a small remote fishing village on the south-east coast of Tokushima.  We took cars and drove them along a very long, winding mountain road for around 1 hour.  We arrived, I could smell the sea and my mind felt calm.  I had visions of hakusai.

Eri found a house.

Sugimoto san found a brother.

I found a furo.  No actually it is not a furo, it is for boilling seaweed!

The tetrapods looked great.

Sugimoto san’s new brother gave us a guided tour of Izari.  We walked around carefully.  Everywhere was quiet.  Curtains twitched: we were being watched.  We wandered past Mambo Park (perhaps off season), a tiny park for children (or perhaps a park for tiny children) with a patch of disturbed earth and three small bouncy posts.  It was almost too melancholic for words…I shed a tear.

And then later, strange symbols taped to lamposts – Kome?

An even a little later, the tour arrived at a guest house and Sugimoto san’s brother pointed out the large scale wall drawing festooned around the place.  It was colourful, child-like, naturalistic, innocent, decorative, loose.  Proudly, Sugimoto san’s brother said the artists name was Peter Pommerer and although he doesn’t usually sign his work it sells for loads (’20cm square piece of work = 2 million yen’).  It’s nice to imagine a world-famous artist staying in a place that appears to be so remote and so cutoff from the art world while leaving something precious and personal for the future.

Onward and upward.  Post-tour we spent a few minutes on the shore and found some quality denizens of the deep in a kind of unwanted free aquatic creature section.  I decided to name them.  In order: Graham, Herbert, Fabio, Chris and Ray.

A little grey, fluffy obasan chatted to Eri for a while.  She used to live in Izari but moved to Tokushima.  She wanted to show us a large tree and the house she used to live in.  We followed her, I couldn’t understand what she was saying but Eri translated.  She talked about how it used to be just a sandy cove until a typhoon destroyed most of the village.  After this they built the concrete harbour and installed the tetrapods.  They used to hold sports festivals on the beach.  She had been picking shells on the what’s left of the beach and she decided to give them all to Eri.  She had a good eye I think, the shells she picked were particularly beautiful.

Eri’s collection:

After lunch (assorted tempura) (very tasty), a short car journey up the coast to a deserted campsite.  Everyone suddenly got pine cone fever.  Sugimoto san fuelled the fire.  Below, we see him carrying two enormous pine cones that he’s just captured bare handed.

Up a bit and around a bit from the campsite a concrete tower looms.  It’s got steps, it’s a viewing tower.  It smells a little like urine.

From the top, the view is magnificent…

I must visit the coast again.  It’s like a protein receptor type relationship for me.  It just fits my pattern.  I’ll be back.