Getting out of Dodge

So getting back to the mainland is not as easy as we first thought. The reason is that the ferry company that operates out of Ishigaki (to Okinawa) went belly up in June and you can't leave by boat anymore, only by plane. The way we figured this out was pretty funny since no one we talked to spoke much English. First we took a taxi to the main port where they told us that there was no boat to Kyushu (mainland), but we knew this and took a second taxi to the smaller port where the long distance ferries are supposed to leave from. When we got there we were in for a shock because the whole place was deserted and run down and boarded up. There was one old cleaning lady who looked at us like we were crazy. I can only imagine what the cabby was thinking when he dropped us off! So we eventually caught another taxi to the airport where they told us that flights to Okinawa (which is still a small island in this chain but from which we could catch a long distance ferry) ￥29 000 each ($290)! So we caught a flight to Okinawa. Once there we got a room for the night (where I wrote my last post from) and went looking for the ferry in the morning. Three taxis and a lot of patience later we found out that ferries only leave a 7 am each day and take 25hrs, and you have to get there early because there's usually a huge line for tickets when the office opens at 6 am. After some discussion we decided to get another room for the night and hang around here until we could catch a flight (which　I'll be boarding in 10 min) to the mainland. In the meantime I got to make my own crafts at the Naha Municipal Arts and Craft Museum (which was really cool) and the pottery museum. We also wandered around Ichiba market where locals buy tea, fish, seaweed and sweets. Ok, gotta go!