Dokkodo: Lonesome Road of Running

The final day of January. And one-twelfth of the year is over. 5 days to Christchurch. I have enjoyed anything in New Zealand including people, nature and culture. There’s no doubt that I learned so many things. After I come back to Japan, I have so many things to do but now I have to live for today and live for the moment. We can create world peace by keeping peace of mind, throwing away our ego and accept anything. That’s also what I learned through travel. Throwing away ego means to become a part of the universe. We don’t need any desire but we live to share anything with someone else. There’s nothing that belongs to you. Even your life is given to you. It rained much in the morning. I haven’t seen blue sky for a few days but this rain will be good to the dry ground. Ran about 1040km in January. I have run 2587.66km since I left Auckland on the 15th of November. Just 200km to go to Christchurch in 5 days. No more big hills. Even head wind brows, heav...

Tomorrow is the final day of January. On February 5th I will finish my run at Cathedral Square, Christchurch. On 9th I’ll leave New Zealand from Christchurch. Hope everything will be all right until I get back home. Shige-san made an excellent meal. Chimney’s B&B is worth visiting for sure! Started at 8:40. Drizzle again. Not so cold. Almost flat route today. I ran on the flat road for the first time in New Zealand, didn’t I? Get off SH1 and follow Route82 to Waimate. Small town but I like this size of town. I checked in at a motel whose owner John is also a runner. He has completed some full marathons. We talked about running for a while. How lucky I am! He gave me a 20 dollars discount of ordinary rate. Today I covered 2500km in New Zealand. Just 250km to Christchurch. Last night I visited blue penguins’ colony in Oamaru. Here’s a YouTube movie which someone who visited Oamaru uploaded. According to my plan... Sat.31 Timaru Sun. 1 Ge...

Cloudy. Cool morning. Calm and quiet morning. I really appreciate having such a great time here at this motel. 34km to Oamaru. One week to go to finish my Running Across New Zealand. Next Thursday will be my final run. Left Hampden at 8:20am. Glad I had no head wind. Drizzling then blue sky spread. Running along the east coast but there are mountains along the way. Wherever I run, I cannot get away from hills. It’s New Zealand. Sheep trucks come and go very often. About 3pm I finished today’s run at B&B run by Shige-san where I spent New Year’s Eve and New Years Day. I had never expected to be back here in Oamaru again. But I guess there’s a reason for sure. Everything that happens here in the world has a meaning. SH1 between Oamaru and Timaru is the route I haven’t taken on southward bound. Just 300km to go to Christchurch. I have kept pushing my buggy aiming for the peak thousands of times but it finishes in just a week. Sooner or later a...

Woke up to find myself okay. Isn’t it incredible for me to have myself already recovered? I ran almost 67km yesterday! Today less than 40km to Hampden but some more hills. I remember running that route from north to south just one month ago. Left Dunback at 8am. Route 85 is not fun for most of tourists because there’s nothing special to see or experience but I like it. It’s fun to find something that even local people cannot experience or see. Sheep trucks come and go so often. Some drivers give me a horn instead of saying hello to me. After running 13km I reached Palmerston where I did some shopping. I love towns with population less than 100. People living there make great effort to try to please a tourist like me who happens to step into the town with the best of their hospitalities. Isn’t it something exciting and interesting? About 1pm, I checked in at a motel in Hampden. I saw the Pacific Ocean for the first time in a while. I realized I came back...

Two weeks before I come back home. On February 10 I’ll be back in Osaka! And 9 days to Christchurch. I got to hold on. There is still a long way. I don’t want any troubles and accidents to happen. All I got to do is enjoy myself. On halfway point I reached Red Cutting Summit 640m but there were more hills. Heat, hill climbing and head wind… If I got two of them, my running performance goes worse. It was cool today with no heat. I had a daydream today that I was still running in the Nullarbor Plain, Australia. I kept silent for 12 hours including resting time. Just talked to a herd of sheep. After 6:30pm I arrived in Dunbuck. As I was thinking about camping out somewhere, I was so happy to see the sigh board of Dunback Hotel. 25 dollars were quite cheap! Talked with a lady drinking at a bar counter. I said I had come running from Ranfurly and people around her were extremely surprised. Today’s 66.76km is the 2nd longest distance record I have run in...

Taking a day-off after tough and hard 3 days. 160km run was not bad but got some damage on my body as well as legs. Yesterday Sam, a cyclist from San Francisco came late. We talked a while about our journey. He has spent almost 4 weeks in South Island. Tomorrow he will finish his ride and fly back home from Queenstown via Auckland. Did some shopping after laundry. Sweetcorn was 99 cents and looked so sweet and I got one. It was so good. It is said that we should take food cropped at the place at the right season of the year. It’s true. I found that every house has a small garden and makes any kind of vegetables. In summer the daytime is long and it’s good for crops. There’s been little rainfall so far. They say they had just 4mm last month. They need to save water before the council orders them to limit. Made a new plan for the route to Christchurch. I will have to follow the same route between Parlmerston and Oamaru as I ran from the south-bound. 430km in 12 d...

The first thing which came into my eyes when I woke up this morning was the Southern Cross shining so brightly in the night sky. I was so happy feeling something good would happen today. It was hot last night too and it’ll be sunny with no rain today. Leaving Omakau at 6:40, I followed Otago Central Rail Trail. Gravel road which used to be railway tracks. It’s good for mountain bike riders but not good for road bikers. For me it’s not good either because the tires are too thin to run on gravel road. Sometimes it’s hard to control and it takes more power to push and go. About 10:40 Susan the cyclist from Switzerland caught up with me. She said she would stay at camping ground tonight. It’s been dry and hot recently with no rain at all. A bit cool today. With no rain and no watering, grasses won’t be green any more. Sheep too seem to feel hot but they cannot take off their real wool coat. After running 25km on the trail, I got out of the trail and got back to SH...

Last night I went to bed at 8pm, it was pretty hot with the roof heated. But this morning I was wrapped in a sleeping bag because it was chilly. Under the heat of summer, it’s not good to sleep in a tent or in a small cabin. The sun sets about 10pm. And when the mountains surround the town, it starts to become dark about 8pm. Left Cromwell at 6:30 following SH8 running along the Clutha River. Had a comfortable tale wind. After 10am, the sun shines so hard that I sometimes need to take a break under the shade. Water in the bottle gets hot water and chocolate becomes hot chocolate easily. When it’s chilly I don’t drink water so much but this afternoon I drank about 3 liter. But it’s cool enough under the shade. Following Route 85 from Clyde. The landscape reminds me of desert plain. Some more rolling hills on the way. Met Susan a cyclist from Switzerland as soon as I entered the town of Omakau. Before 5pm, I checked in at Commercial Hotel in Omakau. I kn...

In the morning when I was just about to start, it was chilly enough to wear a jacket. But about 10am, it’s pretty warm under the sun. Some more hills but basically I’m going down along the Kawarau River. Shoulders were mostly narrow. I got to be careful for the rear traffic. Met a 63-year-old Japanese cyclist Mr.Ohashi from Kanagawa Prefecture. The scenes were almost the same, mountains after mountains. There were some vineyard and winery on the way. It was chilly in the morning but in the daytime I took a break in the shade of the trees. Totally different from the humid summer in Japan. About 4pm, I checked in at holiday park in Cromwell. The east coast is not that far. Got to keep going. *Distance Today: 50.70km *Total Distance from Auckland: 2236.96km * See Where I am * See More Photos

Because of the time limit (90 days from the arrival), I have to skip some of the route I planned. From Queenstown I'm going to head to the north-east and finish in Christchurch. Will run 575km in 2 weeks. Some more hills...Got to enjoy it! Next time I’ll run along the west coast from Pikton. I’d like to visit Mt.Cook, Milford Sound and Te Anau. Leaving at 9:30. Saying goodbye to the great view of Lake Wakatipu. As soon as I left Queenstown, hill climb started. Some were steep hills but no problems at all today just 20km. Seemed like perfect weather. Sunny and dry. Humid summer in Japan is totally different. Saw some cyclists on the way. And triathletes too. They seem to practice on the hilly route. About 1pm, I checked in at holiday park in Arrowtown. Just 20 years ago I was here for a gold panning tour. They say this town used to be at its best during the gold rush age but now it’s very quiet. Some more hills to go. Tomorrow 48km to Cromwell. 55...

Last night Mr.Kitamura did come and see me. We drank two bottles of wine. The cheese he got was so good. Talked a while over 3 hours. Life’s been good so far as well as my travel. No fear no worries. All we got to do is move on with love and courage. I happened to find another hotel to stay tonight. That’s why I am going to take another day off today. I just want to spend time enjoying tranquility along the lakeside. Wishing PEACE for people all over the world… Strolling around downtown and along the lakeside today too. Afternoon I walked in One-Tooth Geta for the first time in 2 weeks. Warm sunny day, wind feels good. Everybody looks happy in the summery sunshine. Sometimes I wonder if everything I see or experience is just an illusion or something created in a fake world. Or some day when I wake up to find everything dream... What’s important is that I live and am allowed to live in this world. Reality doesn’t matter. Any way I will do my ve...

Slow but easy day taking a day off. Got to move to another room. So after checking out I went to the laundry to wash my clothes. Then I tumbled into the downtown. Along the lakeside of Lake Wakatipu, I just spend time without anything in my mind. This is a peaceful place for tourists from all over the world to relax themselves. Queenstown is a little bit different from Lake Tekapo. Of course, it is a town made by human beings in many ways but everything looks perfect in harmony. People come here to enjoy something. Watching over the sky, some people enjoy flying. In the lake, in the river and on the mountains people find their own ways to have a really good time. Yes, you can enjoy doing nothing too. Just relax, there are more and more time to make ourselves comfortable here in Queenstown. Standing along the lake side and watching clear blue water of the lake, I take a deep breath. I feel something, something like new energy get into my body. Gradually...

Had some rain and wind last night. Still raining in the morning. 9 degrees. Chilly but no heating system in my tent. It’s always troublesome to put away a tent wet and heavy after camping in the rain. I wish I could have time to dry my tent under the sun. SH6 runs along the Lake Wakatipu which has a long shape from north to south. Traffic becomes heavier between Kingston and Queenstown. It’s because Queenstown is one of the most famous tourist spot. Two big hills and five small ones, not so steep but I’ve always had three hard days in a row. Not much energy left. Saw a beautiful rainbow on the lake. It rained on and off. With the sunshine the scenes would have been more gorgeous. A car stops from time to time. And I was often asked recently if I had a website of my own. It means we are living in a digital age. First I stopped by at New World the supermarket. No such supermarket in Queenstown. It’s a bit heavy to carry a lot of food and water but it’s...

It stopped rain before dawn. Clear sky with stars and crescent moon. But wind was blowing from north. 60km to Kingston. It’s going to be a long day. As a traveler, I am always trying to think in a flexible way. I never get captured on a fixed idea or common sense. Of course I do my very best just the way I am. Head wind was blowing as soon as I got into SH6. Ran on a cycle trail. Hard gravel road, mostly smooth surface. It’s only for cyclists and pedestrian. Stress free with no cars entering. Got back to SH6 in Garston. 20km before Kingston chilly rain started to fall. Plus hill climbing and head wind. Got to be patient. But it’s important to erase myself in my mind. With no ego in me, I may not feel anything. Just keep running with no one to talk to all day long. Running on empty, trying to be nothing. It isn’t easy but it’s a good opportunity to think how to be my-true-self. At 7:30, I arrived at holiday park in Kingston. It was one of...

50km to Lumsden today. 2 days to Queenstown. Yes, I was here in New Zealand 20 years ago too. It was when I was at a camping ground in Fox Gracier that I heard the news of Hanshin Awaji Great Earthquake. Something awful was happening but I had no idea what to do. I called my parents in Japan but it took 6 hours to get the phone connects. Some of my friends in Kobe lost their houses and families. 20 years have passed since then… Enjoying terrible head wind. Mr.Sato a cyclist from Japan caught up with me just before entering Lumsden. He said he also had met Mac in Dunedin. At the library of Lumsden I met 2 other cyclists from France and Germany. Luke from France treated us beer. Later Mr. Kitamura joined us. He came here to see me with my third pair of shoes. Finally today I completed running 2000km in New Zealand. Soon after I arrived in Lumsden, it started to rain. I checked in at cabin of camping ground at the north edge of the town. Tomorrow 6...

Has been quiet all through the night even in the town center. Late start. Journey on SH6 started heading to the north. Cloudy. When sun shines it’s warm. But still cooler than summer in Japan. After leaving Invercargill, ruler landscape has come back. Lots of farmland where there are lots of sheep and cow. Slow and mellow, I keep going forward. I’m not living a life on the fast lane. Keeping my own pace is the most important both in life and in running. Peace of mind is created in slow and mellow life. It’s a world with perfect freedom. Time and money is not everything we need. We got to know desire cannot control our world. Minimalism only can free you from any desire. Do not want MORE. Want less. Travel is an activity which draws one line on your map. It’s an action you can connect one point with another. The town where I am now is the place ordinary Japanese tourists never ever come and visit. And it’s also a place where any KIWIs just pass b...

  Just 2 months from the departure of Running Across New Zealand. Taking a day off here in Invercargill. The rest of my running days are limited. But all I got to do is live, run and enjoy myself. And I’m glad if all the supporters of mine are pleased in many ways. Also, I’d like to have more chances to share PEACE with people all over the world. Got to move to other hotel because there’s no vacancy at the hostel I’m staying now. Fortunately I found on the website a hotel near the town center. A room usually about 120 dollars is now just 45 dollars!! I booked without checking the details. And I have to spend time until 2pm when I can check in. Walked around Queens Park. What a peaceful moment I have! I guess I do like a park with lots of green and colorful flowers. Time is passing so slowly. Or time doesn’t pass anywhere. There might be time which is only accumulated. It’s a place to heal people. We human beings need some time to relax oursel...

13 degrees in my room this morning. Still chilly. The road is a bit wet because of a slight rain last night. Got to get back in Invercargill again. Next target is Queenstown and Wanaka. Hope it will be warm and sunny. Today I met some cyclists. After running about 10km there come two cyclists. They are Dan and Ben from Sydney, Australia. They started in Picton cycling around South Island. First they cycled along the west coast and today they are going to reach Bluff. Then next cycle along the east coast. Cycle tourist are easy to come across wherever we are. But it’s unusual and very rare to see a running traveler like me. Most of runners run at running races or they run as a daily routine around their neighborhood. Next cyclist were Yutaka from Hyogo, Japan. He said he was going to enjoy cycling in Australia. He’s a vegan and he wants to promote a vegan campaign. We chatted for a while along the roadside. We may have a chance to meet again in Jap...

It’s 2 months tomorrow since I left Auckland. In 4 weeks I’ll be back in Christchurch to finish my run. Left Invercargill at 8am. Soon it started to rain. Put on rain suits. 13 degrees is not warm. With no sunshine, it’s been chilly. Encountered a female adventurer from London just after I left Invercargill. Anna was her name. She started running across New Zealand in Bluff yesterday. It’s Day2 today. She runs 20km per day taking 5 months to cover 2000 miles(3200km) until she gets to Cape Reinga. Maybe I’ll catch up with her soon somewhere along the road. She was quite surprised and glad to know that another runner is running across New Zealand. We exchanged name cards and hugged goodbye. It’s been raining on and off. Soon after entering the town of Bluff it stopped. The Stiring Point is about 1km away from the town center and 1900km away from Auckland. At 1:21pm, I arrived at the point and finished my running across New Zealand. Spent about 1 hou...

Perfectly quiet morning in the town of Mataura. Whole town is sleeping. Started at 6:40am. Heading to Invercargill 50km away from here. Headwind was blowing all day. The former hals was some hills but the latter half almost flat. Without head wind I was able to run more easily. With a strong head wind I felt as if I had been climbing mountains. Seems like wind encouraged me to slow down. Running along Old Dunedine Road, but some part about 5km was gravel road. Quiet enough to enjoy running country side. In the afternoon, sunny blue sky spreads but the chilly wind was blowing. Peace Run should not make any enemies. So I always run with head wind together. All I can do is accept anything. At 3:45pm, I checked in at backpackers hostel in Invercargill. Tomorrow is the day I reach Bluff the southernmost point of New Zealand. And I’ll be at the Sterling Point which is the end of the State Highway 1. Finally I finished running across New Zealand at ...

As railway track is very close to this motel, I heard the cargo train running just before dawn. But except that the town is pretty quiet with no other noises. Highway 93 crosses SH1 just in front of the motel. I’ll follow Highway 93 today. Traffic is less than SH1, I’m sure. Left the motel at 7:40. The town is always quiet even in the evening and the morning as well. Wondering where all the cars and people are gone. Some hills in the former half. Just kept running with no one to talk to but cows and sheep in the farm. Cloudy. Sometimes drizzle. Wind blew from west or southwest. Had a chilly head wind almost all the time. No flat road so far. Rolling hills are endless. Finished at a motel in Mataura at 3pm. Tomorrow I follow SH1 again. I’ll reach the southernmost city Bluff the day after tomorrow. But I still have to keep running along the west coast until I get to Hokitika. Then I’ll be back in Christchurch my final goal via Arthur’s Pass. Hopefully I’d...

Just one month to get back home in Japan. I made up my mind to get to Invercargill on Day60. No need to think about the future. We got to concentrate on the very moment. When the right time has come, everything will be all right. Just 30km today. Had Japanese style breakfast, Miso soup, rice, avocado, fried eggs, erie seaweed and tomato. She made me some rice balls. I really appreciated. About 9am, I said goodbye to Yumiko, David and Luna on the bridge. It was impressive farewell. In downtown, Balclutha, I met a guy with a smile. “I saw you on the paper the other day. I know you’re from Japan and running for the charity.” His name was Mike and gave 20 dollars for donation. He came to Tokyo for the first time in 1964 in Tokyo Olympic Games. Yes, 2020 is also a year when the Olympic Games will be held in Tokyo again. I told him about it but he said he would like to travel by the bullet train or Shinkansen again. I gave him my business card and told him abou...

Taking a day off in Balclutha. Late breakfast and enjoyed walking around. Clutha river is the longest river in New Zealand. It’s famous for trout or salmon fishing. And this area used to be busy during gold rush age. Then we went for a drive. What impressed me most is there are many kinds of natural beauty here in New Zealand. Sea, rivers, mountains, lakes, forests, trails and caves… The landscape which can be seen from the car is blue of the sea and the sky, white of the clouds and green of the field. Only gray of the highway looks artificial. The population of New Zealand is just 4 million with 3 million in North Island, 1 million in South Island. Wherever we go, we don’t see very few populated area. It’s so different from Japan. Japan is a small country the same as New Zealand but 120 million people live in the populated area. And they take vacation almost at the same time, which cause some problems. We human beings are also a part of the nature. We have to...

Late start. Sunny today. No rainfalls for a while. Passed some small towns. Took a long break in Milton. Met two cyclist today. One is from Mr.Nagatoshi who lives in Wellington and enjoys cycling in South Island. He soon finished his trek in Dunedin. The other, a cyclist from Switzerland. It was a big surprise. He asked me if I had been running across Australia last year. Yes, we have already met in Australia. Kasper was his name. He runs a cycle shop in Switzerland. While taking a vacation and enjoying cycling tour, he came across me between Melbourne and Sydney. “What a small world!” That’s what we both say. After saying good bye to them, so many rolling hills slowed me down. Push and walk in climbing hills but run down hills. This interval gives me a damage on my legs and whole body. If there’s nothing to push, it’s okay but pushing buggy especially on steep hills causes lots of stress. It cannot be helped. About 5pm, I finished today’s run in Balcluth...

Spent 4 days and took a perfect rest in Dunedin but finally I get back on the road again. I remember the hard time when I struggled climbing when I entered Dunedin. And I remember what happened to me yesterday. A Chinese boy told me I was a famous runner. His friend is a cyclist but he knows about me very well. I’ve never thought about that. I checked out at Kiwis Nest after spending 4 nights. Last night I slept at dormitory, where there were 4 beds. Not so noisy but very cozy. At 8am, I met Mac at the Dunedin International Peace Pole just before Otago Museum. Then I got interview at Radio One 91FM of Otago University. Jamy was a DJ. He asked me so many questions. The questions included about nuclear power plant, World Peace, my travel and so on. We were talking about 15 minutes. Then at 9am we came back to Peace Pole where Pita came and see me off. Mac and I headed for the railway station. Pita took a movie of our running and riding together in Mac’s i-P...

Given a chance to have presentation to the students of University of Otago this morning. About 50 people including some staff of the university were there. Most of them are from Asia(a few from Japan too). They listened carefully to my talk. The class started at 11am but there seemed to be something wrong with the projector. I had no choice but keep talking. I was happy I had been a teacher. I kept talking for 30 minutes. One of the staff members kept making an effort to revive the projector and all of sudden he made it!! The latter half I was in my element with this digital tool. The students sometimes laughed out loud, sometimes nodded and became serious. I mainly talked about my experience through my travel, adventure, dreams and challenge. They were so glad and excited as soon as I finished the presentation. Some of them came up to me to hold out their hands. Others came up to talk to me or to thank me for the presentation. Their reaction was far more...

Dunedin's ‘Otago Daily Times(ODT)” introduces my PEACE RUN on today’s issue. This is the 2nd time I got interviewed but for the first time I saw on paper and website. Mac and I met at Governor’s Cafe at 8am, where we saw the article on paper edition. After that I walked on Ipponbageta around the Octagon by myself taking some pictures and movies. I remember being here just 20 years ago and I know most of buildings but I cannot remember how I was then. I’m wondering how 20 years matters to me. And I thought about 20 years from now. I’m sure the time will come but I have no idea how I can keep the memory today in my mind. I decided to stay another night after presentation for the language students of the University of Otago. I just want to do something for WORLD PEACE as often as possible if there’s a chance. It doesn’t matter even if the schedule has been changed. All I got to do is to be flexible. So I’m going to leave here on Wednesday morning. A...

I had a hard time from tough and hard hill climb yesterday but I don’t feel so bad. What’s done is done. Probably my body knows it so well. Hope my body is strong enough to be like an iron which is hit while it’s hot. Before noon I hopped into city center on Ipponbageta. Walking along George Street, I looked outstanding. Mac and I was supposed to meet Governor’s Cafe at 11:30am but I left before 11 to enjoy city watching. I still remember Knox Church when I first saw this tall building 20 years ago. Mac is kind of a good mixer. He likes to take photos with anyone he doesn’t even know wherever he is. After that, Pita showed me around the city in his car. Enjoyed the great view of the city from lookout on the mountain. Yes, I saw the same landscape yesterday but I was too tired to enjoy the view while climbing so hard. Next we visited Lanarch Castle. It is the only castle in New Zealand. This is a mansion which some rich man built. Its garden and cottage,...

Left Palmerston at 7:20. Some small hills one after another. About 6km point, Mac showed up with his friend Erina. Erina gave him a ride here with his bike. Mac and I met in Christchurch for the first time at Peace Bell meeting. As he promised he was here for riding with me. He’s also a teacher and a bike lover too. He once cycled across Japan from north to south. We are the same kind as we love PEACE, always searching for the way to WORLD PEACE. Today there were two peaks on the way. The first one was OK. But the second one was not easy. Hill climbing seemed to last forever. Some were too steep to run. So I just kept pushing and walking. Downhill also too steep and long, my right hand got numb on the brake lever. I took a break from time to time so that both my knees wouldn’t get damage. This hill climb may be harder than climbing Mt. Fuji twice per day. Or should I say running 100km trail marathon, running 100km marathon two days in a row. It was qui...

  Troy and Pauline...we met along SH1 just after I left Oamaru. Breakfast was gorgeous here in Chimneys B&B. I really enjoyed breakfast Shige made for me. Riku, his eldest son seemed to love One-Tooth Geta. He must have gone to bed with One-Tooth Geta on. Left Oamaru after 8am saying goodbye to Shige and Riku. Just after I left Oamaru, a pickup truck stopped in front of me. A man got out of the car. He said his name was Troy the farmer. He asked me so many questions showing his curiosity so much. I answered all the questions and he gave me some gifts in return. I got 3 pieces of pork steak and a dozen of free range eggs. What surprised him most was the story of my running across the Nullarbor Plain, Australia. “How crazy you are! I’ve driven across the Nullarbor before and I already knew how tough and hard it was.” he said. “I’m wondering how many crazy runners like you there are in Japan!” We chatted for about 20 minutes. “I cannot something ...

Welcome New Year’s Day at B&B Chimneys, Oamaru. Funny how nothing’s wrong with my body and legs at all. I can’t believe I ran 67km yesterday. Maybe whole my body is getting super now. The first thing I have to do is laundry. And ordinary breakfast as usual. Toast with vegemite, peanut butter and honey. Coffee, cereal and milk. Yogurt with some fruits. I’m just glad I’m alive here. Shige and his elder son Riku tried One-Tooth Geta for the first time. Riku really liked it. He says he wants to get one pair for a training tool. He’s also a runner who has completed a half-marathon. In the evening, Bettina Shige’s friend comes and visit and we had dinner together. I ate Japanese Curry and Rice (photo above) here in New Zealand for the first time for a long while. Thanks, Shige-san for your hospitality!! *Distance Today: 0km *Total Distance from Auckland: 1543.81km * See Where I am * See More Photos 　

2015 has just started. We human beings live together on Earth and we runners run together in this world. May PEACE always be with you in 2015!!