​Hiroshima 30 August Day 13

This cruise was chosen because it called into Hiroshima. many of the others don’t stop here so we were very happy to be able to make it happen.

The morning started with a bus trip to the ferry terminal for a quick ride to Miyajima Island which by chance is yet another World Heritage UNESCO Site. Two rules of Miyajima Island - you can’t die here and you can’t be born here!

Miyajima is the site of the Itsukushima Shrine. The shrine will be meaningless to most of us, but the torii or gate is very recognisable and we were fortunate that the tide was in a perfect position to present the torii like it is floating on the water. The shrine itself is a bit different as it also sits over the water and is very open and light. 

The boardwalk through the shrine takes you back to the wee market where tourist items and food are for sale and it is quite a peaceful place. There are also deer here, and we were warned that they may not be as tame as the deer at Nara. They will eat anything, I suppose like goats, and to watch your belongings as they will chew on a backpack strap or anything else available.

This deer had its head stuck in the automatic doors. The shop owner seemed unfazed and fed it something. But I guess he won’t get many customers!

A drinking trough outside a shop. 

The place was sweltering and I took my hat off to try and ventilate and one of the ladies on our tour came by and the look on her face said everything! “I know,” she said. “I don’t know why we bother,” she said as she stroked her dead straight hair. Curly hair does not go well with hats on any day, but mix in intense humidity and sweat; well, I was a mess! And yes the hat went back on for the rest of the day even though I felt very rude at lunch being at the table with a hat on!

After another traditional Japanese lunch at a hotel we were off to Hiroshima, but not before Lance managed a screen by screen update of the Warriors game! Another win!

Hir ‘o’ shima with a short vowel o sound like in orange or hir ‘oh’ shima with a long vowel o sound like the letter o? Our guide instructed us that it is the first option when spoken in Japanese.

Our first stop was the Atomic Bomb Dome, such a recognisable building. It was explained that even though it was at the epicentre of the explosion it managed to stay somewhat intact due to a few factors. On August the 6th 1945 at 8:15 the Americans flew over the area. A bridge that is t shaped is right beside the building and that was an easily recognisable target. The bomb was detonated 600 metres above land and the because the building was made of concrete and was at the epicentre that radiated outwards it’s main structure managed to survive. The blast radiated in a 3 kilometre radius killing approximately 70,000 to 80,000 people. The number cannot be exact because all of the records were destroyed in the blast. It was particularly devastating because the city of Hiroshima lays on the flat and the blast was not obstructed by any natural formations. The heatwave that sped across the terrain was 4000 degrees celsius!

I found this information interesting 

Any survivors were thought of as ‘untouchable’ because so many died after falling ill later on and also anybody visiting the city would often become sick with cancer etc. So after suffering such a terrible fate they were still isolated. 

It was a very sobering place, and I thought that I would feel more emotional than I did, but it was also a place filled with hope. 

We arrived back to the ship at around 6pm and were shattered! It was shower and then a cold beer for me!

Tomorrow is a day at sea and we are looking forward to a sleep in and a relaxing day as we head to South Korea.

Nara (Osaka Port) and Kochi 28 & 29 August Days 11 & 12

As we had already spent 3 days in Osaka last week we hadn’t been to Nara, and so we chose this Princess Cruises excursion.

Slipping into port at 8am this we prepared to disembark at 9am. Our guide for the day was Hiro, a lovely English speaking Japanese woman. The plan for the day was Nara, then back to Osaka for Osaka Castle, which we had been to previously and finally Dotonbori, once again for us.

Something that our guide pointed out to us that we hadn’t noticed before was the red triangles on the windows of high rise buildings. These large triangles are the official entry point for fire brigade rescue, the windows are selected because they are close to clear indoor paths and the glass is easier to break. Mind you this little fire truck that we saw in Hiroshima did not look like it was saving anybody higher than the 3rd floor!

Driving along the expressway was in no way ‘express’. It was peak hour traffic and there had been an incident ahead, so our driver ended up taking another route and soon we were out of the city speeding along a more rural setting.

Nara is actually Japan’s first permanent capital city, But is was not really permanent as it was  followed by Kyoto and then Tokyo. Todaiji Temple is a World Heritage Site and is a Buddhist temple. Temples are Buddhist and shrines are Shinto (Japanese religion) and both faiths blend harmoniously.

This temple holds the giant bronze Buddha which is 15 metres tall and weighs 500,000 kilograms! In the temple there is a famous square hole at the base of a large wooden pillar. It is believed if you manage to crawl (more like worm) your way through you receive good luck and enlightenment.

The town of Nara is full of deer, and they have lived in the area for more than 1300 yers. No one would ever consider eating them as they are considered to be ‘divine messengers’. They are everywhere! Cars stop as they wander across the roads, we were warned to make sure we closed any doors if we entered a shop or they would be inside!  You can buy special crackers to feed them but we didn’t get any, we just watched. At one point I thought Lance had nudged me to move on, buy a cheeky deer had poked me with their nose from behind! 

The brief stop at Kasuga Taisha Shrine was worthwhile. It is one of the most beautiful and celebrated Shinto shrines in Nara, featuring over 2000 stone and bronze lanterns. Established in 768 and rebuilt numerous times over the years, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Lunch was at a smallish establishment and we were presented with an array of Japanese food. We gobbled it down and really enjoyed it.

Back on the bus we headed for Osaka Castle. We chose not to walk up to the Castle for two reasons, We had been before, and it was blistering hot. So we sat in a shady area with a beer for Lance and a fresh pineapple sofa for me. By the time the others returns they were quite a bedraggled lot!

Our last stop was Dotonburi, where we had also been a few days previously. Our quest was to find a drugstore for some bits and pieces, the Gilco Runnng Man sign, which we missed last time and to have some Takayuki (octopus balls) from a place called Wānaka that we had seen in many YouTube clips when researching this holiday. Easy name for us to remember being the same spelling as out own Wānaka in NZ! And we found all three! 

Takoyaki are a classic Osaka fast food. They are cocked in a special pan and are constantly flipped as they are cooked and end up being a little batter ball with a small piece of octopus and tastiness. The they are covered with a variety of mayo or bbq sauce and bonito flakes. Bonito is a type of fish that has been simmered, smoked and fermented then shaved. They are constantly moving at this stage and look alive.

We chose a variety plate of takoyaki and could sit inside to eat them. In every YouTube clip that we watched  the consumer of the takoyaki popped them in their mouth whole and they are so hot they would have had the skin hanging off the roof of their mouth for days! Therefore we were very cautious, Lance poked little holes in his with the skewer provided for eating them takoyaki and I bit a vent hole before venturing in. And we were not disappointed, they were delicious! In fact I am feeling hungry as I write this remembering how good they were. We have had them before, in fact you can get them freshly cooked at Parnell Markets in Auckland. But these were the best ever.

We finished the days with some more of the candied strawberries on a stick and this time I managed to come away clean without any strawberry dribble on me or my belongings!

The following morning we went freestyle into Kochi. After disembarking we were waiting in quite a long queue ship side for a taxi to take us to Hirome Markets which are close to Koche Castle. In front of us in the queue were a Japanese couple, probably around our age. The man asked us in his Broken English ( but much better than our limited Japanese) if we were going to the Castle. We managed to convey that we were going to the markets and he looked on the map and saw they were close to the castle and indicated that maybe we would like to share a taxi. Next minute he has gone onto the taxi app ‘Go’ and nabbed us a taxi that had just arrived and we jumped the queue! They were a lovely couple and very jolly. They dropped us to the markets first and as we jumped out Lance threw him some money, as we knew that he would not want to take any. There was a lot of tooing and groins before we finally made our escape. It is difficult because the Japanese are so honourable and humble that to take our money could be an insult, but for us it was just not the right thing to not contribute.

The markets were very nice and more spacious, even though they had the same configuration as previous markets. One long street that is covered with a very high glass roof. The shops were nicer as well and we had our first decent coffee at Douter which is a coffee shop chain. Nothing was purchased, but I did try on a couple of dresses that actually did fit. And one dress that I thought I may have to get the assistant to help me as it was not designed for a person with front veranda as robust as mine. My arms were poking out the top as I tried to wrestle it off! Phew!

We had an easy evening and Lance managed a Karaoke song, which received much appreciation for the audience.

Hiroshima tomorrow! 

Toba 27 August Day 10

​The morning view when we awoke was of Toba, a small town known for Mikimoto Island and its pearls and an aquarium. We chose to spend our time in Toba independently and had not opted into any excursions. 

Excursions available from Princess Cruises are generally pricey, but you know that they will be of high quality, and the ship will not leave until all of their own excursions have returned. If you partake in an activity that you have arranged independently and you are delayed, you run the risk of waving goodbye to your ship from the wharf!

Toba is the only destination on this cruise that has a harbour too shallow to allow the ship to dock, so we were shuttle to and from by tender. As always the wait for the tender is lengthy but we were seated in the explorers lounge where were comfortable.

Yep you guessed it, I in no way used this! My old knees may have got down but I would have never have got back up!

There really wasn’t much to see, a free loop bus was provided and we hopped off at the aquarium which was a well organised and modern aquarium. But you know, it is just really sad looking at these creatures that should be swimming freely. Especially the larger species like sharks and porpoises. I don’t mind it when they have rescued a creature who would otherwise have perished, but not just for viewing. 

Perfect ice cream that was very difficult to eat before it melted at 34 degrees celsius 

Waiting for the tender back to the ship Princess Cruises staff handed out ice cold clothes which were welcomed by all!

Our dinner was had at Kai Sushi; we chose the set menu that gave us a selection of delectable sushi treats. Sitting next to us were a British couple and the man will be forever know to us as ‘wasabi Steve’, in fact we  have seen him a couple of times since then and said “Gidday wasabi Steve!”

We got talking when his wife was giggling uncontrollably and he was sitting with a very red face and eyeballs bulging. This was his first time partaking in Sushi and he had … you know what is coming don’t you? Yes, the wasabi! About a small teaspoon full straight into his gob! Poor bugger! And being his first time he wouldn’t know that the wasabi burn quickly abates, not like chilli. 

We are still sussing out which entertainment is right for us and have found a couple of bands that we enjoy.

Just a few things to add that I have been collecting to tell you:

In Tokyo they had glassed in areas along the street where people need to go if they need to smoke. And they are pretty crowded at times.

Cakes come in packets. All of the convenience stores and tourist shops have them, mainly in small boxes. It takes me back to a time years ago at Brisbane airport when Dillon spotted a young Japanese couple with a packet of Betty Crocker cake mix. They obviously had bought it at a supermarket thinking that they would have something to snack on whilst waiting for their flight.

We watched them carefully open the top of the box and instead of some wee foil wrapped cakes there was cake powder! They were pretty confused, but consumed it by dipping their fingers into the box!

I have previously mentioned the young ladies dressed in Lolita fashion and some with a steam punk vibe. Another thing I have noticed that many girls wear exactly the same clothes. I mean exactly, down to their earrings, bracelet, handbag, everything! This is obviously a well planned exercise before leaving home!

Managed to snap this cute young lady. And fortunately don’t need to blur her face. But she did have incredible makeup and an eye patch that was for show. 

Bowing: we knew that in many Asian cultures bowing is part of the custom; we have been overwhelmed and humbled with the bows presented to us. And the quality of the bows! When the attendant shows you to the elevator in the hotel as the doors close they give a deep bow. The shuttle driver from the Westin Hotel in Osaka gave a deep bow at the front of the bus before taking their seat to drive, and the attendant manning the shuttle station also gave us a beautiful bow as the bus left.

When we left the gorgeous Wagyu beef restaurant in Kyoto (you know, the one with 14 meaty courses) the two guys in charge of everything came out onto the street and bowed as our taxi drove away. It is just such a lovely and special thing!

It just encapsulates the way that the Japanese people provide hospitality like nowhere that we have been before. 

Yokohama 25 & 26 August Day 8 & 9

 

Once again we used the luggage transfer service for our larger cases. They measure and weigh the cases and the cost was 5,700 JPY (approx $57 NZD). This made for an easier trip for us from Shin Osaka to Shin Yokohama.

If you are travelling from Osaka by bullet train you need to know that Osaka Station is not the station where the Shinkansen leave from, you need to go to Shin Osaka which is about four kilometres from Osaka station. This could be an easy mistake to be made. 

The nose of the bullet train is modelled on the nose of the kingfisher bird for aerodynamics. Just like the kingfisher’s beak transitions smoothly from air to water, the Shinkansen transitions smoothly through tunnels eliminating a sonic boom that would occur due to the speed as it enters. Like a huge piston pushing a wave of compressed air in front of it.

Our journey went without a hitch, although we did get there an hour early just in case!

Arriving in Yokohama our Taxi dropped us to the Intercontinental Yokohama Grand and what a spectacular location. The view from our room would have to be one of the best we have ever had.

A large ship leaving the port and making way for our ship to berth in the morning.

Not much was happening along the harbour front and many of the shops and restaurants were closed, so after a sweaty stroll we were fed and watered at our hotel overlooking the harbour. They do have New Zealand wine here on the room service menu. It is the first that I have seen, most restaurants have had a house red and a house white. In the bar the New Zealand wine was not on offer but I did enjoy a nice Chilean drop.

Our luggage hadn’t arrived when we got here which made us a little nervous as we were departing on our cruise the following morning. I felt assured though when I checked with the concierge who very calmly told me that of course it would be with us by that evening because the delivery date said today. Japan runs like clockwork! And sure enough in a couple of hours the bags arrived.

Look at the size of this tag! This is a normal size case, but it looks Lilliputian with the tag on it!

26 August 

This morning Lance woke me at 5am to look out the window and from our bed the beautiful sun rise streamed in. 

 And not long after our ship, the Diamond Princess, slipped under the Yokohama Bay Bridge.

Bad news though, this actually wasn’t our ship! Ours arrived whilst we were at breakfast! 

We have been on the Diamond Princess once before in Malaysia, so hopefully the layout will spring back into our memory and we will instantly feel at home. Our request for an upgrade was granted  before we left New Zealand and we paid an extra $100 for a slightly larger balcony. So we pack up this morning for the last time until it is time to go home.

At breakfast this morning in the hotel I observed a Japanese gentleman dining by himself. My attention was drawn towards him due to the array of small bowls that he had in front of him, at first count there were 12 bowls all filled with different things. Part way through his breakfast he left the table and I spotted more bowls and dishes, 18 in total. On returning to the table he stood and was picking at his shirt until he peeled off two pieces of  sticky tape. Sitting back down he got the two sets of chop sticks that he had left the table to get and taped them together to form a cross. He asked the waitress to get him a glass, and then stood the cross in the glass. He then took the red napkin, crumpled it and tore it into a long strip, then formed a frilly sort of frame around a white coaster, folded it in half and hung it over one side of the chopstick cross. It was fascinating. All this happened with intermittent snacks from the variety of food in the many bowls. I would love to know the significance of this! But wait there’s more … he went and got more food, we left when he had twenty small dishes of food!

Back in our room we packed up we taxied to the Osanbashi cruise terminal and joined our fellow travellers who were being herded in the most effective way into the boarding area. Our allotted time for boarding was between 12 and 2pm but as usual we were early and in no way the first there. After slipping through the processes our lot number was called and before we knew it we were on board!

Princess cruises have done away with cards for entry and charges, we were issued with a medallion. This can hang around your neck in a lanyard or you can buy other more convenient apparatus to hold it like watch straps, but I haven’t found where to buy them yet.

The medallion scans you on and off the boat, unlocks your door as you approach it, adds your drinks and purchases to your tab, and if you order a drink or snack it lets the waiter locate you on the ship for delivery. Another improvement since we last cruised is the app which gives you all of the info you need, including your own bookings and itinerary and a messaging function for friends on board. 

Included in our passage is the ‘Princess Plus’ package which gives us wifi, that is not the usual laggy wifi, and up to 15 drinks a day! Previously we haven’t bothered with packages but this is really worthwhile. 

Our room is compact but adequate and the extra $100 for an upgrade to a larger balcony was well worth it. The smaller balconies have no privacy as people above can look down on you, ours does have people looking down, but only for a portion, the rest is private, so I am sitting out here in the nuddy typing this. JOKING! I’m in my swimsuit.

We booked dinner at the Crown Grill for our first night, which does incur a small cost, and it was delicious.

Lance’s steak tartare being unveiled in a swirl of smoke. And the bread was delicious too! 

The ocean so far is calm and we slept to the very subtle sway of the sea as the ship cut through the waters to our first destination.