Busan, South Korea – September 30th

Busan, or Pusan in some spellings, is the second largest city in South Korea and the country’s main seaport. The port, as in Vladivostok, is huge and it is all natural with various different arms reaching into the surrounding hillside. Once again I was impressed with the size of the harbour and the amount of shipping and industry that was obviously taking place. One piece of documentation noted that Busan is the fifth largest seaport in the world so that will give you an idea of the scale. Of course the Diamond Princess was again the largest ship in the harbour.

The immediate difference you notice, when compared to Vladivostok, is that Busan is full of modern high rises in every direction. Old buildings just don’t seem to exist and the high rises are all new and clean looking and some have some wonderful shapes. The streets are also clean and there were always lots of people and lots of activity happening. It was actually quite a contrast from Vladivostok, which of course was unique in its own way. And of course one can’t forget that in amidst all the high rises of Busan you also find wonderful gardens and parks and quiet areas for relaxation, many of which include a temple or shrine as their centerpiece.

We lucked out on the weather again and had a beautiful sunny day that was in the 70’s and may have reached the 80’s in some locales. Climbing up and down hills all day I was certainly too hot in my light slacks and shirt, and I was very glad to have my hat with me so I didn’t get too burned. We had a free shuttle bus from the port into town and I was down there when the first one left at 8:30. We had to be back on shore by 4:30 and port to downtown was almost half an hour so we had about 7 hours to tour around.

The shuttle stopped at a downtown hotel and at Yongdusan Park, which is on a hill in the centre of the city. I got off in the park and wandered around the grounds for a while as these included a floral clock, several sculptures, and a pagoda containing a large bell which is struck at midnight on special occasions, as well as some beautiful views. However, the real views came from the observation deck at the top of the Busan Tower at the very top of the park. The observation deck even had descriptions (in English) of what you were looking at and it was a great way to learn about the city. The tower sits atop a temple and there are several museums within the temple complex but they were not open until later in the day.

Instead of waiting and taking the shuttle bus down the hill, I decided to walk down. I didn’t even think to count the steps but I’m sure there were several hundred at least. There were two covered stairways and in the middle an escalator going up, which I thought was very civilized. And the stairs were in perfect shape, as was everything throughout the city. At the bottom of the city some people were waiting for the city tour bus (usual hop-on / hop-off) kind so I waited with them for a while until we decided it probably wasn’t coming. There was a sign saying that due to road construction it wasn’t running until September 30th but I think the sign really meant until after September 30th. The road was basically repaired but they were still working on one section and that’s exactly where the bus would have to go for loading purposes. It was only a one-lane, one-way street so it couldn’t very well just stop on the street. Anyway, that wasted half an hour.

I then walked farther downtown to locate the hotel where I’d have to catch the bus back. I didn’t find that before I found the dried fish market, which was an experience. From there I found the live fish market and then the frozen fish market. What a business. The Jagalchi fish market (the fresh fish market) is one of the largest in Asia and the main building is a seven-storey complex. The first floor is the actual market. The second and third floors are small restaurants serving the fresh fish. The fourth floor is a fancy restaurant and the upper floors are part of a convention centre and office complex with floor seven being and observation deck, which was very nice right on the water. The promenade in front of the market on the sea side has sculptures and designs that are all fish oriented so definitely fit the theme.

When the day started out I had no intention of going to a fish market but I actually spent quite a bit of time there as it was quite amazing. The dried fish section was just amazing because I had no idea there were so many kinds of dried fish. The shell fish section was fascinating because the workers, mainly ladies in rubber boots and aprons, were just sitting there opening shells and taking out the meat. There was water running everywhere so everything was instantly cleaned. It didn’t look messy or smell overly fishy at any time which was truly amazing. And the efficiency with which everyone worked was amazing too. The live fish market must have had hundreds of vendor stalls and every one of them had dozens of tanks full of live fish. The buyers would wander around and point at a tank and live fish would be scooped out and weighed. If necessary, as in the case of the purchase of live eels that I watched, each eel was picked out of the tank, beheaded and then weighed. And there were fish of every description – shell fish, eel, octopus, stingrays, slugs, sea cucumbers, and little tiny 2-3 inch fish to 2-3 foot fish. It was quite an experience and I’m glad I went.

When we got back on the ship later the captain was telling us about the evening’s trip and he noted that it was definitely a big fishing area and there would be lots of fishing boats out as we sailed throughout the night. At one point there were 16 boats of the port side and 22 off the starboard side. They all have bright floodlights on them so, although they were small, they stood out quite predominately. It was an impressive sight and as far as I know they were there throughout the night. I guess that’s how they end up with so many fish in the fish market by 6 a.m. each morning!

I then decided to take the subway out to one of the sights. However, the subway didn’t take American money so I had to find a bank to exchange some money. I told the person I wanted 3,500 won and pointed at the day pass price. He did his calculations and I think came up with $3 and something. I gave him a $5 and he started calculating the change so I told him just to convert it all and he gave me $5,610 won. I ended my day with 1,110 won so I guess I spent my 3,500 for the subway pass and then a further 1,000 on a bus back at one point because I was more than 30 minutes after my subway ride. Busan was definitely not very expensive.

I took the subway to Haeundae, which turned out to be about an hours ride. Then I caught a bus which obviously only runs every 30 minutes and rode it a further 30 minutes so it took about 2 hours to get to the Haedong Yonggungsa Temple which is right on the shore and built into the hillside. It was quite a walk even after the bus dropped me off and it was quite a walk all around the complex. However, it was well worth it. The main temple was central to the site but there were many smaller shrines and pagodas and statues all over the place, all of which required climbing up and down stairs built into the hill side. The cliffs were beautiful and the water below was lovely so I got some beautiful pictures (I hope).

I had no time to pause and meditate though as it was already 2 p.m. and I had to get back downtown to the shuttle bus before the last one left at 4 p.m. to get back to the ship. I almost made it but I was on the wrong side of the street when I came up from the underground. By the time I went back down 3-4 flights of stairs and found the right tunnel across to the other side I arrived at the shuttle stop at 4:02 but that was okay because the last bus had been so full that they had ordered another one and we waited until 4:20 before we left just to ensure we had all stragglers. Whew!

When I got back to the ship, the locals on the dock were putting on a show for the passengers and it was very good with folk dancing and drumming so a nice way to finish the visit. We sailed out of the harbour at 5 p.m. just as the sun set behind the main hill of Busan. However, as we went out of port we caught a few more glimpses of the sun as we went around other hills. It was a beautiful departure and with the warm weather many of us stayed up on the upper decks for some time to enjoy the view and take pictures.

The visit to Busan was very enjoyable but really too short to take in much of what the city had to offer. Because things are so cheap, if I had to do it again I’d probably take a taxi. It would cost more but you would certainly see a lot more. The UN Memorial Cemetery, the Busan Museum and Cultural Centre, Gwangan Beach and Haeundae Beach itself were all the same subway route but there just wasn’t time to see them all by taking subway, bus and walking. And there were lots of other sites as well that would be worth seeing. I guess I’ll just have to come back again someday.

I did think about our students. Very few of them come to South Korea even though we do have a partnership agreement here and even more schools who want to partner with us. Now that I’ve been here and I’ve seen many of the university campus locations and what the cities have to offer, I think I’ll have to go back and really promote exchanges to this area.

Today it is hot and sunny at sea and as soon as I finish this I’m going back to reading on my balcony. This is my last day at sea so I want to make the most of it.

Jayne

Vladivostok, Russia – September 28th

We arrived in Vladivostok in the wee hours of the morning and people started leaving on tours about 7 a.m. We were in port until 7 p.m. so lots of time to tour around the city. The Diamond Princess was docked right downtown so walking tours were easy. Well, perhaps easy wasn’t the proper word but at least the walking could start right at the pier.

I have only be to Russia once before and that was on a cruise and the city we visited was St. Petersburg in the west. Vladivostok is in the west right on the coast. While St. Petersburg is beautiful, well-kept and almost pompous in display, Vladivostok is very plain and drab and dilapidated. As a tourist centre, St. Petersburg wins hands down. However, Vladivostok is beautiful in its own way and really does have a lot to offer. You just have to watch the sidewalks and roads and steps which are in total disrepair and attempt to trip you every second step. I spent 8 hours out walking around the town and thoroughly enjoyed myself and the scenery – and I didn’t trip once, which is darn good for me. Vladivostok has only been open to tourists since 1992. You can see where changes have been made and more changes are happening all the time.

The first thing you have to know about Vladivostok is that it is an incredible port city. The natural harbour is huge and there were ships everywhere and lots of industry nearby to sustain the shipping. The Diamond Princess was by far the largest ship in the harbour and it dwarfed most other vessels. We parked right beside several Russian naval vessels that were prominent in the harbour so we were quite a contrast. Given its location on the Pacific and its natural harbour, Vladivostok has always been a very strategic port. The Submarine Museum is a star attraction but I didn’t feel like visiting that, except from the outside.

As a shipping port, goods could come in or go out by sea. On the land, goods travel throughout Russia on the 5,778 mile Trans Siberian Railway. The longest continuous railway track in the world, the Trans Siberian Railroad ends (or starts) here in Vladivostok. The railway station was right behind the main port where we docked so it was my first stop. The outside of the building is quite detailed in an old 17th century style although it was built much later than that. The main reception area has frescoes on the ceiling. I didn’t wander past the trains to visit the entire building but what I saw was impressive. Czar Nicholas II laid the cornerstone for the building – I assume around the end of the 19th century as the track was built from 1880 to 1900.

Another thing you must know about Vladivostok is that it is full of hills. The tourist brochure describes the area as” a landscape formed by sea gulfs and hills” and that is pretty accurate. There’s water then there’s a hill. On the other side of the hill at the bottom is more water. This makes for very beautiful vistas but it also makes for some strenuous walking. They have lots of staircases but sometimes not all the stairs were there so you had to do some fancy footwork. I left the train station and walked across to a statue of Lenin and then through a garden to the next street. Then I kept walking for another 20 minutes or so and most of it was uphill. Suddenly you realize you are going downhill again and there is more water and a beach in front of you. This particular beach had a lot of sports complexes and amusement parks along it so obviously a very popular area in the right season. The beach was a nice sandy beach and quite wide in places. It was cool and windy when I was there first thing in the morning so I didn’t go down and check out the water. The aquarium is also in this area but it wasn’t open yet.

A little farther up the coast was the Fortress Museum. I stopped there and wandered around for a while. They had lots of exhibits within the walls of the old fortress and lots of larger objects (guns, missiles, etc.) out in the compound area. It looked like quite a large and well designed fortress – one of many in the area – and was quite interesting even though I wasn’t interested in most of its contents.

From there I walked down Fokina Street which is a walking street. It wasn’t quite what I expected. It was definitely a street you could walk down as traffic was not allowed, although it was full of parked cars. Most of the stores were now open but there wasn’t anything I was interested in. There were not many people around and most of them I recognized as ship passengers so not much business from the locals. I did notice that store hours were 10 to 8 though so perhaps things get busier later in the day.

I visited several Greek Orthodox Churches in the city. They were all very small but very beautiful. They were all white inside and out and decorated, mainly with gold. The alters were very impressive. And they all had lovely grounds and normally stairs leading to the church itself. I guess when you make everyone stand for the service you can afford to have smaller churches. I did also find a German Lutheran Church. It was built many years ago but sat for over 50 years without use. It has just recently been repaired and reopened. It had chairs (not pews) so they get to sit down.

There were monuments and statues all over the city but I can’t tell you what they were about because I couldn’t read any of the inscriptions. The Lenin statue I knew because a map told me what it was. There are also lots of gardens and parks around the city, which presented a nice break from the old dingy buildings and the benches provided a nice relaxation for your tired legs. The Central Square is right down by the harbour and it is huge. There are three statues on the one side of the square and then lots of open space to have gatherings and special events.

A funicular takes you near to the top of Eagles Nest Hill, which is a great lookout over the full area. Some o f us were going to the start of the funicular to go up and see the sights. We obviously overshot the mark a bit because when we got to the funicular we were at the top instead of the bottom. It was still a climb from there but it was worth it. I sat at the top for half an hour and enjoyed the view while I ate my bun and muffin (from the breakfast buffet table) and had a drink of water. I also talked to a journalist from the local paper. She and her photographer were up taking pictures doing a story on the new bridge that is being built across the harbour. It really is quite an impressive structure and will be massive when completed. The reporter’s English was quite good although she kept apologizing for it. I can assure you she certainly knew more English than I knew Russian!

On the way down the others took the funicular but I decided to take the stairs since they were right there. We had come up the streets and through the parks to get there and this seemed like a more straight forward approach. From the time I started counting there were 350 steps and there were at least 50 before I started counting so it was quite a trek. It was specifically interesting when you’d come to a big hole where a couple of steps had disappeared into the depths below. Then you just kind of hopped to the next available platform. Luckily these stairs, unlike others in the city, did have a railing. However, I really wasn’t too certain of its sturdiness. The strange thing was that the steps were concrete and looked very solid so when a couple of them disappeared there really was just a deep hole in the hillside with a board lying across it. I wasn’t exactly sure where the real steps had disappeared to but I was hoping none of the current ones were going to slip away while I was on them.

The top of Eagles Nest Hill (the lookout) was the only really dirty place I saw. There were bottles and cans and garbage everywhere, which was a surprise since the rest of the city was garbage free. People were out picking up debris and sweeping the streets when I was out walking earlier in the morning but it was obvious that no one looked after this area even though it’s probably one of the favoured tourist sites. There was also a high school at the top so I didn’t know whether to assume that the students were the messy ones or if the tourists were the culprits.

I should add that the other not so clean thing in the city were the toilets. You always had to pay (maybe about 30 cents Canadian) to use them and there were always people working there so you would think they would be clean but they definitely weren’t. The first squat toilet was reasonably clean but then it was early in the morning when I found it. The second time was in the afternoon so perhaps the toilets were more “used” by then. These ones were western sit toilets so I thought that was a plus. However, there was no way I was going to sit when I got in there. They were like old port-a-potties and everything inside was wet. I wasn’t sure that some people hadn’t been standing on the sides and treating them like squat toilets (and missing!). The toilets also didn’t necessarily come with toilet paper even though you paid to use them. Oh well, it’s all an experience.

I’m not sure what else to tell you about. I saw Yul Brynner’s family home (yes, that’s how it’s supposed to be spelled apparently) which was huge and lovely and set among other really huge buildings so it looked tiny. I also saw the Gorky theatre and school. The architecture throughout the city is varied from modern skyscrapers to older more decorated buildings – some of which were huge and very European looking. It definitely has the feel of a big city but because of the hills and water separating sections of it, if also feels small.

The weather started out cool and cloudy but then cleared off and seemed quite hot. I had my jacket on to start but had to take it off while climbing up yet another hill. Just as I got back on the ship about 4:30 p.m. it started raining but that didn’t last long. Once the sun started to go down it was definitely cool. I tried to make it through the sunset but as we’d already set sail it was really breezy and cool on the deck.

We were actually late in leaving the ship as someone hadn’t turned his passport in and we couldn’t sail until the Russian officials had accounted for all passports. I bet they called the person three or four times over the public address system before it finally got sorted out and we were allowed to sail. When the immigration people left the ship shortly after that there were 27 of them. I don’t know if some got off earlier. And apparently the police or soldiers were onboard all day patrolling the ship and checking for who knows what. However, from our perspective the passport process worked very well and efficiently so there were no waiting lines.

Oh yes, there was a group that came on board and gave us a concert at 5 p.m. They were excellent and did a great show. The main group was 6 females and 2 males and they did a number of songs. There was also a younger group of girls who did some traditional dances and they were very cute. I enjoyed their show very much even though I was sitting on the floor at the side of the theatre in front of an air vent that was blowing cold air at me. Hmmm, perhaps that’s why I’ve been feeling like I have a cold coming on.

We are at sea again today where it was sunny and lovely this morning and I just sat on my balcony reading. This afternoon it clouded over a bit but still quite nice. Tomorrow we are in Busan or Pusan, South Korea for more walking and touring and great times.

Jayne

Muroran / Sapporo, Japan – September 26th

We arrived in Muroran very early this morning. Shore excursions started before 8 p.m. and we set sail tonight at 6 p.m. That might seem like lots of time but for those of us who went to Sapporo, there was very little time. Sapporo is 2 to 2.5 hours away by bus so 4 to 5 hours of the day were in transit, which didn’t leave a lot of time for touring. My tour met at 8:15 and every tour seemed to be going at the same time as the line ups were rather long. It was 8:45 before the bus pulled away but we still had to be back by 5:30 for all aboard – and we made it at 5:35.

We made three stops in Sapporo. The first was the Historical Village of Hokkaido which is set on over 50 acres and includes real or replica homes from the mid 19th to 20th century. The largest portion depicts a town but there is also a fishing village, a farm village and a mountain village. As a group we wandered down main street of the town and talked about some of the buildings. We went into the sake factory but just looked at the other buildings. When the group split up we had about 40 minutes before we had to be back on the bus and that was not near enough time. I wandered around the fishing village and then started through the farm village because I specifically wanted to see the silkworm house. It was quite interesting and had some good displays. I’ve always found silk worms and that whole process to be quite amazing and I was always glad I wasn’t in the industry. Anyway, by the time I was done the silkworm house and the farm machinery shed, my time was up and I had to run to the bus. I do have to add that old tractors in Japan look just like those in Canada. It rained lightly while we were here but nothing to prevent us from walking around and it was still warm. Hokkaido, by the way, is the name of the large northern island of Japan and it’s like a separate province within Japan. The island became part of Japan in 1869, which is why a lot of the exhibits in Sapporo museums start around this time.

Lunch was our second stop and I was going to remember what hotel we were in but alas, I have forgotten. It was just hotel catering for several of the buses from our ship but it was delicious. We had a salad with strange things in it, most of which I couldn’t identify but they were very tasty. Then we had a carrot soup that was really good. The main course was chicken and boiled potatoes and they were also good. Dessert was a sherbet or sorbet. It was frozen so hard we couldn’t get our spoons into it. One person at our table sent hers flying right out of the cup but she did manage to catch it before it hit the floor. It was hilarious to try and eat it but we did all manage – most of us with a spoon holding the ball and a knife chipping away at the edges. I’m not sure if the re meal was really Japanese cuisine but it was all good.

Our last stop was downtown Sapporo at the TV Tower at the end of Odori Park and we had about 90 minutes to wander around. Many of the folks followed our tour guide to go shopping but I went off on my own. I went first to the Clock Tower, which was only about 4 blocks away. This was constructed in 1878 by the Americans I believe as a drill hall for an academy. It’s a wood building that looks quite out of place among the tall office buildings in downtown Sapporo. I couldn’t go inside to see the exhibits because you needed cash (Japanese yen only) and I didn’t bother getting any yen for my quick visit. I just walked around the outside of the building and took a few pictures.

From there I walked another 4-5 blocks to the former Hokkaido Government Office Building commonly referred to as the Red Brick Building, which was built in 1888 in a neo-baroque style with an octagonal dome. The building itself is quite lovely, especially so as it stands against the other taller more modern buildings of the city. At the time it was built it was the largest building in Japan and is equivalent in size to a current-day 10-story building so quite large. Inside there were various exhibits that were mainly in Japanese but with a bit of English from time to time. One of the rooms was obviously the main meeting room and there were pictures of many dignitaries around the wall and a large, old conference table in the middle. Another room dealt with trade and the various commodities that were being exported and where. Another room was very interesting and talked about four smaller islands, including Sakhalin, north of Hokkaido that were once Japanese but are now Russian and all the negotiations and agreements that have been made over many years to get the islands back. Another interesting exhibit showed more of the ancient history and climate aspects including plants and animals and ancient fossils.

The grounds around the old government house were beautiful with large ponds on each side of the entrance gates, beautiful walkways and benches around the ponds and beautiful flowers both in beds throughout the garden and in the ponds and around their shores. It was a wonderfully relaxing park in the middle of all the government buildings and businesses downtown. The botanical gardens, much larger and I hear much more beautiful, were another short walk away but I didn’t have time to go there. I simply had time to walk back to Odori Park and the TV Tower to meet the tour. You can go up to an observation deck in the tower and I was hoping to do that as well but time just did not allow me to do so.

I did stroll back to the tower through Odori Park, which is a block wide and several kilometers long with beautiful gardens and flowers and fountains and sculptures. It was a Sunday when we were in town and the place was packed for the Autumn Festival. The part I walked through had an entire block of food booths and the food all smelled delicious. The next block was mainly for liquid refreshments and Sapporo beer was definitely the favoured beverage. There were small entertainment spaces and a few larger stages further down. It would have been a fun place to have spent the entire day but I only had 20 minutes as I walked back to meet the tour group for the return trip to the ship in Muroran.

The trip went by quickly with our tour guide telling us about the island, its history and some of the people. She even tried to teach us Japanese and taught us a Japanese song, which we did quite well at I thought. The scenery was very green and lush looking and the views on either side were interesting. For much of the trip one side of the bus would be looking at active volcanoes with smoke coming from their peaks and the other side would be looking at ocean vistas. Everything was perfectly clean and spotless and picture perfect – both along the country side and in the city. Hokkaido has almost a quarter of Japan’s land mass but less than 10% of its population so there is a lot of beautiful countryside either just in green treed hillsides or in farmland.

The port city of Muroran is a small town which I didn’t get to see much of as I was on my Sapporo excursion. Those who went ashore and visited in Muroran said it was a lovely little town. The oil refinery right by the dock didn’t make the town look all that attractive during the day but once lit up at night even it looked quite lovely. The bridge in Muroran looked beautiful during the day but it also looked more spectacular when lit at night. As the ship was ready to sail a group of school children did a presentation for us on the port. It’s a wonder the ship didn’t tip over because I’m sure every last passenger and crew member was standing on the starboard side watching their show. They were very good and kept shouting soyanara and waving at us as we sailed away. And as we sailed out of the harbour at 6 p.m. the sun was already set, the refinery was lit up and so was the bridge. I was standing on deck 15 aft taking pictures of the bridge when the moon came up as a beautiful orange ball. I know my simple little camera certainly didn’t do it justice but it did make for a glorious picture.

Well, I think that’s all for Japan although I guess we are still sailing on the Sea of Japan as we cross over to Vladivostock, Russia for a visit tomorrow. Right now it is almost 70 degrees and it’s partly cloudy. I’m in my cabin typing and the patio door is wide open and it is beautiful. It’s supposed to be cooler tomorrow but even the 60s or 50s would be fine for touring Vladivostock.

I should note that Chay, my cabin steward, is an exceptional person but he did make a wee mistake last night. We have had to put our clocks back an hour almost every night of this cruise and last night the same note was on my pillow with my nightly chocolate treat. I reset my clock and watch and went to bed early as I was exhausted and I wanted to get up early and go to the fitness class at 7 (Yes, I know that’s hard to believe but it is true,). Anyway, I woke up at 6 and got up to check out the sunrise. Much to my astonishment, when I threw back the curtains it was very bright outside and the sun was well up in the sky. I quickly turned on the TV to get the report from the bridge and found out it was actually 8 a.m. and we were supposed to turn our clocks one hour forward last night (not back) so I was two hours out. I gave Chay a rough time about it but I really wasn’t too upset as I was well rested and I had a great excuse for missing the morning exercise class. Luckily it wasn’t a day we were in port and on tour.

Sayonara, and I’ll hopefully be back after Vladivostock Russia with another posting.

Jayne

Alaskan Cruise –September 11th to 18th

(This blog has no pictures because I couldn't get them to load, which is too bad because they were fantastic and added a lot to my non-stop verbage. Sorry!)

Wow! I have been reminded yet again of just how wonderful an Alaskan cruise is. This is at least my third one and every time I come away more impressed. The scenery and the history are remarkable and this time again I had beautiful, sunny weather and that always adds to the enjoyment and beauty. My friend, Louise, was with me for this portion of the cruise and I know she too was impressed with the entire experience.

We sailed from Vancouver to Whittier (Anchorage) with stops in Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway, and two cruising days in Glacier Bay and College Fjord. That was September 11th to 18th. It’s now the 25th so I’m a week late in writing this. Hopefully I’ll remember some of what we saw and experienced.

First I should say that we flew from Kelowna to Vancouver on the morning of the 11th and my great niece, Megan, met us at the airport to help us with our luggage as we made our way via the Canada Line to the waterfront. We had time for an early lunch in Gastown before we boarded. The walk to find an available restaurant was by far our longest walk with our suitcases. Once at the cruise ship terminal Megan left us with our bags to check in. Thanks for helping us out, Megan. Louise and I really appreciated it!

We then stood in various lines – check-in, baggage deposit, customs, etc. – for several hours before actually getting on the Diamond Princess and into our stateroom A248, a lovely balcony unit on the forward port side. Our luggage didn’t arrive at our room until much later in the evening so we definitely didn’t have to worry about changing for dinner on our first night! Chay (pronounced Chi), our cabin steward is very nice and he keeps the cabin spotless.

We set sail around 5 p.m. and sailed under the Lion’s Gate Bridge with much fanfare. This voyage was the last Vancouver departure for the Diamond Princess for this year as the current voyage continues on to Asia and eventually Australia, so there was special recognition ( a lot of horn blowing!) as we went under the bridge.

Our first day at sea was very good but it’s always the day when I need some Gravol to survive. This trip was no exception but it was only a one-Gravol day so that’s good. Actually, I can now say that the entire crossing of the Pacific only had one day that also was a one-Gravol day. We had very good seas throughout the voyage and I certainly appreciated that. Right now, September 25th as I write this, we are heading south toward Japan while a typhoon, whose name I can’t remember, is heading north so we’re hoping to outrun it and be in more sheltered waters before it hits. The captain told me this just this morning as he and I were chatting on one of the decks. He just happened to stop and say hi and ask me how my day was going so I asked him how his was going, hence the typhoon update. I had no intention of going to his little reception tonight but now that I’ve met him personally and he really is so very friendly, I might just have to drop in for a few minutes even though I really hate formal nights!

Okay, back to Alaska. Our first stop was Ketchikan and Louise and I did not book any official shore excursion. We just went ashore and wandered around the town. Louise did some shopping and I took some pictures and we managed to hit all the highlights of town (we think). We did a bit of waiting for a shuttle bus to take us to the Totem Heritage Centre and the salmon hatchery. The salmon were spawning and the creeks we passed over were just full of salmon. Then we walked back into town through the historic Creek Street, which is redone as it was around 1900 when the “red light” district had to be on the other side of the creek from town. Dolly and her girls were still outside Dolly’s Place but now they say they’re just giving tours. We took the funicular to the top of the hill to see the sights but there really wasn’t much there to see. Then we headed back downtown for more shopping before heading to the ship for our 2 p.m. departure. It was a quick visit but a good one! Ketchikan’s population is 13,000 but with four cruise ships docked on that day the streets and shops were very busy.

We had all day in Juneau from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. so more time to look around. As the capital of Alaska, Juneau was the largest of the cities we visited with a population of 30,000. To start our day we had the comfort of watching otters in the water beside the boat and an eagle in the tree on the hillside – all from our balcony. Again we had no set tour booked so we started our day by going up the tram and enjoying some incredible views of the harbour and surrounding area. We then bought a tour ticket from one of the locals to tour the city, go to Douglas Island and the Mendenhall Glacier. The first two parts were pretty quick but nice. The glacier was definitely the highlight and we took lots of pictures there of the lake with the glacier and surrounding mountains reflected in it. We arrived back in town and went to the Red Dog Saloon for lunch – crowded and nothing exceptional but we did have to go check it out. After that, and around some shopping of course, we took the city bus out to the Glacier Gardens that Louise wanted to see. I must admit that it was quite amazing. The gardens are in a rainforest so you ride around on a golf cart through the rainforest and at some points the views are stunning. Parts of the garden are actually part of the Tongass national Forest. The flowers were on the lower parts of the garden and they were amazing, especially the upside-down trees. Apparently the owner bought the land cheaply after a landslide. As he cleared the land he ended up placing an uprooted tree into the mud with the roots up. He liked the effect and the rest is history. He put moss and dirt in the root wells and now has beautiful flowers growing from the roots of these upside-down trees. We caught the bus back into town in the early evening and slowly walked back to the ship shopping and touring along the way. Juneau also has some great signage and historical plaques along its shoreline and these were very interesting. Mining for gold was definitely big in Juneau early in 20th century and even today there are more miles of underground tunnels in Juneau than there are roads. They also have more than six times as many hiking trails as roads.

Skagway was our next stop and it did not disappoint. As the main gold rush town at the end of the 19th century it had a population of over 20,000 with an additional 10,000 in nearby Dyea. Today Dyea is virtually nonexistent and the population of Skagway is around 800. The main street of Skagway is a reproduction of what it was during the gold-rush days and the local museum society has done a great job of telling the gold rush story through museums and exhibits throughout the town. Louise and I went our separate ways for much of the day so she could finish up the last of her shopping and I could tour around and take more pictures. However, we did tour the brothel above the Red Onion Saloon together, attend a lecture on the gold rush, take a walking tour of the city, have lunch in some makeshift saloon restaurant, and attend the Days of ‘98 Show which was a lot of fun and very well done. Louise headed back to the ship about 5:30 and I went to an internet café for a few minutes and then to another presentation by the museum society at 6:00. They really do present a great program of events. I don’t know if it’s every day or just when the cruise ships are in town. Again there were four ships in town so probably about 10 times the normal population of the town suddenly filled up the streets and theatres. Of course lots of people headed up the White Pass or on other adventures so we weren’t all in town at exactly the same time. We didn’t make it to the Jewell Gardens while in town. When back on the ship we found out that our cruise director, who is from Juneau, had gone off to the gardens and gotten married that afternoon. She got a two-day honeymoon onboard (while working) before her new husband flew back to LA from Anchorage.

We were in Glacier Bay from early morning (before we were up!) until after 3 p.m. The park rangers on board did a great job of describing the scenery and pointing out wildlife as we passed many glaciers including the Lamplugh and Margerie. The weather was sunny and perfect, and the glaciers were impressive and beautiful, although they say the colours in the glaciers are even better if it’s a cloudy day. To be honest, one of the glaciers isn’t actually all that beautiful as it is not clear and white to the extent that it looks blue like the others. That would be the one coming from Canada and it is actually very dark and dirty looking. Apparently while the others come through very hard rock which does not break down, the one from Canada comes through softer rock and the rocks and debris all end up on top of the glacier which makes it look very dark and dirty. We heard and saw a lot of calving activity but never had the camera ready when needed to get a picture. It was just a perfect day to sit and enjoy the beauty all around. The sky was blue. The water was calm and blue and a perfect mirror for the hills and glaciers and incredible mountain peaks in the distance. Wow!

And just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, we sailed into College Fjord. The ship’s naturalist did a good job of pointing out the sights but he kept seeing whales that the rest of us never did see. We did see lots of sea otters though. They were everywhere. We spent the late afternoon and early evening in College Fjord looking at the many glaciers, all of which are named after Ivy League colleges like Harvard, which happened to be the most northerly point of our voyage at just over 61 degrees north. Again the weather was perfect with a bright blue sky and calm waters that reflected the surrounding scenery beautifully. I can’t believe how many pictures I took and all of them look quite amazing. What a great day!

Whittier is the port on Prince William Sound that is closest to Anchorage. Louise departed early in the morning to go to Anchorage to catch her flight home. In fact it seemed insanely early to us but as you learned more about the area it became more understandable. One of the buses didn’t arrive at the port because it hit a moose on the road and had to go in for repairs so wildlife is obviously a hazard. The trip by road (Whittier to Anchorage) is about two hours and you have to go through the tunnel at Whittier which is several miles long and only one lane wide. It’s also for motor vehicles as well as trains so there is a schedule of when you can and cannot get through during the day. With 15 minute intervals for cars out, cars in, trains out, trains in, if you don’t time it well you could sit for over an hour before getting through.

We arrived in Whittier early in the morning and left 5 p.m. I got up and had breakfast with Louise and saw her off, then waited around until it got a bit warmer to go touring around the town of Whittier. Now Whittier is pretty small so there really wasn’t much to tour around. There are some small shops down along the harbour and I do mean small. Some were open and some were not as it’s the end of the tourist season. There is a short tunnel from the harbour to downtown itself, which has a few more shops and that’s about it for the town. There is one large 14-story building and that’s where most people live. It includes a grocery store, city hall, a chapel, post office, medical centre and other such necessities on the ground floor. The school is right next door but there is a tunnel from the building so the children don’t have to walk outside. Whittier was important in WWII as a major debarkation point for American troops. There is a museum in town and it was quite interesting to read some of the WWII information. I had no idea that Alaska was also attacked by the Japanese and that many people died on some of the main Aleutian Islands. It was also interesting to see how earthquakes and tsunamis have devastated the area from time to time. I think it was in College Fjord where the naturalist noted that the one area or mountain range had dropped 10 feet in one earthquake while another had risen by 30 feet – all due to tectonic plate movements. Moves like that would certainly rearrange the landscape considerably. My only other stop in Whittier was to walk to the waterfall and take some pictures before heading back to the ship. In total it took no more than a couple hours to see the whole town in detail and I really was walking slowly and trying to take my time.

The Diamond Princess is a beautiful ship and not too hard to find your way around once you figure out how to read your handy map. I’ve never been lost but I certainly have been heading the wrong way on more than one occasion. We opted for any time dining so we could go to any restaurant and eat at any time and, given all the sights and shows that had to be seen, that was a great option. As usual, you wouldn’t go hungry on the cruise and eventually you learn to stop eating everything in sight. I’ve been eating lots of salads and fruit, which is a change for me, and I’ve really been trying to limit my portions at the buffet. In the dining rooms the portions have always been about the right size so no problem there. And as of now, I’ve only hit the ice cream stand two or three times in two weeks so that’s not too bad. I’m sure you’re all very interested in my eating habits, right?

Enough activities are available on board to keep you busy all day every day – if you wanted to be kept busy. There is something for everyone from morning to night. ScholarShip@Sea programs were available throughout the cruise and included ceramics, arts and crafts, dance classes, computers, naturalist and historian talks. There were contests and competitions all day long and different types of music in all venues. Trivia contests were the only activities I attended regularly. There were usually at least three of these every day and they were a humbling experience to say the least!

And of course the spa and fitness centre were always available when needed or wanted. We were too busy on the Alaskan cruise to check them out much but I am making use of them now that we’re at sea for six days crossing to Asia. I’m also doing more computer classes so I can figure out how to improve all the pictures I am taking – not saying they aren’t already perfect or anything, but they might need some adjustments.

The shows each night are quite varied. The more “Broadway-like” musical productions are my favourites and they are fantastic. The main Princess cast has five different shows that they perform and I’ve now seen them all. I think we saw about three of them on the Alaskan portion and the others were at sea. We’ve also had comedians and hypnotists and jugglers and classical musicians and jazz musicians and illusionists – definitely something for everyone every evening. And if you get bored with this type of entertainment you can always go to the casino.

Okay, that’s all for now. Tomorrow we arrive in Muroran, Japan so that will be the start of my Asian tour and I will try and post that around October 4th or 5th. Of course I really don’t know if this posting will actually work. The ship’s internet is incredibly slow out here at sea.

Until next time I’ll leave you with the views for six days at sea – nothing to see but water and sky day and night every day. It will be good to have solid ground again tomorrow.

Jayne

Hello everyone and welcome!

I am now on a three-month Asian tour via Alaska. This will just be a quick post to see if I remember how to make it work.

I have a long post prepared to enter after this and it may or may not work as I've included pictures. I guess I'll find out as soon as I try it.

I look forward to sharing my adventures with you.

Jayne

PS - Not even this post went through so I'm trying again a couple days after I actually wrote this. Hopefully it works this time!