We’re nearing the end of our journey and it’s been a remarkable experience. The last few days have been at sea and stops at the ports of Nagasaki Kobe and Shimizu.
We all know about the second atomic bomb dropped on Japan was at Nagasaki. A trip to the Atomic bomb museum was a very somber experience. The devastation and destruction and loss of life from a bomb that was insignificant in size to today’s arsenals. Very graphic photos of the impact show the amount of destruction. Nagasaki is located between two small mountains and when the bomb exploded the impact and fires leveled most buildings in the valet and up the slopes of both mountains. With a population of 250,000 almost 76,000 died and another 75,000 suffer severe burns and radiation sickness. Today Nagasaki is a modern city with a large harbor that has lots of industry along its shores. Every port city that we visit has a huge amount of industry from shipping to manufacturing. Acres of new vehicles sit along the docks awaiting shipped to some where in the world.
A day spent at sea then we parked the boat at Kobe. For the next two days. Near Kobe is Kyoto and Osaka both cities with lots of history our first day we travelled about an hour by train to Osaka and visited the Osaka castle. It was a beautiful day on Sunday and the cherry and plum trees were in full blossom thousands of people were out visiting the Castle grounds. It is very impressive with a huge moat and stone walls surrounding the castle.
Osaka Castle
After visiting the castle we headed to the entertainment and restaurant district in Osaka called Notenbori. This area is famous for all the signage outside the restaurants and shopping areas. Again the area was packed with people looking at all the sites and taking a river cruise the canal system. Many steps later and a train back to the ship it was another busy day.
Our ship the Norwegian Jewell has very good restaurants and entertainment in the evening. We did a behind the tour of the ship and saw all the different departments that provided services to us. From the huge supply rooms, the mega sized kitchens that prepare thousands of meals each day to the laundry services and the engineering facilities and the deck where the captain and his crew navigate the waters was a truly interesting tour.
Our last day in Kobe was rainy but warm so we hopped on a bus and headed to Mount Rukko overlooking the bay of Kyoto. We took a tram up the side of the mountain and the views were great even though visibility was limited.
Kobe is famous for its Sake so of course we went to a Sake brewery and museum and learned about the fine art of Sake manufacturing. After trying a few samples I don’t think I’ll develop a taste for it on a regular basis. We left Kobe in the afternoon and sailed overnight to Shimizu which is close to Mount Fuji. It was pouring rain and overcast for most of the day. We were only in port from 9:30 to about 3:30. For a lot of people who had booked excursions to see Mount Fuji were disappointed and no refunds were given for these tours. We haven't taken any of the Cruise lines tours as we can do them ourselves at a fraction of the cost and have the fun of taking the buses and subway to get to the various sites. Getting around is very easy as long as you have good cell or WiFi connections. While in Shimizu we ventured to a museum about the history of Sushi making. A walk along the harbor and a stop at a 7-11 for lunch which is nothing like the 7-11’s in Canada. Convenient stores are everywhere in Japan three chains dominate from Family Mart, Lawsons and 7-11 you can find all kinds of freshly prepared foods from steam buns to soups and sandwiches all very good quality and very cheap. Just as we are about to leave port the skies cleared partially and Mount Fuji appeared and pandemonium broke out across the ship as everyone was excited to Japans iconic dormant volcano.
As I write this we have left port and are heading back to Tokyo to start our flight home on Wednesday afternoon. It seems forever that we were in Vietnam and the millions of Scooters on the congested streets and seeing the magnificent remains in Seim Reap Cambodia. The beautiful beach’s and great food in Thailand. Japan is so unique and I think one of the great countries in the world with so many people and so unique it has to be seen to be appreciated. I must thank my traveling partner who had lots of patience while I kept us from getting not too lost and was willing to be a bit more adventurous than usual. I hope you have enjoyed this blog and who knows where we will travel to next.
Sayōnara From Japan
Rob and Karen
I Karen must take this opportunity to thank my personal travel agent, excursion master, money translator and companion as he absolutely nailed it my only job was to carry the passports and If I don’t say so myself did a damn good job at it
So to Rob Thank you Arigato Gozaimasu
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