---

Today is our first full day cruising the Yangtze River...

We spent last night anchored so didn't feel the effect that cruising would have on our sleeping and both slept well on quite comfortable beds. We got up super early this morning to have 'Early Bird Tea' in the Yangtze club. We then had 'Tai Chi' with the resident doctor, Dr. Wu. We have never done it before and although it is slow and only went for 15 minutes we were quite tired afterwards - what a great workout to start the day!

We then went to the restaurant on the 1st deck for a buffet breakfast and met the people we would be eating all of our meals with at our assigned table. We had a great position next to the window and as Tam and I were first to breakfast we got the seats closest to the window which we keep for the whole cruise - bonus for us early risers!!!

After breakfast we attended a lecture on 'Ancient Waters, the Timeless Yangtze' which was very interesting. It talked about the Three gorges and a little on the Dam, and in general on the Yangtze river. After this we had a lesson for 'Chinese 101'. We learnt a couple of new words but it was good to revise the words we were already using on our trip. We have had to use Chinese a lot as in a lot of places and circumstances no-one speaks English. It's funny how much of a conversation we can have even when we don't understand many words - we just sort of pick up the gist of what's being said!!! I'm sure we will come home and forget it all but will try to keep it up somehow!

We sat on our balcony a while and then had a buffet lunch which is a mix of western and Chinese cuisine.

We then had a shore excursion where we docked at Fengdu, a small town part of Chongqing. We went up the mountain to see the 'City of Ghosts'. We had the option of taking a cable car or walking up steep paths and stairs and we chose to walk...phew, it was a little tiring to say the least! The 'City of Ghosts' is the number 1 tourist attraction on the upper reaches of the Yangtze. The temple area on top of the Ming Mountain pays tribute to the 'King of the Underworld'. We learnt the lengends surrounding Fengdu and saw the many displays portraying interpretations of the afterlife. There were 3 tests we all had to complete to prove we are good and will go to heaven and not hell. The first was to walk across a bridge with an odd number of steps, which we successfully completed. The 2nd was the hardest and there were 32 steep and not symmetrical in height stairs we had to climb. If you are 33yrs and under you have to climb them in 1 breath, what do you know, of course Tam and I were the youngest by far and in 1 breath sprinted our way up. I think we are both surprised we did it. i have photo's of the stairs just to show how crazy it was, the were steep and high! The 3rd test was to stand on a marble ball shape in the ground and balance on your right foot for 3 seconds, again accomplished........Tam and I will both go to heaven - we certainly worked for it this day!

We then headed down the mountain and I'm not sure where the energy came from but we ran most of the way. We beat the cable car and all the others and had to just wait - haha, too keen if you ask me!

After the shore excursion and back on the boat we went to see a painting workshop where we watched a painting on paper and then a painting done inside a snuff bottle. It was so amazing. The painting brushes are tiny and you can barely see the end, line a pin, and he painting such detail, it was just amazing. Then he showed how you can just wipe it off and smudged out some of his work - it was sad to watch as he was so talented.

We then got ready for the 'Captain's Welcome Reception' and had champagne and appetizers although we didnt get to try all the food as people just swamped the food area and there wasnt much left by the time Tam and i pushed our way in. We then headed to dinner anyways for a banquet of Chinese food.

After dinner back into the Yangtze club where Tam and I had front row seats to the 'Victoria - Dynasties Show' which was a show put on with dancing in traditional costumes by the crew. It was very entertaining and a great end to the day. We then headed back to our room for more tea on the balcony and bed.

We cruise all night tonight!

Wanan (goodnight)

---