Underwater crossing from Honshu to Kyushu

A touching sight opened up to my view: three kilometers away, across the strait, Kyushu was visible — the last island. Here's Google's instruction on how to get there: Take the elevator down - Take the pedestrian tunnel — Go down the hallway — Take the elevator up.

But even before I go down into the underground (underwater) passage, there's an interesting exhibit outside: replicas of mid-19th century cannons that the Japanese Choshu-han clan used to return fire against American, British, English and Dutch fleets attacking the port of Shimonoseki. The kilometer-long tunnel is popular with joggers. They just run back and forth through it.

I walked through silently, in quiet, like everyone else, went up following Google's directions and came out, the way we exit from an apartment building entrance, from an elevator. I stopped and looked around. Another cyclist came out of the neighboring elevator, got on his bike and rode off. And I stood there. The frame captured all the symbols of Japan at once: sea, islands, gates and a Coca-Cola vending machine. A cargo ship was passing right where I had walked a minute ago, just a couple hundred meters below, underwater. I'm on Kyushu, after two and a half months. No music, no one meeting me, just a little firework inside. I'll go celebrate — order a double cheeseburger at McDonald's.