We are finally on dry land...first time in 7 days. During those 7 sea days, I crocheted a teddy bear blanket for one of the people on the ship. (Silky is giving it the “teddy bear stamp of authenticity.”) I also made some Christmas ornaments and a lot of red poppies for Veteran’s Day, the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I.
The water on the passage between Guam and Hawaii was rough at times. (You would never know that now, as the seas are calm, and it’s sunny (and believe it or not) relatively dry in Oahu. By dry I mean the humidity is low...it’s a perfect day.) Along with the rocky water, we had rocky emotions due to the “Camp Fire” that’s raging in Northern California. That fire has been a rapidly spreading disaster that leveled the town of Paradise in less than a day...and then it went to the surrounding areas. We were afraid the fire would turn in the direction of our house and burn it down too. This morning I found out that our property was burned, but the house was spared thanks to 2 fire trucks worth of firefighters. THANK YOU — THANK YOU — THANK YOU! Right now we are very happy campers. The grasses on the land will grow back. We wish everyone could have had the same happy ending. Recovery and rebuilding is going to be difficult and I wish everyone God’s speed and good luck. I want to thank all the folks who were worried along with us. We are safe and sound and all is good.
So, landing in Oahu gave us good news and calm seas. We have a home to go home to when we disembark the ship next Sunday.
Every cruise has a few sea days...days where the pax stay on the ship. This cruise has more sea days than most as there are 7 sea days between Guam and Hawaii and 5 days between Hawaii and the US mainland. Then there were a few sea days between Shanghai and Okinawa and between Vietnam and the Philippines...but those were short. Right now we are in the Guam to Hawaii stretch and the sea days are getting long for a lot of folks...especially the folks who are on the 79 day cruise.
This cruise was divided into different segments. Folks could sign up for a 79 day cruise, a 60 day cruise or one of two 30 day cruises. The LONG cruise starts in LA and ends in Fort Lauderdale (FLL), having sailed to Alaska, Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Guam and Hawaii...then back to LA and thru the Panama Canal to FLL. The 60 day cruise does not go thru the Panama Canal. The first 30 day cruise ended in Shanghai and the cruise we are on, started in Shanghai.
Today I talked to a number of folks on the 60 day portion and many are ready to go home...but of course there’s no getting off the ship in the middle of the big empty Pacific Ocean. It takes a special person to sail endless days.
There needs to be a lot of entertainment on a long long cruise. The Coral Princess is doing a pretty good job — but for those who have been on it a long time, the entertainment is running thin. Us “30 day” folks have not seen all the “stuff” that is being offered, so we are still having a good time.
I was prepared for the sea day experience. I brought a lot of crochet projects. I almost finished one Teddy Bear blanket (I ran out of yarn, so I’ll finish it at home) and now I’m working on a second blanket. I’ve also made some Christmas ornaments. Before the cruise started I loaded my iPad with books and I’ve read 7 so far. The other DrC is on his 10th book! We also use the internet.
Now for the surprise — I like sea days. They are relaxing and enjoyable. I can take my time to read a book without feeling guilty that I’m not doing something more productive (as I might feel at home). I can crochet all day long if I want. I can walk the Promenade or not. I can sleep late and/or go to bed early. There are no cares in the world on sea days...all I have to do is show up, which is just perfect. After a cruise with a few sea days, I come back home ready to take on the stuff that I did not do while on the cruise.
Today we visited Manila, The Philippines...which makes the 120th country we have visited in our traveling years. (I think this is accurate...I use Century Traveler as my country list, as it turns out there are many ways to count countries.)
It has been difficult for us to get to the Philippines as not many cruises visit this port of call. When I saw the itinerary for this cruise and discovered it went to both Guam and the Philippines, I knew we were going to take it. The first part of the cruise covered countries and/or cities we have visited before, but right in the middle of the cruise were two gems...a new country and an old home. Could it get better?
We did not have a long visit in this massive place...did you know that there are enough islands in the Philippines that you can visit ten a day for a year and still have more islands to visit! We had a few hours and chose to see some of Manila.
Manila has it all...fancy’s homes and malls and dirt poor slums, and everything in between. We saw a huge construction project and discovered it’s being built by just one family to deal with their various business enterprises.
At the Ayala Museum we learned about the cultural history of the islands through a series of dioramas (they were exquisite btw). Like Costa Rica, we saw some of their huge collection of ancient gold.
At the US World War II Memorial Cemetery we saw row after row of nameless headstones to the thousands of young men and women who lost their lives in the Philippines. Our guide asked how I was liking the tour and I said the tour was great, but the Memorial Cemetery was immensely sad. So much potential gone in a flash... and for what? Why are people still fighting? When will we learn that battles kill and never completely settle an issue.
All too quickly our time came to an end and we boarded the Coral Princess in time to celebrate Halloween on board. It’s going to be a spooky night! Most of the crew are dressed in costume and having a grand time. It’s time for a bit of fun.
The ship is decorated for Halloween. There are orange and black balloons hanging everywhere...as well as cobwebs filled with spiders and their creepy crawlies. We are going to have a party tonight.
There’s a bit of a fly in the ointment ... a typhoon called Yutu has reared up his head. It’s supposed to make landfall in the Philippines before we land there in 2 days. Right now we are dealing with the vagaries of the storm with medium seas and a little bit of swaying. Princess has changed our course so we are not in the brunt of the storm and they are doing a good job. Do some research on Typhoon Yutu to find out more. I’m doing the same research but my internet connection is not as good as yours. If you find anything send it to me in a text message. I’ll get it in due measure. The weather is an issue but we are still enjoying our time on the ship...don’t worry about us.
We just docked in Hong Kong. A city a lot of folks have been waiting to see...the problem is you can’t see it right now. The skies are gray and somewhat drippy and a mist is covering the city. You can see the first row of skyscrapers, but thereafter it’s like looking thru an impressionist painting. No it’s worse than that...an impressionist painting has color and form, this has gray on gray and while there is some form, it’s misted over. I’m glad I’ve been here many times as I’m not disappointed. For the first timer, this is not the welcome to the city they were expecting. BTW it’s warm and there’s not a breeze in the miasma...it’s just gray and dull.
We were drummed out of Okinawa and it was a real treat. After a “hard” day we were resting when we heard a thump...only it was not the thump of an American drum, it was deeper and harder. Then we heard another and I said “I think there are some Japanese drummers outside.” We went to our balcony and listened to tribal Japan. The best part was a tiny drummer who was carried to the dance floor. He was placed at his spot, and proceeded to drum and dance with the rest of them.
A great way to end our stay in Okinawa.
After a day at sea where we became a bit more acquainted with the Coral Princess, we are now stopped in Okinawa. I found the hot tubs, swimming pools (indoor and outdoor), the golf links, basketball court, the gym and spa—also found the good coffee bars, the ice cream station, the various dining/drinking venues, etc. We’ve been on Coral P before, but it was so long ago, we are learning her anew. Our cabin is on deck 12. It has a nice balcony and an excellent attendant who will leave tomorrow.
The crossing from Shanghai to Okinawa was very mild. I felt that we were moving but not much more. My type of sailing! We are on leg 2 of a 60 day voyage that started in LA on the 19th of September. A few folks left in Shanghai while a few folks like us, arrived. We are definitely the “newcomers” as we don’t have the history that the 60 day folks have. Given that, everyone seems to be friendly and welcoming to the new group. Last year when we were on a 55 day cruise around Australia, we were the “old timers” who tried to assimilate the newcomers into the group. It only takes a few smiles and friendly conversation. Our table mates seem to be nice folks—there’s a couple of Canada, a couple from Southern California and us. They did a nice job of including us in the group. We seem to have expert waitstaff. Eduardo and Vira were quickly memorizing our names and what we liked and when we liked it...that’s always a treat!
This morning we are docked in Naha, at the passenger terminal. We need to go thru immigration whether or not we are going on a shore excursion. I don’t remember this much security the last time we were here, but the world was a bit less crazy then. After we go thru immigration we will probably return to the ship as the sail-away is 2 PM. It’s just a short stop, before we make 3 stops in Vietnam. Posted below are a few pictures of this bustling place. Don’t even think of the World War 2 battlefield, Naha and surroundings are very modern.
PS...there is a WW2 Museum on the island, that has some revisionist history about Japan losing the battle on the island, and the war. It’s interesting to see the not so subtle spin.
If you are planning to go to China for 144 hours or less you do not need a Chinese visa. If you are staying longer than 6 days you do. This is a little known rule that really does work...but it’s so obscure that most travel folks don’t know much about it.
I learned about the rule from Princess Cruises as we bought a cruise that started in Shanghai, but immediately left port for Okinawa. I called my travel agent to find out more info and she did some research for me saying it was a good option for a 5 hour stop in Shanghai. I called American Airlines to see if they recognized the 144 hour rule and they did too. My next call was to the Chinese consulate in San Francisco and they confirmed it too. We were good to go using the 144 hour rule and no Chinese visa.
In the meantime, I scoured the web for information and did not find much. Throughout the summer, I kept checking to find more info about this rule. Yesterday I called Princess and American to see if we were good to go and we were.
This morning we arrived at our departure airport early and Heidi, the gate rep for American Airlines knew absolutely nothing about the 144 hour rule. At which point I got a little nervous and called the Princess help line. Patty answered the call and she said we needed to fill out a form and we should have it before we leave...and the form was available on a website. I’m thinking, why didn’t someone tell me this yesterday. I kept my cool, got out my iPad and went online to the website. In the meantime, Heidi is talking to her folks at American to find out more ... and miracle of miracles she ends up at the same website. BTW, it’s a website I‘ve never seen before. We quickly scan the webpage and determine that the plane from LAX would have 144 hour form.
About 2 hours later, we boarded the LAX plane and I asked about info for the 144 hour rule, and the flight attendant had no idea what I was talking about. I was getting worried now. What happens if we get to Shanghai and they won’t let us enter the country for lack of a visa?
The flight is 14 hours long. About an hour before landing we are asked to complete an entry form. I ask if this is for the 144 hour visa and I’m told NO. The plane lands and we queue to exit the plane. We are met by a man with a wheelchair for the other DrC and he looks for our Chinese visa in our passports and does not find them. I say we are going to use the 144 hour rule. He says OK and continues to walk to the end of the very long immigration terminal and that’s the first time we see a sign we can understand that says “144 Hour Visa Waiver” on it. Whew! I breathe a sigh of relief. We fill out the white and blue form, wait in line...and finally we see the immigration officer. She carefully looks at our forms, passport and travel itinerary. She looks for an empty page to stick down a 144 hour visa stamp, she takes my picture and then says, go. We left.
The process was nerve-wracking, yet It was not hard. There was a dearth of info available and we gutted it out. In the end, it worked. Next time, it will be easier.
It’s hard to beat a fantastic sunset at the Tetons, but last night, we had a pretty good sunset at our home!
Sometimes you see a license plate that makes you feel happy...
This one had me singing the Mickey Mouse Song all the way to town....
a song I had not thought about for way too many years!
M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E
