Right as I packed up my jet lag (which honestly only formed a bit of a challenge on the day we arrived) I figured to put my sleeping schedule up to the test once again by staying up until 4am last night. The reason is somewhat unorthodox but just as important for me personally: the Dutch football team I’ve been supporting all my life was playing an important final (which we won!) and I simply had to watch the game, even if it meant staying up late for the 1am JST kick-off. My decision to skip on the 8-hour hike including a bus journey leaving at less than 1,5 hours after I went to sleep today was probably a wise one. For that reason, my – checks calendar – Monday (already losing track of the days) was a nice and chill one, without torrential downpour and instead a lovely sun including a cheeky breeze every now and then. It is important to schedule the occasional chill day into what can become quite a hectic trip and that’s exactly what we did: cruisin’ down the island of Yakushima while meeting the friendliest of locals providing us with the nicest of foods, drinks, and chats. What more does one really need?