Jan 2016 World Cruise live report

[Paulchili]

Shanghai appears to be an amazing city in so many different ways. Before visiting this city for this, our first time people would tell us about how unreal the size and scope of this city is. However, it was hard to comprehend this until I had the opportunity to see this city for myself.* While I only had the drive out to the railway station, the walk around downtown and the long river cruise out to sea, I could grasp the size of this city and and how far it has come to be a modern city.* The downtown area was very wheelchair friendly.

 

Comparing today's Shanghai to the one we first visited in the early 80's, it is now hard to imagine that there was NOTHING in Pudong then except a few old warehouses. Today most of Shanghai's skyscrapers are on that side of the river. Most certainly no bullet trains, no fashion stores, no highways and very few cars - one could only see millions of bicycles and pedestrians in blue or green Mao suites.

A most amazing transformation in a relatively short time!

Edited April 5, 2016 by Paulchili

[Floridiana]

Last year, our ship went from Shanghai to the Chinese port of Dalian before Tianjin. Maybe the Chinese authorities are upset that ships try to skip Dalian. In Dalian the one really good point of interest was that we got to visit a local retired couple in their apartment. The city itself is not interesting and it was fogged in. Our ship tried to pick up fresh fish, but the hotel manager refused to accept the provided low quality.

 

We went to Jeju later on the cruise. Our tour took us to a lovely bonsai garden and traditional women divers. I am glad you got to see the cherry blossoms.

Edited April 5, 2016 by Floridiana

[jaxw17]

Your post really do help those who are booking a RTW trip or those like me who can but dream.

I am loving seeing it through your eyes and interesting writing.

Thank you

[Waynetor]

Another time change overnight - this time back to China time - 12 hours off of home.

 

Today we are cruising the Yellow Sea - very calm.***Today was a lovely day at sea despite a fairly cool breeze with seasonably cool weather (15C or 59F) but at least the sun was out.

 

This morning we had our usually CC meet and greet for this segment with several new members joining.

 

Thursday is the 3rd of the exclusive shore events for those doing the full circumnavigation.* We are doing an exclusive tour and lunch at the Great Wall of China.* Oceania description - Guest will experience this incredible landmark in a unique setting.* Surrounded by lush greenery, enjoy a delicious lunch in an exclusive venue at the foot of an unrestored section of the wall. After lunch explore the Great Wall of Badaling, the first section of the wall opened to tourists after being restored in 1957. 8:00am Depart from pier, 8:00am-11:30am Transfer to the lunch venue by the Great Wall 11:30am-1:00pm Lunch by the Great Wall 1:00pm-1:30pm Transfer to the Great Wall of Badaling Section 1:30pm-3:30pm Visit to the Great Wall 3:30pm-7:00pm Transfer back to the ship. -* note other part of desc says 11am – 10pm and our tickets say meet at 8:45am and there was an announcement tonight that we were arriving late, but whatever the case we will have to go through immigration again before starting our tour.

 

By the time we get on board, do a clean-up and change it will be a late dinner by our normal standard. This trip involves around 11 hours and we have been told besides the difficulty of getting on and off the bus, there are no accessible washrooms anywhere on the tour so Freda will enjoy some more time on the ship tomorrow in the computer room and spending time with some crew left behind.

 

Originally some CD staff were to accompany us on the trip tomorrow, but we found out today that no crew can be cleared until all passengers have been cleared so no crew staff on the tour with us but about 130 crew will be doing a Great Wall staff tour after we leave - nice for them.

 

Tonight was the Captains welcome party with open bar for a couple hours in 3 of the bar areas. At some chairs near us in the lounge was a man and his wife.* The husband kept staring at a drunken lady swigging her gin as she sat alone at a nearby table.* The wife asked, "Do you know her?"* "Yes," sighed the husband, "I’m surprised she is on the same cruise as us but she's my ex-wife. I understand she took to drinking right after we divorced 7 years ago, and I hear she hasn't been sober since."* "My God!" said the wife, "Who would think a person could go on celebrating that long?"

 

Today’s thought for the day – Voyage, travel, and change of place impart vigor.

[Floridiana]

You always come up with the funniest stories! :)

[Going Coastal]

Not sure you will get this before you leave, but the Wall at Badaling is very accessible. When we were there last year I was happy to use the elevator and then the ski lift type car. There is also a western style accessible bathroom with an attendant at the base of the building.

 

Sent from my KFTT using Tapatalk

[Waynetor]

Beijing, sometimes Romanized as Peking, is the capital of the People's Republic of China. Beijing is the 2nd largest Chinese city by urban population after Shanghai. The population as of 2012 was 20,693,000. Beijing, literally the "Northern Capital," has been the seat of power in China since the days of Kublai Khan and is the nation's political, cultural, and educational center. It is home to the headquarters of most of China’s largest state owned companies. Beijing is home to 41 Fortune Global 500 companies, the 2nd most in the world behind Tokyo. The Beijing Capital International Airport is the 2ndbusiest in the world by passenger traffic.

Beijing is situated at the northern tip of the North China Plain, which opens to the south and east of the city while mountains border to the north and west.

At the heart of this immense, fascinating metropolis is the Forbidden City, a 250-acre complex of palaces, pavilions and courtyards that was the home of the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Even the most seasoned travelers will experience a sense of awe as they approach the Forbidden City's 8m (25ft) high walls and enter through the magnificent Meridian Gate, a symbol of the sun at its zenith and of imperial power and splendour. Surrounding the Forbidden City are several former imperial gardens, parks and scenic areas. Other highlights of this city include Tiananmen Square (the world’s largest public square), the Temple of Heaven a UNESCO World Heritage Site where emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties made visits for annual ceremonies of prayers to Heaven for good harvest and its surrounding garden, Lama temple, Summer Palace, the Panjiayuan Market and the Great Wall of China. There are over 100 museums in Beijing.

Beijing Municipality has 20 nature reserves that have a total area of 1,339.7sq km (517.3sqmi). The mountains to the west and north of the city are home to a number of protected wildlife species including Leopard, Leopard cat, Wolf, Red fox, Wild boar, Masked palm civet, Raccoon dog, Hog badger, Siberian weasel, Amur hedgehog and Roe deer. The Beijing Aquatic Wildlife Rescue and Conservation Center protects the species of salamander, stickleback and duck on the Huaijiu and Huaisha Rivers. The Beijing Milu Park south of the city is home to one of the largest herds of Père David's deer that are now extinct in the wild.

 

Located on the shores of the Bohai Sea, Tianjin is home to the Tianjin International Cruise Home Port, the gateway to Beijing. A 130km (92mi) long expressway links the 2 cities.

In terms of urban population, Tianjin is the 4th largest in China, after Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangzhou. Tianjin is a dual-core city, with its main urban area (including the old city) located along the Hai River, which connects to the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers via the Grand Canal; and Binhai, a New Area urban core located east of the old city, on the west coast of the Bohai Gulf.

[Waynetor]

The weather forecast for Tianjin was for a high of 25C (76F) and sunny but a bit cooler in the mountain area of the Great Wall.

 

We were off the ship just before 9 this morning.* We had to go through a face to face immigration in the terminal. Our group to the Great Wall had 5 buses - there was around 120 guests on the trip in total.

 

Also in port today was a Costa ship, there were large numbers of Chinese passengrs in the terminal - not sure if they were from the Costa ship or not.* There were some taxis available outside with signs saying 'Englsih speaking'.

 

We left the port about 9:20 and the drive to our lunch stop, including a washroom break was about 3.5 hours.* Our bus would hold 47 but there was only 23 of us so lots of room and nice, comfortable seats.*

 

This port area is very large - The port of Tianjin was in the news last August when 2 massive, deadly explosions rocked the port, we were docked about 5km from where the explosion happended.* Tianjin is very big in car and elctronics manufacturing and has an Airbus 320 assembly plant.

 

The Gobi desert is to the north and sometimes dust storms will cloud the sky adding to the haze.* 25 years ago only high ranking officials had cars but now most people do which has addded to the pollution.* I did not see any motorcylces but we were on main highways most of the time. Our guide said there is mandatory driving lessons required to get a license but bribery is common to bypass the training.* In countries where most of us on CC grew up we had the experience of learning some driving techniques from observing our parents and others, but here there is not much history of driving vehicles, people just have their prior bicycle experience to draw from, which leads to a lot of very poor driving skills.*

 

Most of the drive was quite plain - no special things to see exect all the trees and shrubs planted along the highways were in bloom.* They have planted extensively along the highways here to make it look better and to help with polution.* Coming out of the port onto the highway we headed north and did not see much of Tainjin.* We passed a lot of fish ponds - most are for growing food fish but some are used for sport fishing - an expensive way to get your dinner. I noticed apartment blocks were built in group of 6 or more near identical buildings that just appered as isolated islands often with little other housing around them.* I got the opposite view of the bullet train when we were driving about 120km/h and one of them just wizzed past us.

 

After about 3 hours suddenly there was a wall of mountains to the right side of the bus.* After a bit we were driving through them and could see several parts of the Great Wall - just enough to get us ready for what was to come.*

 

Our stop for lunch was done superbly.* It was done on a large outdoor patio with about 25 tables set up and a row of buffet items on each side.* They had over a dozen hot and cold items to choose from plus an array of deserts.* We also had Chinese wine, beer and soda.* This was part of a park, with no building nearby so everything would of had to be trucked there.* Each table had a very nice floral arrangement that 1 person could take* - I brought it back for Freda to enjoy. The weather was great for a change.* We had an hour and half to enjoy lunch and look around a little bit before taking a 15 minute ride to the Great Wall.* The only down side there is the restrooms - squat type, no hot water and no towels.

 

We left at 5:30 and was back on the ship at 9.* The ship kept the buffet open late as not only our excursion got back late, others did also.* All in all it was a wonderful trip - just a bit on the long side to see this wonderful World Heritge site.* It is unfortunate we only had the one day here and only had the chance to do 1 thing.

 

I asked our guide if he knew about the reason we could not dock here for 2 nights as originally scheduled.* He explained the port is built on reclaimed land and has not been registered.* Unregistered land has special rules on how it can be used.* Not sure why, but it is in those rules that ships can not come to this port from another Chinese without first going to a foreign port.* This rule was in effect in 2015 but was allowed to slip by, but this year it is being enforced so several cruise lines are having to make the same changes we did. Sounds like we could of gone to South Korea and then stayed here 2 nights but that would have meant dropping some other port.

 

Our guide gave some of the history of the various Chinese periods and the building of the wall.* We were visiting the Badaling section of the wall that was last rebuilt in the 1400's.

 

After lunch we had a short drive to the wall.* From the bus it was about 500 yards up hill to the entrance gates.* The entrance gate is in a velley - if you go to the left it is the more diiicult route to the high point on that side and going to the right is a bit less difficult to the high point on that side.* Either way was no casual walk in the park.* The easier route went through 4 gate houses - from the 3rd to 4th was the steepest - close to 30degree.* The hard side had slopes that were around 40 degrees. Most in our group did not make it to the top, inlucding me - I could feel my knee sending messages that if I go any further I would pay for it. Got lots of great photos anyways.* The wall was named as one of the new 7 wonders of the world in a world-wide contest a few years ago and it is not hard to understand why.***

 

Sometimes you never know who you may meet on a trip like this - the couple sitting behind me on the bus live about 5km from us now and some of us were standing around enjoying the view when a Chinese family came by with a cute child - we got talking and they had lived in Toronto only about 2km from us for 5 years.* If they had stayed in Toronto (now in Vancouver) their child would have gone to the same high school as I did.

 

Around the entrance there were lots of souvenier shops - mostly selling the same tye of stuff but one shop had a lot of higher end stuff - several shops allowed bargaining and would accept US$. The sales people were a bit aggressive - they kept pointing out items and asking you to look at them and trying other ways to get your interest in items.

 

After 2.5 hours at the wall, we left this gem of a sight at 5:30 and were back on the ship at 9pm. It was a very long day but for a one time event it was worth it to me.

 

Freda had gone through Chinese immigration in Xiamen but late in the morning inspectors came on the ship to check everyone that had not got off up to that point.* Fortunetly I left her passport where she could get at it easlily as this had not been mentioned before.*

 

At 1 point when we came back to the bus, the driver was reading the paper and laughing.* The guide explained the headline said - Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over [what a guy!]

 

Today’s thought for the day - They say travel broadens the mind, but you must have the mind.- G. K. Chesterton

[Waynetor]

Today we are sailing through the Yellow Sea. The sea is very calm.* The weather is nice and sunny but at noon it was only 11C (52F).* The water is not very deep here - only 50m or about 160ft.

 

It has been a typical sea day on Oceania - the special events included a Cooking Demo by the Executive chef, an enrichment lecture on "A land of Dragons', and a Sabbath service.

 

Yesterday market another little milestone for Freda and I - since leaving home it was 97 days - our previous longest vacation was 96 days - still a long way to go but enjoying the trip so far.

 

Tonight in Martinees we spent a bit of time listening to the pianist play a set.* At the end an elderly guest came up and said, “I must be honest, I’m afraid I thought you performance was awful.”* Her embarrassed husband quickly interrupted “Oh don’t pay any attention to her.* She hasn’t the slightest idea of what is good, she only repeats what she hears everyone else saying.”*

 

Today’s thought for the day - Travel by sea nearly approximates the bliss of babyhood.* They feed you, rock you gently to sleep and when you wake up, they take care of you and feed you again. - Geoffrey Bocca

[Floridiana]

Wonderful stories!

[Floridiana]

Is Seoul your next port? I so hope that there will be an excursion for Freda as well.

[Waynetor]

Apr 9 – Seoul (Incheon), South Korea – 8am – 6pm

The Republic of Korea is located in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula.* This mountainous peninsula is flanked by the Yellow Sea to the west and Sea of Japan (East Sea) to the east.* Its southern tip lies on the Korea Strait and the East China Sea.* Its neighbours are China to the west, Japan to the east, and North Korea to the north.* It covers a total area of 99,392sq km (38,375sqmi) and has a population of 50 million.* The capital and largest city is Seoul, with a population of 10 million.* Nearly half of the South Korea's entire population lives in the Seoul National Capital Area (which also includes Incheon and Gyeonggi and makes it the 2nd largest metropolitan area in the world).*

 

At the end of World War II, Korea was divided into Soviet and U.S. zones of occupation.* An election was held in the U.S. zone in 1948 which led to the creation of the Republic of Korea.* Although the United Nations passed a resolution declaring the Republic to be the only lawful government in Korea, the Soviets set up a rival government in the North.* The Korean War began in 1950 when forces from the North invaded the South.* The war lasted 3 years and involved the U.S., China, Canada, the Soviet Union, and many other nations.* The border between the 2 nations remains the most heavily fortified in the world.* In the decades that followed, the South Korean economy grew significantly and the country was transformed into a major economy.*

The Seoul metropolitan area contains 4 UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty (1392 to 1897), Gyeongbokgung Palace (the main palace of the Joseon Dynasty (Korea’s last royal dynasty), Hwaseong Fortress, Jongmyo Shrine (a place of worship for kings and queens during the Joseon Dynasty).*

 

Seoul is roughly bisected into northern and southern halves by the Han River.* The city is surrounded by mountains, the tallest being Mt. Bukhan, the world's most visited national park per square meter.* Today, Seoul is considered a leading and rapidly rising global city, resulting from an economic boom and growth known as the Miracle on the Han River which transformed it from the ashes of the Korean War to the world's 4th largest metropolitan economy with a GDP of US$773.9 billion in 2012 after Tokyo, New York and Los Angeles.* About half the GDP comes for a group of several very large conglomerates* A lot of oil is imported and refined here as well.* .

Seoul is about 59km (36mi) from the North Korea border.

 

Seoul is home to over 100 museums, including 3 national and 9 official municipal museums. There are also religious buildings that take important roles in Korean society and politics such as the Wongudan altar was a sacrificial place where Korean rulers held heavenly rituals since the Three Kingdoms period.* Namsan Park offers hiking, recreation and views of the downtown Seoul skyline.* The N Seoul Tower is located here. Seoul Olympic Park is located in Songpa District and was built to host the 1988 Summer Olympics.* The Wongaaksa Pagoda 10 tier pagoda is situated in Tapgoi Park.

 

The average high temperature in April is 18C (64F).

 

Incheon, a city on the north-west coast is the port city supporting Seoul.* Its population is near 3 million.

[Waynetor]

When I first looked at the map for this voyage I thought at 37°34′08″N, Seoul was the most northern city we are visiting on this voyage but double checking yesterday Tiajin was 39°08′42″N.* As a comparison San Francisco is 37°46′45″N.* Now for the next month we zigzag south to our most southern port – Hobart with only 2 hour time change.

 

Overnight we had very heavy fog - while I was in the computer room last night the captain was using the fog horn every couple minutes to warn any boats that could be in our path.* Although, not as bad this morning, it was still a bit foggy when we docked.* The fog has returned tonight and the horn is getting a work out again. The temp today struggled to get into the high teens C or low 60'sF.

 

Everyone on board had to go through a face to face immigration up in Horizons lounge to start the day.*

 

Today we did another tour organized on the roll call.* The cost was $40US each plus lunch, admissions and tip.* The tour company is KoreanTourGuide.com

the original plan was

Meet the guide at the port 9am

10:30 Arrive in Seoul and go to Blue House

10:45 Royal Palace and Museum (admission of 3,000 won per person)

12:15 - 12:45 So Hyun advises me that rather than a full sit down lunch a snack stop works quite well as there are many cafes and parks along our way where we can enjoy a light snack and beverage

12:45 Traditional house area (Namsangol Hanok village) and street (Insadong)

14:00 Buddhist temple (Jogye temple)

14:30 Namdaemun Market (not too much shopping, but quite an experience)

15:00 Synagogue (it's a Saturday, but rabbi has advised So Hyun that with 2 weeks’ notice, they'd welcome our visit)

15:30 Drive back to Incheon Port

17:00 Board the Insignia

 

We got off the ship and on our bus by 8:50.* This was a close call for Freda to go or not - she decided to stay on board as the bus had 2 high steps and she would have had trouble getting in and out several times.*

 

As is often the case - our original plan got modified.* We skipped going to the Blue House (Presidents residence) but went right to the Royal Palace at 10am where they had just started the changing of the guard ceremony so we got to see much of it.* The admission was free for those 65+ - only 4 of the 14 were under that and the* guide paid for those.* The royal palace property once had around 800 buildings on it but it has been destroyed and rebuilt several times.* The last time it was rebuilt was more for historical protection in the late 180's.* There are only a dozen or so buildings.* There were a lot of people there but it was no big issue.* The national Folk Museum of Korea was also on the property.* The 3 main galleries are: History of the Korean People, Korean way of life and Korean Life passages.* Most of the displays include English descriptions. We could see the Blue House off in the distance with mountains as its backdrop. We were back on the bus by 12:40 and off to the Insadong shopping area.* This main street is all shopping with several side streets all shops also.* There was a very wide range of products - some touristy, some more for local market.* There were also lots of eating options-* I was led to believe they would take US$ but none did, not even 7/11 and Starbuck coffee stores but you can use credit cards for very small purchases.

 

We had* an hour 10 minutes to look around there and then went to the Kwang Jang market that was very different.* This traditional, full of character market was divided into 3 sections - the 1st was all lines, the 2nd all fish and vegetable. and the 3rd mostly prepared food where you could sit at a chair and have the freshly made items, many of which we did not recognize.* One of the streets nearby was all store with various lighting products - our guide said it is common to have competing, related stores in one area.* We passed by another smaller place and park.

 

From there we had a short stop at the Jogye Buddhist temple.* There was prayer time going on so we did not go in to the main temple where there were large Buddha statues.*This is not a very big complex but there is some kind of festival coming up shortly and they were i the process of decorating the property with colourful lanterns.

 

We had 2 Jewish couples on the tour and they had asked if the operator cold find a Synagogue they could visit.* The guide got an address and contacted the rabbi who said it would be fine to visit in the afternoon.* We we got there it was in his private home.* He rabbi has been in Seoul for 8 years and came from Israel.* He showed us i the basement where the services are done. there was a lot of decision about Jewish history here as some couple on the tour had spent several years here before back in the 1970's and 1980's.

 

The Synagogue is in an area with a lot of foreigners living in Korea.* There was a very large range on restaurants along the main street here - even a recently opened Canadian restaurant called the Maple House.

 

Around the city a lot of trees were in blossom - the best place for Cheery trees is the area around the national Assembly building which is surrounded in cherry trees - we are here in the middle of the cherry blossom festival.* We had good views of this as we slowly drove by in heavy traffic.**

 

The winter Olympics will be held in South Korea in 2018 and some work is being done in Seoul such as a high speed train connecting the sites and a new bridge over the river. Most of the events will be held well outside the city.

 

Coffee drinking has become big business in Seoul. There are many different independent coffee shops here.* There are more Starbucks in Seoul than any other city in the world.

 

There are security cameras everywhere today.* There was also a very high police presence i many places.* The US embassy was surrounded by a police buses. There are mid-term elections next week and that adds to protest and demonstrations.

 

We made it back to the ship just about 6pm. We sailed on time at 8pm.

 

Looking back Freda could have done the tour but it would of had its moments - the palace is mostly accessible with ramps but the ground is covered with large stone squares that make for a very bumpy ride in a wheelchair.* The 1st market would not be too bad, but many stores were too crowed to get a chair in or had a couple stairs.* The 2nd market had narrow aisles.*

 

We were talking to one of the fellow passengers this evening while waiting for the show to start.* She mentioned how much she was enjoying the cruise.* She said they have over 1,000 days at sea but this would likely be their last cruise as her husband was showing signs of mental issues.* She told us that before leaving for the cruise he had ordered all the windows changed in their home one day while she was out.* It turned out he had a crack in his glasses.

 

Today’s thought for the day - Nothing so liberalizes a man and expands the kindly instincts that nature put in him as travel and contact with many kinds of people. - Mark Twain

[BillK7]

I'm so happy to find this thread.

We were on the ship from Singapore to Shanghai and I would love to have met the author to thank him in person

for all his work.

I'll be following daily and sharing vicariously your adventures.

I wish every cruise had such a story teller.

Looking forward to seeing, in your blog, some of the many wonderful people I had the pleasure of meeting while on our, all too short a leg, of the 180 days.

Please keep up your fantastic job and know your hard work is appreciated by many.

Bill from Florida

[Floridiana]

I am also looking forward to more interesting reports. As I said in the other thread, I come here only for our two narrators. Although Oceania is our favorite cruise line, timing and itinerary have lead us astray.;)

[Waynetor]

Today we are sailing the Korean Strait and the East China Sea.

 

A perfect, sunny day that was very cool but comfortable.* The temp at noon was only 11C (52F).

 

NOTE: We will be unable to access the internet from tonight until Ap 13 and then late that day will lose it again until late on the 14th as we sail Japanese waters. This is a requirement of Japan which will preclude the ability of the ship to provide internet connections. (can use wifi on shore).* We are told that this is the requirement of Japans National Security Department.

 

So after this it will be a couple days before I can post again as I will not be using my port time in some fast food restaurant doing post. - all reporters need a vacation.

 

As we approach the 100 day mark - In talking to others at home, or through the internet or those doing segments, there are many who say a voyage like this is not for them.* That is quite fine for us – if every person who could easily afford to do this was doing it, we would not be here.* As Robin Leach said "Travel is very subjective.* What one person loves, another loathes."** So far everyone doing the 180 seems to be glad they came (except the 1 person who was asked, to put it politely to leave early - more on that another time)

 

Today’s thought for the day - A journey is like marriage. The certain way to be wrong is to think you control it. - John Steinbeck

 

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We were told the internet would be available until 9PM on Ap 10 but they cut it off around 7:20 just before I went to post the above.

[Waynetor]

Japan is a country where the past meets the future. Japanese culture stretches back millennia, yet Japan has also adopted (and created) the latest modern fashions and trends.

 

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in western Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The city's name, means "Wide Island" in Japanese.

 

Hiroshima is best known as the first city in history to be targeted by a nuclear weapon when the US Army Air Forces dropped an atomic bomb on the city at 8:15am. on August 6, 1945.Today, Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park commemorates the 1945 event; on-site is Genbaku Dome, the surviving portion of a structure that crumbled in the explosion. Other prominent sites include Shukkei-en, a formal Chinese-style garden, and Hiroshima castle, a fortress surrounded by a moat and a park.* Most of the city is surrounded by small mountains with the population down in the lowlands.

 

As of 2006, the city had an estimated population of 1,154,391.* The average high temperature this time of year is around 20c (68F).

There are several places in the city that offer wonderful viewing of the cherry blossoms – early April is the best time in Hiroshima.

 

Honolulu and Montreal are among several sister cities.

[Waynetor]

As we hit day 100, welcome to the "Land of the Rising Sun".**

 

While I came to the 1970 World’s Fair in Osaka with my dad, this is Freda’s first time to Japan.* When we got married I had about 12 countries on my ‘been to’ compared to her 2 but now I am only ahead by 2 – England and Switzerland.***

 

In a country with many hundreds of km/mi of coastline, it is not surprising that Japan offers some of the freshest seafood in the world.* Like other countries in the region, rice and fish are the staple here.

 

Itsukushima Shrine and Peace Memorial Park/ A - Bomb Dome are both World Heritage sites.

 

One thing we learned about Japan is the fast food chain KFC and Christmas are synonymous, and the chain’s Christmas dinner, which includes cake and Champagne, sells for about $40US. The chain records its highest volume of sales in Japan on Christmas Eve.* Although the ‘Christian’ part of Christmas is not very big here, the other parts of Christmas are.* KFC was also big in China as well as being the first US based fast food company in China.

 

We were told before hand that there was a G7 meeting near the memorial park so expect high traffic, large crowds and lots of security with the high ranking officals there including US Secretary of State.

 

For us today was a very disappointing day.* We did enjoy the morning cruise through a series of islands before docking and getting clearance at noon.* Everyone on board had to go through a face to face immigration.* It was supposed to be those on deck 8, then those on deck 7 plus independent tours.* Oceania tours would be called separately.* We were one of the first off once the deck 8 were done but when we picked up our passport from the staff outside the terminal, I could see many from deck 4, 6 and 7 had joined the deck 8 people and got off early.* It took close to a half hour to go through immigration which included temperature test, fingerprinting and eye scan.* After that a quick customs where they wanted to know where you were going and if you had any of their prohibited items.* Once through there, I went to the tourist desk.* The lady there only spoke poor English - next to her desk was a currency exchange but they had already run out of Japanese currency.***We went over to the shuttle bus area - for the fist time on the cruise the shuttle bus was wheelchair accessible.* It was now 12:45 - the 12:30 and 1:00 bus had already left and the next bus they told us would be 2pm.* My earlier research told me the area around the Peace Memorial Park was acccessable and that was where the shuttle would go.* We were told taxis would not take US$ but they could call one that took credit card.* The cost would be $40 - 50 each way.* ***

 

I was not a happy camper at this point thinking about a long wait or spending near a $100US to see a memorial. They had a sign up for the shuttle that said first shuttle 12:30 then 1:00, 2:00 and then last shuttle 3:30.* We figured why go to the park on a 2pm shuttle when we would have to come back around 3:30 and compete with others to get on it.* There was another shuttle that went to a subway station but that was no good without currency.

 

So we decided to go back to the ship - it took 25 minutes to get help up the gangplank for Freda in her wheelchair.* I talked to one of the cruise director staff about the shuttle while waiting.* Later she checked it out and agreed it was very confusing but there was miscommunication.* The sign should have made it clear the first shuttle was 12:30 then point 1 the next bus would leave on the 00 time and point 2 the next bus would leave on the 00 time and point 3 the last bus would leave on the 30 minute mark, but the 00 and 30 were each hour.* While we don't expect most people in Japan to speak English, would it be that hard to find tourist guides and people to make signs that are understandable.* She also said they eventually got more currency but when we were first there, we had no way of knowing how long the wait would have been.*

 

Once back on board we had a nice quite day - I was the only one for shuffleboard and mini-golf.* For lunch we had a guest to staff service ratio of about 1 to 10.

 

It was still cool but moslty sunny.

 

The best part of the day was dinner - a lady invited us to join her for a special dinner - she was marking an anniversary of a serious life changing event and her survival with the joy of being able to still do a cruise like this.*

 

Later we did talk to some that went to the memorial and their report was we did not miss much.

 

Freda and I tried to research this cruise before hand but do continue to learn new things about Oceania service - apparently pushing the elevator button more than once is supposed to make it arrive faster.

 

For today’s thought for the day here are a few Japanese proverbs -

“Who travels for love finds a thousand miles not longer than one.”

“Vision without action is a daydream. Action without vision is a nightmare.”

“Money grows on the tree of persistence”

“If you believe everything you read, better not read.”

“When you're thirsty it's too late to think about digging a well”

[Waynetor]

Kōbe is a city located on the southern side of the main island of Honshu, on the north shore of Osaka Bay and about 30km (19mi) west of Osaka. It is known for its multicultural population, signature marbled beef, vibrant nightlife and scenic setting, with mountains framing the harbour. Antique cable cars connect Kobe to Mt. Rokko, which offers panoramic views over the port. Just beyond the Rokko hills are the outdoor hot springs and public baths of ArimaOnsen.

 

As an international port since the 1860’s, Kōbe has been affected by the foreign cultures.* It is the 4th busiest port in Japan.* Over 100 foreign companies including Proctor and Gamble plus Nestlé, have offices here.

 

Kōbe has been a well-known center of sake production for several centuries, due to its location near fine mountain water.* On January 17, 1995 an earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter Scale occurred at 05:46 near the city. The quake killed 6,433, made 300,000 homeless and destroyed large parts of the port facilities and other parts of the city.*

 

Kyoto, once the capital of Japan, is a refined city on the island of Honsh with thousands of classical Buddhist temples, as well as gardens, imperial palaces, Shinto shrines and traditional wooden houses.* Kyoto is known as the City of Ten Thousand Shrines.

 

Kyoto is a 55 minutes train ride from Kōbe.

Both cities have a population in the 2 and half million range.

[Waynetor]

I’m not sure why today is listed on the itinerary as Kyoto – there is lots to do in Kobe, there is only 1 ship tour to Kyoto and 2 tours to Osaka which is on the way to Kyoto. We were originally scheduled to dock at 8am but that got changed to 9am somewhere along the way.

 

For the first time on this cruise we were greeted by a fireboat spraying its hose in a fountain like pattern - very nice.* There was also a band playing on the port balcony as we arrived.* To get off the ship we had to show our passport but that was just a quick look.* There was no fruit allowed off the ship today.* Security had a sniffing dog at the gangplank - not sure if for fruit or drugs.

 

I joined a CC group of 23 for a Kyoto tour.* Cost was $82US plus admission fees. Our tour headed out of Kobe quite quickly so did not see too much - but things looked very clean, and public buses were wheelchair accessible.

 

It was about an hour to the edge of Kyoto and further to our 1st stop - the Golden Pravilion (400Y adminssion).* This large park like property has a large pavilion overlooking a beautiful pond with a couple islands and koi fish in it.* The pavilion is a Buddhist hall containing relics of Buddha. There is also the nice gardens, and various others buildings including a tea house,* There were lots of tourist there - mostly Japanese but I heard many different European languages also.* The property was so-so for wheelchairs - some packed gravel walkways and some stairs up and down a hill. This is a World Cultural Heritage Site.

 

From there we did a quick stop at a 7/11 variety store for a quick lunch - the 7/11 and a similar local chain are both very big business here.

 

Next up was Nijo-jo Castle built in the 1600's as the official Kyoto residence of the 1st Tokugawa Shogun.* (600Y adminision).* This very large, rectangular complex has a high wall and a moat surrounding it.* The entrance to the castle was under renovation but that did not effect our tour.* This is not in anyway a castle similar to what one would see in Europe. We only had time to see the main building.* We had to take our shoes off to go in. The floors were built to be squeky on purpose in order to be able to hear anyone coming. The main building include many rooms, most with elaborate murals on the wall and special painting on the ceiling. In most rooms there was no photography allowed but a couple rooms allowed it where reproductions had replaced to original art work.* One grand room had manikins showing the scene when in 1867 Yoshinobu, the last Shogon (highest ranked warrior) announced he was giving up his power - a rebellion convinced him that was the best move for him.* Another room the murals were of tigers and leopards playing toghether.* The artist had never seen them, he only had drawing to base his art on and he thought the leopards were female tigers.* Only the Shogon and his family would live there but other rooms would be used for various meetings.* Since 1994 this has been a World Heritage Site.

 

From there we had about a 15 minute drive to our next stop.* On the way there we passed the Imperial Palace. It is now 1 of* 3 national gardens.* It has some wall and rows of hedges around the large property so we only got a glance through the various gate areas.* At 1 point along the Komo River is the entertainment district. The main part of it we saw was the restaurants where Geisha girls entertain guest while having dinner.* It was too early in the day for that but lots of people were in the area.* The thing that caught the attention of many in our group was a bride and groom in traditional outfits having their wedding photos done.* The Komo River area looked very nice - there is a promenade with lots of cherry trees in the area, and many nice restaurants on one side.

 

Next stop was Sanjusangendo Temple Hall.* (500 yen admin).* It is located just around the corner from the National Museum which has lot of historical artifacts - we could only see its beautiful roof.***The main draw here is the 1,001 standing statues of the Buddhist deity Kannon along with one gigantic seated statue - each made of Japanese cypress.* There are also 28 extra guardian deities at the front.* No photo were allowed (many signs).***

 

Next on to the Shinto Fushimi Inari Shrine about 15 minutes away.* The lower part of this was accessible which is important to followers of the Shinto faith but for tourist the highlight is further up hill and not accessible.* This is the 1,000 Torii gates.* These gates consist of 2 large vertical post joined by a horizontal bar.* Each set is close together so it is like walking through a tunnel.* You can make donations to get your name and thanks engraved in one of the post.* People do it to make a wish or to give thanks for a wish come true.* There were lots of other ways to make prayers here, each for a small donation.* Just outside there were lots of stalls with souvenirs and fresh prepared food.

 

Kyoto is built in a basin surrounded by mountains. We left the Shrine about 5:45 and got back to the ship at 7:30 which include a brief tour on downtown Kobe at night - Got just a glimpse, but China town looked interesting.

 

Very close to where we are docked is the Kobe Port Tower.* Its observation deck offers great views (600yen).* After sunset it was lit up in red and looked very nice.* There was also a large Ferris wheel all lit up at night near the ship.* Also near our port were the Kobe Maritime Museum, Mosiac Amusement Garden, and the shopping area Harbourland plus various ferries and tour boats.

 

The temp in Kyoto was cold overnight - 4C but warmed up to 21C (70F) and it was mostly sunny.

 

We enjoyed another wonderful time on the ship last evening.* Pianist Chris Hamilton did his 2nd show. At the end of his 1st show he asked audience members to call out a piano tune - he rejected a couple he did not know - but quickly had enough, and did a medley of the ones he wrote down.* Last night he told us he had memorized all the Oscar winning songs and the year and movie they won for - he then had audience members call out 12 years and again he did a medley of those 12 songs. Most of those there gave him a standing ovation which has been rare so far on this voyage.

 

It is tours like this that are the reason I need to write this travelogue for my own needs.**I have a photographic memory but with the lens cap glued on.

 

Today’s thoughts for the day –

“Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things can not be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.” - Mark Twain

“The only real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.” - Marcel Proust

[Toranut97]

Because I lived for three years in Japan (in Tokyo and then Kumamoto - the latter on the island of Kyushu) it is delightful to share your visit to that country which I so dearly love. So happy you went to Kyoto and Kobe. And thank you again for the travelogue. I read it all even though I do not comment often!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Floridiana]

Thank you for your trip report. It brings back memories from our visit to Kyoto last year.

[2552phxcrzr]

I enjoyed your Japan posts ... we don't stop there on the RTW but booked a cruise for 2018 that focuses on Japan, so the information, while early, is very useful ;)

[Emma Chisit]

Sorry to hear you had such a disappointment in Hiroshima, but it sounds as though your Kyoto trip went very well. You sure packed a lot into one day.

(By the way, great tip about pushing the elevator button more than once to make it arrive faster.)

[Waynetor]

Nice to have a chance at the internet again - For some reason access seems a bit slow today.* The navigation team is trying to keep us out of Japanese waters as long as they can in order to keep the internet open.* The loss of internet also affects crew from getting messages from head office and we have not had the nightly newspaper for a couple days due to this issue.* We will lose internet access some time early tomorrow for the rest of that day.

 

Today started off on the calmer side but the swell has picked up, but nothing major.* At noon the sea was around 2,000m (over 6,00ft) deep. It started off partly sunny but clouds took over and it looked like it could rain at anytime most of the afternoon - finally started around 4:30 and was on and off through the evening. Deck 5 and 11 are both closed due to winds. Not too many people out sunning themselves -at least we are heading to warmer conditions.* In a few days we will all be complaining it is too hot.

 

World voyages are all about cultural immersion, new discoveries, and having time to get to know your fellow travelers - we are enjoying all 3 very much.

 

Doing these post I send a fair bit of time in the internet cafe and asked the manager working there if he gets many really strange request or problems.* He said he had one just the other day where an individual who plugged her power strip back into itself and for the life of her couldn't understand why her system would not turn on.* No sooner had we had our little chuckle and a lady comes in saying she has been trying to send a text message all day and was getting nowhere - she had brought her phone with her and asked for help - turns out her phone was her calculator.

 

Today’s thought for the day - Travel has a way of stretching the mind.* The stretch comes not from travel's immediate rewards, the inevitable myriad new sights, smells and sounds, but with experiencing first-hand how others do differently what we believed to be the right and only way. - Ralph Crawshaw