Yunohira Observatory (Sakurajima) Kinko Bay at Night and Tiny Sakurajima Mandarins

From Yunohira Observatory, I turned toward the bay and saw the lights of the town across the water stretching far into the distance. It was a completely different view from the mountainside I'd been looking at just moments before. Watching the town across the dark sea, I started wondering how everyone over there was spending the evening, and found myself unable to move for a while.

I'd brought some Sakurajima komikan to go with the night view. In my palm, it looked so much smaller than the mandarins I usually eat. I found myself concentrating just as hard as I had on the view, only now I was wondering if I could peel it properly.

I peeled it a little at a time, and even the segments inside were tiny. I couldn't help laughing. Of course they were—what else would you expect from a tiny mandarin? Still, it was adorable: a perfectly formed little mandarin. I kept gazing at it, pinched between my fingertips.

If I kept admiring it, I'd never get around to eating it. So I popped a segment into my mouth. The sweetness spread, and I wanted another straight away. But the next segment was tiny too, and I couldn't help treating it like something precious. Look at the view, look at the mandarin, then back at the view. My eyes and hands have been busy ever since.

I stopped eating and looked up. The town lights caught my eye all over again. With all that vastness in front of me, there I was pinching one tiny segment. The contrast struck me as funny, and this time I burst out laughing with the mandarin still in my hand.

I took my time with the last segment. Even after I'd finished it, I took one more look across the bay. I'd come to see a great big mountain, but by the time I left, I couldn't forget either the night view or those tiny Sakurajima mandarins. There's more to Sakurajima than looking up at it.