Hong Kong holiday ends

Hong Kong Holidays end.

We awoke around 6am showered and commenced packing our suitcase before heading to breakfast and leaving our stateroom at 8am. We were in the rendezvous lounge waiting for our departure time which was 9.30 when a staff member advised us that we could leave when ready as we had opted for a unassisted departure. We left through the terminal without any immigration check and caught a cab to our Hotel, the Prudential on Nathan Road Kowloon. After checking in and depositing our luggage we proceeded to the Jordan MTR station which was conveniently located beneath the hotel. We purchased our Octopus cards for 70 hkd and caught the train to central where we made our way through the terminal to the exit that gave best access to the Victoria Peak tram. 

As we arrived early the crowds were minimal and having the Octopus cards enabled us to skip the cues for tickets and proceed straight through the turnstiles and wait for the next tram. It really is a must do activity in Hong Kong and even though we had taken trip before it was great doing it again before the crowds arrived. After descending we wandered back through Central checking out some of the shopping precincts before boarding a Star Ferry back to Kowloon. We caught the MTR from Tsim Sha Tsui Station to Mong Kok which is the closest station for the Ladies market, after wandering around there for a couple of hours checking dubious bargains and multiple sports stores we returned to our Hotel with the only purchase being a phone cover for Jennifer. After getting settled in our room we ventured out to catch up with Maureen and Lee, they had called into our hotel and left a message so we thought we would return the visit. They were situated at the Novotel hotel which was a short distance from our hotel. We went to their room and heard all about their adventures the previous day. They had taken the Hop on bus and spent a sizeable chunk of the day in waiting due to incidents beyond their control. We returned to our hotel and dined in the local food hall before catching the train to the waterfront to watch the Symphony of Lights we arrived half an hour before the show and managed to get a good position to sit and watch the show. We then caught a bus up Nathan Road and found a supermarket to purchase some items for breakfast and lunch.

Our last full day in Hong Kong we decided to take a recommended tram ride from as far as Kennedy Town  in the west, to as far as Shau Kei Wan  in the east, in order to get a strong contrast of "East meets West" and "Old meets New". So we set out on the MTR to Central and then transferred to the Island line for the journey to Kennedy Town, from there we asked directions to the tramline which was only a couple of blocks down through a traditional old area. We boarded the tram which was going to Happy Valley race track. Along the way we chatted to a young lad and his mother, he was studying in Sydney to be a Naval Architect and was happy to chat with us. The rain set in while we were on the tram so we disembarked at central and went into the IFC mall which was also the ferry terminal. We had a coffee and watched the rain set in even harder. Luckily there are covered walkways between the buildings so we made our way from mall to mall. Along the way we witnessed a strange site, there was around 500 ladies camped along the edge of walkway in makeshift cubicles made from cardboard, they seemed happy preparing meals chatting and knitting all with their shoes off as they were inside. We asked what they were doing there and got the response that they were carers and this was their day off. Quite a strange site. We caught the train back to Jordan and returned to our hotel. After having lunch we ventured back out in the weather to visit the Hong Kong Museum of History which was only ten minutes walk from our hotel. The rain was still persistent and we took a different path to stay under shelter so it took a little longer. It was very busy as everything seems to be in Hong Kong we stayed for an hour before making our way back to the hotel via shopping malls and shops, buying a couple of last minute items. For tea we met up with Maureen and Lee for our last dinner of the trip, it was then back to the hotel to relax and get ready for the return journey, our hotel was very comfortable and quiet so we both slept well.

Cruise end Hong Kong

At sea and Hong Kong journeys end days 16&17

Thursday the 22 of November, important day for one of the tourists, we started the day with a spa before breakfast and then some shopping for alcohol before checking out future Cruises and making a tentative booking for a London to Saint Petersburg Cruise next July, though the intention is to change to a Cruise the following year. We then joined Stella, Lee and Maureen for another game of 5 crowns which Maureen won. It was a great way of killing time on an at sea day which was a bit crowded in most the public areas as the weather was a bit inclement and this kept people indoors. We shared a dinner table with Lee and Maureen in the Metropolitan dining room and after dinner we had a quiet shot on the pokies before having a nightcap in cafe Bacio and chatting with Anne Marie and her friend, we turned in around 11pm.

We didn’t spend to long on the Ship Friday morning,we took advantage of the Shuttle bus to Diamond Hill, Hollywood Plaza we wandered around the centre for a short period before heading to the MTR and organising our Octopus card and catching the train to Jordan Station, from there we found our accommodation for the next few nights the Prudential Hotel which we would check into on Saturday. We then did a lap of Nathan Road before heading back to Hollywood Plaza to catch the shuttle bus back to the Ship.

We spent the evening in the Oceanview cafe and planned to meet up with Stella and John to hopefully catch a glimpse of the Symphony of Lights show which is projected from buildings on the Kowloon side of the Harbour at 8pm every evening. While we did manage to catch a view of the light show the best experience is had by being in position on the mainland. Still it was nice sitting in that location and watching the lights in the harbour. We said goodbye to various friends we had made on the cruise and gave out a few gratuities to staff that had looked after us, Gusti our cabin steward Helena in Café Bacio who was a great companion throughout the cruise and Vaseesh in the dining are who was a pleasant young man.

We returned to our room around nine to contemplate packing for departure as we had to vacate our cabin by 8am.

Day 10&11 at sea and Shanghai.

Day 10 an at sea day started with a sleep in as  we put the clocks back by an hour as we moved to Chinese time zone. It was an interesting breakfast with a couple from Charleston South Carolina and a women who was a researcher for the Democratic Party in America, Jennifer she was a bit of a history buff and though interesting she proceeded to give a American history lesson through out our breakfast. James went to the gym for an hour after breakfast while Jenny did some shopping as they had a sale on. We ended up having Lunch in the Metropolitan restaurant and after Lunch headed up to the Cosmos bar for the Music quiz before catching up with Lee and Maureen plus Stella for a game of five crowns, Jenny won followed by Lee and Maureen and Jamie and Stella finishing last.

We then had a coffee before heading out for tea once again in the Oceanview cafe, we did not stay for long as we were traveling in a fairly heavy swell and Jenny was feeling seasick.

Saturday we awoke early Jennifer had booked breakfast in the stateroom for six am and James went down for the express breakfast in the dining room. We had to meet in the departure area at 7.45 for our best of Shanghai tour.The Ship had docked in Baoshan which was around a forty minute drive from Shanghai. Our tour include the Bund area which is the river bank precinct with traditional architecture overlooking the new city on the other side of the river. 

We also visited the impressive Shanghai Museum which had an impressive array of exhibits across all eras of China’s history some dating back 8000 years. From there we went to the newly built theatre for lunch a Chinese banquet this took place on the eighth floor convention area and was a nice meal shared with ten others from our bus. Shanghai was amazing with the amount of growth and development 24 million people live there and an appartments cost over a million for a modest unit of around 300 square metres.

Another highlight was the Jade Buddha Temple which featured a six foot tall Jade Buddha inlaid with diamonds and agates. The temple was part of a new project encompassing the older temple.

The next stop was the Yuyuan Garden this also had a Buddhist Shrine and was supposed to be surrounded by five acres of beautiful scenery but was actually a newly built market place with traditional style structures. This we found quite tacky and especially after getting lost not a enjoyable part of the day.

Another interesting happening was as James went through the immigration check on arrival he got taken to one side and had his temperature checked ( in the ear not rear )

We had booked this tour before departure and had received a generous discount it ended up being nearly half the price charged on board I guess it makes for a good value excursion.

We returned to the Ship and had a casual dinner on deck ten before having a couple of night caps at the Cafe

Keelung & Taipei days 14&15

Keelung & Taipei days 14&15

We arrived in the busy port of Keelung around midday and when cleared by the local authorities we left the Ship around 1.00 pm to meet Marcia, Uncle Robert we had a brief lap around the local shops before heading back to the terminal to meet Robert we eventually hooked up around 2pm ther was some. Robert and his wife Angela organised a taxi to ferry us around for the day, so we set of around the coast road which was quite busy with lots of scooters ducking in and out between the trucks and cars. Our first Port of call was Yehilu Geo Park which is a popular and pretty area of coastline with a sandstone or limestone base which has been eroded by wind and ocean over time, with most of the structures quite close to the sea they have attendant’s standing by to ensure you don’t get to close to the ocean or handle the sensitive structures. The areas are connected by a 2km board walk so it was quite a walk around the precinct. From there we visited a market precinct were Jennifer brought some more Skechers though these were copies and quite cheap. Robert also got us to try some local food. We had a almond based yoghurt desert which was tasty and also a Bean and Tarot root and Pumpkin cold soup affair which was quite different being a little sweet and a strange consistency.

We then hopped back in the taxi which Angela had arranged to wait for us, very convenient, and ventured back towards the Port district and the  vibrant food and clothing market that take up three parallel streets adjacent to the Passenger Terminal. We wandered through there and sampled some more street food, some sticky rice that was quite tasty and some chicken broth/soup. Robert offered for us to stay at his place for the night to save commuting time in the morning, but we didn’t want to put them out so we returned to the Ship around 7.00 pm. It had been a busy day so we had a extra bite and coffee in the cafe and retired early after a busy day of walking.

Wednesday morning we arranged to meet Robert and Angela out side the terminal around 9am we received a call from Robert to say that he was running a bit late. Upon his arrival we  headed towards the Keelung Station to board the train for Taipei. The attendant at the station advised Robert that it was actually quicker to catch the local bus so we backtracked to the bus station and boarded the bus to Taipei. It was quicker than expected and we then had to wait for Angela to  continue on to the first tourist destination. The National Palace Museum which has the world's best collection of Chinese historical artifacts and antiquities. The museum is in Shilin. The nearest MRT station is Shilin (士林), with frequent buses from Shilin heading for the Palace Museum. Look for the displays on the buses. Some are written in English. It's a must-see for first time visitors. We left the Museum and on our way we purchased some Pork Dumplings from a vendor by the Station, they were quite possibly be the most yummy dumplings you could eat. From there we traveled by train to the The National Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, the famous symbol of both Taipei and the Republic of China. It is here that the nation's flag is raised every morning, and the huge court yard in front of the memorial serves as a place for both national celebrations as well as a platform to voice one's disapproval of the government. The memorial consists of a large bronze statue of Chiang Kai-shek, watched over by two motionless honor guards who are replaced every hour in a rifle twirling ceremony. Downstairs, there is a museum of Chiang's life, complete with his sedans and uniforms. Even if you are not into memorials, the gardens, with their Chinese style ponds, are definitely worth a visit. The memorial has its own MRT station on the Xindian line.

We left the Memorial and as the afternoon was wearing on, we had advised Robert that we should return to the Ship around four pm, so we parted from Angela at this point and Robert escorted us back to the bus station and traveled with us back to Keelung, along the way we chatted and Robert showed us some video of his karaoke performances which we have to say were very good. It was a real highlight of our trip to meet and share some time with Robert and Angela. We relaxed for a while on our return to the Ship before catching the evening show which was a Soul act with negro performers who had belonged to the Band the Drifters. It was then time for dinner for two and a nightcap before retiring for the night.

Day 12&13 at sea and Okinawa

Day 12&13 at sea and Okinawa .

We started the day with breakfast in the Oceanview cafe we shared a table with a couple from Grimsby UK which is near Hull, their names were Nick and Mandy, they had enjoyed the Cruise so far and had also Cruised on a high end Cruise line to the Monaco GrandPrix being F1 fans. We then went and checked on some shore excursions and departure options with the people at customer relations.

After lunch we met up with Lee, Maureen and Stella for a game of five crowns which killed a few hours, James was lucky enough to win that round. We then killed a few hours before having tea with Lee and Maureen before taking in the 9.00 pm show in the theatre which on the occasion was a Aussie hypnotist name Matt Hale who performs a good show, he had ten people on stage in a trance and doing some weird stuff all good natured. After the show Jenny had a go on the Poker machines while James had a nightcap in Cafe Bacio.

Okinawa

We had to adjust our clock again and in the morning we were allotted time slots to leave the Ship and clear immigration, we had not finished breakfast when our turn came around so we waited until the last group was called as we had no tours booked. We left the Ship around 9 am and shared a cab into the city with a Canadian couple from Calgary as the free Shuttle Bus was taking a while to do the loop. It was actually only a twenty minute walk into the city from the Terminal. While we were waiting fighter jets were flying overhead, the airport which is quite close to the cruise terminals is home to the 204th and 304th Tactical Fighter Squadron of Japan plus the US airforce presence.

We really didn’t feel like doing too much exploring so we just walked up the main drag and checked out the tourists shops, there is also a overhead monorail service in the city which is quite accessible and as always being a prefecture of Japan the people in Okinawa treat you with courtesy and respect. We purchased a pottery lucky charm for the house of local Shiha Lion Dogs which are sold in pairs male and female with Gender is variously assigned to the shisa. Some Okinawans believe the male has his mouth closed to keep bad out of the home, while the female has her mouth open to share goodness. We did not stay to long in town the weather was a bit patchy with a few showers creeping in but the temperature was still quite warm. We ended up walking back to the Ship having lunch of course and then having a spa and a dip in the pool before James hit up the gym. We had tea in the Oceanview cafe with Lee and Maureen.

Tuesday we were meeting Marcia’s Uncle Robert in Taipei we had given him a call during the afternoon to arrange a suitable meeting time.

Day 10&11 at sea and Shanghai

Day 10&11 at sea and Shanghai.

Day 10 an at sea day started with a sleep in as  we put the clocks back by an hour as we moved to Chinese time zone. It was an interesting breakfast with a couple from Charleston South Carolina and a women who was a researcher for the Democratic Party in America, Jennifer she was a bit of a history buff and though interesting she proceeded to give a American history lesson through out our breakfast. James went to the gym for an hour after breakfast while Jenny did some shopping as they had a sale on. We ended up having Lunch in the Metropolitan restaurant and after Lunch headed up to the Cosmos bar for the Music quiz before catching up with Lee and Maureen plus Stella for a game of five crowns, Jenny won followed by Lee and Maureen and Jamie and Stella finishing last.

We then had a coffee before heading out for tea once again in the Oceanview cafe, we did not stay for long as we were traveling in a fairly heavy swell and Jenny was feeling seasick.

Saturday we awoke early Jennifer had booked breakfast in the stateroom for six am and James went down for the express breakfast in the dining room. We had to meet in the departure area at 7.45 for our best of Shanghai tour.The Ship had docked in Baoshan which was around a forty minute drive from Shanghai. Our tour include the Bund area which is the river bank precinct with traditional architecture overlooking the new city on the other side of the river. 

We also visited the impressive Shanghai Museum which had an impressive array of exhibits across all eras of China’s history some dating back 8000 years. From there we went to the newly built theatre for lunch a Chinese banquet this took place on the eighth floor convention area and was a nice meal shared with ten others from our bus. Shanghai was amazing with the amount of growth and development 24 million people live there and an appartments cost over a million for a modest unit of around 300 square metres.

Another highlight was the Jade Buddha Temple which featured a six foot tall Jade Buddha inlaid with diamonds and agates. The temple was part of a new project encompassing the older temple.

The next stop was the Yuyuan Garden this also had a Buddhist Shrine and was supposed to be surrounded by five acres of beautiful scenery but was actually a newly built market place with traditional style structures. This we found quite tacky and especially after getting lost not a enjoyable part of the day.

Another interesting happening was as James went through the immigration check on arrival he got taken to one side and had his temperature checked ( in the ear not rear )

We had booked this tour before departure and had received a generous discount it ended up being nearly half the price charged on board I guess it makes for a good value excursion.

We returned to the Ship and had a casual dinner on deck ten before having a couple of night caps at the Cafe

Day 8&9 at sea and Kagoshima

Day 8&9 at sea and Kagoshima.

We had our first at sea day traveling between Kobe and Kagoshima, we started by have breakfast in the Metropolitan dining room and then chilled for and hour before heading back down for a behind the scenes tour of the galley and meet and greet of some of the key food and beverage personnel. The Millennium is rated the best ship in the Celebrity group for quality of meals, the staff seem to loyal stay with the group with one team member having 35 years service with the company through its various brands. We then went and checked out a future cruise presentation which took the form of a quiz then a sales pitch regarding the destination dealt with in the question. Jamie won a bottle of wine and Jenny one a international power adaptor.The tour got us ready for some Lunch after which we headed for the spa for some afternoon relaxation we checked out the evening Show which was Steve Carte an illusionist and comedian who’s had some good lines though he did go overboard with a participant from the audience, a young mother who had her children in the audience. We then had dinner in the Oceanview restaurant and had coffee in the cafe before retiring for the night.

We arrived in Kagoshima at 7.00 am and had an early breakfast before leaving the Ship and taking the free shuttle bus for the twenty minute drive to the ferry terminal which was adjacent to the centre of town. The Japanese ports have been fantastic for the service the offer. After leaving the bus we took the ferry across to Sakurajima island / volcano, this volcano is active over 800 times a year and the island that it is situated on has a circumference of around 40 kilometres. We were advised to buy a Cute travel card which would give us unlimited travel on the ferry bus and tram services available. The card was only $14 dollars so it represented good value. After arriving on the Sakurajima island we hopped on the bus that circled the island with a heap of other tourists from the bus. The bus had around a dozen stops on the route with three of them allowing you time to get off the bus and take photos at the nearby observatory points.

James was thinking of hiring a bike and riding around the island but was glad he didn’t as the climbs were very steep. The. Bus  was struggling to get up the hill and the driver seemed to take the bends on two wheels to keep the momentum up. After taking the photos at the stops we caught the ferry back to the mainland and rather than catch the local bus with the other tourists and we found the tram line a couple of blocks over. 

We felt like real tourists on the Tram we certainly stuck out as we were the only westerners on the local tram. We went  about five stops to the central shopping precinct and browsed through the stores until we found a local coffee shop to have a cuppa. Once replenished we thought it was about time to head for the Ship it was around 2.30 pm, we needn’t of hurried back as once we returned we got stuck in a line to clear immigration. The immigration officials wanted everyone of the Ship before they commenced to process the departure from Japanese territory. We ended up being in line for over an hour, but you cannot hurry immigration officials so we just sucked it up.

We eventually got on board around 3.30 and Jenny went to grab a late lunch while James went to the gym for an hour. We then had a coffee before catching up with Lee and Maureen for a late tea in the Oceanview cafe and then another coffee in the cafe before retiring for the night.