A little after 4:00 a.m., I said my final goodbyes to everyone and hopped in the front seat of the Skyline en route to the airport. This was my third consecutive night of no sleep, so within 5 minutes I was fast asleep in the car. Fortunately, Midori was there to help Yoshi navigate the confusing route between SHINKIBA and Haneda Airport - I arrived only 20 minutes before my flight's departure! Midori came with me at the airport while Yoshi presented me with a few great gifts from he, Takumi, and Dice-K.

There were no problems with check-in, and the kind woman with the airlines didn't charge me for my 23 kilogram suitcase. After passing through security, I ran through the terminal, arriving just a couple of minutes before they closed the gate. One thing is for sure: I have become accustomed to living life a little too much on the edge.

I slept the entire flight from Tokyo to Kitakyushu, which is on the northern tip of Kyushu Island in Japan. After grabbing my bag from baggage claim, I ran to catch a bus that would take my north to the city of Shimonoseki back on the mainland of Honshu. It was a one-hour bus-ride, which again was spent making up on all the missed sleep I have accumulated. However, the bus driver was kind and woke me up when my stop came, also directing me to the international ferry terminal.

I grabbed a few snacks at a 7-11 convenience store before checking in at the terminal. I had a one hour wait before the boat boarded, so I watched a few Olympic events and ate rice balls to regain energy from a full night of dancing. Although I wasn't too concerned about it, I was probably desperately in need of a shower, although I had at least changed shirts. The first thing I did upon boarding the boat was take a shower, and the second thing I did was drink a beer so I could pass out quicker.

I woke up in my bunk at 7:00 p.m., and had a look around the boat, finally settling on the 3rd floor karaoke bar. I poured boiling water in a cup of noodles and ordered a large Tsingtao beer from the counter while listening to various Japanese and Chinese love songs. It wasn't exactly the kind of environment I would pick if I had a choice, but given the circumstances it was interesting enough.

The important thing is that I will arrive in Qingdao, China tomorrow evening, and in a few more days I will be in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics.