October 4, 2024 - Ishigaki, Japan

With the Typhoon stalling just south and west of us, we were able to sneak in for our visit here, we are thrilled our captain was able to dock here. This is not a guaranteed port, very difficult getting in with the many breakwaters and then the wind, waves and currents.

Our notes on this port are as follows:

Talk with the Japanese a while about the Japanese and you’re going to hear the word shimagunikonjo. The breakdown is simple: shima—island; guni—nation; konjo—consciousness. In one word, it's the firm belief that people who live on islands are different from people who live on continents, and anyone who’s done both is likely to agree. American culture may be the strongest influence in Japan now, but the Japanese will understand the motivations of the Brits a whole lot better. Islands require a different mind-set than continents. Islands require manners. 

But what if your island was never meant to be part of another bunch of islands? That’s what’s happened with today’s Okinawa Prefecture. The people who’ve always been there are Okinawan, one of the healthiest, longest-living people on earth. But now they’re part of Japan and seriously outnumbered by the Japanese. (And they’re not at all happy that the Japanese interlopers gave so much of their land over to U.S. military bases.) 

Signs of Okinawan culture can be subtle but are easier to pick out in more remote islands of the chain, like Ishigaki. Traditional buildings are a mixture of Chinese and Japanese influences. In the markets, you’ll find fu chanpuru (an Okinawan stir fry dish) and whole-wheat soba, which the Japanese won't touch. The ryuso robe holds on despite crowded kimono stores. The few people left who speak Uchinaguchi are praying for a movement like the Hawaiian renaissance to bring the culture back. The tipping point is close. A trip to Ishigaki now is to witness either the beginning or the end.

Our day turned out very well as we took this information to heart and jumped on a ferry to an island about a 15 minute ride away, Taketomi Island. Taketomi island has about 300 residents and is compact enough to get around on foot. This island is part of a national park program and is therefore protected from any changes. It has beautiful beaches and a small town with some restaurants and other businesses. Renting a bike while here is very popular as is taking a tour using oxen pulling a cart, we opted for the oxen tour, lots of fun. This island has a very slow paced way of life, the people are friendly and seem pretty happy not having the influences of a big city vibe anywhere close. Ishigaki, the main city where we are docked also carries the same feel. Many people from the big cities come here for their vacation and retirement.

Some pics of our day here, hope you enjoy…

On our own today, jumping on a fast ferry































These sculptures on many homes and businesses are for protection from evil spirits.



Lava stone walls with crushed coral roads…

A Tsunami warning speaker system.







Three options, foot, bike or oxen…





Our Oxen driver was very talented.











The main beach is in the background here.















A famous local boxer.





Photographers from the ship.







A massive breakwater.







Pretty much the most southern point of all Japan. Very close to Taiwan.



Our fantastic waiters, Kelana and John.

A fantastic Jazz night last night with our on board musicians.

October 2, 2024 - Nagasaki, Japan

Our material on this port is as follows:

Situated in the northwest of Kyushu, the third-largest island in Japan, Nagasaki is one of the country’s most cosmopolitan port cities, with a decent tourism infrastructure, a fascinating past that stretches back to the early 7th century and a picturesque harbor that’s been an active port since the 16th century. Home to around 500,000 residents, the city is a buzzy yet relaxed place with abundant services, shops and restaurants as well as several cultural and historic attractions that are easily explored on foot and via public transportation. Check out the Nagasaki Peace Park and Atomic Bomb Museum, which outline the horrific bombing of the city during World War II while making a poignant pledge for world peace. Foodies will enjoy the wide variety of tastes to be found in Chinatown and the Shianbashi Gourmet Street. If you are visiting with children, the Huis Ten Bosch theme park—modeled on a medieval Dutch town—makes for a fun diversion. Look out, too, for popular annual events like October's Kunchi Festival and the wintertime Nagasaki Lantern Festival.

We were here on a beautiful sunny day back in October 2014 during the Kunchi Festival and that was a perfect day to be here. We blitzed the city using public transport taking in a number of the main sights to see. For those interested go to 2014, October on the blog and have a look at what a sunny day looks like here. Lol. Yes, today we got caught in a bit of a foul day where at one point we got hit with a downpour that completely soaked us. More on that later.

The Westerdam docks right in the middle of the city but not only very close to all means of public transport but to many fantastic sights within easy walking distance to the port. We did a casual stroll off the ship around 10am heading over to the Confucian Shrine about a flat half a kilometre away from the terminal. There is a vertical skywalk close by if you want to head up towards Glover Gardens and a shopping district. With rain beginning we opted to head to Tram number 5 and to the covered arcade shopping area, Hamamachi Shopping Arcade. This shopping area encompasses about a 4 block area and is a great spot to escape the rain. We were looking for a mag safe case for Jan’s phone at some point in this trip so this worked in well. Yes we found one in one of those funky, we have everything and everything, stores - one of those multi level stores packed full of stuff. After browsing in this mall for a while we ventured out into the street where the rain was still coming down pretty hard. Ah, I think it’s lunch time. It was recommended to have the Ramen here, so yes we complied and it fit the bill on a rainy day, call it comfort food. We had one more sight on our list for today and in between raindrops we jumped on Tram number 1 to take us to Dejima centre to take in a Geisha performance. Well in the time that we left the tram and made our way over to the centre the skies decided that this was the time to drop buckets and buckets of water. We were almost there when we saw that much of this centre looked like an outdoor walking area, this caused a rethink as we were now pretty soaked despite the rain jackets we had on. Okay, this is not much fun, let’s make our way back to the ship and call it a day. Two trams later we made it back the terminal and then the ship. The skies did clear later in the afternoon but we decided to just enjoy the ship and a good hot tub.

For most people on the ship, they ventured to the Peace park and museum and the spot where the second atomic bomb was dropped. Many took tours but with a one tram transfer you could get there on your own. As mentioned we did this comprehensively in 2014 with a sunny day, today would not have been ideal for this visit. That said, still highly recommended on any day here as this spot carries some heavy significance in todays world.

Tonight, the Rolling Stones Band played in the World Stage and as far as I’m concerned a much better venue for them. They are a talented group that got the house rocking.

As I write this a day later in the Crow’s nest around the noon hour, the rain continues to pound down on us as we head to Ishigaki, our next port of call. The Typhoon has stalled over Taiwan and it looks like it is headed to China, this leaves the door open for us to continue on our intended itinerary, hooray. Hopefully we will have good weather at this new port for us.

A few pics of our day, hope you enjoy…

My samurai face. Lol



















Where’s Waldo











On the tram #5













Some Ramen, yum.

Our next tram.

Yup, back at the ship. Another great performance by a high school band.

October 1, 2024 - At Sea

Just a quick “at sea” update. Today was a beautiful day weather wise, tomorrow is when things may begin to get - calm before the storm as it were. We shall see. Tonight we had a fabulous dinner in the Pinnacle Grill. Started with the candied bacon which led into a halibut and scallop main, all great as we took in the wine pairing option. The highlight tonight was the World Stage entertainment, Sonz of Soul, absolutely fantastic with mainly Motown hits from the 70’s. Great fun was had by all. We then got back to our room and looked out to see all these bright lights on the horizon and found out the are all fishing boats with very bright lights. I believe this is cheating is it not?

Our captain announced that we have a 50/50 chance of making it to our next port of call, Ishigaki, the southern most island in the Japan archipelago - there is good change that this could be hit by the Typhoon.

Only a few pics today from our relaxing sea day…