drron29

But yours is not the only post on missed ports. So I was just pointing out some of the significant changes SS is making to scheduled ports.

Well we always book our flights 11-12 months out. We like to use our points so booking early is still the better way to ensure you get what you want. But Turkish are doing a lot of promotions now so likely SS could get a very good deal.

But Silversea does cancel ports after you have booked and well in advance of sailing. We had our Back to back Singapore-Doha-Athens May 25 cruise get a 6 day gap between sailing in and out of Doha. They expected us to pay for the 6 nights in Doha as well as the inconvenience of packing then unpacking again on the ship. They won't say why but I think it likely to be a 6 day Middle eastern charter. So we cancelled our Doha-athens voyage and instead added a Capetown-Capetown cruise to our 26 Mahe-Capetown cruise as we wanted to see a little more of Eastern Africa. However about 2 weeks after booking the cruises suddenly became waitlisted. Now back on but now it has become a west African cruise which we have already done. In late November after our last Muse cruise we were rusted on SS passengers. now I am thinking it's time to look elsewhere.

Should have booked the Benoa to Yokahama on the Muse on 18/3. You could definitely have joined a winning trivia team.

We have only had Barcelona o changeover days so no shuttle. if booking a private tour they can pick you up at the cruise terminal so no need for a shuttle.

Say Hi to jonathon from the trivia Aussie mafia Ron and Ann who joined the Muse in Yokohama in October last year.

We have also received the changes. We were to board the Muse in Mahe on 7th january 2026. Now boarding on 6th January. We are doing back to back with the second segment on 23/1 being a Capetown to Capetown cruise with the same original itinerary as your Feb 5th cruise was. Now identical to your changed itinerary. however we have already done a West Africa cruise on the Explorer and were looking forward to the East Africa ports. The explanation of unforeseen logistical and operational changes when these cruises are 2 years away just doesn't sound right. Our first segment does call in at Durban so that is not the problem.

In Kyoto we stayed at the Crowne Plaza Kyoto which is just across the road from Kyoto castle. Lovely night views. We stayed in a renovated Japanese room. nice window shades. And a japanese style bathroom. you are meant to shower first before having a bath. There is a roof top bar but it was closed during Covid and hasn't reopened. so to the bar on the looby floor. Nice displays. And the view from the bar at night. Service though was very poor. not like Japan was.

For those into Expedition cruising there is one really different in Southern Tasmania but it is expensive. The latest ship was only launched last year. It also has a package with a 3 day cruise and then 3 days at Saffire a luxury lodge at Freycinet. Saffire really is luxury and we have stayed there 3 times and loved it. https://onboardexpeditions.com.au/expeditions-cruises/coast-to-coast-luxury/ Sorry to have gone off topic.

The next day was a Shinkansen ride to Kyoto. so a big breakfast was in order. I like the Japanese buffets with their mixture of Asian and Western dishes. This was my plate on that day. Got the 1115 hotel shuttle to Hamamatsucho station and caught a Yamanote train to Tokyo. We were only carrying our carry ons having used the Takubin service to send our large case to the Hilton Osaka where we will be checking in in 3 days time. The Takubin system makes train travel so much more comfortable. An easy transfer to the shinkansen lines but on our platform none of the little food stalls have reopened after Covid. On other platforms some were open so we went downstairs again to get some lunch for our train trip. So our train. Had some interesting neighbours across from us. An old Japanese couple probably in their 90s. Before sitting down they spread Newspaper on the floor. Each of them had 3 bottles of drink with some more in a bag on the floor. The 3 each that were on their trays they had finished by Nagoya. No wonder that they had to make a few trips to the front of the carriage. We were on the side which can have views of Mt. Fuji. I kept my 100& record with it as usual covered in cloud. Some shots from the train. Finally in just over 2 hours arrived in Kyoto and said good bye to our Nozomi shinkansen.

during that last walk I had a little stumble. didn't fall but put my hand onto a wall to steady myself and knocked the camera out of my hand. I was fine, the camera terminal. So on my last full day I went to Shibuya where there were several camera shops that also sold Used cameras which get good reviews. I took the hotel shuttle to Hamamatsucho station and caught the train to Shibuya. It is so easy to get around Tokyo by train. they are clean,virtually always on time and easy to use. Some of them have a dedicated wheel chair entrance. There are also dedicated women only carriages. In Shibuya. In Shibuya I was concentrating on finding the camera places. Only one was on a main street. I really learn't how useless Google Maps can be. I wanted to go to Map camera which is where I did buy a cheap replacement of my Sony camera. A used camera of a later Sony model. I stood outside the west exit of Shibuya Station and google said go to the east exit then it is 12 minutes to Map camera. It took me about 25 minutes. After buying my camera I fired up my google maps and it told me the west exit of Shibuya station was 2 minutes away. And it was. That night we went to an upmarket food court called a Goumerium. We picked a seafood place. I had a fried oyster set with amberjack sashimi. very nice. Rojaan had a salmon and salmon roe Donburi bowl but they insidted it should be part of a set so it came wit a bowl of Udon which I slurped my way through. We were followed when we left by the security guard. Outside a nice light display with reflections. Back to the hotel where Rojaan was desperate for a wine. I had a beautiful G&T made with a Japanese craft gin.

We did the Cape to Cape on the Explorer in 2017. began in Ushuaia and went to the Falklands and South Georgia but not Antarctica. The wildlife in South Georgia was fantastic.

Now you may notice that very few of the tourist things appear in my asian trip reports. Basically because with Thailand we have visited over 100 times and Japan over 50. So generally I jus go walking. usually just to see what I can find. but sometimes I do set out to do something. today was such a day. I set off to walk on the Rainbow bridge. That is the name given by the public but it's official name is the Tokyo port Connecting Bridge. It was a bit of a walk from the hotel to the bridge. Passed by another set of flood gates tor the canal. Plus views over Tokyo bay. Then the bridge itself. You catch a lift up to the walkway. Great views down Tokyo Bay towards Yokohama. And across to Odaiba Island. Another beautiful sunny day. The train runs down the middle of the lower level of the bridge. You can see it coming so you can get ready for a photo. I walked back a different way. Those are all barges to carry cement around Tokyo's waterways. Lots of new apartment buildings. I would hate to live there. That is the expressway running over the top of it. Two more levels of roadway below that plus a train line. Now another plant that has the seasons wrong. I saw lots of autumn foliage but this is a flowering plum at least 2 months early.

Definitely number 1.

The next day was a beautiful day so Rojaan and I went for a walk along the waterfront. The locals were enjoying it on the top of the water taxis. A glimpse of the Hamarikyu Gardens which are worth a visit if in Tokyo. That afternoon I caught the Automatic train -the Yurikamome line - to Odaiba Island. Again a new developement. Amazing roadworks. The Maritime museum. It's only 4pm but the sun is setting. You get views of the planes going into Haneda. Lots of entertainment. The big kids can have a go in go karts. This fellow wasn't that good. Interesting buildings. And more for the kids. I got on the train back to the hotel at 5pm and it was night already. but I had a good seat. The next morning I took Rojaan over to the island to look around. You see some interesting sights. Maybe she had been teleported there.

I took Rojaan shopping but no purchases. This is in a Softbank branch. You can be taken care of by a robot. The streets in this part of Tokyo are unlike most as this is a recently developed area. After dropping R ojaan back at the hotel I wandered a bit more to get my steps up. little temples and shrines are everywhere.

A man walks into a bar and orders three pints of Guinness... He sits at the back of the room, drinking a sip out of each one in turn. When he finishes all three, he goes back to the bar and orders three more. The bartender says to him, "You know, a pint goes flat after I draw it and it would taste better if you bought one at a time." The man replies, "Well, you see, I have two brothers. One is in America, the other in Australia, and I'm here in Dublin. When we all left home, we promised that we'd drink this way to remember the days when we all used to drink together." The bartender admits that this is a nice custom, and leaves it there. For many months the man becomes a regular in the bar and always drinks the same way. He orders three pints and drinks the three pints by taking drinks from each of them in turn. Just after New Years Day, he comes in and orders two pints. All the other regulars in the bar notice this and fall silent. When he comes back to the bar for the second round, the bartender says, "I don't want to intrude on your grief, but I wanted to offer my condolences on your sad loss." The man looks confused for a moment, then a light dawns in his eyes and he laughs..... "Oh, no," he says, "Everyone's fine. It's me......I'm doing Dry January

When we cruised on the Explorer from Ushuaia to Capetown we travelled to the Sacred Valley for 5 days with a full day in Machu Pichu. We also visited Cusco, Iguazu Falls, 3 days in BA and 3 days in Ushuaia. All booked ourselves. most refundable if we had to cancel. And only just a little more than the SS pre cruise package with Machu Pichu. And all in very good hotels.