Mostly Live. Explorer-Tokyo to Vancouver

[mj_holiday]

Today’s the day we really start our journey. We were up very early, of course. Did I mention we have crossed 11 time zones
Breakfast was nice and we packed our carry-ons and we’re ready to head to the meeting place. Our suitcases were picked up last night sometime.

Since the ship will not be ready for us as we check out of the hotel, Regent is having our buses due 2 to 3 sightseeing stops

Our first stop was to Meiji shrine. The tour guide told us it was a 20 minute walk. Due to this DH stayed on the bus. The 20 minute walk was a fast walk. We went by many barrels filled with saki or beer.  These are offerings to the Emporer  The Emporer Meiji enjoyed both wine and saki. .
I made it to the shrine and went in under a large Torri  wooden gate. It is very different style from Christian shrines that you may think of. Entering there was a place to wash your hands which  I understand, is part of the ritual.  
(Sorry for the upside down photo). 

 

[rcandkc]

We are doing Tokyo to Vancouver in 2 years …2 years😳…I’ll be following. 

[chaunceyb]

53 minutes ago, mj_holiday said:

Today’s the day we really start our journey. We were up very early, of course. Did I mention we have crossed 11 time zones
Breakfast was nice and we packed our carry-ons and we’re ready to head to the meeting place. Our suitcases were picked up last night sometime.

Since the ship will not be ready for us as we check out of the hotel, Regent is having our buses due 2 to 3 sightseeing stops

Our first stop was to Meiji shrine. The tour guide told us it was a 20 minute walk. Due to this DH stayed on the bus. The 20 minute walk was a fast walk. We went by many barrels filled with saki or beer.  These are offerings to the Emporer  The Emporer Meiji enjoyed both wine and saki. .
I made it to the shrine and went in under a large Torri  wooden gate. It is very different style from Christian shrines that you may think of. Entering there was a place to wash your hands which  I understand, is part of the ritual.  
(Sorry for the upside down photo). 

 

Thanks much for your posting! I think I saw you mention that at the Tokyo Hilton no coffee makers in rooms, just kettles to boil water? Enjoy you cruise! 

[mj_holiday]

The room in Tokyo Hilton did have a kettle and Nescafé along with tea. 

[chaunceyb]

10 hours ago, mj_holiday said:

The room in Tokyo Hilton did have a kettle and Nescafé along with tea. 

Thank you and enjoy your cruise!🙂

[mj_holiday]

It was very crowded. Getting up to the shrine to offer your prayers. There was also security enforcing no pictures and no talking. After the shrine, we went to a garden inside Tokyo. DH and I walked in far enough to use a facilities. It looked very nice.  We were just exhausted. Their brochures showed what flowered by the month, but their spring has been late this year.
 

The last stop was a walk by the emperors palace, the front gardens and lawns around the palace were beautiful. They do have an interesting way of making benches to sit in. We have seen these several places.

 

We finally made it to Port, check in was a breeze. We soon had a glass of champagne and was escorted to our Muster station. Then we were escorted to our cabin. We dropped our carry-ons and headed to the pool grill for something to eat. I tried the lobster nachos which I have been hearing a lot about. 
Our luggage was delivered by the time we finished with lunch. We unpacked and made ourselves at home in our home for the next 30 days. Our suite attendant  came by to introduce himself and we’re getting our bar set up with what we want.
Then, on to dinner in Compass Rose and DH had his first lobster tail of the trip. 

[mj_holiday]

Today we are in the town of Shimizu. Our excursion is a photo op tour for Mount Fuji. Our guide was very informative about the area. He explained information such as the rain on Mount Fuji travels through the volcanic soil,  is purified and ends up in a spring for drinking water. 
It was a hazy day. We were told that yellow sand in the air is coming from China. We were also told that the cedar trees are releasing a lot of pollen, which is the reason so many people are wearing mask.

Our first stop to take pictures ended up having a steep incline with lots of steps. DH didn’t attempt it. I did attempt it but only made it half up, but I still got a couple pictures of Mount Fuji. Our second stop was to a pine tree forest. Our guide explained that during World War II, Japan ran out of oil and developed a method to extract oil from burning the pine trees. In the pine tree forest, the trees do not stand tall and erect as the Douglas fir that I am used to. These limbs are all over the place. It was very peaceful setting, and the sand was beautiful. The ocean brought in the sand and gravel from Mount Fuji. 
 

After seeing the pine trees, we took another walk to a small kiosk area that sold snacks and some souvenirs. I bought a snack I have no idea what it’s like. We’ll find out back at the cabin.

[mj_holiday]

After lunch, we left the ship to take the shuttle that’s offered. The shuttle took us to the railroad station of Shimizu. We walked around some of the area and decided it was time to stop someplace for refreshments.  We then realized most of the establishments closed at 2 PM. We found a small little coffee house that was open and went in.  I asked about getting two beers holding up two fingers.  The server acknowledged and asked if we wanted two glasses and I said yes. I’m glad she didn’t understand that I wanted two beers. She served up two glasses and a half liter bottle of beer. That was a good size to share.  She also brought some small packages of snacks. And a bowl to put them in and some handy wipes. It was a nice break. As we left,  outside was the biggest dog I’ve seen and he seemed friendly but I wasn’t taking any chances.
We headed back to the shuttle and took the shuttle back to the ship.  
We again had a lovely dinner in Compass Rose with our server Yuli, and Brad had his second lobster tail of the cruise. 

[PaulMCO]

2 hours ago, mj_holiday said:

After lunch, we left the ship to take the shuttle that’s offered. The shuttle took us to the railroad station of Shimizu. We walked around some of the area and decided it was time to stop someplace for refreshments.  We then realized most of the establishments closed at 2 PM. We found a small little coffee house that was open and went in.  I asked about getting two beers holding up two fingers.  The server acknowledged and asked if we wanted two glasses and I said yes. I’m glad she didn’t understand that I wanted two beers. She served up two glasses and a half liter bottle of beer. That was a good size to share.  She also brought some small packages of snacks. And a bowl to put them in and some handy wipes. It was a nice break. As we left,  outside was the biggest dog I’ve seen and he seemed friendly but I wasn’t taking any chances.
We headed back to the shuttle and took the shuttle back to the ship.  
We again had a lovely dinner in Compass Rose with our server Yuli, and Brad had his second lobster tail of the cruise. 

If you want to sit at the best table/waitress in Compass Rose -- ask for Table 4 and Joan..  Tell her Mr. Paul and Mama Mindy said hello  🙂

[mrlevin]

This is undoubtedly the best service we have experienced in 21+ years of cruising Radisson/Regent; Alessandro and Vlad have trained an excellent crew.  We are very happy campers. 

[carolina cruisin]

We were on Explorer Jan-Feb and agree - the best service ever.  Give our best to Yuli - from the Robertson's.

[forevertravel]

We will be joining you a week from Friday. We have the three day precruise in Tokyo next week. Are Alessandro and Vlado still on the ship? We'll love to see them. Two of our favorite people.

[mrlevin]

Alessandro and Captain leaving 13 April in Tokyo; don’t know about Vlado. 

[mj_holiday]

April 3 , we arrived in Kyoto at noon so the morning was like a sea day. We got laundry turned in, got the newspaper set up, and got on a list for a galley tour,. We also exchanged some excursion tickets since they are turning out to be more difficult than the description says.  
 

In the morning was a wine tasting in the atrium. The tasting was of several of included wines on the ship.  There were eight reds and eight whites to taste from various regions around the world. It was quite popular with people cutting in lines to get a sample.  I kept a list so I can ask for other wines at the meals. But I do need to say that the wines offered have been very good. 
Since we didn’t have an excursion in the afternoon, and it was raining, we made the entire day a seaday.  We came up with a couple of places to take a taxi to Thursday. 
 

In the afternoon, we headed to trivia. This was our first trivia this cruise (think it is the second of the cruise). And we weren’t part of the team, we needed a team. We sat at a table near the entrance to the observation lounge. I made a sign “Forming a Trivia Team” to show the people coming in. Some tried to ignore me, but one gentleman looked my way and decided to join. He quickly stepped into the role as a recruiter, and we soon were part of the team of six.  We had a lot of fun coming up with our answers and finished in second place. 

Dinner was in Pacific Rim. Wine was offered, but we asked about sake for DH. They brought him some sake.  DH had tempura lobster while I had the giant prawns. Both were delicious.

We did not last to see the performance that evening.

[chaunceyb]

Sorry for another question:  Can't remember if Regent provides reusable water bottles for guests. BTW, I can't stand "line cutters" either!😅 We are on the April 13 May 1 North Pacific Passage cruise.

[frantic36]

3 hours ago, mj_holiday said:

 

In the morning was a wine tasting in the atrium. The tasting was of several of included wines on the ship.  There were eight reds and eight whites to taste from various regions around the world.

 

On our cruise in October we will be getting into Kobe the second day @ 12pm so hopefully they will do the same on our cruise. As I first time Regent cruiser it would be great to get an idea of what to ask for at dinner. What is the mark up like for revenue wines?

[mrlevin]

Example of excellent service.  I know there are people that like long leisurely dinners.  When my wife and I eat without others, we prefer a faster service.  Tonight in Compass Rose I had five courses and my wife had three and we were in and out in exactly 60 minutes.   Staff understands our preferences and delivers a fantastic experience.

 

BTW, wife modified appetizer and main courses; I had a special order (foie gras) and modified my main course; yet everything went perfectly.

[mj_holiday]

Reusable water bottles are provided and place to fill them up as you leave the ship. 

[chaunceyb]

6 hours ago, mj_holiday said:

Reusable water bottles are provided and place to fill them up as you leave the ship. 

Thanks again!

[PhD-iva]

6 hours ago, mj_holiday said:

Reusable water bottles are provided and place to fill them up as you leave the ship. 

If they are anything like the reusable water bottles provided on Mariner and on Voyager, I’d say don’t bother. Bring your own insulated water bottle from home. The bottles provided on board have no insulation and they sweat as they quickly lose their chill. No thanks.

[Chateaunole-du-pape]

43 minutes ago, PhD-iva said:

If they are anything like the reusable water bottles provided on Mariner and on Voyager, I’d say don’t bother. Bring your own insulated water bottle from home. The bottles provided on board have no insulation and they sweat as they quickly lose their chill. No thanks.

Fully agree. Those uninsulated metal bottles are awful - one of the few things we felt was poorly thought out by Regent on our cruise last summer. (The other one that really stuck out was the use of Twinings tea bags for afternoon tea - while it's perfectly adequate, it is also something you can buy at Publix or any other grocery store. We really would have preferred something more interesting, like the Tea Forte that is served in Pacific Rim. And loose tea would be a nice touch. Something like Mariage Frères would really elevate the experience but perhaps that's asking too much.)

 

This summer, we are bringing our own insulated Tervis bottles for water and Contigo AutoSeal mugs for coffee. We'll pack clean underwear and socks in them to make it less space inefficient. And, upon arrival, we'll ask our suite attendant to take away the metal bottles unused so someone else can eventually use them. It bothers me that they'd likely otherwise end up in a landfill.

Edited April 4 by Chateaunole-du-pape

[mj_holiday]

Thursday, April 4 - we overnighted in Kyoto and have no excursion scheduled today because as I looked at the revisions to the descriptions, they all were too strenuous.

So we research things to see today and we decided on two museums. As we left the ship and went through customs, we found an information desk and showed them the names of the two museums. The museum that made the most sense to visit was Takenaka Carpentry Tools Museum. A person from the information desk took us out to a taxi cab and gave him the address. She also gave us a piece of paper with the name of the port, written in Japanese, for us to give to a taxi to get back.
The museum was fascinating. Not only did it have a huge array of wood tools throughout the centuries in Japan. It also had many examples of intricate building methodologies that result in some of the buildings you see around Japan. There were also a few hands on exhibits where we could take something apart and try to put it back together. 
There was also quite lot of information and displays on a plane, the tool used to smooth surfaces and shave off wood. They had a little bitty planes, large planes, and planes for different types of wood or end result.

They also had many displays, and a video explaining how you make one of these planes. They also had examples of various thicknesses of shavings that can be made by a plane.

Noticed that the gentleman is holding the wood with his feet. 
Below are some examples of shavings made by various planes  

I am by no means a carpenter, but I really appreciated the depth that this museum went to explaining the art of carpentry.

[mj_holiday]

April 4 continued. 
As we were leaving the museum, we bought some souvenirs and asked the person working there how to get a taxi back to the cruise ship. She gave us several explanations which we did not understand. Then she picked up her translator and spoke to it and the translator told us how to get to the bus station where there were taxis. 
 

We got a taxi back to the cruise ship, found our way through the various rooms with helpful signs that said to ship.
 

Our team for trivia was -2 people who were still on an excursion, the four of us still had quite a bit of fun coming up with answers, and we got a third place, when all was said and done.

 

Dinner was in Prime 7.  It was a very good meal. We each had 6 ounce fillets and they were delicious. I’m not sure we needed a steak knife.  I was sorry to admit, after we finished the steaks, that I was too full to have the caramel popcorn, chocolate ice cream sundae. 
 

While we were eating, a group of at least 15 or 16 drums were just off the ship and gave us a drum performance. It was very interesting and you didn’t need to see it or be on a balcony to hear it.

[mj_holiday]

April 5 Kochi

I’m getting locked up when I attempt to post more than one photo so I will do this days update in several small submissions 

As we came into port, we were greeted by a display of people on the dock, waving flags and singing welcoming us to Kochi. 

[mj_holiday]

Our excursion today was to go to a craft village and learn how to make paper. As we took the bus away from the port, I started noticing many squares of gray water, which looked like some kind of a treatment plant. But there were way too many of these, and so I asked our tour guide about them. He calmly said they were rice patties. What else could they be? 
We saw many of these squares of water under the overpasses, and along the road as we drove.

A picture from a moving bus does not do it justice but you’ll get an idea