Hong Kong

Hong Kong was a marvelous mix of Western and Eastern life. We sailed into the harbor and when we docked the view from our balcony was of the entire Kong Kong side of the harbor and IT WAS STUNNING!

We met our guide Wylan and headed off to see the sights. First we rode up to the top of Victoria’s Peak and had an amazing view of the city. We visited the dried food market and saw baskets of dried shark fins and abalone. Both are considered delicacies in the Hong Kong diet. Wylan kept telling us how to cook it. We also saw dried bird’s nests for a variety of other dishes he said would be tasty. Abalone is so very expensive we thought we might start an export bsiness when we return home.

Went to Aberdeen and rode on a sampan around the floating village where boat people have made their homes. There were boats of all sizes and all degree of nice….but nothing was very nice.

Our lunch was at a beautiful restaurant at the Repulse Bay Hotel overlooking the beautiful bay. Wylan asked what we liked to eat and he carefully ordered and explained it all. We had wonderful dim sum dumplings filled with vegetables, with shrimp, and pork. Had some great small cabbage cooked with garlic. Ended the meal with a sweet cool soup made from mango and grapefruit.

We visited a Buddhist Temple which was so filled with incense because the ceiling was covered with coils of incense that all were burning plus the people all had big bunches of incense too. We also visited a Taoist Temple which seemed very much the same although Wylan tried to explain why he and his family go regularly to the Buddhist temple but for special occasions go to the Taoist Temple. Guess it is keeping all the bases covered.

Visited the Jade Market and saw more Jade than you would believe, but didn’t buy anything because we both felt we didn’t know enough to tell the quality.

Returned and reboarded the ship with great ease. We sat on the balcony and watched the incredible light and laser show develop. The scene lived up to all our expectations. Wylan talked frankly about the changes made since 1998 when the Chinese took over from the British. He felt it had not been too difficult or too bad for most people. Really an interesting place to visit.

Taipei-March 29

Yesterday in Taipei was very interesting. We docked at the port of Keelung and joined a tour to see the National Palace Museum. Inside the museum were some beautifully carved pieces of Jade and Ivory. Many pieces were so tiny that the displays had a magnifying glass with the pieces so the intricate detail could be viewed. The museum was mobbed with people from around the world looking at these spectacular national treasures.

We went to the Martyr's Shrine, but could only stand outside because the day, March 29, was the special day to remember the ending of the Chang Dynasty in 1911 and the deaths associated with that. The President of Taiwan was coming so the monument could not be entered.

We went to the Grand Palace Hotel for lunch. This magnificent hotel was built by Madame Chiang-Kai-Shek as a place to impress Americans. And it was impressive. The lobby was huge and Albert, our guide, said the rooms were really big.
Albert told us a bit about his story. He was born in Taipei. His parents came from mainland China in 1949 with Chang-Kai-Shek. Fifteen years ago Albert took his parents back to the mainland to visit family. His father had a twin brother who chose to stay in China. The brothers had not seen each other since 1949He said the brothers hugged, cried and almost immediately began to argue about whether the Communist life or life on Taiwan was best. Sad!

Albert is a Christian because his Mother is a Christian and taught him to "give my troubles to God and live my life." He kept saying about our travel experiences that we were really lucky. He said if I was a Buddhist I would say "you must have done something really good in your last life, but since I am a Christian I will say God smiles on you." AND I AGREE!

We went to a Buddhist temple- Dragon Mountain Temple. It was the most active religious place I have ever seen. Mobs of people were making offerings of all type. People were selling small flower arrangements and fruits and vegetables that were being left as an offering. There were also some giant arrangements with cards attached offering thanks for the answering special prayer requests. People had big bunches of incense they were waving. Folks faced every way. There were Buddhist monks

We went to the Chiang-Kai-Shek Memorial which is one end of a huge square that also contains the major performing arts hall in Taipei. Albert said the hall is called “The ABC building” because outside it looks very Chinese but inside it is all American….so ABC means American Born Chinese.

Our last stop was at the tallest building in the world- currently. It is Taipei 101. We went inside and looked at the shops. Some folks rode the elevator to the 89th floor but we decided to pass on that option.

We are going to be so interested in what happens in the future for Taiwan. This movement for "one China" will clearly have an impact and any effort to fight that will have an impact also.

Ishigaki Island-March 29

Had a wonderful day today on the main island of the Ishigaki Island chain in Japan. We first visited the Tamatorizaki Observation Point. We could see the Pacific Ocean and the East China Sea from the top of this mountain. It was a bit windy but warm.

We next visited a Palm Tree Grove where we walked about 100 yards in a jungle like situation. There is a palm tree- the Yaeyama Palm- that only grows here. We also saw beautiful blooming flowers. This is a sub-tropical climate.

The island has 47,000 residents and the population is increasing as people in Japan choose to move to warmer weather.

The scenery here is really beautiful and our guide was so good and funny. The bus driver and the “bus girl” even gave us a concert on traditional Japanese instruments. There was a “bus girl” yesterday too. She wears a uniform and her sole job seemed to be to stand and bow to welcome us back on board the bus after each stop and to also count to be certain the right number of passengers was on board.

Went to a weaving studio where we saw some beautiful pieces of fabric which were quite expensive. Managed not to buy anything even though they did accept credit cards.

Returned to the ship to have a tasty lunch in the Grand Dining Room.

We lost our internet connection for most of the afternoon and evening. First time I have ever been on a ship when the Captain anniounced for folks to be careful this evening because of the rough seas we would experience. AND we did rock and roll along most of the night.

We are just now sailing into Taiwan and ready for a full day of touring.

City of Naha on Okinawa

We were greeted as we sailed into the port of Naha with a drum and musical presentation by about 10 young men dressed in several kinds of local costumes and playing very different drums. We first heard traditional Japanese music amplified from a truck. The guys danced and kicked and drummed a terrific beat. The music shifted to "We Will Rock You" and finally ended with many of us on the portside on our balconies joining them in the words and motions for "YMCA." Great beginning for the day.

Our tour today took us to an interesting and large Cave- Gyokusendo Cave. We walked down about 130 slippery steps into a world of beautiful stalagtites and stalamites. This cave was only discovered about 50 years ago but is typical of the land around this area. I think that is what made some of the terrible fighting in WWII more difficult for the soldiers on both sides. One of the sections was decorated with Christmas lights and Silent Night was playing.

After the we visited a garden with beautiful bougainvilla and hybiscus plus some huge fruit trees. We both liked this dragaon made from flowers. There were shops with native arts and crafts- some especially beautiful blown glass, but we had no Yen and they just don't take credit cards. Our guide said even in Tokyo the ATM's are mostly for local folks and this is basically a cash-based society. Certainly has saved us some money.

We saw a very athletic presentation again by drummers and dancers. There were many Japanese school children around who got invited to play musical instruments for one song. They were having a grand time. This is the end of the school year so the students have about a 3 week break before the next year begins.

We ended our day at the Okinawa Peace Memorial. That battle happened in June of 1945. 235,000 people were killed. The park contained the names of all people- Allied and Japanese- civilians and soldiers. It was quite a battle. The memorial has 7 sides- reminding people of the 7 seas and the statue of Buddha inside the Peace Tower sits on a 6 petalled lotus blossom to symbolize the 6 continents of the world. I spent a little time and folded a peace crane and left in at a prayer spot.

The port where we are docked is very busy and we have seen for the first time another cruise ship in port. Mostly we are sailing on open water with no other ships in view.

Many Experiences in Kyoto

The day began really early for us. We boarded a bus at 7:40 and headed from Kobe to Kyoto. From the bubbling spring at the Buddist temple to then overwhelming power of the Shogun Palace- Nijo Castle- to the beauty of the Golden Temple we were impressed with the old capital of Japan- Kyoto. Here we are at the Spring of the Singing Water.

We tiook off our shoes to visit the last castle of the last Shogun of Japan. He wisely gave the castle to the emperor when it was clear that the emperor could defeat the Shogun. It was interesting to learn about the rituals in the court...and the fact that everyone- including the maids kept a dagger handy to "take responsibility" for anything they had done wrong by committing suicide. This is the entrance to the Shogun Castle where we had to take off our shoes and wander in our sock feet....and it was cold. The floor was this amazing construction called a Nightingale floor that truly did sing as the people moved along the way. There was no furniture in the rooms because if tables were needed for food the tables were brought out and if it was time for sleep the floors were covered with quilts. The painting and gold leaf on the panels in the castle were wonderful.

We ate a tradition Japanese lunch with 9 different containers in front of us. We clearly knew the raw tuna, the fried rice and the ice cream. The other dishes were very unusual and some were quite tasty.

We also visited a lovely garden that featured a gold leaf Buddist Temple where supposedly some ashes of Buddha were buried. It was a beautiful building and the garden was quite peaceful and nice.

What has amazed us the most about Japan is how very, very clean the citites are . People pick up or carefully deposit their litter in every place. The houses are neat and wherever there is a spare spot of land there is something green growing. The other interesting thing is we have not been able to find an ATM or get any money exchanged and shops rarely -in the museums and tourist places- take credit cards or US cash. We may actually leave Japan and not have bought a thing. You'd think they would be more on top of that.

Tonight we had a great Italian dinner at one of the special restuarants on board. We do like Oceania.

Hiroshima- March 24

We sailed into Hiroshima last evening and docked early this morning. It took the ship a longer time than usual to clear port but we finally got off. Sometimes it seems a matter of rules and sometimes it feels like a matter of money as how fast this process works.

Our first stop was at the Peace Park. August 6, 1945 at 8:15 AM the Allies dropped the first A-bomb on this city. The Japanese government had been warned but they chose to ignore the warning. Our guide's Faither-in-law was in the Hiroshima Perfectural Exhibit Hall which was the center of the blast. His body was never recovered. Her husband's older brother was at school and died that day. This is Jim at the Peace Bell. I went up and rang the bell in great hopes for peace. The museum we visited was extremely well done. We heard a number of people saying things like, "Well, they did...." to us. But to us the overwhleming message was we must never do anything like this again to any other community of people.

We visited a beautiful Japanese Garden built originally in 1620 and of course completely destroyed in 1945. We love looking at the beautifully groomed pine trees and wondered if we could find someone to sculpt the trees in our backyard. It was a really peaceful place. The ponds were filled with huge carp and the rocks were covered with turtles resting in the sun.

Next we saw Hiroshima Castle- quite spectacular. But, of course, most everything is a reconstruction because the buildings were wooden and burned in the blast.

Got back on the ship and had a surprise performance by the Hiroshima Junior Marimba Ensemble. A lively bunch of 14 school girls from third to 7th grade whose instruments included 6 big marimbas, a trap set, a Japanese drum and other percussion instruments. It was great fun to watch and listen.

Had dinner tonight at one of the fancy restuarants on board and are off to a show before bed and tomorrow's full day in Kyoto.

The Grand Canal

We have had two interesting days at sea. After we left Wuxi and Shanghai the fog rolled in and the Chinese authoritites ordered all traffic on the Ynagtze River to stop. We spent from 3:30 in the afternoon two days ago until about 11:00 yesterday morning at anchor-along with all manner of commercial boats. Finally we got special permission to sail with careful guidance of the Shanghai pilot. We will now have only one day in Kyoto but at least we will visit all the ports.

Went to a class to learn how to reduce the size of photos and now we can add them to the blog. Yeah!
We had a great day in Wuxi on the Grand Canal. Here is a photo of Jim on the small boat we took down the longest and oldest manmade canal in the world. He is drinking a glass of green tea as we sail by the beautiful sculptures and alongside the working barges.

We also visited a wonderful garden. This photo is an example of bringing the outside into the garden. It is how a small area feels like a much larger space. We saw beautiful blooming plants and lovely buildings.

In the area of small world. It turns out the lecturer on board discussing Japan is the person that was our son Bill's college roommate his Freshman year at Davidson. Paul Kowert heads the International Student program at Florida International University in Miami. We met and chatted with his fiance Deborah. We are to have dinner together tonight. The world is small.

All is well with us and we are having a grand time.

March 21- Shanghai

Yesterday we had a grand day on a very long trip to the town of Wuxi in the Province of Nanjing. We left the ship after a face-to-face with our passports and an official from the Chinese government. Normally on an international cruise the ship keeps your passports and the officials just casually look, but this is China and the rules are different. After having had to have our temperarture taken in Korea before we could get off you'd think we would not be surprised by anything.

We boareded a bus and rode through the early morning busy streets of Shanghai. People were hurrying to work. Others were stopping by stalls to buy breakfast pancakes. Shops were open. The traffic was wild as usual. It took us about an hour to travel the 5 miles to the train station.

We waited in the "Softseating Lounge" which we later learned was a special place for VIP's to wait for the boarding signal for their train. When it was time we walked through several tunnels over to our platform and boarded the train. It was neat, clean, quiet and filled with people. There were venders on the train selling coffee, tea, Lay's Potato Chips, noodle dishes in cardboard cups, and juices.

As we traveled we saw lots and lots of farm land and also some small farm areas. We saw very few pieces of mechnical farm equipment- mostly people working the fields by hand.The trip to about an hour and 15 minutes.

We were met by a new guide who took us to another bus and off we went. This young man was born in 1964 and his Chinese name means " true thought of Mao" because he said at the time his parents were really Mao followers. Now that is not the case. He said he was not a party member and could say whatever he wanted....and he did.

We went to the Grand Canal- the longest (1100 miles long) and the oldest (built in 500BC) man-made waterway in the world. We took a boat cruise sailing along side the barges and other commercial vessals making their way to and from the coast to Beijing. This is the Yangtze River Delta. It was quite a site and quite a feeling to be sailing on this canal.

We visited an excellent example of a small Chinese Garden- the Jichange Garden in Wuxi. The same family managed to own it through the Ting and Chin dynasty and then give it to Mao and the party when weathy people were encouraged to give up their possessions.

Wuxi is where the finest silk is made. We went to another silk reeling factory and watched again this process. Also did a tiny bit of shopping.

The town of Wuxi is a small town of 5 million people. We keep being amazed at these large (by our standards) cities that we never heard of.

We had a tradidional Chinese lazy Susan filled lunch. We boarded the return tain at 5:30 and arrived in Shanghai at about 6:45. The driver took us by the downtown area with the amazing lights on the building. We do like Shanghai.

Got back to the ship about 7:15, ate dinner and went to the Horizons Lounge to watch the boats go by and the buildings change their colors as the pictures and lights moved about.

We are in port for half a day but we decided to stay on board, do laundry and write.

Tomorrow we are at sea headed for Japan. I have given up trying to add pictures to this because it takes so long and often doesn't work anyway. We are glad for this Satallite connection but wish for something faster. Take care

Seoul, Korea- March 18

Weare having a wonderful time onboard the MS Nautica. This cruise line does everything really top drawer. Food is excellent and the staff is amazingly helpful and gracious.

This morning in the fog we sailed into Inchon, Korea. We boarded buses and headed for Seoul- an hour away. We visietd first the new (opened in December) National Museum which was one of the best museums we have seen in terms of display, organization and information.

We learned that Buddah's come tall, short, fat, skinny, bronze, gold, stone and with a variety of hand positions that indicate their special emphasis. India, China, Japan, and Korea have each a different interpretation of what Buddah looks like.

We had a traditional Korean lunch with Korean Bar-be-Que cooked at the table in a wok. The meat was eaten wrapped in lettuce leaves. The side dishes were different- some cool and tasty-like apples and radishes in cream and some very hot-like Cim Chi (very spicy cabbage.)

We moved on to the Gyeonbok Palace which was the home of the emperor for the Chosen dynasty until the early 1900's. Much was like the Forbidden City with many buildings adorned with beautiful paintings and interesting symbolism.

Tonight as wel sail toward Shanghai it seems this slow and slower system doesn't want to let us post any pictures. But we do have some great ones. So we will sign off- traveling 14 hours ahead of you all on to other sights.

Beijing Day 2

Today was a beautiful day in Beijing- blue sky and warm. Jim had a great day exploring Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace Gardens with our tour group. Elaine stayed in the hotel with some sort of 24 hour bug that has made its way through most all of the tour group. Jim walked and walked and walked some more to see all the sights.

One of the other tour folks who had been sick and her husband and I shared a cab to drive down to the Square and Forbidden City to see it from the outside. We also had a nice little tour of an older neighborhood without all the traffic congestion which is present everywhere you go around here. People, buses, cars, bikes and motor bikes weave in and out. They seem to play their own game of "chicken." We even say a Mom asnd small girl navagating a busy intersection with the girls on a bike featuring training wheels. Can you imagine trying to teach someone to ride a bike in that mess.

The evening was a wonderful Peking Duck Dinner and a performance of the Peking Opera and some local dances. Jim enjoyed it- especially since the opera part was brief. Elaine stayed home and slept.

Our Viking River Cruise experience has been great. Now a day of rest before the next part of the trip begins.

Beijing and the area around

We have seen amazing things here in Beijing...beginning with a Tang Dynasty Dinner on our first evening.
The costumes were beautiful and the dancing was wonderful. We also had a tasty meal.

Yesterday, before we came to Beijing we visited the tomb of the first emperor of China and saw the amazing life-sized terra-cotta warriors, horses and archers that were created to guard his tomb. The day was so very cold. We walked between the three pits of the archeological work. These warriors were discovered in 1974 by a farmer digging a well. Quite a sight. We enjoyed seeing something we had only imaged and read about. Here we are at Pit #1 and here is a close-up of the rows of warriors.

Today we visited the Great Wall of China- also begun by the first emperor. It was so windy and cold. I bought a Chinese Army fur hat to try to stay warm. We headed up the hill but I just couldn't go. But JIM DID IT! He climbed up and made the group picture. I returned to the Badaling Hotel and did a bit of shopping. Quite a day for both of us. Tonight we are headed to to the Temple of Earth- a non-functioning Buddist Temple for a group dinner. This is a first class travel experience for both of us.

Terra-Cotta Warriors

Just had to say what a great day we had today seeing the Terra-Cotta Warriors and Horses. Just does sosmething to me to see a treasure that you have read about for years and finally see it living color.

The weather is bitterly cold- about 30 degrees Farenheidt so we are both feeling that. BUT to see the warriors and the horses and the archers and the whole scene was just unbelievable. Tomorrow I think we will take the time to add some pictures of that and also of the Great Wall- where we are headed tomorrow. Supposed to be colder still.

We are in the China World Hotel in Beijing for tonight and the next 3 nights afterwards. It is fancy and nice....and warm until March 15 when the government has everyone turn off their heat and use some system they have worked out. So do stay tuned.

Left The Yangtze

We had a great cruise on the Yangtze River. Saw rugged scenery and high limestone cliffs, visited the Three Gorges Dam Project, saw the farmlands and homes that will soon be covered by water. Progress is hard and painful.

We flew today to Xi'an in the center of China. Tomorrow we visit the Terra Cotta Warriors and we are both looking forward to that.

The weather has turned cold so we are layering up as much as we can. The sky seems to be foggy all the time. Our guide this morning said the newer apartements in Xi'an feature blue glass in the windows so people at least have the allusion of blue sky. Interesting!

Three Gorges Dam

We arrived late last evening to the River Boat Viking Century Sky. The ship is only a year old and made to carry 280 passengers. There are only 32 of us on board. We didn't get here until about 9:00PM but the staff was so gracious and the dinner was wonderful.

Today we were off in the morning for a visit to the Three Gorges Dam Project. We saw the areas where people have been resettled in preparation for the rising water when the project is completed. All was very interesting.

We are sailing today down the Yangtze River. It is really foggy but we plan to go onto the top deck for the commentary about the scenery.

We are having a grand time.

Old and New Shanghai

We have had 2 wonderful days in Shagnhai.

Sunday afternoon we went on a half day trip with Susie. We saw the east side of the Hunagpu River. Until 1990 the area was farm land. Susie, who was born in Shanghai, remembers taking the ferry across the river to buy fresh vegetables.

We rode the Magnetic Train- a 7 minutes roide to the airport. It is the fastest train in the world and travels at 270 miles per hour. Over the doorway to each car is a digital readout that shows the time and the spped. When the train was 2 minutes out we had reached the top speed of 431 kph (or 270 mph) and everyone took out camaras and made photots. It was quiet and smooth. What a ride.

We visited the Oriental Pearl Radio and TV Tower. There was in interesting museum of the history of Shanghai there.

We also went to a Silk Reeling Factory and learned about the cultivation of silk worms and the making of silk comforters. Naturally we bought a comforter for ourselves.

Yesterday we joined the Viking River Cruise group of 30 other folks. We have a tour escaort who will be with us the whole time and she is excellent. We headed about about 9:00 and went to the Yu Gardens built in 1559. The photo of the dragon is from the garden. We walked about a mile through the city market to get to the gardens. The sideways photo of Elaine is from the market square. You maybe can see out hotel in the smog behind . It is the one with crown on the top.

After our garden visit we walked back to the bus in the street among the cars, motor bikes, and bicycles.

In the evening we went to the most amazing performance of the Shanghai Acrobats. Never have we seen such balance and percision. We gasped and oohed with every breath.

Today we are off to fly to Yichang and the cruise on the Yangtze River.

This is the hotel

We spent the morning exploring the hotel and spending lots of money on the Internet doing this blog. Hope someone is reading it. The Cake Shop had a Chocolate Train in the case. We thought Jack and Christopher- the train lovers- would have enjoyed it...and the rest of the Chololate lovers that we know would have liked it too.


The lobby has beautiful flowers and art of all description. The Gift Shop has unbelievably beautiful silk scarves. There is even a Silk Carpet Shop. Quite a place!

Here We Are

We arrived safely last evening in Shanghai. The flights on Japan Airlines were comfortable with tasty food and gracious people. The flights were also long.

The airport scene in Shaghai was pretty wild because two big planes came in at the same time. The Immigration part took a long time. The first check point was the Health Check and Jim managed to get through that without coughing. I was grateful and so was he. I would have hated to leave him in the quarantee place.

The luggage and customs was a breeze.

The hotel car met us at the Pudong Airport and we were off for a 50 minute ride to the Westin Shaghai. The hotel is absolutely beautiful. Lots of space and color.

Our room is very nicely appointed-huge bathroom, comfortable bed and great view of the busy city. We slept well and awoke at 8:00AM.

As I write a believe it is 9:35 AM on Sunday morning. We ate a "free" breakfast this morning and we are off this afternoon to visit New Shanghai.

So long for now.

From San Francisco

We had a good trip from Tampa to San Francisco. Everything was on time. Luggage arrived safely. We easily got to the Embassy Suites.

In about an hour Rich and Arta Wilbanks came and met us. We went into the city to a wonderful restaurant called The Greens. The food was vegetarian and quite tasty. It was so good to catch up on their lives and happenings.

Now it is 5AM on March 3 Pacific Time and II am wide awake. Going to be a long day but there will lots of time to sleep on the plane.

Take care

One More Day

The bags are packed and weighed. As usual Jim did a much better job being careful in his packing. Both my bags will push the limits of the restrictions. We are ready for this great adventure.

We had a great dinner last evening with Elaine's cousin Chuck Wilbanks and his wife Ires and 2 year old son Gus. They were in the area to visit her grandparents. Tomorrow we'll have dinner with another cousin- Ritch Wilbanks and his wife Arta in San Francisco. Friday morning March 3rd we head out aboard Japan Air for our loooooong flight to Shanghai. We are flying through Tokyo Narita Airport arriving in Shanghai at 9:35 Saturday evening March 4. I can't even figure how long we will be in the air.

Tomorrow morning bright and early Runners Transportation will pick us up for this trip of a life-time to begin. Thanks to Leigh Berghane, our fantastic travel advisor, the details are in place. So off we go.