Stranded on Zamami

“You’re going to Okinawa?! You should go to a small island too!”

All my friends recommended; citing fun activities and great views

・・・・・・・

I researched places and organized the weekend

Going with two friends who wanted to travel

A nice tropical vacation but we had no idea

How quickly our itinerary would unravel…

Flew from Osaka to Naha, then took a bus to the port

Passed by shrines, beaches and a beautiful resort

Bought round trip tickets and boarded a giant high speed ferry

We sat and relaxed, drinking piña coladas with cherries

One stop and two hours later, we disembarked

“This island is gorgeous!” my friend remarked

Blue skies and clear waters filled with rainbow fish

A nice warm breeze making the trees gently swish

Left our backpacks at a hotel and went out to eat

Okinawan soba and chanpuru stir fry with no meat

We met a new friend who gave us an amazing map

It had restaurants, activities, phone numbers and all that

We called the boat shop to rent snorkels and clear canoes 

The answer she gave us should have been our first clue

“Sorry, the wind is too strong” she said in Japanese

I talked to every shop on the island and they all agreed

“Looks like we can’t do any water activities today,

Let’s ask some locals and see what they say”

What else could we do to pass the time?

At least it’s only one day, tomorrow will be fine

We went to the grocery store to check it out

Surely there would be people, I had no doubt

The doors were open but no one was there

So we walked around the mountain to the beach where

We saw a cloudy sunset and giant waves in the distance

Then a sudden downpour started and stayed consistent

By the time we ran back to the town we were already soaked

“Should we look for some umbrellas?” I lightly joked

The island was so small, there were no convenience stores

When the rain stopped, I saw a shop open their doors!

Three locals, Ako, Kato, and Naru welcomed us inside with smiles

They were selling crafts, jackets, and T shirts with cute art styles

The six of us laughed and talked for more than an hour

Ako invited us to a restaurant beyond the field of flowers

Delicious noodles and cooked vegetables, we tried many new foods

Even a liqueur fermented tofu with the strange sauce it exudes

After dinner, she brought us all over town

Sang at karaoke bars and danced; break it down!

We were having so much fun meeting all her friends

I had hoped this trip would never end!

Well, I soon got my wish when the hotel owner found us

He looked nervous, clearly he had something to discuss

Surprising me, in English, with the last thing I expected him to say

“Maybe long stay… because boat not coming” What?! No way!

In the morning I woke up hoping it wasn’t true

But the boat didn’t come. “What should we do?!”

Downstairs I picked up a bag of food rations from the row

Checked out of the hotel, now with nowhere to go

Plants dripped with water into puddles all around

From last night's storm that could no longer be found

The sea looked calm and the sun was shining

It was such a beautiful day, I thought he could be lying

Drank tea and ate our rations on the docks

My feet dangled over the water, wearing shoes and socks

I called the resort on the main island and explained the situation

Found out that this happens a lot, what an easy cancellation

All water activities were still unavailable, but then

We passed by a shop that rented bikes for 2,000 yen!

Exploring the island we saw everything that there was

Lizards, goats, cranes and our new friends from last night because

Everyone in town was outside doing all sorts of things

Aunts harvesting crops and kids ‘fishing’ with strings

Grandpas clearing branches, laundry put out on a line

Dogs playing with crabs and store owners cleaning their signs

We biked all day, up and down the mountains

Chilling at beaches and washing off sand in the fountain

Eating sea grapes, goya vegetable, and jimami peanut tofu

Watching home movies and K-pop videos with a grandma too

At night, I looked up to see the galaxy and stars

Accompanied by music, mostly drums and guitar

We met up with our Okinawan friends for drinks

“Will the ferry come tomorrow, what do you think?”

The ferry did not arrive in the morning

Once again, there was an announcement warning

“The wind is too strong and the waves are tough”

Everything’s cancelled, yada yada, all that stuff

This went on for days, each adding a little more stress

One being that on Monday at 9am I had a huge test!

I needed to be back in Osaka by then or I’d automatically fail

Second: the town was cash only, no ATM, you know what that entails

Knock knock knock! We woke up to a bang on the door

The hotel owner told us there was a boat on the shore

It was not the ferry, the sea still had too much danger

But we could choose to take the risk and trust a stranger

“Let’s go for it” I said but we still had a debate 

To me, there were so many reasons not to wait

Our flight, the test, no money, and another storm

How bad could it be? The water’s warm!

We said goodbye to our local friends filled with feelings

They said “we all had a once in a lifetime meeting”

Ichi go ichi e, such a special Okinawan phrase

Meant to treasure life’s moments, like our wonderful days

Thinking back, if it didn’t rain, we might not have met

We had plans to swim, canoe and leave, it was already set

This was such a fun and unique experience, I’m really grateful

I have to come back to Zamami Island, don’t you think so?

Nothing is worse than being stranded, you’d bet

But this story is not over yet

Ran to the dock, paid, then met the captain and crew

Seeing the tiny boat I thought, “what did we get ourselves into?”

Jumped onto the boat and put our bags in a stack

We began our journey. Well, this is it, no turning back

With nine passengers and three crew members

This was about to be a trip I’ll always remember

An older lady handed me a life jacket, but it wouldn’t zip

I tried on a bunch, even the other style didn’t clip

Forget the lifejacket, I might be the best swimmer here

I was a certified lake lifeguard for almost seven years

Then we heard some strange sounds like something broke

But no one was panicking, even though there was smoke!

The water became violent leaving the land’s protection

The captain drove fast, making turns in all directions

Barely missing waves taller than us as they crashed

Water carried by wind, we were brutally smashed

Extremely rocking from side to side

I wasn’t sure if we’d make it out alive

We sat on benches but had nothing to hold

Water slapped my face, it was freezing cold

Suddenly tilting 80 degrees towards the sky

I fell forward but was caught by the German guy

Nine inches of salt water covered the ground

The rubber chicken in the back was being whipped around

A crew member, hands out, laid flat on the floor

Choosing to drown in the water, he was hardcore

Everyone screamed each time we dropped down a wave

A life or death rollercoaster, where we couldn’t be saved

Like these massive walls of water weren’t scary enough on their own

A California couple checked the radar on their phone

Showed us that the worst zone, purple, was rapidly approaching 

My friend was already freaking out, “it’ll be ok” I was coaching

I spared the Japanese people by avoiding translating

But from the top of the wave I saw where the purple was waiting

Waves four times the size of our boat’s height

Surges of cresting water, slamming down with all their might

In the low points of the troughs, water blocked our view

I could feel the boat using all its power to climb and I knew

When we got to the top on our ascent

That we were fighting these waves, one hundred percent

Every two steps forward, the waves pushed us one back

The ocean was our enemy and we were under attack

Our captain could do this, I had to believe

We’ve made it this far just through dodges and weaves

Water was hitting us every second, I couldn’t see

The water on the floor was almost up to my knees

I clenched the bench’s edge as tight as I could

If I fell into the ocean now, it wouldn’t be good

There were moments where the boat was in the air

I wished we had seatbelts or even a normal chair

When we hit the water again, it was hard to hold on

One little slip and you would be gone

It was so crazy, a fish was launched in

And green seaweed was thrown onto our skin

But everyone’s bags were safe in the closet inside

While we were outside, fighting for our lives

What was the captain’s experience in the front?

I wasn’t sure how he was bearing the brunt

After another hour it settled down

Luckily everyone made it, no one drowned

As we approached Naha’s port, the sun came out

We were finally past that treacherous route

Soon, we got off the boat and gave each other a squeeze

We were safe on land, it was hard to believe

The captain waved from above, dressed like a pro

Laughing because this wasn’t his first rodeo

He pulled away from the port, he couldn’t stay

He and his crew had to go home the same way!

Speechless, we all walked down the street

Looking like we had just been dunked and beat

Photos and videos could never show the wave’s scale

But somehow I lived to tell you this tale