Trekking the Globe with Bill & Mary Ann on the 2017 World Cruise - 126 Days

[WCB]

Report # 47 Nagasaki, Japan February 16,2017 Thursday Mostly sunny & 61 degrees

 

Nagasaki is located on the tip of the island of Kyushu. This city has been a long time tradingpartner of China, and the first and only port in the country to open its doorsto Westerners way back in 1570. TheDutch and Portuguese brought Christianity to this part of the world, however,they were not always treated kindly.

 

The opera Madame Butterfly, written by an Italian, Puccini,was set in Nagasaki. It is one of thegreat operas in the world. What is mostknown about this city, however, is the fact that the atomic bomb was droppedhere on August 9, 1945 at the end of WWII. The target was not part of the residential area, but a munitions storageinstead, we understand. A Peace Park wascreated from artists from all over the world to commemorate history. Also, the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museumexhibits the history of the destruction and re-construction of this finecity. On our first visit here 15 yearsago, we toured this sight, and never forgot the experience. Much the same as we had while visiting PearlHarbor in Oahu, Hawaii. Hopefully, history does not repeat itself.

 

Today, Nagasaki is a bustling port full of historic spots aswell as new skyscrapers. It is clean asa whistle, and the people are most welcoming.

 

There were five tours offered from 2 to 8 hours for $95 to$235. The longest day excursion was aride to Fugen Volcano, 62 miles east of the city. There was also a visit to Shimabara Castlewith a Japanese lunch after. Ourtablemate Ruud took that tour, and really enjoyed it. He said there was not a whole of of walking,which he has trouble doing at times.

 

Shorter hour tours included Nagasaki history and culturalmuseum, Ground Zero, Atomic Bomb Museum, and a stop at the Peace Park( the onewe took 15 years ago). If you justwanted to see the Peace Park, which contains the Fountain of Peace, and thePeace Statue at almost 32 feet high, then this tour was a good one. Arita Porcelain was an interesting spot to visit, followed by a stopat the Peace Park, then a lunch.

 

Since we have seen the highlights of all of these tours, wedecided to stay close to the ship, and make a visit to the Glover Garden,almost directly across the street from the pier. This morning, we left the ship by 10am, andwent directly to the terminal building. There was an information desk set up with atleast four people giving information and directions. You could also purchase a 1 day pass for thetram system here. All we needed weremaps, and general info for the immediate area surrounding the pier. According to the nice gal we spoke to, wecould walk everywhere we needed to go. So we did.

 

Following the excellent map, we walked across the street andlocated the walking path that headed towards the gardens. This cobbled street was lined with souvenirshops and some cafes. Climbing the steepwide lane, we ended up at the old Oura Catholic Church, the oldest woodenchurch and national treasure of Japan. Thisis the first time we ever saw a charge to go inside a Catholic church, with theexception of St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. Even then, we believe we were covered withthe tour group. Right across the street,was the newer church, with their doors open. So we went in there instead. Apriest was conducting a chorale group, so we did not linger inside very long.

 

The cobbled road led to the entrance at the Glover Garden,which consists of nine historic western-style buildings. After going up several flights of stairs, weran into an escalator that took us to the entrance and ticketing building. Right behind us, there was a large group ofkindergarteners on a field trip with their ever-watching teachers. They were so cute with their little matchinghats and pink backpacks and thermoses. We paid for our tickets (610 Yen or about $5.45 each), then entered thepark. There were two moving sidewalksthat took us up to the highest point of the garden.

 

A little history is needed to understand this property. A man from Scotland, Thomas Blake Glover,came to Japan at the age of 21 in 1859. Through ship building, coal mining, and thetea trade, he contributed to the modernization of Japan. Another industry that blossomed here was thebrewing of Kirin Beer. Robert NeillWalker, a British citizen, partnered with Glover in the endeavor. Another man, William Alt, introduced theworld to Japanese tea. A Brit, Frederick Ringer reigned over foreign trade andworked for Glover & Company. Glover’sson, Thomas, introduced trawling in the fishing industry. All fivemen and their families had homes in this settlement.

 

These wooden structures and other important buildings are incorporatedinto a garden which is surrounded with fountains, ponds, Japanese bonsaigardens, and a few public restrooms and tea house and an outdoor snack area.

 

With a detailed map, we navigated our way to each exhibit, readingevery bit of history with each household. Fascinating, we found the period to be intriguing. At the very top of the hillside, there was adock house, where sailors and ship crews could go while their ships were beingrepaired. Constructed in 1896, youreally got the feel of what life wouldhave been like in this area. To add tothe experience, period music was playing in the back round. Most all the music was Scottish, making usfeel like you could imagine living here in those days.

 

Something we found unusual was the fact that many younglocal ladies were dressed in that period clothing….colonial-looking Britishsilks, satins, with lots of lace. Eventually we ran into the photography studio where this period clothingwas rented for ½ hour to wear while in the gardens. Since it was not really expensive, many of thelocal ladies took advantage of this service. Sure made for great photos for us to take.

 

We ended up spending three hours here, taking our time, andeven enjoying an ice cream break. Asmall café sold the best creamy softies in a delicate cookie-like cone. This turned out to be our lunch, since wecould not locate any restaurant that fit our tastes.

 

Leaving the garden, we headed north to find the ShinchiChinatown. The tour guide in theterminal had suggested that we see it. We almost turned around, since it seemedlike a very long walk. But we soonrealized there were signs on the street corners indicating where these placesare located. Once we saw a Chinese portal over the street,we knew we were warm or getting closer.

 

Sure enough, we found the small Chinatown and walked throughall of the shops. There was no lack ofsouvenirs here. And the streets andcafes were full of people. We came outat a canal where there was a huge display of Chinese figures. Sure got some great photos.

 

Today we were required to see immigrations for a mandatorydeparture clearance. It began at 2:30pm,and we did not want to wait until the last minute to clear thisinspection. After leaving Chinatown, wefound ourselves at the Dejima area. Dejima Island was the only gateway between Japan and the outsideworld. There are ten old structureshere, and the cost to get in was fairly cheap. We even had a coupon given to us in the info center, giving us a furtherdiscount. If we had more time, we could have toured it.

 

Getting back to the pier, we noticed the terminal buildingwas getting really busy. The souvenirstands inside the building were really getting worked over by thepassengers. This would be the last chancefor anyone to buy something from Japan. There were some nice silk jackets andvests, but they were still over-priced at 50% off. From what we saw, most folks did not hesitateto buy many things, just because it was so easy.

 

The line was forming for the immigration check. Tour buses had gotten back, and the peoplethat chose to stay onboard today, had to go off the ship and get in this sameline. Then you had folks like us thatwere slowly coming back from a day of exploring. The process was well done with the help ofmany of the ship’s officers, including Henk, Christel, Shiv, and people fromthe front desk.

 

The line moved quickly enough, with the officials letting inonly a small number of guests at a time. We needed our passports, which we had packedwith us all day. The stamp we receivedin the passport in Osaka was re-checked today before we entered the building. Then it was a similar process like you do atthe airport security check. Once throughthat checkpoint, we lined up to board the ship, and go through security likealways. The only difference today wasthat once we cleared immigrations, we could not go back out the terminal. We were on the ship to stay, which was finewith us.

 

There was an unexpected surprise waiting for us in our room…specificallythe bathroom. In our absence, a new sinkand counter top had been installed, replacing the old one that has had a significant crack in it for at least two years. Since it did not leak, we nevercomplained. It was simply an eyesore. The biggest clue that something had takenplace was the fact that all of our things we had stored on the shelf under thesink and on the counter were placed in the bathtub. Now we are guessing that when this ship goesinto dry dock in 2018, perhaps more of this type of work will beaccomplished. It is overdue, especially onthe lower decks. We did hear from areliable source, that continued renovation will be done on the upper decks 6and 7……all new bathrooms and flat-screen TV’s. Of course, they are paying a gazillion dollars for those suites…….

 

Very hungry by now, we made a sweep through the Lido andpicked up some slices of pizza to get us through until dinnertime. Barb and Susie had the same idea, as did manyother folks.

 

We still had to catch up on yesterday’s pictures andreports, so that kept us busy until close to sail away time after 5:30pm. Geneannounced that the local Japanese Taiko Drum Performance would be taking placeshore side, so we grabbed the camera and went to deck nine. Once again, the lower promenade was beingused for the sail away celebrations, but knowing it would be too crowded, wekept to the aft of the ship, getting just as good of a view. Even better, we could watch the eagles thatwere soaring over and around the ship. Following their flight pattern, we soondiscovered that they were feeding off of something in the water. Perhaps bits of fish discarded by the fishingvessels.

 

The sun went down shortly after 6pm. Funny thing……..in the Daily Navigator, it waslisted that we had two sunrises – one at 7:02am and the other “sunrise” at6:06pm. What? Another typing error again. That was like the chocolate dippedstrawberries that were supposedly served in the Casino after dinner onValentine’s night. Actually, thelocation was in the Queen’s Lounge. Guess no one checks what is written in this daily newsletter.

 

As the Amsterdam slowly sailed out of the harbor, we watchedto see one of their shipyards where a new ship, the Aida Perla was beingconstructed. The last time we were inNagasaki, we saw one of the Princess ships that had been close to beingdone. Right before we arrived, a firebroke out and the center part of the ship was destroyed. Eventually, it was completed, but the namewas changed with that of another future Princess build.

 

Captain Jonathon had given his talk at sail away, mentioningthat as we sailed in a northerly direction, the temperature would bedropping. When we get to Incheon, Korea,he expected lows below zero Celsius. Somewhere in the teens or twenties. Now that is really cold. We sort of thought a gift of mittens, gloves,and caps would be a great idea about now, as many folks probably never thoughtto bring these with them. There isalways hope………

 

All-in-all, we had a wonderful visit today, as we did ineach port in Japan. Despite the coolweather, it has been a nice change of pace from the usual world cruises. Not sure we will feel the same about Korea,if we are freezing. The one time we werethere it was in the fall and the weather was mild and warm in Jeju.

 

One of our tablemates was feeling under the weather with alaryngitis ailment…..lost his voice. Weknow this has been spreading like wildfire with the passengers and crewalike. Sure hope we don’t get it,because our 8 day overland is approaching soon. All you can do is be careful with passing bread or butter, and stay outof the line of coughing. Even standingat the aft deck this evening, we were surrounded with passengers with deep,congested coughs. One of our friends hasbeen cabin-bound for three days now. Viruses on ships can be quite bad…….said with fingers crossed.

 

Some of the dinner entrees were Japanese-based. Most everyone ordered chicken skewers withrice and veggies, while one of us had the chicken and bread entree salad. It was ample along with a hot, hot, hot bowlof chicken and dumpling soup. On a side note, the soups are now beingserved in the older heavy soup bowls used for French onion soup. They hold theheat of the food so much better, and now the waiters do not have to pour thebroth from a gravy boat. The plate warethat has replaced most of the Rosenthal dinnerware has been chipped and easilybroken, so the old plates are coming back. We all say…..break them all, we want the good old plates back. Many of the entrees are served in a bowl-likedish, where your utensils fall into your food. Never fails when you have gravies, and the fork falls off of the edgeright into the middle of the food. Lifeis tough, right?

 

Everyone did something different today in port, so it wasnice to listen to everyone’s adventures. Some were good, some were not. Seems that the “bus” etiquette has been challenging recently, as somepassengers have no manners whatsoever. That is one good reason we avoid the bus tours.

 

Sure hope we can catch Barbara’s talk on Incheon and Seoulin Korea on TV today. Since this will beour first time there, we would like to know how to get around on our own. The last we checked the channel, talks wereon China. Hard to keep up when they areconstantly trying to sell tours and DVD’s on future ports.

 

Toni Warne was on stage once again in the Queen’sLounge. What a beautiful voice she has,and a very sweet person as well.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[DeeniEncinitas]

I am so enjoying your reviews!!!!Thank you for the in depth perspective from your view point.

We are planning a WC in 2019. Wanted to do this cruise but with DH's business unfortunately we had to change so love your blog!

We will be trying Viking Ocean Cruises! Not trying to jump ship since we are devoted HAL babies but just a change!!

Smooth sailings!

Denise:)

[WCB]

Report #48 SailingTowards Incheon, South Korea February17, 2017 Friday Cloudy & 47 degrees 29Pictures

 

We forgot to mention that all during the night, white gullswere flying around the ship. Most likelyattracted by our lights, they circled right outside the windows. Could be they were diving for food, becausewith the icy temperature, we cannot figure why else they would be followingalong with us.

 

Today was a simple one for us. Breakfast was later than usual, so we weretaken a bit by surprise when Ellen and Aart asked us to dine with them. As they were already halfway into their meal,we asked for a rain check. A better ideawas to join them with Barb at lunch time. So we took our time, downing lots of hot coffee, because it sure lookedcold outside.

 

We did find that out when we went out one door on the lowerpromenade deck. With only sweatshirtson, it was nowhere near enough layers to stop the bite of the chilly wind. So we ducked in at the next door. We were painfully behind with photodownloading, so the morning was spent doing that.

 

Henk, our hotel director, had sent a note requesting therest of our suggestions we had discussed in his office a few days ago. He wished us to give it to him before Mr.Ashford arrived in Korea, so he could follow up discussions with him. We suspect that we are not alone with ourobservations and suggestions to keep the HAL product a good deal.

 

The suggestions were further enhanced with our lunch mates,Barb, Ellen, and Aart. All combined, wehave many years of sailing with HAL, and perhaps we may be heard. You never know if you never try. We all lingered over our mini-burgers whilesolving the problems of the world. Westayed until the waiters were setting up the dining room for dinner. Tonight will be a farewell to Japan, withAsian-type dishes.

 

Speaking of Asian meals, two alternating Tamarind meals havebeen added to the Pinnacle Grill menu. It is featured as the cuisine of Southeast Asia, China, and Japan. As we have never sailed on an HAL ship withthat restaurant, we are not familiar with the food. Appetizers will include salmon, laksa, shrimptempura and spring rolls. The entreesare sea bass, coconut chicken, and udon noodles. Side dishes are rice, bok choy, mushrooms,and assorted veggies. The secondoffering has tuna zuke, satay sampler, and spring rolls. Entrees include Szechuan shrimp, beeftenderloin, and udon noodles. Again,rice, bok choy, mushrooms, and veggies complete the meal. Dessert on both menus are Java mint andcoconut rice pudding, and mango cloud. Sounds interesting…….

 

We made a lot of progress with reports and photos, althoughit took hours. We got the list up toHenk, who said thanks for going to the trouble. No trouble at all. At least theywill know a sample of what the long time cruisers are saying, and maybe someonewill listen.

 

It was a good time for one of us to begin gathering what wewill need for the China overland trip. It is less than a week away, so it is as good a time as any to do somepacking. We are going to try to limitour stuff to one suitcase, and a few carry-ons. We will have to wear our heavy winter coats tostay within the weight limits for flying. Now that it is getting closer, we are getting excited.

 

We did get to see Barbara’s talk on Jeju City, Korea,although we missed the one on Incheon and Seoul. Turns out it was a waste of time to watch theone on Jeju. At 6pm tonight, CaptainJonathon came on the speaker and announced that he has made the decision not tomake the stop in Jeju, due to the fact that our berth was not a safe one atthis point in time. Another ship hadour berth, and was going to move for the Amsterdam, but recanted today. Funny, we all had this discussion last nightat dinner that it was odd that we would be heading north to Seoul, then go backsouth to Jeju. Now the plan is to spendtwo full days in Incheon (Seoul). It isalso the place where Mr. Ashford, President of HAL, his family, and Gerald B,the Mariner Society Director will be boarding. By 10pm, we had two new tours added for the second day in Incheon. Of course, the tours in Jeju will be refunded. So will the port charges. We found that the port charges for missing Saipanwere posted to our account in the neighborhood of $21. per person.

 

The passengers were invited to wear kimonos tonight as webid farewell to Japan. We saw only acouple of the robes, but the best-dressed were our waiters and their assistantsin their red or black Japanese jackets. Forsome unknown reason, the dining room was freezing cold, as were ourentrees. We all pointed this out toPhilip, who stopped by on his nightly rounds. He agreed that the plates are a big factor in keeping our food hot, andpromised to try to resolve the problem. Perhaps it is as simple as bringing back the old plates. At least, we all enjoyed each other’s companyif not the cold food. Nice desserts madeup for it. Even Martha had three ofthem.

 

We know it will be more than cold tomorrow as right now atmidnight, the temperature outside is already 0 Celsius or 32 degrees F. Thiswill be a new port for us, and for many of our friends too.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

Photos of our sailing towards Incheon, Korea……..the seaswere rough and the winds strong.

[NordicPrince]

"A ship is safe in a harbor, but that is not what ships are for".

 

Following and continued good sailing.

[WCB]

Report #49 Incheon,South Korea February 18, 2017 Saturday Sunny & 29 degrees Part #1Of 2 81 Pictures

 

Today’s port of call was Incheon, South Korea. Actually, it was two cities….the other onewas Seoul, the capital of South Korea. Thetotal population of the country is 48,509,000 living in an area of 38,492square miles. The official language is Korean.

 

Compared to its secretive neighbor in the north, South Koreais a progressive nation, second only to Japan in scientific breakthroughs is gadgetsand gizmos. Korean cuisine has spreadacross the globe, although relatively few travelers have explored here.

 

For every high-tech city, there is a medieval fortress orgreen national park. Confucius is stillpopular here after 2000 years. YoungKoreans are famous for their national pride as shown during games of nationalsoccer and taekwondo teams.

 

September and November are the best months to visit for theautumn colors. However, we are sure thatblossom time occurs here in the spring. Wecan all agree, February is brutally cold here.

 

Things to do and see include going to markets, museums, andmedieval cities. There are tombs, ruins,temples, and royal mausoleums……mostly in Seoul. You can find parks, mountain forests, and hot springs out of thecities.

 

Fish markets are interesting to tour, and food stalls thatsell “galbi” or BBQ ribs and chicken.

 

The volatile border, DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) is a place tovisit if you can handle the history there. It continues to this day…….

 

And like Japan, South Korea has futuristic automatic toiletswith many bells and whistles.

 

While in Incheon or Seoul, it is a must to try kimchi, afiery pickled cabbage with chili. Or eatgalbi, a variety of food that is grilled. A local drink, soju, is a vodka, while bori cha is a warming tea, and ismade from roasted barley.

 

Trademarks are Korean BBQ, taekwondo, K-pop?, ginseng, hotsprings, free-trade zones, and stand-offs with north Korea and the DMZ.

 

A random fact is the Koreans are famous for theirtechnological know-how. More than ½ ofKoreans pay their bills using mobile phones.

 

Here is a little info on Incheon, the port city forSeoul. A major battle occurred here in1950 when US marines landed here and got involved in the Battle of Incheon. That was in the early days of the Korean War. Since those days, Incheon has become thecountry’s first enterprise-free zone and main shopping port with an airportserving Seoul. Three million residentslive here and use the extensive metro system. The borders have grown so much, that Incheon has blended into Seoul.

 

The city of Seoul suffered much damage after the Korean War. Reconstruction produced a sparkling extensivecity, which is home to half of the Korean population. You can see palaces, shrines, museums, andtombs that are all surrounded by mountains.

 

There were 7 tours offered today, with two more added fortomorrow, since we will be staying overnight. These excursions range from 3 ½ to7 ½ hours costing from $60 to $159. Only one tour remains in Incheon with stops at a fish market, garden,Chinatown, museum, and Sinpo Market, a huge shopping venue with seafood andclothing.

 

The other six tours took folks to Seoul, an 80 minute drivefrom the port of Incheon. You will see apalace, museum, a market with lunch. Otherswent to art galleries, a park, a village, and a rice cake museum. An evening tour included a Korean dinner witha performance that followed.

 

But first, before we could go anywhere, we all had to beseen and cleared by the Korean Immigrations Officials in the Explorer’s Lounge. Our number was the letter S, so we could havegone first or anytime we chose. Firstworked for us, because we had just finished breakfast when they started theprocedure. We were done with the checkpoint by 9am.

 

We took a quick walk around the promenade deck to see howcold it was. It was no surprise that thetemperature was 1 degree Celsius, or 34 degrees F. What was funny were the icicles that werehanging off of the ceiling of the promenade overhang. And the ice that had formed on the teakdecking from a leaking faucet. Yes, wewould need to wear our down jackets for sure.

 

There must have been a lot of tours booked today, becausethere were 25 buses on the dock. So wedecided to finished doing emails until 10am before going outside. Perhaps with the sun out, it may warm up abit later.

 

A complimentary shuttle service was available to take folksto the Sinpo Market, a 15 minute ride from the ship. Also near the ship, was the information tablewith maps and a brochure of what to see and do right here in Incheon. Since no Korean money (Won) was being sold onthe ship, a money exchange service was available on the pier. We decided to wait until we got downtown tofind a money changer if we needed to.

 

Actually, there were two buses. One took the guests to the Subway for thetrain to Seoul, while the other the Incheon. That was the bus we hopped on. Itfilled quickly and we were off to town. Somethinghappened on the way to the port gate which was odd. One lady asked to be dropped off at theentrance to the pier. This must havebeen a problem, because a policeman cameover and got into a heated discussion with the bus driver after he let the ladyoff the coach. Whatever the problem was, she did not get back onboard, and wecontinued on. This is not the place youwant to have confrontations with police.

 

It seemed like a long ride to the market, but it wasreasonably close. This part of townhouses the Sinpo International Market, Chinatown, Jayu Park, Incheon ArtPlatform, and a Fairy Tale Village. Also, we discovered a massive underground mallat Sinpo, the city’s first underground mall with over 1000 stores with nail andbarber services.

 

Starting at the entrance where the bus drop was, we walkedright into the food section of the traditional market. It has been around for 100 years and isfamous for their glazed fried chicken bites, colored dumplings, and poppedbread. Any kind of fish, fresh or dried,is offered for sale here. There was alarge variety of fresh produce and spices. And bread, either in loaves orsteamed buns. Sweets were everywheretoo. There were stalls for kitchenware,as well as a section for clothing. Wesaw lots of socks, slippers, and shoes for sale as well. This market was extensive, however, nothinglike the underground mall we happen to find.

 

Going down a flight of stairs, we discovered a city belowthe ground that went out like a grid of stores for miles, it seemed. We never saw so much stuff for sale. We found out they did not accept US dollars, nordid they understand the conversion rate. Actually, few people spoke any English, so without their money (Won), wedid not buy anything. Truthfully, mostall of their clothing is sized for the smaller, shorter Asia people andprobably would not fit most foreigners like us.

 

Seemed like we had walked for hours, when we found it would benice to go outside and get some fresh air. Underground, these malls are kept at a very warm temperature, almost toohot when you are bundled up for the cold outside. Surprisingly, we wandered down a narrowstreet full of shops with the traditional Korean clothing. The window displays were complete withmannequins dressed in various colors and fabrics of women’s dresses with decorativeshort jackets and bell-like long skirts. There was not one alike. The men’sversion was also exotic, as were the outfits for kids. In between these shops were bedding shopswith heavy quilts, blankets, and like items. We saw the cutest stuffed dogs and lambs. So we negotiated with US dollars to purchasea bull dog. He will be a perfect mascotfor our bed. Kind of off-sets the Guatemalan skeleton on the nightstand. Although he looks pretty cool now wearing thePanama hat.

 

It was a long walk back to where we had entered, and sinceit was after 2pm, we thought we should get back to the ship and order somelunch. Seems like the ride back was only10 minutes or so. Sure was nice to getback to our warm and cozy stateroom. Lunch arrived around 3pm, and we worked on photos for the rest of theafternoon.

 

The sun was going down after 6pm, so we went outside to takesome photos. There was a thin fogforming that cast an eerie haze on the sun. It also made it colder than earlier. Needless to say, we the only ones on the outer decks. The nice thing is that we will be stayingovernight, and we can continue our explorationsof the city for another full day.

 

We had run into Ruud, who was going on the evening dinnertour. He mentioned he would not be atdinner tonight. Scoop was also missing,and we all hoped that he was feeling OK, as he is recovering from another coldwe think. So there was seven of us,which was good…..we got served a bit quicker. All of our entrees and appetizers were as hot as they could make it. Did we mention that it was chilly in the diningroom last night? Apparently, it had not been resolved today,because it was still colder than normal. Tonight, we all dressed warmer with long sleeves, shawls, jackets, andsweaters. Once most of the diners left,we asked Endrien if he could drop the drapes on the aft windows. He said absolutely, and it did help warm itup.

 

For a change, we finished our meals by 9:30pm, and itappeared most of us were off to our rooms. The show this evening was a lady by the name of Venus Tsai, possibly aviolinist from Korea.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

PS Joanne……..Richand Peg send a big hello to you.

[bettty45]

Love your reporting :). Have you seen anyone playing pickleball on the ship? We heard there are courts. Also is it possible for you to find out who will be the cruise director for the Grand Asia? My husband is a wildlife biologist and he would like to offer a birding session on the Grand Asia in a small location on the ship. He is offering to do this far no cost just voluntarily but he is getting no where with HAL. I'm thinking of we knew who the cruise director is we could contact them directly. He has called HAL and emailed them numerous times but they always refer him to the third party for presenters. This third party is for pay to presenters and you can't be a presenter if you are a booked passenger :(. Anyway any help you could suggest would be appreciated. Keep up the good work!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[WCB]

Report #50 Incheon,South Korea February 19, 2017 Sunday Cloudy & 37 degrees Part #1Of 3 85 Pictures

 

Today was an unexpected one, spent once again in Incheon,South Korea. Since we had to bypassJeju, staying an extra day here was a good option.

 

This morning we talked to more people that had mixedreactions to their tours in Seoul yesterday. Taking the organized tours on buses sounded like a great idea, but thetraffic was under-estimated. Saturdayroad traffic was not too bad in the morning, but coming back, we heard it was anightmare, taking up to three hours to get back to the ship. Once there in the center of Seoul, some folksthat were traveling independently, found there were no hop-on hop-off busesrunning on Saturday. With few options tonavigate around the demonstrations and protests underway, some of our friendsturned around and came back to Incheon. Oneof our friends told us that her husband had taken the dinner and performancetour, which was delayed three hours coming back at 10pm. Jokingly, she said she feared that herhusband had been captured by the North Koreans, never to be seen again. She would have gone too, but she was stillrecovering from a recent illness that has plagued many passengers.

 

Today’s weather was overcast, dreary, and still very cold. Bundled in layers, we took off on the shuttleat 10am once again to Incheon to further explore Zone 2, the Open Port andChinatown area. We only saw part of ityesterday. There were only a few buseson the pier this morning with tours to Seoul and highlights of Incheon. We understand there were 6 buses to takepassengers and crew to town. And theinfo desk and money changers were not present this morning. Good thing we had picked up the mapsyesterday.

 

The Sinpo Market was not totally open yet. Of course, it was a Sunday. Right up the street, we located the moneychanging store, and bought $20 worth on Korean Won (22,760). Sure looked like a lot of bucks, but it wasenough for a few items.

 

Across the street, there was a church, the Catholic DapdongCathedral. Hiking up the steephillside, we entered the church where a mass was in progress. It was so warm inside, we stayed for longenough to count for going to mass today. Being that we are Catholic, everything was the same, except for thelanguage. We heard that in South Korea, 32%of the locals are Christians. About thesame amount have no religion, followed by Buddhism, and the church of Reverend Moon. North Korea remains Atheist, believingin no God.

 

Crossing back over the main street, we saw another church bythe name of Incheon Naeri Church. Itappeared worthwhile to climb the many stairs leading up to their doors. Judging by the cars that were parkedeverywhere, we should have known that this church was jammed with people. So much so, that we did not attempt to enterit.

 

This was the right direction towards the Hongyemun Gate andthe Incheon Educational and Cultural Center for Students. Obviously a college-like building, it wasclosed today. This street led to thebottom of Jayu Park or Freedom Park as it used to be called. Looking at the map, who knew it was locatedon a mountain in the center of this area? Probably quite lovely in the spring, the flowering cherry trees andginkos were barren and leaf-less now in the winter. It was a long walk uphill, but well worth itonce we reached the top. You could getviews of the port and city down below.

 

There are historic figures up here. The main statue was of General MacArthur, whowas instrumental in helping save the South Koreans from the Communists NorthKoreans. He led Incheon Landingoperations in the 1950’s, and is honored here. A garden surrounds the monument, and itpartially covered with straw mats to protect the plants from the winter snows.Further up the hill is the Centennial Monument of Korea and US Treaty ofAmity. It was dated back to 1882. This structure is very modern, like abstractart. We saw few folks we knew up heretoday, as there was no tour that brought anyone here. Buses are not allowed in here, so walking upsuch steep slopes was probably not an option for the shore excursions.

 

Following the signs, we looked for the way to Chinatown, butcould not see anything that resembled it from up here. We gave up looking, until we ran into friendsStorm and Carolann. We chatted for 20minutes about other things, namely the changes we don’t like on the ship, thenthey went off to find Chinatown. Theypromised to tell us all about it if they located it.

 

The more we thought about it, it was worth a try. Reading that this Chinatown is the only onein Korea, we felt we should not miss seeing it. The hike going downhill was steep, but at least we did not have to usestairs. Following the local families, wefound the closed off street leading to the district. A huge statue of Confucius was right on thehillside, so we knew we were in the right place. The street downhill was filled with tiledChinese history.

 

We literally could not believe how many people were on thismain street filled with dozens of restaurants, shops for souvenirs, clothing,and house wares. Gourmet food was beingcooked in street stalls, and the folks had lined up for miles to buy it. Every restaurant and café had a line ofhungry families waiting to go inside. Some of the food was interesting, but we were not sure what it was. A woman baker was cutting a very large cakeor bread into loaves. Not sure what itwas, we almost bought it, but figured it would take a week to eat it all. So we passed on the idea.

 

That reminds us of a story we heard at breakfast this morningfrom friends we see every day. They hadgone to lunch, and a dish was served that looked like crunchy nuts of somekind. Someone they knew was eating them,and said they were different, but not nuts. They found out they were eating cooked silk worms, which is a commonitem on many menus in Asia. The silkthread is taken from the worm that has made the cocoon. The entire cocoon is boiled, killing the worm. It became a good source of protein, andnothing is wasted. Guess it can be anacquired taste, however, not for everyone.

 

Anyway, back at Chinatown, the winds had picked up, and itsure felt like it could rain. Well,instead of rain, we had snow flurries. How exciting was that? Snow isnot something we see a lot of at home in northern California. It did not last long, which was probably a goodthing. Walking over the mountain at Jayu Park with snow or ice would not be awise thing.

 

It was getting late, and we were getting hungry. So we back-tracked and went down the firstset of stairs down to the Sinpo Underground Shopping Mall. At least it was warmdown here, and we could spend the little bit of money we had. Yesterday, we had seen some costume jewelrythat caught our eye, and some cosmetic products one of us needed. In fact, wewere a little short on the change, but the vendor gladly gave us the itemsanyway. That would never happen at home. This market place was full of shopperstoday, because it was Sunday and many families were out and about with theirkids.

 

Coming out at the 27 & 28 marker for the subway, weended up right back where we started. Asmall pharmacy had some snacks where we spent most of the money. Another funny thing happened in one of thesmall stores. Guess some Yen got mixedup with the Korean Won, and the vendors would not accept it. Kind of looked the same, but the Japanesebills were smaller. Some places did takethe US dollar however, but that was an exception.

 

We got back to the pier by 3:30pm, tired, cold, andhungry. We ordered a room service lunchof Caesar chicken salads and one club sandwich to share. This time we added two plates of freshchocolate chip cookies. Dinner willprobably be smaller than normal for us tonight.

 

Working on photos and reports kept us busy until the sunset,of which there was none. The clouds hadgotten darker, and by dinnertime, it was raining heavily. Guess we were lucky the rain had held offduring the day. The Captain came on withhis PM talk, warning us that once we were out to sea late tonight, we would behitting some rough seas. Nothing worsethan what we have experienced, but rocking and rolling anyway. We should be heading even a little furthernorth, so we do expect it to remain quite cold.

 

At dinner, we had complimentary wine to celebrate the startof the Mariner Appreciation Days, now that the powers-to-be from Seattle areonboard. Included in this group are thePresident of HAL, the Director of the Mariner Society, and the manager ofCorporate Giving. Instead of the wine,three of us took sodas instead. Noproblem getting the cans unopened to enjoy tomorrow instead.

 

We have two days at sea to prepare for the overlandadventure, although we are already half-way packed.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report #51 SailingTowards Xingang (Beijing), China February 20, 2017 Monday Partly cloudy & 40 degrees Pictures

 

Once again, the actual temperature today was nowhere near 40degrees. Try minus 2 degrees Celsius or28 degrees F. For the first time that wecan remember, a sign was on the door to the outside lower promenade decksaying, ”Decks are closed due to wind and ice”. High winds, yes, but ice? Never,except maybe while we were in Antarctica.

 

Staying up late last night to type reports for the day, weended up watching the entire sailing out of Incheon through the locks. We had missed it on the arrival morning, sothis was cool to see it now. From ourwindow, it appeared that we were inches away from the lock walls. It did not resemble the Panama Canal locks atall. In fact, we are not sure there wasa huge difference in water levels, but more of a tidal fluctuation with being in a river. Watching the extremely slow progress on theTV, it appeared that the ship had stopped. By then, it was 1am, and we ended up falling asleep.

 

Today, we are sailing towards Xingang, China, and the stormforce was a 10 on the Beaufort scale. Cutting winds were blowing at 55 mph and the water temps were 48 degreesF. The ship was sailing at a slow clip,12 knots, in 60 to 130 foot deep waters. The light shade of aqua-blue was an indication that we were in shallowseas.

 

We noticed that the lower dining room on deck four lookednaked, with many chairs missing. Agung,our very nice am and pm waiter said that 80 chairs had to be moved to the Crow’sNest for the first Mariner Brunch for guests with 1000 days, we were told. Then the chairs will have to brought back fordinner, and taken back up tonight for one more Mariner Brunch. In hindsight, they should have kept thechairs here, and served the brunch in the dining room. Later in the day, we chatted with friends whomentioned that the President of HAL and his wife experienced motion sicknessand had to abruptly leave the room, never to return. It can happened to the best of us. Normally, the powers-to-be went from table totable briefly visiting with guests, followed with photos. Guess that did not happen today, as there wasonly one CEO left, and it was more than likely too rough to walk around theroom safely.

 

Last night, there was the first dinner for some of thePresident’s Club members, and perhaps some new inductees. This evening, the CEO’s will be hosting a suitedinner, then tomorrow night, we will attend the second King’s Room dinner foranother President’s Club dinner with more inductees.

 

Did we mention that the Princeton Tailors are onboard nowuntil we arrive in Xingang? They will betaking orders for a wide variety of high quality custom-tailored clothing inmany styles and fabrics. They may be abit pricey, but we guarantee that their work is excellent. And they stand behind their guarantees. All orders will be delivered to the guests inHong Kong.

 

At lunchtime, we listened to Captain Jonathon give his PMtalk. The plan for our arrival toXingang has changed a bit. Since we areso close, he intends to bring the ship into the port the evening before we aredue to arrive. Although the localofficials will be boarding, no one will be allowed off of the vessel. We will all be cleared either the evening beforeor the next morning. It has not beendecided yet. If memory serves us right,we have always gone through immigrations, and temperature check as well, onboardthe ship.

 

It was a 2 movie day, since going outside for any length oftime was not an option. The normalactivities went on today with two talks in the Queen’s Lounge. Things to do and see in Xingang was one, andthe other was a lecture by Terry Greenberg about East and Westdifferences. We have gotten a lot ofpositive feedback about Mr. Greenberg’s talks.

 

Shore excursions to Beijing include 9 ½ to 12 hour dayvisits to see the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace and theMing Tombs. One tour will go to the cityof Tianjin. There are two overland toursout of Beijing. Fifteen years ago, wetook the 2 day, one night in Beijing to see the sites. Back then, it was well worth the $500 perperson we paid. It was the best way to seeit all without having to drive three hours each way to and from the port twodays in a row. The other excursion isfor four days, and three nights. Thatwill take the folks to Xian and the Terra Cotta Warriors as well as seeing thesites in Beijing. This tour ends in Shanghai.

 

We let our tablemates know that we will be gone for eightdays from Xingang. We’ll give you thehighlights of our private tour tomorrow.

 

The strangest thing happened while we were sitting acrossfrom the Ocean Bar at 5pm. We keptseeing something fly by the windows, and we soon realized it was ice fallingoff of the upper decks and pipes. Wejust were not expecting this frigid icy coldness that penetrates yourbones. Around sunset, we ducked outsideon deck nine to find ice that had formed on the retractable roof over the Lidopool. Needless to say, we took a fewpictures of the setting sun and went right back inside.

 

Dinner was missing our two sort of single ladies, Barb andMartha, both guests at other tables. Themeal went a lot quicker with only seven of us, even though we talked allthrough dinner. The kalbi meatballs andsoba noodles was the best entrée, although a bit hot and spicy. A simple chef salad was also an alternative entrée. The soups have been much hotter, because theyhave been served in the older soup bowls. Good thing our food was hot, because the dining room was downrightchilly again tonight. Seems like theheat has been directed to different areas of the ship, such as the show lounge,and the staterooms. We also heard thatthe band and the bartender has been using blankets in the Crow’s Nest to stay warmlate at night. How weird is that?

 

We’ve heard there is a new band playing in the Crow’s Nest. They go by the name of The Paul James Band,and Barb swears they are the best ever. The word is that they are onboard for two weeks.

 

The singers and dancers were scheduled to perform in theQueen’s lounge this evening, but with rough seas, they have been moved totomorrow. A harmonica player is theentertainer tonight. We actually heardmost of his show during the practice around 4pm today.

 

Good news….the clocks went back one hour tonight. We all agreed that was a great idea…….we allneed the extra sleep.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[dchip]

Wow!! The photos of the seas are amazing. Ice on the deck, crazy. While we have no ice, Howard and I are both bundled up in blankets, watching movies, hoping that one day we will see the sun again. Only 4 days in February without rain!!

 

Hoping your overland trip will be a bit warmer.

 

Cheers, Denise and Howard.

[WCB]

Report # 52 SailingTowards Xingang (Beijing), China February 21, 2017 Tuesday Partly cloudy & 35 degrees 37 Pictures

 

Checking the stats on the TV this morning at 8am, we learnedthat the outside temperature was 3 Celsius or 37 degrees F. Gosh, it had warmed up overnight. The Amsterdam was only going 9 knots and thewinds were 6 knots blowing over the decks. The distance to Xingang was only 116 nautical miles or 133 miles, sothat was the reason we were going so slow. The good news is that the seas have flatten out, and we were no longerrocking and rolling. The bad news isthat we still had no network programing on the TV. Besides the ship’s promotional stations, theonly options are ESPN ( mostly the guys are happy about that), and four moviechannels. The guest speaker’s lecturewas being rerun from Korea, along with Barbara’s fun talk about Asiandragons. Watching both at least twice,we are now experts on both subjects. Weare curious as to why we have lost these stations in this part of the world, asno explanation has been offered. Later in the day, ESPN was also gone.

 

After breakfast, we ventured outside on the lower promenadedeck to find chunks of ice falling from the overhead boats. The gutters were full of ice that had beenscraped off of the decks. Being carefulnot to step in anything wet, we knew it could be dangerous walking. There was a bit of sun coming through thehazy fog, but not enough to warm you up. Just made us walk faster and longer. Later in the day, the skies turned dismallygray and a heavy dry fog blocked most any view of the dozens of ships passingby us. We did a few miles before weheaded back inside.

 

We got serious about packing for the side trip we are doingbeginning tomorrow. Here is the plan…….wewill be picked up around 10am, or whenever we are cleared throughimmigrations. There should be anEnglish-speaking rep holding a sign with our names to take us to our vehicleand driver. From what we remember fromour ride from the port to Beijing, it should take up to three hours to getthere. Or less, because we will not haveto wait for bus-loads of folks making the pit stop along the way. We sure hope the facilities for this stop area lot better than what we remembered from 15 years ago. Back then, it was basicholes in the ground in every stall. Andsince the Summer Olympics took place here in 2008, major improvements had to bemade…..this stop being one of them.

 

We will spend one night at the Shangri-La Hotel, then thenext day, be transferred to the airport for a flight to Xian, a 2 hour and 15minute flight. We will spend the nexttwo nights at the Shangri-La Hotel in Xian. This evening we will have a dumpling dinner for an 18 course banquetmeal. They call it tasty xiaochi, orlittle eats that will come in a steady stream to our table. That sounds like fun.

 

On Friday, we will be visiting the Terracotta Warriors andShaanxi Provincial Museum with a Chinese lunch onsite. Then back to the hotel after an exhausting day.

 

Saturday, we will fly from Xian to Chengdu, a one hour and40 minute flight. We will spend the nexttwo nights at The St. Regis Chengdu Hotel. That afternoon, we will go to the Giant Panda Breeding Base for a halfday tour.

 

On Sunday, we have a trip to Le Shan for the day. It is 2 hours southwest of Chengdu, where wewill see the first Buddhist temple in China, as well as the Giant Buddha carvedout of a hillside. At 71 meters high, itis the largest Buddha in the world. Wewill also board a boat to view this scene from the water too. Lunch is included as well.

 

On Monday, we will fly from Chendu to Guilin, another onehour and 40 minute flight. We will bestaying two nights at the Shangri-La Hotel Guilin with a deluxe river viewroom.

 

On Tuesday, we will go on the Li River Cruise and visit the villageof Yangshou. We are really lookingforward to this, since many of our friends highly recommended doing thisexcursion. Keeping our fingers crossedfor good weather and clear skies, as we heard there are wonderful photos to behad here. Lunch is also included onboardthe boat. We go back to the hotel, thenhead off for an evening show called Impressions by Liu Sangie outside ofGuilin. Liu Sangie was the creator andco-director of Beijing’s 2008 Olympics Opening Ceremony. The 70 minute performance features 600 actorssinging with Chinese music and dramatic lighting effects. Also recommended by good friends, this shouldbe a great way to end our adventure.

 

On Wednesday, we will fly from Guilin to Hong Kong, viaShanghai. Don’t know why we have to dothis longer route, but we understand there was no direct flight back to HongKong.

 

We will spend one night at the Shangri-La in Hong Kong, thenbe joining the ship on Thursday, March 2nd.

 

Lunch was fun today, as Barb, Aart and Ellen joined us inthe dining room. We always have so muchinfo to share, that the time flies by. After enjoying peach pie and chocolate profiteroles, we needed to take alonger walk outside after lunch.

 

There were two good talks today about the Great Wall ofChina and shore excursions from Hong Kong to Mumbai. They certainly keep ahead of themselves don’tthey? At least, it is something new towatch on TV later.

 

Around 5pm, Gene, the cruise director, came on with anannouncement about tomorrow’s immigration procedures. It will be held in the terminal, and it willbe a “zero” count, meaning absolutely everyoneon the ship will have to clear before being allowed back onboard. For us, that means we will have to be packedand ready to go with all of our stuff by 9am or so. There must have been problems with our lastimmigrations check, because Gene begged everyone to be kind and polite to eachother during this procedure. We have toadmit that we have noticed some very unpleasant passengers at times, giving the staff and theother guests a bad time. Hate to seethat no matter where we go.

 

Dinner for us was in the King’s Room, a special invitationto dine with Orlando and his wife, Gerald Bernhoft, Pamela, from public relationsin Seattle, Henk Mensink, Karen Mercer, and Hazel Donald. Captain Jonathon was unable to attend becausehe was busy bringing the ship into the port of Xingang. And Arnold Donald had left the ship inIncheon for business reasons, so he was not present. Several new passengers made it into thePresident’s Club on this cruise, and eight of them were “pinned” this evening. Four others were inducted two nights ago at asimilar dinner. Oh yes, we each had agold box with a pretty ribbon wrapped around it. Inside we each received an engraved jewelrybox with the skyline of Shanghai and the Amsterdam sailing out of the harbor. Veryuseful keepsake as it is lined with velvet.

 

The food and drinks were over-the-top beginning with achampagne toast, Dom Perignon Brut Imperial. A smoked salmon appetizer and one vegetarianmuse began the meal. That was followed with a five spice honey duckbreast, and seared scallops with a slice of pork belly. The main was a slice of beef tenderloin andveal sweetbreads. Two wines were servedwith each course, but we were served one JD and a scotch over the rocksinstead. Manny remembered that at leastthree of us did not drink wine, and brought our drinks without even asking. Severaltimes during the meal, Manny asked if we wanted refills. He really takes care of us. Finally, a trioof chocolate macaroons, baked mousse, and crème finished the meal. Coffee was served while Orlando gave theclosing talk and wished us all a good night. The evening was really nice for us, because we were sitting with ourfavorite people……Eddie and Lee, Don MacD, Barb’s trivia buddy, and two hosts….Pamelaand Henk, the hotel director. Eddiealways brings his cameras, so we did too. Always nice to share this fine meal with everyone who is interested increative cooking. The evening wrapped upshortly after 9pm, then we spent a few moments with Gerald and Orlando beforeleaving the room. The discussioncontinued in the hallway with Karen and Hazel, who shared some interesting infowith their experiences on the ship so far. Guess they hear many gripes from passengers that believe they might havethe power to change things. They arepolite to listen, but their suggestion is to put things in writing on thecomment cards and turn them into the front desk folks.

 

Most everyone was off to the Queen’s Lounge for the “Dance”performance with the singers and dancers of the Amsterdam. Their show had to be cancelled last night dueto high seas. Now that we are “parked”they were able to perform safely. Aswith many times, we had taken in part of this show during rehearsals.

 

By the time we got back to our room, we turned on the TV andfound that it was snowing heavily outside, according to the ship’s camera onthe bow. Captain Jonathon mentioned wecan expect temps in the 20’s tomorrow, and perhaps more snow flurries. You can bet that all of us will dressproperly.

 

As long as we have access to internet, which we know wewill, our reports should be continuing as usual. So, stay tuned……

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[Wehwalt]

That is a very impressive trip to do in China especially in February.

 

The high speed train is a good alternative to flying on some routes (like Beijing-Xi'an) is very fast (190 mph) and the first class car is very comfortable and the service very good as you would expect.

 

I hope you don't get any smog. It had gotten quite intense my last few days in Beijing at the start of December.

[jaxonboy]

A great overland, have a wonderful time, won't you?

 

By the time you get back, you will have cravings for a cheeseburger.

[WCB]

Report #53 Tianjin(Beijing), China The Start of theOverland Adventure February 22,2017 Wednesday Cloudy & 28 degrees Part #1 Of 2 78 Pictures

 

Maybe it was the anticipation of our trip today, or it wasthe decadent chocolate dessert that finished our meal, but one of us did notsleep a wink last night. Sort of forgotthat rich, dark chocolate has that effect……like drinking 10 pots of coffee.

 

Off course, this was a port day, even though we had arrivedlast night, no one was allowed off of the ship until today. Getting up early, we went to breakfast at7:30am and were soon joined by Barb and eventually, Martha. Knowing that we will be gone for eight days,they wanted spend some time with us. Nice.

 

The first call for the immigrations check in the terminalwas around 8:30am for the people with the “S” letter. That applied to Barb andus. Although we could go at any time,we thought it best to get this over with. The line started on deck three in the atrium, where we exited the shipby having our cards scanned like normal. Once we entered the covered gangway, they scanned the cards again.

 

But before we left the ship, Henk came over and congratulatedus for our successful bid to get a daily delivery of the NY Times Digest. Having had a short conversation with Orlandoand Gerald, we asked for this service to be a perk for the President’s Clubmembers. At least those of our groupthat wanted the paper. They must haveagreed and put this in writing to Henk, the hotel director. We figured our onlyhope to get this to work, was to keep the request for a small group. Nice to know they listened.

 

Back at the immigrations check. Yesterday we had been given copies of ourpassports, which had to be stamped along with our passport books. Since we will be going overland, we needed tokeep them with us.

 

Following the crowd into the terminal, we ended up in theslowest line of all. There must have beenten lines. Originally, there was supposed to be a “zero” count, where no onewas allowed back on the ship until everyone was seen. Guess they changed their minds on that one.

 

There was mass confusion with the passengers who were goingon all day trips or overlands, either with HAL shore excursions orindependently. Some were not sure theyneeded to bring everything off with them, so half of their group was ready togo, but others were not. At this rate,the 10 to 12 hour tours will not get back to the ship until midnight.

 

Now what we did not expect was the fact that the snow, ice,and fog had closed the only highway from Beijing to Tianjin last night. Even though our driver was not showing upuntil 10am, we thought we better get our things, and search for him.

 

Something really bad must have happened with the plumbing onthe ship, because all of the toilets had been shut off. Not only in the rooms, but also the publicones. Good time for us to beleaving. We were allowed to bypass thelines, and go directly down the escalator to the lower terminal. We did see a few drivers holding signs withnames, but none of them were ours.

 

Finally, right outside the building, we saw our driverwaiting in the freezing parking lot. Hehad gotten there after a 4 hour drive on country roads at 3am in themorning. He said the highway had beenclosed since 10:30pm last night, but he knew all of the side roads to get therefrom Beijing. He was not sure if theroad had opened up yet, but he made the decision to head that way afterchecking with his GSP system.

 

The only vehicles on the road from the pier were a few carsand the tour buses. Actually this newterminal is located in the middle of nowhere…..far from everything. It was built on acres of landfill that wenton for miles. Thousands of trees hadbeen planted there. Eventually, we begancoming upon new housing tracts and factories with power plants. This entire area has been built up since the2008 Summer Olympics, when the worst of the polluting plants and factories hadto be moved away from the city of Beijing. Needless to say, the quality of air is pretty bad here. When we watched the sun come up, it was likea ball of orange fire in a misty haze.

 

We were moving along fine, when we came to a dead stop,surrounded with big rigs, buses, and some cars. Seems that the highway was still closed at the toll gates. We ended up sitting there for over 45minutes, before the traffic began to move again. Our driver was most happy, because he saidthat sometimes, the highways close for a whole day this time of year, with noalternate routes.

 

That’s when he began to drive aggressively, and we made ourway around all the buses and trucks, getting into the city of Beijing in 2hours time. At another toll booth, wewent through a police check point, where our driver had to show ID. If he had not been a citizen of Beijing, hewould not be allowed into the city. Things are quite different here than back in the states.

 

Heading across town towards the Shangri-La Hotel, he took uspast all of the important sights in Beijing. We passed the Imerial Palace with the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square,Mao’s Mausoleum, museums,and the built-up city with hotels and modern malls. Sure has changed since we were here 15 yearsago. The area of the city where massivehigh rise banks are now built is most impressive. We even went past the Beijing Hotel where wespent one night while touring the Great Wall, the Ming Tombs, and the sights ofBeijing.

 

Our destination was the Shangri-La Hotel, a little more outof the center of town. With the helpfrom our driver, we were checked in, and in our spacious room by 1pm. We went to lunch in the hotel’s café, andordered a margarita pizza and local beer…..Tsing Tao. Perfect.

 

We spent the afternoon trying to figure out theinternet. Having trouble with Google, wewent down to the front desk to ask about it. What a surprise to find out that Google and Facebook are blockedhere. For that reason, we won’t be ableto post everything like we have been doing. We will simply keep the reports going, then send photos later.

 

At least we have TV back, and figured out how to getstations in English. We went to the samecafé for dinner, and ordered two hamburgers with fries. Needing a little something sweet, we shared alight chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream. The food was expensive in the hotel, like anywhere else you go. But we know it is safe to eat, and we getfree bottles of water in our room.

 

Tomorrow we meet with our driver at 9:30am for an hour rideto the airport, so we will be up early, and enjoy a good breakfast before weleave. At least that is included.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[Wehwalt]

Google is blocked, Facebook, The New York Times. Some pages wouldn't load with comments. The Great Firewall.We had the same highway closed with the Volendam in October, with much the same result. It cleared up after two hours.The food in China is generally sanitary. Try a piece of fried dough, very light, for a couple of RMB in the morning from a street vender.

 

Another little souvenir are these cloth change purses you can by for 10RMB in a lot of souvenir shops. They will say something in Chinese and then (often) in garbled English. My favorite has Mao in profile and says "Contradictions among the people to use the yuan (money) to resolve". Mao gave a famous speech on contradictions among the people but I don't think he said this.

[NordicPrince]

Every day is just fascinating !!! Continued good travels.

[bettty45]

Just fascinating!!!! Safe travels and keep the stories coming.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[WCB]

Report #54 Beijingto Xian, China February 23, 2017 Thursday Sunny & Cold Part #1Of 85 Pictures

 

Boy, did we sleep good last night. We had a nice, spacious room with many usefulcomplimentary amenities. One such nicetyis a breakfast buffet beginning at 6am in the restaurant we had lunch anddinner. We had gotten up early, so wewere not rushed with re-packing our stuff. We had tried to keep packing simple, but there are always the cosmeticsand toiletries that need double-bagging.

 

It was also a good time to catch up on news from BBC andCNN. Other channels we usually get, arenot on their allowed lists, we guess. Ever heard of “The Great Firewall”, referring to the blocking of certainemail providers or access to some websites? Well that exists here, reminding us that while in mainland China, theinternet is watched closely. There is nosuch thing as privacy here.

 

Yesterday, while we were waiting for our pizza, a youngChinese gal approached us, asking where we were from. Quite obvious, we were visitors here. She happened to be from Boston and here onbusiness. Explaining that we had arrivedto Tianjin on a cruise ship that was on a world cruise, she was “all-ears”. She even went as far as asking how much thatcosts. Not shocked, as we have heardthat asked before, we explained that it depended on the type of room youbook. Very intrigued, she asked for ourblogsite so she could follow the trip. She was a good person to ask about this firewall we wereencountering. Of course she knew allabout it, and explained that some servers and sites had been blocked for many years.She added that there was a way around it, and suggested that we go to wechatfor something similar to Facebook (totally blocked here).

 

Back to breakfast, we filled our plates from the egg stationfor a typical Western breakfast. Thefood was good and plenty with excellent coffee made one cup at a time at amachine. We took our sweet time, and atno time did we feel rushed to leave. Business men and women began streaminginto the restaurant, and soon the place was full.

 

After checking out at the front desk, we waited for ourdriver who had promised to pick us up at 9:30am. He was one minute early, and ready to drive usto the airport. It took about an hour instop and go traffic, but at least we had a chance to see much more of the cityas well as the 2008 Summer Olympic Stadium right off of the freeway. That also gave us some time to ask him about familylife in this part of the world. Guessinghe was in his 30’s, our driver told us he was married with two young boys. Since they were both in school, and he and hiswife worked outside the home, they didnot need the help of their parents as kid sitters. However, both sets of parents offered to livewith them, but they declined both offers. He said that his in-laws always criticized that they did not feed theirboys enough, while the other set of parents thought they were fat. When they did visit, they did not like thefood one mother cooked, so they were most happy when everyone left themalone. Also, one grandmother said shewas disappointed that the boys did not know as many Chinese characters as oneof the neighbor’s kids. Alwayscompeting. Always problems, no matterwhere you live.

 

Arriving at the airport,,,,, at 10:30am, we followed ourdriver inside to the counter, where our one suitcase was a tad overweight. No problem, they let it go. One thing weshould mention, you cannot put batteries, especially the lithium type, in yourchecked luggage. Best to put it in yourcarry-on bags, then take it all out in the plastic tubs they provide. Noliquids, like water, were allowed, although we had two sealed bags of pretzels,they were OK. That’swhen I remembered that I had put the little alarm clock in the checkedbag. If it was a problem, they wouldfind it. Guess it was OK, because itcame back intact. We passed all otherscrutiny, wanded, patted down, and xrayed. At least we did not have to take our shoes off. Glad to be through that.

 

Our flight was supposed to leave at 12:50am, but that didnot happen. It was delayed until1:30pm. Then we boarded, and waited evenlonger on the runway, lined up in a que to take off with other planes. At least, we did not have to worry aboutconnecting to another flight. The airtime had been listed at 2 hours, 15 minutes. In reality, it was 1 hour 40 minutes, so we ended up being about onehour late. Not uncommon for thesecommuter-type flights.

 

While waiting to take off, we were all fed a hot meal ofchicken stew and rice with a roll and water. Then we were up, up, and away, as the old saying goes.

 

Just realized the China facts were not discussed yet. Secretive and reclusive for much of the 20thcentury, China is a bigger figure on the world stage these days. One in every seven human beings on earth,live in China. The population as of 2014was 1,339,000,000 people that speaks mainly Mandarin. It is big, no huge with 3,704,427 squaremiles. The guiding light is not ChairmanMao, but the yuan, their money. Consumerism is their new religion.

 

Vast acres of countryside are being cemented over to buildnew shopping centers and highrise apartment buildings. Still, you can find captivating culture andhistory no matter where you visit. Forevery new skyscraper, there is a 1000 year old pagoda. And for every fast food franchise, there is areahouse with hand-pulled noodles and steamed buns.

 

The best time to visit is May, then September toNovember. This time of year, it isbeyond cold, but then tourists are not over-crowding the sights as well. Of course, the things to see here are theGreat Wall, most impressive close-up, lavish palaces in the Forbidden City, andtiny homes in Beijing’s narrow alleyways. Another most popular site is seeing the 6000 sculpted faces of Xian’sterra cotta warriors. The Silk Roadrelics and sifting sands in the empty middle of Xinjiang, or ta’I chipractitioners moving in silence in all of the parks across China may interestsome.

 

A few things to do could include taking a train ride to getthe scope of the enormous size of this country, or eat a banquet fit for anEmperor at one of Beijing’s food stalls. You can watch kite flyers at the colonial buildings in Shanghai, or takea Maglev high speed train that reaches speeds of 267 mph.

 

Eating Chinese food like the fiery cuisine in Sichuan thatis flavored with flower pepper, spicy but not related to pepper is anexperience. Drinking cha-tea attraditional teahouses where leaves are rolled and brewed, then roasted for a varietyof brews is a good pastime.

 

Trademarks are chopsticks, calligraphy, the CulturalRevolution, ta’i chi, green tea, acupuncture, and state censors. A must see…..Tianamen Square & Tibet.

 

A random fact is among many other things, the Chineseinvented paper, printing, gunpowder, the compass, and the umbrella. Who knew???

 

OK, back to our flight. We landed and were at the baggage turnstile by 4pm. Our bag was among the first off. And like we stated, un-opened. Once outside the building, a cute young ladyby the name of Lucy, greeted us. Shewill be our guide for our stay here. Wehave a driver as well. Since we werelate in arriving, the plan was changed somewhat as to what we were to do thisevening. Actually, it was a better plan.

 

The city of Xian is the capital of the Shaanxi Province withover 8 million people. It is the seat ofaviation and textile industries, numerous universities, and researchinstitutes. As cold as it is here in thewinter, the summers can run over 100 degrees F. During the spring and fall, the days are pleasant, while rain comes fromJuly to October.

 

Since our hotel, the Shangri-La, is located at the other endof the city, the plan was to take us to see the Old Imperial Center from theTang and Ming Dynasty, surrounded by a large wall. It protected the city center that measured 6miles by 5 miles. These walls are 40feet thick with a moat that surrounds an inner wall. It is wide enough on the top, that people canride bikes around it.

 

At the Northern Gate, Lucy took us up 75 stairs to the top ofthis wall. Views of the city could beseen from every direction. Recently, ithappened to be Chinese New Year, and Lucy told us it is celebrated for onemonth. Red lanterns and twinkling lightscovered the trees that lined the many main streets in town. Today this ancient city center is surroundedwith modern buildings, heavy traffic, and a haze that at times can block theview of the Bell Tower at the far end of the opposite wall.

 

We did not have time to walk the entire wall, but enough ofit to realize the enormity of the 20 years it took the Chinese folks to buildit. An interesting fact is that during WWII, air raid shelters were dug intothis ancient wall to protect against Japanese bombings. Much of the old city within the wlls has beenconverted to a park.

 

Time for dinner, we were taken to a nearby restaurant by thename of De Fa Chang, a famous dumpling restaurant. Although she did not join us, Lucy got us atable for two, where we were served an 18 course banquet that arrived withinminutes of each other. Dumplings werefilled with pork, chicken, vegetables, duck, shrimp, as well as baby dumplingscooked tableside and added to a soup. Except for a plate of 12 dumplings which was brought by mistake, therest of the samplings were steam baskets of 2 each.

 

Four bowls with salad fixings arrived first with friedpeanuts with tiny fish, spinach, cucumber with shrimp, and a bowl of tasty tofunoodles. Small boats with vinegar andsoy sauce were used to dip the food or add to the salad fixings. Loved the noodles, even if they weretofu-based…..good for us we understand.

 

The closest to dessert were samplings of fruit-filledpastries, and one generous slice of cantaloupe cut in pieces. Of course, we had chopsticks for utensils,but forks were also brought to us. Usedboth, more or less. Lucy returned after45 minutes, and returned us to the waiting van.

 

The drive back was tedious with so much traffic, but thebest part, was being able to see the city light up at night. It was like magic with all of the New Yeardecorations. The best was the BellTower, rising at 118 feet high, this tower resembled a Chinese temple andhoused the bell which was rung to begin the day. Sure was neat all lit up.

 

The hotel was located on the other side of town, not allthat far, but slow in arriving due to traffic. This Shangri-La is quite new…..5 years to be exact. Except for Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong,Xian has the most 5 star luxury hotels in China. And this is one of the best, we heard.

 

Lucy escorted inside the massive lobby, where she asked for ourpassports to present to the reception lady. This was not the check-in place, but it allowed us hotel access. The bellman used his key card to get us up tothe 19th floor, where we would formally check-in. Like we do sometimes in foreign countries,Lucy checked with our arrangements with the hotel personnel. We sat in a lounge comfortably waiting to becalled for our credit card. In fact,this looked like the Horizon Lounge, which is used as the venue for happy hourfor beverages and snacks later in the day. We were offered any drink of our choice, since they were opened until 8pm. We declined since we had just eaten dinner.

 

Going back down to the 18th floor, we located ourroom, which was really nicely appointed. The trouble with the short stay here, is that you really don’t spendmuch time in these rooms. There was anotice stating that their pool was being renovated, so it would be closed forone week. Who has time anyway?

 

Worked on down-loading photos and note-taking until10pm. One of us had the chance to beginreading Lost Horizon, a book that the Shangri-La Hotels have fashioned their hotelsafter. Copies of this book are in eachroom, so if there isn’t enough time to complete it, perhaps the next hotelswill have them as well.

 

Looking forward to tomorrow and the Terra Cotta Warriors.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[josumello]

Thanks for the wonderful narrative of your travels. I feel as though I am traveling with you. Your adventures are truly remarkable. It must take so much planning to make it happen.

Awesome!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[bettty45]

Thanks for the wonderful narrative of your travels. I feel as though I am traveling with you. Your adventures are truly remarkable. It must take so much planning to make it happen.

Awesome!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

 

 

Fascinating!!! Thank you :)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Wehwalt]

Since it's only 3 months since I was in Xi'an (at the Hilton), following with great interest.

 

As a point of information, the term "Shangri-La" originates with the book "Lost Horizon", by James Hilton.

 

You can rent bikes at the top of the wall in Xi'an.

[WCB]

Report #55 Xian,China February 24, 2017 Friday 40 to 50 degrees warmer than Beijing Part 1 Of 85 Pictures

 

Did you know that China is the third largest nation in theworld in land area? But has the largestpopulation in the world with the longest recorded history. The most significant fact is that China isresponsible for many scientific and technological inventions known to man. Back in the earliest days of that recordedhistory, anyone living outside the walls of the largest Chinese cities were consideredbarbarians. Some of this explains whatwe saw today at the Terra Cotta Warriors, as well as the Shaanxi History Museumin Xian.

 

Since we did not have to meet with our guide until 9:30am,we had time to enjoy another complimentary breakfast in the hotel’s Li Café closeto 7am. They offer a wide range ofinternational food, which included a full American-style breakfast of omelets,bacon, sliced ham, and sweet rolls. Wealso added some flavored yogurts and fresh fruit with juice and coffee. Knowing that the day ahead of us would be abusy one, we fueled up properly.

 

Lucy was in the lobby right on time. Within minutes, our driver was on the way tothe outskirts of the huge city for the 20 mile trip to the site. The Terra Cotta Warriors are considered the 8thwonder of the ancient world, built as an underground army to protect themausoleum for the first Chinese Emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi 200 years BC. This complex is located one mile west of thewarriors, but has yet to be un-earthed. Whatactually exists there is based on what was written at that period of history. But more about that later.

 

Lucy had one hour to explain the history behind this famoussite, which was recently discovered by accident on March 29, 1974. The story has it that a local farmer wasdigging a well for his crops, when he ran into pieces of clay belonging to whathe thought was ancient pottery.

The more he dug, the more pieces of clay he found. Realizing he had stumbled on something morethan old ruins, archaeologists began exploring deeper to find the undergroundruins of a large army of warriors from the Qin Dynasty, dating back to 210 BC.

 

We arrived to the site at 10:30am, and were blessed withsort of blue skies and crisp temperatures. No rain or snow today. With allof the factories and coal fueled power plants, there is a constant haze in theair….smog at its worst. Today, at leastwe could see the Li Shan Mountains, the backdrop of the complex.

 

After getting our tickets, Lucy escorted us to the oldestand largest of the pavilions that house the warriors. Although we have seen a few programs aboutthe warriors, seeing it up close and personal was most impressive. The hangar-like pavilion that covers thiscomplex is 3.7 acres in area. It is alsothe oldest of the major buildings, built in 1979. Considering that this complex had beendiscovered only 5 years earlier, it must have taken an army of workers tocomplete this dig.

 

This main vault had 11 columns separated by walls. The actual warriors, horses, chariots, andofficers were a mere 15 feet deep in the ground. Each figure was made with clay and sand fromthe local soil, then dried or baked until they were hard as rock. Their clothing had been painted as well astheir faces tinted rosy shades. Once exposed to the air, the clay turned blackand the paint oxidized. Wooden timbers supported a roof overhead,covered with straw mats. The entirepurpose of this army of warriors was to protect the Emperor, who wouldeventually be entombed a mile away.

 

Now a strange thing took place about 4 years after theEmperor Qin died. During the Farmer’sUprising, almost every one of the 7000or more clay figures were destroyed and the wooden ceiling was burned byfire. Guess this dynasty was not wellliked….even more so, his son who succeeded him. Quite a shame, all that wasleft of this massive army were ruins, broken shards of pottery, that had to bereconstructed piece by piece. What a miraclethat the tedious process of restoration has been able to bring back thousandsof these figures.

 

We need to mention that coming here this time of year isconsidered the off-season. Good for us,the crowd was not a crowd at all. Andmost all of the tourists are local ones. Those of us from foreign countries are few. None of the exhibits were over-crowded,because Lucy said we would never be able to move freely and get close to the railings in this pavilion as we are doingtoday. Even at that, we took an hour toexplore the entire perimeter of the complex.

 

Each and every warrior has a different face, at least thosewith heads. Not all of them had enough piecesto complete the heads, or arms and legs too. Even the horses, which areMongolian-sized, were different from each other.

 

After taking one million photos, we moved on to the secondand third pavilions. They were newer,one built as recent as 1990. Fewer figureshave been uncovered here, but they are still in the process of uncovering moreof the army. Many chambers showed theextent of the ruins, pottery in deep piles, with burned beams and ceilings inthe mix.

 

The last building was a small museum that housed among otherthings, two half size models of bronze chariots, horses, and their coachmenfrom the Qin Dynasty. Discovered in1980, these chariots would be used for the Emperor.

 

Lastly, we were led into a store with many souvenirs, somequite expensive. The largest pieces werealmost life-size and made of bronze and jade. Yes, you could have your own Terra Cotta Warrior sent directly to yourhome for 1000’s of dollars. One pricetag had 28,000 yen on it, which calculated to $4082, not including shipping. We priced a 12 inch pair of bronze cranesthat stood on a turtle. Both areconsidered good luck for a long life. Regularly, they cost $700, but today, we could purchase the pair for$574. Maybe a good deal, but not for us.We deliberately left little room for souvenirs in our luggage. Our house is already a “museum” of treasureswe have collected over the years.

 

Attached to this shop was a movie arena, where you stood andwatched a surround screen all about the history of the warriors. It put all of this information we had justlearned in place. The sound effects weremore impressive than the grainy film, but it gave you an idea of what life waslike back in those days. Violent andscary, you would not have wanted to livethere.

 

Further info on the tomb area, located a mile west of theunderground warriors. The entirenecropolis is 22 square miles, covered in a mound that is 154 feet high. This was not a natural mound, but since itwas surrounded by 12 villages and ½ dozen factories, it was never consideredanything of value. However, when thewarriors were uncovered back in the 70’s, studies were made here. The soil tested extremely high in mercury,and according to written history, the Emperor’s tomb was surrounded with ariver consisting of mercury. The ceilingof the tomb reportedly had stars made from pearls and precious stones.

 

It was recorded tht it took 700,000 workers to create thisnecropolis, taking them 36 years to do so. The building began when the emperor was only 13 years old. The price they paid for their work? Not good, as they were buried alive alongwith the Emperor’s numerous concubines. Perhapsin years to come, more excavation will take place and the entrance to this tombwill be discovered. It will take muchmoney and time to accomplish this.

 

A funny thing happened at this complex with people sellingcounterfeit figurines. Lucy warned usthat these warriors and horses, about 6 inches in size, were cheaply made atpeople’s farms nearby. She laughed andadded that they refer to them as “suicide” terra cotta warriors, because by thetime you get them home, they are broken in many pieces. Naturally, we passed them up.

 

Our final stop here was at the only restaurant near themuseum. At a table for three, we enjoyedChinese noodles, freshly made at this restaurant. They came in a broth or covered withchili. Tried some of both, and was innoodle heaven. Sipping local beer, weeventually had six plates of food served to us. Mostly veggies, there were mixes of chicken, beef, or shrimp. Each one better than the other. We ended the ample meal with a plate full ofsweet items. Lucy said we needed theextra calories to walk the long way back to the parking lot and our waitingvan.

 

Once out of the complex, we entered an area of cafes,restaurants, and dozens of shops selling souvenirs. Only taking photos, we never stopped onceeven to look. Our driver waved to usfrom the parking lot, and we were happy to climb back in the van for the hourride back to Xian.

 

The outskirts of Xian has the housing highrises, along withthe polluting coal-fueled power plants. We crossed a major tributary of the Yellow River, which supplies most ofthe water for this area. We saw fewbirds anywhere today. Could be that theymigrate from this colder weather, or they have been consumed over theyears. Fields were empty now, but duringthe summer, corn is grown. The rest ofthe year, wheat is planted.

 

We were back to the city center by 3:30pm, but we were notdone yet. We still had a visit to theShaanxi Lishi Bowuguan History Museum. Opened in 1991, this modern Chinese-style museum displays artifacts fromfour ancient dynasties. Ming, forporcelain, Qin, for pottery and bronze, Shang, and Zhou for tools, pottery,weapons, and figurines. Some displayseven featured Buddhas. All of it toldthe story of the Silk Road, and the trade that went on between the countriescenturies ago.

 

Very interesting, although we could only spend about 40minutes here, we absorbed enough to make a complete picture of Chinesehistory. A lot to take in for one day.

 

Tired and slightly exhausted, we returned to the Shangri-LaHotel by 4:30pm. Good to be back, and beable to take some time to download photos. Doubt we will be able to postanything, but eventually, it will come through.

 

By 7pm, we headed to the Horizon Club on the 19thfloor. We relaxed for a while, drinking local beer,and snacking on crackers and cheese. Allcompliments of the room we booked. Goingback to the Li Café off of the lobby, we enjoyed another great pizza and ashared burger with fries. This time theburger came with a green salad and a bowl of coleslaw. All was delicious.

 

Since we need to get up very early, getting to sleep was apriority. We need to check out and meetLucy and our driver by 5:30am for our flight to Chengdu tomorrow.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[whogo]

if the Zaandam is too ratty, feel free to take Seabourn Quest. I think Prinsendam is the only other choice to do the Valparaiso/Antarctica/Buenos Aires run.

[MMDown Under]

Bill and Mary Ann, I don't know how you find the time to submit such a detailed report of your tour, when you are on such a tight schedule. Enjoy!

[Bostonjetset]

Report #55 Xian,China February 24, 2017 Friday 40 to 50 degrees warmer than Beijing Part 1 Of 85 Pictures

 

Did you know that China is the third largest nation in theworld in land area? But has the largestpopulation in the world with the longest recorded history. The most significant fact is that China isresponsible for many scientific and technological inventions known to man. Back in the earliest days of that recordedhistory, anyone living outside the walls of the largest Chinese cities were consideredbarbarians. Some of this explains whatwe saw today at the Terra Cotta Warriors, as well as the Shaanxi History Museumin Xian.

 

Since we did not have to meet with our guide until 9:30am,we had time to enjoy another complimentary breakfast in the hotel’s Li Café closeto 7am. They offer a wide range ofinternational food, which included a full American-style breakfast of omelets,bacon, sliced ham, and sweet rolls. Wealso added some flavored yogurts and fresh fruit with juice and coffee. Knowing that the day ahead of us would be abusy one, we fueled up properly.

 

Lucy was in the lobby right on time. Within minutes, our driver was on the way tothe outskirts of the huge city for the 20 mile trip to the site. The Terra Cotta Warriors are considered the 8thwonder of the ancient world, built as an underground army to protect themausoleum for the first Chinese Emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi 200 years BC. This complex is located one mile west of thewarriors, but has yet to be un-earthed. Whatactually exists there is based on what was written at that period of history. But more about that later.

 

Lucy had one hour to explain the history behind this famoussite, which was recently discovered by accident on March 29, 1974. The story has it that a local farmer wasdigging a well for his crops, when he ran into pieces of clay belonging to whathe thought was ancient pottery.

The more he dug, the more pieces of clay he found. Realizing he had stumbled on something morethan old ruins, archaeologists began exploring deeper to find the undergroundruins of a large army of warriors from the Qin Dynasty, dating back to 210 BC.

 

We arrived to the site at 10:30am, and were blessed withsort of blue skies and crisp temperatures. No rain or snow today. With allof the factories and coal fueled power plants, there is a constant haze in theair….smog at its worst. Today, at leastwe could see the Li Shan Mountains, the backdrop of the complex.

 

After getting our tickets, Lucy escorted us to the oldestand largest of the pavilions that house the warriors. Although we have seen a few programs aboutthe warriors, seeing it up close and personal was most impressive. The hangar-like pavilion that covers thiscomplex is 3.7 acres in area. It is alsothe oldest of the major buildings, built in 1979. Considering that this complex had beendiscovered only 5 years earlier, it must have taken an army of workers tocomplete this dig.

 

This main vault had 11 columns separated by walls. The actual warriors, horses, chariots, andofficers were a mere 15 feet deep in the ground. Each figure was made with clay and sand fromthe local soil, then dried or baked until they were hard as rock. Their clothing had been painted as well astheir faces tinted rosy shades. Once exposed to the air, the clay turned blackand the paint oxidized. Wooden timbers supported a roof overhead,covered with straw mats. The entirepurpose of this army of warriors was to protect the Emperor, who wouldeventually be entombed a mile away.

 

Now a strange thing took place about 4 years after theEmperor Qin died. During the Farmer’sUprising, almost every one of the 7000or more clay figures were destroyed and the wooden ceiling was burned byfire. Guess this dynasty was not wellliked….even more so, his son who succeeded him. Quite a shame, all that wasleft of this massive army were ruins, broken shards of pottery, that had to bereconstructed piece by piece. What a miraclethat the tedious process of restoration has been able to bring back thousandsof these figures.

 

We need to mention that coming here this time of year isconsidered the off-season. Good for us,the crowd was not a crowd at all. Andmost all of the tourists are local ones. Those of us from foreign countries are few. None of the exhibits were over-crowded,because Lucy said we would never be able to move freely and get close to the railings in this pavilion as we are doingtoday. Even at that, we took an hour toexplore the entire perimeter of the complex.

 

Each and every warrior has a different face, at least thosewith heads. Not all of them had enough piecesto complete the heads, or arms and legs too. Even the horses, which areMongolian-sized, were different from each other.

 

After taking one million photos, we moved on to the secondand third pavilions. They were newer,one built as recent as 1990. Fewer figureshave been uncovered here, but they are still in the process of uncovering moreof the army. Many chambers showed theextent of the ruins, pottery in deep piles, with burned beams and ceilings inthe mix.

 

The last building was a small museum that housed among otherthings, two half size models of bronze chariots, horses, and their coachmenfrom the Qin Dynasty. Discovered in1980, these chariots would be used for the Emperor.

 

Lastly, we were led into a store with many souvenirs, somequite expensive. The largest pieces werealmost life-size and made of bronze and jade. Yes, you could have your own Terra Cotta Warrior sent directly to yourhome for 1000’s of dollars. One pricetag had 28,000 yen on it, which calculated to $4082, not including shipping. We priced a 12 inch pair of bronze cranesthat stood on a turtle. Both areconsidered good luck for a long life. Regularly, they cost $700, but today, we could purchase the pair for$574. Maybe a good deal, but not for us.We deliberately left little room for souvenirs in our luggage. Our house is already a “museum” of treasureswe have collected over the years.

 

Attached to this shop was a movie arena, where you stood andwatched a surround screen all about the history of the warriors. It put all of this information we had justlearned in place. The sound effects weremore impressive than the grainy film, but it gave you an idea of what life waslike back in those days. Violent andscary, you would not have wanted to livethere.

 

Further info on the tomb area, located a mile west of theunderground warriors. The entirenecropolis is 22 square miles, covered in a mound that is 154 feet high. This was not a natural mound, but since itwas surrounded by 12 villages and ½ dozen factories, it was never consideredanything of value. However, when thewarriors were uncovered back in the 70’s, studies were made here. The soil tested extremely high in mercury,and according to written history, the Emperor’s tomb was surrounded with ariver consisting of mercury. The ceilingof the tomb reportedly had stars made from pearls and precious stones.

 

It was recorded tht it took 700,000 workers to create thisnecropolis, taking them 36 years to do so. The building began when the emperor was only 13 years old. The price they paid for their work? Not good, as they were buried alive alongwith the Emperor’s numerous concubines. Perhapsin years to come, more excavation will take place and the entrance to this tombwill be discovered. It will take muchmoney and time to accomplish this.

 

A funny thing happened at this complex with people sellingcounterfeit figurines. Lucy warned usthat these warriors and horses, about 6 inches in size, were cheaply made atpeople’s farms nearby. She laughed andadded that they refer to them as “suicide” terra cotta warriors, because by thetime you get them home, they are broken in many pieces. Naturally, we passed them up.

 

Our final stop here was at the only restaurant near themuseum. At a table for three, we enjoyedChinese noodles, freshly made at this restaurant. They came in a broth or covered withchili. Tried some of both, and was innoodle heaven. Sipping local beer, weeventually had six plates of food served to us. Mostly veggies, there were mixes of chicken, beef, or shrimp. Each one better than the other. We ended the ample meal with a plate full ofsweet items. Lucy said we needed theextra calories to walk the long way back to the parking lot and our waitingvan.

 

Once out of the complex, we entered an area of cafes,restaurants, and dozens of shops selling souvenirs. Only taking photos, we never stopped onceeven to look. Our driver waved to usfrom the parking lot, and we were happy to climb back in the van for the hourride back to Xian.

 

The outskirts of Xian has the housing highrises, along withthe polluting coal-fueled power plants. We crossed a major tributary of the Yellow River, which supplies most ofthe water for this area. We saw fewbirds anywhere today. Could be that theymigrate from this colder weather, or they have been consumed over theyears. Fields were empty now, but duringthe summer, corn is grown. The rest ofthe year, wheat is planted.

 

We were back to the city center by 3:30pm, but we were notdone yet. We still had a visit to theShaanxi Lishi Bowuguan History Museum. Opened in 1991, this modern Chinese-style museum displays artifacts fromfour ancient dynasties. Ming, forporcelain, Qin, for pottery and bronze, Shang, and Zhou for tools, pottery,weapons, and figurines. Some displayseven featured Buddhas. All of it toldthe story of the Silk Road, and the trade that went on between the countriescenturies ago.

 

Very interesting, although we could only spend about 40minutes here, we absorbed enough to make a complete picture of Chinesehistory. A lot to take in for one day.

 

Tired and slightly exhausted, we returned to the Shangri-LaHotel by 4:30pm. Good to be back, and beable to take some time to download photos. Doubt we will be able to postanything, but eventually, it will come through.

 

By 7pm, we headed to the Horizon Club on the 19thfloor. We relaxed for a while, drinking local beer,and snacking on crackers and cheese. Allcompliments of the room we booked. Goingback to the Li Café off of the lobby, we enjoyed another great pizza and ashared burger with fries. This time theburger came with a green salad and a bowl of coleslaw. All was delicious.

 

Since we need to get up very early, getting to sleep was apriority. We need to check out and meetLucy and our driver by 5:30am for our flight to Chengdu tomorrow.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

 

 

Thanks for sharing this. It sounds like you had a wonderful time visiting the warriors!! They truly are a sight to behold.

 

I almost fell over laughing with the "suicide warrior" comment. I visited Xi'an in 2008 as a budget-minded undergrad student and did indeed buy a set of those very inexpensive souvenir warriors. I think it worked out to about $1 or $2 per set [i bought some as gifts to bring home also! haha] which was a fraction of what the "official" ones in the museum cost. Well, almost 9 years later and they are still displayed on one of my bookshelves without even a chip. The craftsmanship is not as refined as the official ones but they serve as a nice [and cheap] memory of the travels of my early twenties haha.

[Wehwalt]

I had read that you can bargain the touts down to RMB 5 (65 cents or so) for a little box of five replicas. I bought three that were larger in one of the stores and they made it home safely.

 

I did buy some suicide clay coasters in Peru which self-demolished in my luggage on the plane ride home ...

 

I also did the history museum in Xi'an ... I remember the treasure room had beautiful gold ornaments.