Singapore

Wednesday, October 26 – Singapore
It was early up, enjoy our last breakfast and meal on the ship then catch a bus for a city tour before going to the airport. Singapore is an incredibly safe and clean place to visit. The consequence for breaking the law is swift and harsh so there is virtually no crime in the city. We are within one degree of the equator, so to say that it is a tropical destination is an understatement. The first stop was at the Orchid Gardens. One of the species is the National flower for Singapore. There were thousands of hybrids and countless colors and sizes of orchids. It was a wonderful way to begin our tour of the city. We then headed to Chinatown. Our guide made it clear that they are very proud of being so open-armed and inviting to all cultures and religions. The various areas within the city are clear evidence of this. On our way to Little India, we passed by Hindu Temples, Buddhist Temples, Christian Churches and Muslin Mosques, just to name a few. We also enjoyed a river cruise that had great views of the Merlion and the most expensive building in the world (6 Billion to make a 2,500 room hotel). We also saw the 165 meter high “Ferris Wheel”. Each car can hold up to 28 people and you can have a champagne dinner served on it as it takes 30 minutes to go just one revolution. We also stopped at the famous Raffles Hotel where I found a small jeweled purse for $3,200. It was a place that is definitely above my lifestyle, but it was still fun to look. We then took the 30 minute ride to Changi Airport where we had several hours to wait before catching a Qatar flight to Barcelona.

Scenes from Bangkok

Bangkok, Thailand

Sunday, October 23 – Bangkok, Thailand
WOW! Talk about saving the best for last, Bangkok was a visual and cultural orgy. We docked at Laem Chabang, the largest commercial cruise port in Thailand. The closest destination for tourism was Pattaya, a beach resort town on the Gulf Coast of Eastern Thailand. It was about a 45 minute ride and a free shuttle was offered. Gary had been to Pattaya many times while serving in the Air Force, so we chose to take a 2hr bus ride into Bangkok. There was concern for the flooding. While walking to a shopping area to exchang some US money for Baht (THB) we passed by sandbags in front of every opening. We took a taxi to Wat Pho. For 150 THB (about $1.50 US) we were able to see acres of amazing temples and Buddha shrines. The mosaics, bright colors and ornamental details cannot be captured in photos. It’s one of those things you must experience to appreciate. I could have spent several hours in just that one temple, but we knew our time was limited and there was so much more we had hoped to see so we hopped onto a Tuk Tuk for a brief ride to the Grand Palace. There is a strict dress code enforced and Gary was wearing shorts, so I spent an hour there while he did some exploring and shopping on his own. The admission was 400 THB for both the Palace and Wat Phra Kaew. Again well worth the investment. There were some areas I was not allowed because I did not have a skirt on, and other areas that were closed because of the worship services in progress, but it was still an amazing sight filled with glistening jeweled mosaic buildings and statues. We saw some of the flooding when we walked to the Mae Nam Chao Rhraya River. The ferry pier was flooded with water as high as the turn stiles. Many shops were also filled with up to a foot of water. There were not many boats on the water because of the flooding, so we decided it was not safe to take a riverboat cruise. We started working our way back to the part of town where we catch our bus back, but stopped at Wat Traimit (the Golden Buddha). The story is that it was covered with clay to hide it’s value during the war. When a crane operator was trying to move it, he miscalculated, dropped and cracked it. The Buddha lay in the mud as trash until a priest discovered the center of gold. It is estimated that it consists of 3 – 5 tons of gold. It now is housed on the 4th floor of a beautiful temple.
The fun continued when we returned to Laem Chabang. We enjoyed a formal dinner, a great show of traditional Thai music and dance and then we went back out to the port terminal where Gary attempted to do some emailing and I enjoyed a one hour massage for $19. The ship departed at midnight. We have two sea days then we arrive at Singapore where we will sightsee just for the day and then catch a flight to Barcelona to begin our final cruise home on the Carnival Magic. The time has gone by so quickly and every stop has been an adventure I will cherish forever.

Saigon Pics

Saigon

Friday, October 21 – Ho Chi Minh
We docked in Phu My which is about 2 – 2 ½ hrs drive from Ho Chi Minh (HCM) also known as Saigon. We were told that although the official name is Ho Chi Minh, many still refer to it as Saigon and many elements have not adapted the new name, such as the Saigon River.
By now, we are feeling very comfortable in large Asian cities, so once again we ventured off on our own. I found myself very nervous crossing streets. There are no subways, underground crossings or local buses so walking was the primary way for getting around. There are 8 million people in Saigon and 5 million of them were using their motor scooters. They don’t follow any of the rules of the road. They go the wrong way on one way streets, don’t stop at lights and go on the sidewalk just for fun.
We started by the Rex Hotel and walked down to the ferries by way of the crafters shops. Then it was up to Notre Dame Cathedral where we encountered more brides doing photo shoots for their wedding invitations and to the Post Office to mail some cards. We then walked past the U.S. Consulate and over to the Zoo and Botanical Gardens. We had a “Hawker” attach herself to us while crossing one of the busy intersections, but once we purchased some post cards from her, we enjoyed the hour of serenity in the park. It was the perfect break from risking our lives crossing streets. There were some interesting animals that we had never seen and a wonderful display of Bonsai from different artists. I convinced Gary that it was worth the $2 taxi fare across town back to the shopping area where we found some weasel coffee and snake/scorpion wine (Yum). We then walked back to the Rex hotel for cold drinks and spring rolls. The rooftop garden café is the same one that all the reporters would go after reporting on the Vietnam War. From the rooftop, we could see when the buses arrived to take us back on the 2+ hr journey back to the port that was also quite an adventure as the driver dodged in and out of traffic, honking his horn all the way.

Nha Trang, Vietnam

Thursday, October 20 Nha Trang, Vietnam
This was the only port that required tenders. We were docked at Phu My, an area outside of Nha Trang. This was also the first day of this cruise that had less than ideal weather. It is the beginning of the rainy season and in the morning it poured. The good news is that the sun did come out, but not before we were all soaked. We were part of a group of 18 that had arranged a private tour with a local. The tour began with a visit to an embroidery factory where young girls make about $100 per month to hand make beautiful silk embroidery paintings. The next stop was at Pagoda Orphanage. We had such a great time interacting with the children. They seemed quite happy and well cared for. Next was a bus ride followed by a hike on foot thru flooded alleyways to see a typical home where the locals are making mats. By now the rain has stopped but the area is still flooded. We are taken to a restaurant where local music is being played and we had an opportunity to try some of the local fruits including dragon fruit, papaya, watermelon, pineapple, bananas and some fruits I was not able to identify. After such a great appetizer, we then traveled out of town to a restaurant on the river for a true Vietnamese lunch. Following the lunch, we went by boat down the Cai River to the Ponagar Temple, an outstanding example of Cham architecture, situated on Mount Cu Lao. This temple dates back to the 8th century. As with most tours, this one ended with time to shop at the local market where bargaining and fending off hawkers is a way of life. Nha Trang was much more of a resort town than I had realized. It has a 7 km beach that runs the length of the city and resort hotels throughout the city. The city is alive and vibrant with new construction, but still had the character of the old world.

Tuesday, October 18 - Hong Kong

Tuesday, October 18, Hong Kong
Hong Kong is a HUGE city, but the good news is that the subways, buses and public transportation are very user friendly and well-marked for visitors, so we were able to go it alone. The entire day worked better than a real Rolex. We seemed to always be in the right place at the right time. We took a shuttle from the pier to Central Station where we caught a ferry over to Hong Kong Island. We then went to pier 6 and purchased an Octopus Pass. This works just like a debit card that offers half price fares for all the public transportation. My card was 150 Hong Kong Dollars (HKD) and Gary’s was a discounted senior citizen rate of 70 HKD 50 of which is the deposit which you get back at the end of the day. We then hopped on an open air double decker bus (15C) which took us directly to the Peak Tram. What made the day even more exciting was that we had managed to stay ahead of everyone else on the ship, so it was exciting to be the only ship passengers on the ferry, bus and tram. It was like being in first place for the “Amazing Race”. At the top of the tram we did encounter Princess Passengers who were on a ship tour, but we were completely enjoying the freedom of going on our own. We then returned to Central Station where we took Bus 260 to Stanley Market. This is a resort town outside of Hong Kong. The ride is about an hour and passes beautiful tropical beaches and 5 star resorts. At Stanley Market we purchased several bottles of bubbles to use when we visit the orphanage in Vietnam. It was now time to start working our way back to the Kowloon side so we were sure to not miss the last shuttle back to the ship. We had a 1 hour bus ride back to the heart of Hong Kong Island followed by a ferry ride across the harbor. Once back, we walked the “Avenue of Stars” where we saw Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan’s had prints in the walkway. We also saw several wedding parties having pictures taken. We took the subway to get the deposits back on our Octopus passes then walked over to Nathan Street and spent the remaining HKD before heading back to the ship for the best part of the day. After dinner as we sailed past Hong Kong the ship arranged to have the music of the Laser Light show broadcast on the ship as we watched the light spectacular. This light show is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest in the world. It is so fitting for the massive, tech based personality of Hong Kong.

Hong Kong Pics

Saturday, Oct 15 - Shanghai

Saturday, Oct 15, 2011 Shanghai
The fact that this city has over 23 million people makes it overwhelming at the very least. Our ship was docked 45 minutes from the city and we were not aware there was a free shuttle so we arranged to take a tour. There is so much to see and do we know we will not have enough time. Unfortunately, we had four in our group that got lost and cost us an additional hour.
The first stop was the Jim Mao Observatory, an attraction at the Grand Hyatt Shanghai. We raised 88 floors in 45 seconds to a wonderful view of the heart of the city and the Huangpu River. In the center of the hotel you can look down all 88 floors to the lobby below. We then went to Old Town and a visit to the Yu Gardens. It was a typical Saturday afternoon and packed with tourists as well as locals. Following the gardens, we went to the fourth floor of a tea house to sample several teas and participate in a tea ceremony. After some great shopping including two (real fake) Rolex watches for $2.50 each and silk ties for under $1.75, we then went to an extremely popular restaurant with the locals to try some of the steamed buns and a local beer. It was well worth the 30 minute wait. We were seated in front of the glass window where we could watch them making the buns. The delay from the lost passengers caused us to miss a performance by local acrobats back at the ship. We also missed a ceremony on the pier to celebrate that the Diamond Princess was the first ship to sail into the new port. We barely made it back in time for our dinner seating and an evening of dancing and shows. Despite the delays we still had a great day.

Shanghai

Nagasaki pictures

Nagasaki

Thursday, Oct 15, Nagasaki, Japan
Gary lived in Japan for three years and I spent a summer there but neither of us had been to the southern island of Kyushu, so our stop in Nagasaki was a real treat. We purchased one day tram passes for 5000 yen each. While waiting for the tram, we met a young couple also from Arlington. It turns out that we live within blocks of his parents. (Small World) First stop was the Peace Park where we enjoyed viewing all the various sculptures that different countries donated in memory of the Aug 9, 1945 bombing. There were hundreds of Japanese students having class pictures taken in front of the Statue of Peace. They found it very amusing that we all wanted to take pictures of them too. We then walked to the Atomic Bomb Hypocenter followed by the Atomic Bomb Museum. Regardless of your political opinion on World War II, the images portrayed in the museum can’t help but tug at your emotions. We then caught another tram, followed by a bus and hiked thru a tori gate, past a preschool and up to a shrine and the beginning of the Ropeway that takes you up Mt. Inasa. Unfortunately, we had not exchanged enough money to go on the ropeway and still have enough for the bus back, so we worked our way back to the tram and on to Suwa Shrine. As with most shrines there are hundreds of steps to climb so we really got our exercise today. We then took a tram to the stop for the site of the 26 Martyrs but found this to be a very challenging hike up hill. This site also stands for suffering and pain. 26 Christians were crucified because they refused to stop participating in Christianity. Working our way back toward the ship we walked thru a shopping area and to the Glover Gardens. Named after Thomas Blake Glover, who came from Scotland to Nagasaki in 1863, the grounds and gardens show the strong influence that Europe had on Nagasaki thru shipbuilding, coal mining and tea trade. Glover is also known as the father of Japanese beer and the Kirin Beer logo shares Glover’s famous moustache. I watched young Japanese girls pay to dress in colonial western dress and have their picture taken at one of the many mansions in the Glover Gardens. The day was filled with surprise treats. We stopped to purchase an ice cream cone from an elderly lady on the street and when she scooped it up, she turned the ice cream into a beautiful rose. Each scoop became another pedal on the flower. Once back on the ship we were then offered the biggest treat of the day. The ship we are on, the Diamond Princess, was built in Nagasaki and completed in 2004, so when it comes back home it is very much celebrated. The Deputy Mayor of Nagasaki came on the ship and there was a ceremony where the ship and city officials exchanged gifts. We were then treated to a recital by a group of 4 – 6 year old preschoolers. They sang “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes followed by some more traditional Japanese dances including a flower dance and a traditional drum dance. It was the end to a perfect day.

Busan Pictures

Busan, South Korea

Wednesday, Oct 12, Busan (Pusan) China
The city had a wonderful welcome show for us to watch from the ship balcony while we waited for clearance from the immigration officials. After having been in Busan a week ago, we were comfortable venturing out on our own. We took a free shuttle to Yongdusan Park where we went up the Busan Tower for a bird’s eye view of the city. While there we visited the musical museum and enjoyed the sights and sounds of the park. We then walked down the hill thru the fashion district to the Fish Market. The market is the second largest in the world. You can find sea creatures you didn’t know even existed that are caught and sold for food. Upstairs was an entire floor dedicated to dried fish. Further up the market is a restaurant for those brave enough to eat what you just saw swimming downstairs. After the fish market we walked to the International Market to shop and spend the last of our South Korean Won. We returned to the ship in time for the farewell ceremony on the pier.

Beijing

Monday, Oct 10 – Beijing, China
Today was the highlight of the trip so far. We were up at 5 am taking a three hour bus trip past Beijing to a section of the Great Wall. When we first arrived the fog was thick but our luck stayed with us. The sun came out, the fog burned off and it became a clear beautiful day. The portion of the wall we started hiking was brick and had been restored. It was just 600 years old, but after an hour of climbing, we arrived at a much older section that was worn, narrow and slow going. That’s where we decided to turn around and head back. The hillside foliage was turning bright reds and yellows which made for a spectacular sight. Following the climb, we headed to a local hotel for a traditional Chinese lunch which included mashed potatoes covered with blueberries in syrup along with other more common Chinese dishes. Once back on the ship, we opened the bottle of champagne we received for winning the Newlywed/Not So Newlywed game show and toasted another fabulous cruise. Tonight we meet our new dinner mates. More than ninety percent of the passengers disembarked today and a new batch arrived as we were out climbing the Great Wall of China.

Dalian, China

Dalian, China

October 9, Dalian, China
Dalian is a large, modern, port city on the southern tip of the Liaodong Peninsula. It is primarily a commercial port and tourist destination because of its mild climate.
We are becoming more confident so we, we ventured out on our own for the day. A free shuttle took us to the center of the main shopping area on Zhongshan Rd. We walked around Zhongshan Square down to Friendship Square and into Victory Shopping Center which is an underground multistory shopping area that goes on for blocks. On the journey we encountered many of the icons found in the western world including Ramada, Citi Bank, KFC, Pizza Hut, DQ and of course McDonalds. This is the last port before the cruise ends in Beijing tomorrow. Ninety percent of the passengers will disembark. We are continuing on to Singapore for another 16 days of cruising. Tomorrow will be a very early day. We must take a bus at 6:15 am to have time to travel to the Great Wall and back before the ship departs for Busan again.

Qingdao

Sea Goddess Temple, Qingdao