SORE BUTT, SORE KNEE, SORE SAGA SO FAR

I got up in the morning, said good bye to Pascal, and headed out towards Saga. I planned on stopping by Karatsu to check out the Onizuka train station, but that would've been too much for my knees. I grabbed a bite to eat and headed off around 10:30am to Saga. The route was fairly straightforward. My knees were sore as was my butt. The cold weather was also giving me a sore throat. Nothing too exciting along the way but at least there weren't too many hills.

By lunchtime, my left knee was hurting to the point where I had to get off the bike and walk for a bit before hopping back on. It was unbearable by the time I reached Saga and so was my butt. Why did I decide to buy a brand new leather saddle when I knew that these things take time to break in before they are comfy! It is harder than a rock and it gave me a bruise on my right cheek. It better be worth it when it's broken in...until then I'm putting a padding cover on it. So today's riding covered 39 miles in 6.5 hours...crawling time!

Another surprise when I checked in to this so-called youth hostel in Saga...they cannot give me the youth hostel rate because I'm not a Japan youth hostel member. So I had to pay $50 a night, way over my budget but I was defeated at this point. I contacted the Kumamoto hostel I was supposed to stay at the following day to cancel my stay...they still had to charge me $10 for a late cancellation fee. Add a $10 overpriced dinner, ice and relief pads for my knees...damn unexpected expenses. I guess these are to be expected in any trip.

The hotel I stayed in was deserted when I checked in...how does this place stay in business?! I ate dinner by myself in a big dining area. Only one other guest arrived towards the end of my meal, what a difference from my stay in Fukuoka! It was so deserted and quiet that it made me further depressed. I am planning to just take a train to Kagoshima to catch up for my down day tomorrow. It will put me closer to the south and avoid boring rides through towns. The headwinds are a bitc* too! At least when I start heading north the wind will help me out!