misasa: hazelnuts and open razors

my first day in tottori was a little longer in the saddle than I had anticipated and so my second day was a much more civilised affair. I did get around to a 4 hour cycle but only after a leisurely breakfast, long lie and a haircut. I decided, before meeting a very interesting barber, that my room smelled of hazelnut. it had been on my mind for the 24 hours since I had arrived, but finally I managed to concentrate enough to filter out the buckwheat, tatami and incense and focus my nose on exactly that. like a song name you can't remember - it was really getting to me.

I was asked by the barbers wife (who shaved me) if I'd done any bird watching on my ride yesterday and I thought it an odd question until I remembered the amount of birds of prey I'd spotted (it's a funny feeling when you're in the middle of nowhere and you look up and something big is circling you). today, after my cut, I saw a few more as I rode up the valley thinking of glaciers going the other way.

It was a good ride toward daisen - the largest mountain this side of fuji - but with the weather closing and still a little fatigued from yesterday, i headed back for an easy descent to misasa. the pointer sisters 'neutron dance' seemed an odd soundtrack amidst such natural beauty, but at 75kph and with lots of corners, you don't really have much choice.