HA Cruise, Westerdam- Japan,Kochi-Busan,South Korea

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Thursday 13^thApril 2023 KOCHI 10.00am – 15.30pm

At last ….an easy day as we weren’t docking until 10.00am and we had decided to just do Kochi Castle! Mmmm…well, after stopping for our precious free 10 minute internet in the Port we bumped into Angela and decided to share a taxi with her to Mt Godai which is just a viewing point and then drop her at the Botanical Garden before we took the same taxi to Kochi Castle.

Best laid plans and all that!! We ended up at the temple Chikurinji!! A quick run around, up to the Pagoda ( to check that there wasn’t a viewpoint!!) – it was oh so very pretty, with green trees and orange azalea trees and old steps and wooden gates, temples and the obligatory cherry trees! Dropped Angela off at the Botanical Garden and then went to Kochi Castle where the taxi driver dropped us off (5380 JPY)

Kochi Castle was built between 1601 – 1611 but there was a fire in 1727 that destroyed most of it, except for the Ottamon Gate and is the only castle in Japan still in possession of all its original Edo period architecture in the main citadel! Restoration, after the fire was started immediately, but took more than 20 years and was abandoned in the Meiji Period and then completely demolished except for the main Citadel and the Ottemon Gate, and became a public park.

Walked through the Ottamon gate and up the first flight of many steps!! Past the azalea hedges and continued climbing up the steps to the main castle where you had to remove shoes before you entered. Walked around and through it until we came to what can only be described as a filled in step-ladder!! The steps were really steep but as there was no-one behind us, I decided to go up them……and was then faced with another step ladder – five in all!!!

Anyway, I reached the top and walked out on the balcony and took the photos!! Went back down and decided to try and find a phone shop so that Chris could sort out wifi via the market and tourist information!! Wandered around the market, Chris tried to sort wifi and gave up, bought some gin for our water bottle, panicked about getting a taxi as time was getting on, and got back to the port about 14.45pm.

Friday 14^th April KANMON STRAIT & FUKUOKA 13.00pm – 23.00pm

We had to get up (well we didn’t have to but chose too!!) at 6.30am to enable us to see the Kanmon Strait which we were going through at 7.30am. It is a narrow stretch of water separating the islands of Honshu and Kyushu (I think!!)

It was cloudy with the sun trying to come out and watched the blowfish and jellyfish, before we (just!!) went under the bridge. It was cloudy and pretty murky by now, so after breakfast, went to a lecture by Ping Wing Kam about Japanese suicides that are not considered to be a sin in Japan, as there has never been any Christianity! But suicide is Japan is very common with a forest around Mt Fuji being a favourite spot!!! He also explained about Kamakaze pilots, who took their own lives by smashing into boats, That’s all I remember anyway.

Docked at Fukuoka about 13.00hrs after a quick lunch and were lucky enough to meet someone in the taxi queue that was also going to Nanzoin Temple so at least we could share a taxi, as it was about 1/2hr drive outside Fukuoka, and it had started to rain by now. We drove out to see the largest reclining Buddha in the world (apparently!!) – it didn’t disappoint even though it was raining quite heavy by now! All the little statues on the way up had crochet hats on them and the main Buddha, lying on its side, was huge!! Walked up to his feet (it was raining even heavier now!) but was glad to get back into the taxi, who was going to take us to Canal City so at least we would be dry, as it was an enormous shopping mall, with a canal running through it, and fountains!!

By the time we had got there, the rain had eased a little so we also got chance to look at Kushida-jinja Shrine as well as the covered market (Kawabata Shopping Arcade!) ! Saw the Hakata Gion Yamakasa, in the shrine, that is used every year in a festival between 1^st-15^th July. Ten Yamakasa’s are built throughout the city, and then on the 15^th at 4.59am they are carried to the shrine after being carried by men for about five kilometres, where the climax of the festival is Oi-Yamakasa!! All the portable Yamasaka’s are then scrapped but the Yamasaka at the Shrine is exceptionally exhibited throughout the year.

Decided to look at the Fukuoka City Sewerage Museum (well – it could have been interesting!!) but it was all in Japanese so we didn’t stay long!

We had worked out that the fountains with the music were every ½ hr so we watched a few of those, including from a restaurant on the 4^th floor where we had a quick bite to eat . It was absolutely hammering it down now so we thought we may as well get a taxi back to the Port!! Easier said than done as it was a rainy Friday night and they all seemed to be busy!! However, a taxi stopped eventually, and we gratefully got in, soaking wet!! (We had to take our coats off before we were allowed to sit on his pristine white seats!!)

Back on board about 8.30 pm and had a quiet evening.

Saturday 15^th and Sunday 16^th April 2023 KANAZAWA 7.00am – 20.00pm

Spent the Saturday having our first ‘sea’ day so didn’t do a lot except read and eat!! (ok so we did go to a lecture as well!!) Sunday we were off the boat by 7.30am ish and managed to share a taxi with some people (she happened to speak a bit of Japanese, so very handy!!) and were dropped off at the castle 8.30am….wondering if it was open!!! Walked into the gardens via the Ishikawa-mon Gate dating from 1788 and survived the various fires over the years. The garden features the remains of Kanazawa Castle (that they are now renovating!) and was the stronghold of the Lords of the Kaga domain. It was a bit of a mixture weatherwise, with the sun out one minute, followed by a heavy shower!! Wandered around the Castle Gardens down to Gyokusen’inmaru Gardens, past all the cherry blossom trees, now in leaf! The wife of the second feudal Lord, Gyokusen-in took up residence here which is why the garden is named after him. We had a heavy rain shower then so sheltered in one of the tea houses before going to Oyama-jinja Shrine.

The shrine is dedicated to the first Lord of Kaga, Maeda Toshile and constructed in 1599. Wandered across the steppingstones and across the wooden platforms before looking at the shrine and its gate designed by a dutch architect, and once used as a lighthouse! Shrined out a bit by now, we retraced our steps back up to the castle and across the road to Kenrokuen Garden. This is considered to be one of top three gardens in Japan and it didn’t disappoint! ( even if we thought the Shinjuku National Garden was slightly better – BUT we had blue sky and it was the first Japanese garden we visited!!) The garden originated from Hisagoike Pond, and the waterfall was created in 1774, so pretty old!! The garden was lovely! A mixture of beautiful trees, moss, statues, water, bridges, viewpoints etc to make it into a typical Japanese garden. Walked up to a ‘lantern’ where Chris tried to throw money onto the roof of the statue! He succeeded eventually!! Walked past the statue of Prince Yamato Takeru (Japanese mythological Hero) commemorating the Ishikawa Warriors who died in the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877!

Had a quick peer at Kanazawa Jinja Shrine (after looking at tadpoles in the pond! Grrr!!) before making our way back to the entrance via the oldest fountain in Japan. Thought we would stop for some lunch, and after trying to give our order,a Japanese waiter came up and said it would be 15-20mins so we chose something else! It looked ok on the picture and extremely well presented when it arrived 3 minutes later, but it was like eating slugs in a sweet soup, with beans at the bottom!! No Joking!! The white stuff was just like elastic and the green lumps - I dont know what they were supposed to be!! Anyhow, after chatting briefly to a couple of Frenchmen who came and sat at our table. We wandered down the street to the main road (past a museum of ‘Wooden Japanese Sweet Molds that Chris didn’t want to visit!!)

Got to the Asanagawa River and followed the crowds into the Higashi Chaya District which is where the feudal Lord moved the teahouses (chaya) that were scattered around the castle. A really lovely district that was very old with loads of geisha girls (and boys!) dressed in their kimonos and national dress. Wandered around for a bit, tried to find the Kazu-machi chaya districti – failed (we saw later that the map we were reading was wrong!!) so we got a taxi back to the port about 4.00ish.H

Monday 17^th & Tuesday 18^th April 2023 BUSAN, SOUTH KOREA 7.00am – 15.00pm

A sea day on the Monday followed by Busan, S. Korea. We didn’t really know what to expect, didn’t want to get any South Korean Won currency (that was going to be a challenge!!) there didn’t seem to be any taxis, so we got the ships shuttlebus to Downtown. Got dropped off at Biff Square (we think!) and negotiated our way to Busan Tower. All sorts of things in the Yongdusan Park including the flower clock, dragon, statue of Admiral Yi Sun-shin who was famous for having saved the country from an Invasion by the Japanese Navy in 1592, and a huge Citizens bell. Yongdusan Park used to house a Japanese settlement and shacks for refugees but when Korea gained Independence in 1954, they were burnt down in a disastrous fire in the December of the same year and a forestation project was carried out and the park was named Unam Park after the pen name of the President. Went up the tower 120 metres (in a lift!!!) and emerged for wonderful 360 degree views of the City. To go down you had to go though a submarine and a virtual reality thingy and night lights.

Wandered around then! Found the Gukje Market and then wandered down to the Jagalchi Fish Market! Decided to have some lunch and got ‘dragged’ into a fish restaurant where we were treated to King Prawns, with five little dishes, containing seaweed ( two types!!) green leaves (that Chris said was inedible!) some fishy chili thing. Beansprouts and a tasty pancake thing which was quite edible until Chris chewed a fish head!! Anyway, it was all a bi too chilified for me to really enjoy it but it was very authentic! I think the bill came to about £30.00!!

Went back to the ship and watched the sail away where the ship was listing because of the wind – the Captain said it was due to be Force 9 later this evening!!

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