Live from the Majestic Japan Cruise on Westerdam Sept 1 - Oct 24, 2024

[Seasick Sailor]

This morning Captain Mark had to do an about face to dock at Sakaiminato port , a tight turn in the Strait.

 

Welp, as I mentioned we are the furthest forward deck 5 cabin.

 

As the Captain was turning, our cabin was shaking and I  left the bathroom for a few minutes because the mirror was vibrating so hard.

 

Next I know, our water bottles slid off the counter and my cosmetics fell off the bathroom shelf. So much so that my lipstick broke and rolled across the floor. That was a mess..

 

Allen didn't want to go to town, so I walked over to the Walmart-like store and bought some cards and a new tube of lipstick. Half our crew were shopping!

[richwmn]

Today in Sakaiminato.

 

We had a short day in Sakaiminato and it came down to two choices. There is a tower and shopping area near the dock, and a shuttle into town. We docked at 9:00 am as scheduled and the shuttles started at 9:30 as planned. We planned to go out at a little after 10:00 am and see about the shuttle. When we got there the line for the shuttle was long enough to indicate a wait of 40 minutes to an hour. With the shortness of the port, we quickly changed to plan ‘b’ and went to the tower.

 

The cost to go up in the tower was 300 yen each, and we paid and went up. The view from the tower was really nice. We then took the elevator down to the floor that had the exhibits. Here we saw many articles of Asian culture in nice exhibits. We then went to the ground floor and looked at the shops there. We found some green Kit Kat bars that one of our trivia players had asked about and bought them.

 

We then went back to the terminal and walked around the shops there for a short while. We arrived back on the ship in time to do trivia, which went well with a subject of ‘Asia’. We left as scheduled and we are now back at sea.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jinpasco]

First, thank you for all these posts and pictures. We are thinking of this cruise for next year and are enjoying the trip thru your eyes.

I noticed in the pictures there are many translations but I do not see English. Are you finding this to be the case ? 

[Seasick Sailor]

We were able to talk with @jettaleea and her DH after dinner tonight. They are a delightful couple, very interesting,  and we hope to spend more time with them.

 

I had Chef Morimoto tuna tonight.. awesome. 

 

Allen had the filet and what appeared to be a teeny weeny piece of crab in top.

 

We went on the rear aft Lido for sail away and it was beautiful. A misty rain fell but we were covered. 

 

A fun day!

[Seasick Sailor]

We were invited to join Rich and Sue at Music Trivia tonight. Rich knew the song names and artist's. I think we added a song. Rich is AMAZING!!

[richwmn]

2 hours ago, jinpasco said:

First, thank you for all these posts and pictures. We are thinking of this cruise for next year and are enjoying the trip thru your eyes.

I noticed in the pictures there are many translations but I do not see English. Are you finding this to be the case ? 

I don't remember seeing many English translations. Someone mentioned, either before the cruise or early on, downloading the Google Translate  app and it is very handy. It does a very good job translating typed text, almost as good at text in the camera, and I don't know how it does with spoken voice as I haven't tried it. I did have an experience where a sales person used a voice to text translator that seemed to work just fine.

 

[jinpasco]

1 hour ago, richwmn said:

I don't remember seeing many English translations. Someone mentioned, either before the cruise or early on, downloading the Google Translate  app and it is very handy. It does a very good job translating typed text, almost as good at text in the camera, and I don't know how it does with spoken voice as I haven't tried it. I did have an experience where a sales person used a voice to text translator that seemed to work just fine.

 

The app works on your pictures !  We may use a voice translator too. 

[HSBC]

Evening Entertainment Show (main one)

If the rating is 1 to 5, 5 is the best, what is your rating at Westerdam?  

Thanks!

[richwmn]

09/29/2024 Toyama, Japan 0800-1700

 

It’s Sunday morning in Japan but Saturday night in Tuscaloosa where the Dawgs and Tide play in about 45 minutes. It should be a good game and I hope to see at least some of it.

 

The weather here under cloudy skies is 74°. The high today is expected to be 78° between noon and 1pm. The humidity is 76% and the winds are 11 mph. It should be a good day for those going ashore.

 

Yesterday was a ‘dressy’ evening on board and many people did dress up a bit. Most appeared to be in nice clothes, with some in the Lido still wearing shorts and crocs. The show was the comic Helene Angley again and the show was decent. The World Stage was close to full for the early show and her jokes got a good response. I do wish sometimes that the entertainers would forget about asking where people are from and how long they have been married.

 

Trivia was billed as ‘Classic Rock’ and was pretty good. I missed several because they were newer than what I listen to, but we still did pretty good. One team only missed one point, it may have been the team that has usually been winning.

 

Here are today’s activities –

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For some reason the menus don't want to load today, I'll try again later.

 

[richwmn]

54 minutes ago, HSBC said:

Evening Entertainment Show (main one)

If the rating is 1 to 5, 5 is the best, what is your rating at Westerdam?  

Thanks!

 

I hesitate to 'rank' shows or restaurants for that matter. Such rankings are very subjective. In my view, particularly since they are part of the included entertainment, the World Stage Shows range from good to excellent.

 

With that in mind, I will make some comments about the shows in general. Many of the shows should talk less and perform more. For instance, 'Sonz of Soul' went thru the same 'Where is everyone from?' routine that happens at most shows. I would prefer another song instead. Giving their biographies is fine, but maybe a bit shorter. This seems to be true with all of the performers.

 

The comics, the ones whose whole gig is talk, also tend to spend a bunch of time on the old standards like 'Where are you from', 'how long have you been married', and the like. These routines do tend to get polite laughter, but could be replaced with other material.

 

I feel that the best shows are the ones done by the 'World Stage Reparatory Company', a group of four singers and four dancers who have done two for three shows so far and are scheduled for several more. The singers have good voices and all eight dance the routines well. Maybe not the caliber of NYC or London, but the shows are good, and the performers seem to be enjoying themselves.

 

[Seasick Sailor]

Thankful Captain Mark got us docked this morning. It was touch and go there for a moment. Strong current and winds.

 

And oh look! We are docked next to.. (drum roll)

 

A dump!

 

 

[DeeniEncinitas]

2 minutes ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Thankful Captain Mark got us docked this morning. It was touch and go there for a moment. Strong current and winds.

 

And oh look! We are docked next to.. (drum roll)

 

A dump!

 

 

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Oh Joy LOL 😆! Waiting for your pics and beautiful trash !! 
Love ❤️ sis! Hope you have a great day .

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Denise😌

[Seasick Sailor]

16 hours ago, DeeniEncinitas said:

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Oh Joy LOL 😆! Waiting for your pics and beautiful trash !! 
Love ❤️ sis! Hope you have a great day .

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Denise😌

 

Good morning (evening for you) dear sis! 🤎🫰

 

I really wanted to go to the Toyama Glass Art Museum. But it is 22 miles from Port, and MSH doesn't feel up to it today. 😮‍💨  I don't want to go alone. (The Points of Interest sheets closest point of interest is 14 miles)

 

So I'm switching gears, taking the 20 minute shuttle downtown and find something of interest!

 

Internet decided to take a break today!

[bennybear]

Oh I’m sorry you didn’t have time  to visit the amazing gardens, black castle or see the strange sculptures. 

[SusieKIslandGirl]

@Seasick SailorWhat's your guess for your next lovely docking site? 😄I appreciate your photos and reports. Thanks!

[Seasick Sailor]

On 9/28/2024 at 6:26 PM, SusieKIslandGirl said:

@Seasick SailorWhat's your guess for your next lovely docking site? 😄I appreciate your photos and reports. Thanks!

 

How about a stockyard of thousands of wine bottles?

[ATC]

14 hours ago, richwmn said:

It’s Sunday morning in Japan but Saturday night in Tuscaloosa where the Dawgs and Tide play in about 45 minutes. It should be a good game and I hope to see at least some of it.

The 1st half was so disgusting I almost turned the TV off. The 2nd half was fascinating until the last few minutes.

Edited Sunday at 02:00 PM by ATC

[richwmn]

09/30/2024 Kanazawa, Japan 0800-1700

 

Good morning on the last day of September in Japan. We are again under cloudy skies is 74°. Today the high is predicted to be 79° between 2 & 3 this afternoon. The humidity is 71% with winds of 4 mph.

 

I mentioned yesterday that I was staying on the ship to watch a football game. A friend provided this commentary and some pictures.

 

One of 3 large statues of Buddha in Japan and only a 10 minute walk from the Toyama station drop-off point. Plenty of English speaking guides to direct you and clear signage on the street. A further 15 minutes walk brings you to the metal workers district. Watch out for other statues on the way starting at the first left turn from the drop-off.

 

 

At the station, use the elevators/escalators to cross the tracks- going up, then across the concourse and down the South entrance elevators/escalators. A well marked road straight ahead leads you to the temple complex in about 15 minutes walk. Turn right at the temple sign and head up the middle of the road path to the entrance. Look out for bronze statues on the way.

 

The entrance fee is 500 yen, if you are not on a tour. This includes a map and English explanation of the various Buddha’s to be seen. Shoes off at the main buildings (tatami mats). Walk the outside corridors to see small shrines dedicated to different gods.

On the way back, you may be lucky enough to hear someone playing the grand piano on the upper concourse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today’s activities and menus –

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[richwmn]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jettaleea]

Joy and Allen....you got your junk pile!

[richwmn]

10/01/2024 At Sea Destination Nagasaki, Japan eta 10-02

 

Good morning. Today is a sea day heading for Nagasaki. We are currently headed Southwest at 13 knots. The temperature, under broken clouds, is 75°F / 24°C. The humidity is 78% with winds at 11 mph.

 

The last two ports were 60k apart by land and took us about 10 hours to sail around the tip of the peninsula. I took a few pictures from the ship which I posted yesterday afternoon.

 

The entertainment aboard ship has been pretty good, but you can’t please everyone. I have heard grumblings about the World Stage entertainment, the speakers, the entertainment staff, and the food and drinks. There is one team that shows up for most trivia sessions that wins almost every time. I’m sure that upsets some, but I understand because I have been in that position but not by design. There have been a few glitches in the entertainment, many of which could have been avoided by reading the daily program rather than looking over it. An example, Rolling Stone was dark last evening so the Late Music Trivia session was held there. About half the players were sitting in Billboard having assumed that it was there like usual (my team included). Luckily someone mentioned the change and we all moved. Jose did go to Billboard to make sure everyone moved.

 

Today has a full day of activities, ending for me with dinner in the Pinnacle Grill with friends. This will involve missing the Music Trivia, but that can’t be helped.

 

Today’s activities and menus –

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Seasick Sailor]

@jettaleea @richwmn

 

Hi Lee, I talked with Rich last night about a get together. He is free on Sunday the 6th. He told us to let him know a time and place. I'll talk to you tonight. Xx

[REOVA]

On 9/26/2024 at 1:54 PM, Seasick Sailor said:

 

I noted a few posts ago you can get yen at the front desk. I googled the exchange rate and it was dead on. Also in many ports so far there is an exchange in the terminal. I didn't use it, so don't know if there's a charge. 

 

The 7-11 is just like our ATM at home. No worries!

 

Oh! Speaking of! Gotta head down and get more yen!

The exchange rate on ship is lower than any place in Japan we coukd find. I was quoted 130 yen for 1 usd and atms were giving 136 yen (the best we found was in Kushiro MOO ATM was 140 but I didn't look at fees. Financial market at the time was 141 to 1, i think today is 144). Some foreign ATM cards won't work but we have 1 that works internationally and reimburses fees. 

 

For convenience some use the ship and losing a few dollars more on small conversion is minimal and worth it. You're not talking alot of difference in small conversions but definitely look at other fees besides conversion rates. I believe you need hard bills for coversion on ship,  not charged to stateroom or there is added fee (someone can correct me). ATMs look frightening but are easy (with English options) and there's a 7-11 (Seven Bank) on just about every street (more than Starbucks). We got 50k yen at start of our trip (I expected lots of purchases) and we only used credit card at some shops (many Taxis take credit cards but they love cash). We do private or self tours on trains so a Suica app for iPhone (I have Android so need yen cash to tap up balance) is very convenient for paying and trains are great and easy to learn routes, especially with JR app that will give you times and best routes.

 

Lastly, many attractions are free for 65+ so doing them on your own saves even more than HAL excursions. 

[REOVA]

On 9/29/2024 at 8:40 AM, richwmn said:

 

I hesitate to 'rank' shows or restaurants for that matter. Such rankings are very subjective. In my view, particularly since they are part of the included entertainment, the World Stage Shows range from good to excellent.

 

With that in mind, I will make some comments about the shows in general. Many of the shows should talk less and perform more. For instance, 'Sonz of Soul' went thru the same 'Where is everyone from?' routine that happens at most shows. I would prefer another song instead. Giving their biographies is fine, but maybe a bit shorter. This seems to be true with all of the performers.

 

The comics, the ones whose whole gig is talk, also tend to spend a bunch of time on the old standards like 'Where are you from', 'how long have you been married', and the like. These routines do tend to get polite laughter, but could be replaced with other material.

 

I feel that the best shows are the ones done by the 'World Stage Reparatory Company', a group of four singers and four dancers who have done two for three shows so far and are scheduled for several more. The singers have good voices and all eight dance the routines well. Maybe not the caliber of NYC or London, but the shows are good, and the performers seem to be enjoying themselves.

 

Fully agree. Subjective topic. The lecturers have been good. While there are good and bad performers in each World Stage show, overall the new variety and not having to watch the same Step One routine from 3 years ago is the best part. The shows have all been enjoyable probably just for that reason. As for the bars and musicians, Rich is right on. The Rolling Stone band is fantastic but loud and they have set sheets with songs in the same order on each sheet, so after a few weeks, you hear the same songs. The classical and 3rd Ave are similar. The piano duo are very hard to sit through for us but we have to to get trivia seat. I can only say that if streets were made of chalkboards and a cat walked across while you accidentally step on it,  that is a similar sound I hear. But as Rich says, it's a packed house so who am I to criticize. 

[richwmn]

@REOVA Stop and say 'hi' at trivia, I'm usually there (except Music tonight)

--Santa