Tianjin and The Great Wall – China

For two days the ship has been in Tianjin, a port, which is about two hours, drive to Beijing (Peking).

 

Today we went to the Sacred Way (which has the Ming Tombs and is the entrance to them) and The Great Wall, which is further to the North of Beijing. Then we had stopped at a Chinese Restaurant for lunch, and then went to Juyongguan Pass, which is about 15 miles long, and walked along the wall. Another 3 hour drive back. We stopped off at service stations on the way there and back to buy Coffee for Helen!

 

There were some quite amusing motorway signs that we also photographed!

Incheon, with a visit to Seoul and the DMZ in Korea

Today we locked into Incheon harbor in Korea, and then went to Seoul for a spot of shopping and lunch. Lots of cars on the quayside waiting for export.

 

We drove past the Royal Palace site (now a museum), and went to the DMZ between North and South Korea. We saw the freedom bridge where prisoner exchanges take place, went down to walk one of the infiltration tunnels, and looked out over the border from an observation post. Everything seemed very close!

 

Then back to the ship for dinner, followed by Korean music and dance.

Jeju - South Korea

Today we moored for half a day in Jeju in South Korea, a resort island that is Volcanic in origin.

 

Just a brief tour that started in rain, we went to see a dragon shaped rock, the museum which had some interesting natural history exhibits including abalone divers (women!), and finally the local market which had lots of fresh produce. Oranges are a big local produce, and the orange chocolates and biscuits were very popular – not too sure about the black eggs!

 

Our next stop tomorrow morning is Incheon for the Capital Seoul in Korea.

Nagasaki

We arrived this morning and took a coach tour to see the Peace Park, Museum and Ground Zero of the Nagasaki bomb.There are also pictures of the fountain and statue in the peace park.

 

Then a small tram ride to do some shopping and use up the Yen, which we did successfully. Helen even got some blue shoe polish!

 

There is also a picture of a sponge cake factory, introduced by the Portuguese, and saw the reconstructed Dutch Indies Company settlement.

 

Our next stop is Korea. First stop is Jeju.

Kobe and Kyoto

 

We took the bullet train at Kobe Port, a short trip to Kyoto. The lunch boxes with the pretend food were particularly attractive at the station!

 

We went to the Nijo Palace, still being restored, with the squeaking 'nightingale floor), followed by the Buddhist and Shinto Helian shrines with attractive formal gardens.

 

Green tea kitkat is a very interesting purchase here! We then did a drive back to the ship via coach back to Kobe and the ship, where we had some Japanese's drummers to play to us in the evening, followed by the quiz. The view of the wheel at the harbour in the rain as we left was as we pulled away from the Quayside.

 

The next stop is Nagasaki. We have another peaceful day at sea.

 

Leaving Tokyo and Mount Fuji

Today we left Tokyo - a lovely day but a bit cold.

We had a clear view of Mount Fuji in the distance, and the boat just seemed to fit under Tokyo Harbour Bridge!

Tokyo - Japan

Today we called at Tokyo, arriving just at 8 am in the morning. We just cleared under the bridge, and were greeted by drummers at the Port building.

Our tour had been cancelled - so we took the shuttle bus to the Ginza area and walked to the Sky Bus (purple route) which took us around past the Imperial Palace and Tokyo Tower. It was raining on and off, so we had a coffee in Strabucks, got some money at the Post Ifiice, and did a spot of retail therapy on the way back to the shuttle.

A rather nice modern city, everyone very helpful. We are here until tomorrow morning, and we leave for Osaka then to continue our tour of Japan.