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Sumo
Sione and Hideo warming up the Newport kids.
Kites
More quest for parking at Brenton Point for the kite flying events. Finally on my fifth circuit around the parking area, a car pulled out and I zipped in quickly. The air was grayer and mistier today - also hotter - the kites looked ghostly in the mist. The wind was very strong and kept them aloft really well. However, there was nothing specifically Japanese about the kites. These seemed like the same kinds of kites you could see at Brenton Point any Sunday. The only difference was that the kite store from Newport had a booth set up to sell kites and wind socks to festival goers. Once I saw the frog wind socks, I had to have one. Had to. Couldn't leave Brenton Point without one.
Parking
It took us forever to get to Newport this morning. Traffic everywhere. I think we crawled the last 30 miles or so. Well, maybe only from the Mt. Hope Bridge to America's Cup Ave - but that's still a long way. Once we got there, I couldn't find a parking space within walking distance of Freebody Park where the martial arts extravaganza was taking place. We drove around endlessly, peeking through the fence every time we drove past the park. Mostly the judo tournament was going on - lots of local participants.
We missed the first two sumo sessions but finally found a parking spot and caught the last one of the day. Besides Hideo and Sione fighting the final best of 5 matches for the championship of the whole weekend, there was the usual "Newport Challenge" - the children of Newport against each other and against the real sumo champions. Always a real treat to watch. In the photo, the champs are leading the kids in a leg warmup exercise called "sko" (at least that's how they pronounce it - I have no idea how to spell it).
These guys have groupies. Their coach, John Jacques of Hawaii, tells the story of one time four years ago when they were shopping in Newport. Two little boys came up to them and said "You guys look like sumo wrestlers". They answered: "We are sumo wrestlers." The kids attached themselves to them -followed them everywhere for the whole of the Black Ships festival - hung out with them between demos, attended the children's sumo workshops, participated in the challenge, everywhere... Some of the kids are getting pretty good at playing sumo. Maybe they'll be ready for the 2008 Olympics.
Books
After I bought the frog windsock, we headed to Thames Street, which I normally hate because it's full of tacky shops, to the kite store for a pole to fly the darn thing from. More quest for parking. At last a parking spot. On the way to the kite store we pass Armchair Sailor, a bookstore specializing in marine books of all kinds. Could I pass up a browse? Nope. Many wonderful things. I am trying not to buy any more books until I finish the huge pile of unread books but I could not pass up Farley Mowat's The Boat Who Wouldn't Float..
I started reading it at dinner in the Jade East restaurant in Warren and have only put it down to drive since then.
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