Day 11

Temples: none (brief stop at Saba Daishi, one of the bonus temples that I am not collecting stamps for) Distance logged: 18.36 miles (Fitbit); 16.28 miles (Google) Steps logged: 38,349 (Fitbit); 40,536 (Google) Lodging: キッチンみつ佳 (Kitchen Mitsuka)

Woke up today feeling pretty bad. Lodging last night was the worst of the trip so far. The food was bad (it was the first time this trip I left a lot of food on the plate), and the room was incurably drafty and smelled of stale smoke. I was encouraged to see that the bath had a very beautiful view of the beach and sea, but even that was marred when I stepped in and the water was barely lukewarm. So I opted for a hot shower last night and aired my room as best I could, but I still come up with sore muscles and a splitting headache this morning.

I got about 750m away from the hotel when I realized I had left my trusty sticks in my rush to leave for fresh air. I dropped my bag by a vending machine and ran back to the hotel to grab them. Shortly after getting supplemental breakfast of yogurt and vegetable juice from the Lawson (again, the meals at the last place were just bad), I ran into Kei, another single female henro on the trail--the first female Walker I have met so far.

Kei and I spent the entire day walking together. Her English is quite good and it was a relief to have English conversation again. She is a cardiologist in Tokyo and comes to Shikoku on the occasional long weekend to knock out some kilometers. She started walking about a year ago starting at temple 1, and now she (and I) are on the verge of finishing the Tokushima prefecture section. Her company lifted my spirits and made this straight stretch of trail down the highway much more bearable (although by the end of the day, our legs and feet were screaming at us). I was grateful to laugh with her about the story behind Saba Daishi (the mackerel and Kobo Daishi) and discuss all the neat travel stories we had. I felt really down and on the verge of giving up last night, and I feel mentally (if not physically) reinvigorated to continue. I bid her fond farewell at the Shishikui station (she flew home this evening from Tokushima) and was pleased to find that my lodging for tonight (and tomorrow, which I decided to take off when the weather predicted rain and I was feeling really run down ) is probably the nicest place I have stayed so far. The dinner was delicious and the futon is so comfortable. Tomorrow is for Shishikui hot springs and massage chairs.