Japanese Surgeon's Daily Life

Honolulu Marathon 2023

　　I found a flyer of the Hawaiian tours in my home which was designed by JAL, Japan's flagship airline company. My wife spotted it at a nearby supermarket and brought it back. The tours were for people who would join the Honolulu marathon which would be held on Dec. 10th. Lots of Japanese would join it after three years of the restraint on overseas tourism, including me and my friends!
　　The tour was elaborately tied-up with upscale hotels and restaurants along with the convenient flights. I've run the Honolulu Half Marathon several years ago. A few hundred top runners were serious at that time, but most runners were running with fun or sightseeing on the public road on which people weren't usually allowed to walk or run. The Honolulu Marathon would be the same. I'd like to enjoy the marathon in December, ignoring the finishing time.

Coffee Break

　　I make house visits every Thursday afternoon for patients with various hardships. Not a few elderly people live alone on small islands in the Seto Inland Sea. It is one of the social problems in Japan that the working-age people in the rural area have a tendency to move to big cities for work and financial benefits. Consequently, elderly people are left alone or with their partners. Some of those have physical problems and need assistance in every aspect of daily life. My house visit is a part of that assistance.
　　Today, the number of calls were smaller than usual and my colleague and I were able to take a coffee break during the house visit in a recently opened outdoor coffee shop on the island. The weather was clear and the scenery was great. The break was a real change of feeling.