On May 2, Silver Moon called at Miyako. Looking out from the balcony in the morning, people were already waiting on the pier: a warehouse roof marked MIYAKO, a WELCOME TO MIYAKO banner, a few flags, and white tents. It was overcast, the ground wet, the hills green — the day began with the pier's welcome.

From the balcony, the Miyako pier: the warehouse roof marked MIYAKO, the WELCOME TO MIYAKO banner, flags, and tents

Morning: station and market

After nine we walked to Miyako Station. Its gabled roof carried a clock showing about 9:12, below it the sign 宮古駅, Miyako Station, and on the right, Sanriku Railway Tourist. Blue sky and white clouds — completely different weather from the overcast pier that morning.

Miyako Station: the clock on the gabled roof, and the signs 宮古駅 and Miyako Station

Inside the station stood a model: a white horse pulling a small red-and-white tram car, the horse caught mid-stride, the car windows pale blue. We never learned which story the model tells, but standing in the station hall, it looked very much like it was seeing travellers off.

A model inside the station: a white horse pulling a small red-and-white tram car

Next, the market. The crabs in the tank were still alive, fine hairs on their shells, moving slowly in the blue tank. Market seafood is shown to you like this, with no need for words — freshness is already written in the water.

Live crabs in a market tank, fine hairs on their shells, moving in the blue water

On a table sat box after box of sashimi: salmon, orange-red, on the left, and flounder with silvery skin on the right, each box with shiso leaves, a lemon slice, and shredded daikon. A price tag showed only a corner, with サーモン on the salmon box. Market sashimi is not about display; it is about clean cuts and tidy arrangement.

Boxes of sashimi on a table: salmon and flounder, with shiso leaves, lemon slices, and shredded daikon

This tray was what we bought at the market to eat: bluefin tuna ōtoro, thick-cut, pink flesh with a fatty sheen, on a blue-and-gold patterned paper tray. The ōtoro was clearly the star of the day — even the photo had to put it in the centre.

Bluefin tuna ōtoro bought at the market, thick-cut, pink flesh with a fatty sheen, on a blue-and-gold patterned paper tray

The market building itself deserved a photo: 宮古市魚菜市場 in large characters on the wall, a pale-blue metal roof, clean and crisp under the blue sky. Station to market, market back to the pier — that was the Miyako morning route.

The Miyako City Fish and Vegetable Market building, its name on the wall, pale-blue roof

Back at the pier around noon, Silver Moon's bow sat under a blue sky, SILVER MOON on the hull, netting and traffic cones along the pier, a few people walking by the ship. The morning's clouds had cleared, and the ship shone white.

Silver Moon's bow at the pier, SILVER MOON on the hull, under a clear blue sky

Lunch back on board

Lunch was back on board. The menu's starters page listed vegetable samosas with cilantro mango chutney, spicy shrimp fritters with tartare sauce and coleslaw, Vietnamese chicken pho, butternut and couscous salad, and a chickpea wrap with sweet potato fries. Everything was written plainly; ordering needed no guessing.

The lunch menu starters page: vegetable samosas, spicy shrimp fritters, Vietnamese chicken pho, butternut salad, chickpea wrap

The bread basket came first, four rolls crowded in a cloth: a yellow one with black sesame, a plain one, a mixed-grain one, and a dark one. The ship's bread basket is never careless — each roll's crust is different.

Four rolls in the bread basket: yellow with black sesame, plain, mixed-grain, and dark

For the starter we ordered the spicy shrimp fritters from the menu: two golden, crisp fritters, with a lemon wedge, coleslaw, and a smear of tartare sauce. The crust was crisp enough, the inside still tasted of shrimp, and lemon was the right finish.

Spicy shrimp fritters: two golden crisp fritters, with a lemon wedge, coleslaw, and tartare sauce

The main was a steak, topped with chopped herbs and garlic, beside it sweet potato mash piped into a swirl, broccoli, asparagus, carrot, and a small dish of dark sauce. The steak was generous, and the sauce came separately — take as much as you like. We have always liked that way of serving.

Steak main course: steak topped with herbs and garlic, sweet potato mash, broccoli, asparagus, carrot, and a small dish of sauce

Evening on the pier: champagne and drums

At four in the afternoon, back on the balcony, an ice bucket and two filled champagne glasses were already on the table, the cork beside them, white tents below on the pier, drums lined up in a row, the crowd slowly gathering. Champagne at this hour is not about the wine; it is about the mood before sailing.

Champagne on the balcony table: an ice bucket and two filled glasses, white tents and drums lined up on the pier below

Then came the taiko performance. Drummers in green formed up, large drums in a row, movements in unison, the WELCOME TO MIYAKO banner still beside them, two mascots standing behind the crowd. Seen from the ship above, the drums carried further than from ground level: the whole pier had become a stage.

Taiko performance on the pier: drummers in green in formation, large drums in a row, the WELCOME TO MIYAKO banner and mascots beside them

By about 4:50 in the evening, the sea had opened up: a breakwater reaching into the water, green hills on both sides, the port buildings falling back to the right, clouds drawn into long lines across the sky. The Miyako day began with the pier's welcome and ended with quiet on the water.