Hiburijima Island

　　I wrote about small islands off the coast of Uwajima City in the last entry, and I had lived on one of those islands, Hiburijima Island, for two years from 7 to 9 years old, i.e. the golden years of childhood, surrounded by almost untouched nature. My parents were assigned as teachers of a primary school on the island at that time.
　　Let me tell you about the life on the island in those days. There was only one round-trip boat service a day between Uwajima City, and it took 2.5 hours. Newspapers were brought in the late afternoon and the shortage of water often happened. The inhabitants had to collect rainwater for their daily necessities. The boat was suspended in bad weather. Blackouts weren't rare. However, recalling those days, I was happy to live on the island in spite of various inconveniences.
　　Back to the tour, a small boat was ready for us at the port. The boat was specially designed for transportation of anglers to isolated islands or small rocks, and so the boarding site is set at the bow in order to drop and pick up the anglers wherever they want. You can see its picture below. The ship was headed to the Yusu area at first along the indented coastline. The Yusu area used to be a lonely-island-like place. The soil was poor and people managed to survive their lives by changing steep slopes into potato fields. The history of harshness is now a sightseeing resource.

(Vocabulary)
bow /bau/ (bows とも) 船首、へさき