April 15 and 16 - Nagasaki and Fukuoka (Arita), Japan

It has been a while since I’ve written because we’ve had eight port days in a row and there has been no time.  Now I’ll try to catch up.

On April 15 we docked in Nagasaki on the island of Kyushu, Japan.  Most of us know the name because on August 9, 1945 it was the second city on which an A-bomb was dropped.  There weren’t many tours offered and all of them were listed as “strenuous,” which I don’t do, and all but one involved going to various sites involved with the bomb.  As it turns out, it was a wise decision because it was a rainy day and everyone I knew who went on a tour came back totally drenched and told me that the tours they went on required walking up and down lots of steps in the rain.  I would have probably wound up sitting on the bus.  Instead I shopped at the little pop-up shop in the terminal and nursed by sore muscle (which by the way is much better).

Tuesday, April 16 we docked in Fukouka, also on the island of Kyushu and the sixth largest city in Japan.  I did have a tour that day to the town of Arita.  Most of us have never heard of Arita but we may have heard the name Imari in connection with Japanese porcelain.  Imari is actually the place from which the porcelain is shipped; Arita is where these beautiful things are created. I have always had a thing about ceramics, pottery and porcelain so it was a no-brainer that I had to go to Arita.

The little town is an hour drive from Fukuoka in the nearby mountains.  Along the way we passed rice fields and farms. What makes this area so special is that  the mountains around here have a lot of stone with kaolin, a white clay stone that is used to make fine translucent porcelain.  We stopped first at a porcelain factory that has been in business for several hundred years.  The owner of the family greeted us.  He is 86 years old (the same age as the creator of the Spirited Garden the other day in Jeju) and he showed us around his little factory.  He spoke little English but he had a woman named Meari who told us about the place.  We went through the workshop where craftsmen were painting little plates which would then be fired in the kilns.  Another craftsman was taking soft clay and putting it into molds to make the plates. The kilns themselves were underground on a steep hill.

I must have had brain freeze because I didn't get the 86 year old man's name

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Maeri

A very stern looking craftsman

Plates soon to be sent to the kiln

Two platters in different stages of production

The things made in this factory were not as fine as some of the porcelain we saw later in the day but there was something I thought quite noteworthy and which ties into a historical thing about Kyushu Island and more specifically Nagasaki that I forgot to mention earlier.  In the 17th century Nagasaki was the only port from which Japan allowed foreign trade and somehow through the Dutch East Indies Company the Netherlands was the principal trading partner.  When I saw the porcelain made in this place the first thing I thought of was Delftware.  Many of the pieces had designs in the same kind of blue and white that I’ve seen often in Delft pieces.

We left the first factory and went for lunch in a local restaurant where we were served an exquisite meal of a variety of vegetables, fruits and seafood on the most beautiful dinnerware.  Each of our places was beautifully set and was really a work of art. I took a few photos to remember the lovely presentation.

After lunch we drove to what I thought was the absolute highlight of the day.  We went to the Fukagawa Porcelain factory.  This family has been involved in making porcelain for nearly 400 years and the present company was founded by the great-grandfather of the man who explained the work to us.  This company makes the dinnerware for the Japanese imperial family and has made pieces that have been presented to foreign heads of state, most recently to King Charles.  Mr. Fukagawa  had three vases  in various stages of production and explained the process to us.  I have to tell about one of my fellow travelers. After the explanation this man went up to Mr. Fukagawa and asked if the flowers and leaves on the vase were spray painted on.  We all stood there dumbfounded at the question but the Japanese man politely explained that each piece is hand painted in several different coats and after several firings in kilns.  I fell in love with some of the things there but I’m no longer in the market for fine china.  I guess that was a good thing.  After our tour and a chance to look through the museum and showroom, we drove back to Fukuoka through the lush countryside.  I ought to mention that everything is blooming here and my eyes, nose and throat have been watering and tickling.  Hello hay fever!   I realized when looking through my pictures that somehow I didn't take photos of any of the beautiful pieces.  I'm really mad at myself for that because I wanted to remember them.  Maybe I'll have to go back sometime.

Mr. Fukagawa with three vases

I forgot to mention that the night we were in Nagasaki we had local entertainers come on for a pre-dinner show.  It was a Taebo Drum band.  There were drummers as young as 8 years old and they were absolutely fantastic!  Additionally when we left from Nagasaki we had this delegation who came to bid us farewell.  Upon leaving Fukuoka we had the Fukuoka Fire Department band and baton twirlers playing for us as we sailed away.  How wonderful these people were!

The Nagasaki delegation

This and the next are the Taebo drummers

The Fukuoka Fire Department Band and twirlers

April 14 - Busan, Korea

Our last stop in Korea was the city of Busan.  This is at the far southeast corner of the Korean peninsula.  It was here that the advance of the North Koreans ended in the Korean War (not a war but it really was).  The city lies on the Nakdong River which is Korea’s longest and it’s the second most populous one in the ROK. Busan has the sixth largest port in the world and is a center for marine science and research and development.  As with all the cities I’ve been seeing in this part of the world, it’s a city of skyscrapers.  There are forests of them in each we’ve been visiting.

Today I booked a half-day tour to the Tongdosa Temple and the Bujeon Market.  We set out for the temple which was about a 50-minute ride outside of the city.  The countryside when we arrived at the temple site was beautiful. There was a mountain stream running alongside the pathway to the temple gates and buildings. It was pretty crowded because it was a beautiful day and a Sunday to boot.  The temple complex includes several gates, three buildings and some large courtyards covered with colorful lanterns.  Along the way we saw a few Buddhist monks.

After an hour we drove back into Busan for our only other stop, the Bujeon Market.  Along the way as the guide talked I realized that what we were going to was another one of these fast-food street food places which I had no interest in visiting again.  I thought we’d be going someplace where I might be able to pick up some kind of souvenir from my Korean visit.  Unless I wanted to take home some Korean fried chicken or a scallion pancake that wasn’t going to happen.  I opted to stay on the bus with several other people. I know it sounds like I’m a lazy ungrateful person who has the opportunity to see all these marvelous things, but I just wasn’t up for a trot through a very crowded and narrow market. The bus drove around the block and parked for a while and I did see this thing parked in a driveway nearby. Curious as to what it was I got out and walked over and found the jazziest looking handicap scooter I’ve ever seen.

We picked up the rest of the tour folks and drove back to the ship and that was my visit to Busan.  We sailed around 6 PM again and were on our way to Japan where we’ll be for the next nine days.

I have some impressions of Korea which I need to write down.  Every place we went seemed very clean.  I didn’t see any panhandlers at all unlike some of the other places we’ve been.  I didn’t see many motorbikes at all and instead there were lots of cars, Hyundais and Kias – no surprise there.  I asked our guide in Jeju about that and she said that cars are not that expensive here.  The people were universally friendly and very polite.  I found English speakers to be few and far between.  Korea manufactures a lot of electronics and it was evident because even the little restaurant we went to had those complex toilets with a panel of buttons on the side and that I haven’t a clue what they all do.  The food was tasty despite the fact that I didn’t know what some of it was.  It’s a very modern and attractive place and I think it would be a tragedy if somehow it was taken over by Kim and the North Koreans.   So for now bye, bye Korea.

Oh, late in the afternoon I caught my foot on a table leg as I was getting up.  I saved myself from falling but I managed to pull a muscle in my gluteus maximus. I’ve been walking gingerly ever since and I’m hoping it gets better fast.  And good news, my cough is just about gone.

April 13 - Jeju Island and the Spirited Garden

Our next port of call was Jeju Island, the largest island of the Republic of Korea which lies about 50 miles off the coast. Jeju was formed by the eruption of an underwater volcano about 2 million years ago and the island is the location of many dormant volcanos. The terrain is composed mainly of basalt and lava and is not conducive to a lot of farming.  Apparently the most successful crops grown here are barley, which locals eat more of than rice because it’s less expensive, and a type of tangerine.  

I booked a half day tour to a green tea plantation and to a place called the Spirited Garden.  At the tea plantation we were able to taste a sample of the tea- it was good- and walk through the fields.  There were a couple of signs that said beware of snakes so I didn’t venture very far into a row of tea plants.  I was thinking about it and in the Azores, which are also volcanic and geologically active, there is Europe’s only tea plantation.  I wonder if volcanic soil makes for a good tea growing  medium.

A view of tea fields from the tearoom observatory

Fields and fields of tea

Our next stop was the Spirited Garden and I have to say it was one of the most beautiful, serene places I’ve ever been.  Covering nearly ten acres this garden is the largest dedicated bonsai garden in the world.  A farmer from Seoul began creating it in 1964 and it opened in 1968. The place creates a perfect harmony between the more than 400 planted bonsai trees, sculptures made of volcanic stone, artificial waterfalls made of the same stone meeting pools filled with huge carp, stone bridges and walls and towers.  It was a beautiful, sunny day with a nice breeze blowing and I had a feeling of absolute peace and serenity walking through the garden.  We had a special treat along the way.  The creator, Mr. Bum-young Sung was there sitting on a bench.  In the little gift shop there were copies of the book “The Spirited Garden” written by him so I bought one, had him autograph it, and had my photo taken with him.  I don’t want to sound corny, but when I was with this man, who is in his late 80’s, I had a sense of total serenity and joy in being alive.  I could have stayed in the garden for the whole day.

I know I'm putting too many photos from here, but it was so beautiful it's hard to choose.

Mr. Sung and me

Around the garden there were some boards with quotes from Mr. Sung  I thought this one was particularly profound.

Unfortunately we had to leave after 90 minutes and return to our home away from home. If anyone who reads this ever goes to Jeju, I highly recommend visiting this lovely place.  We sailed around 6 PM and there was a sailaway party on deck.  It was an ABBA party and I just couldn’t go to it because that was Helga’s favorite and I would have been too sad not seeing her front and center dancing.  Maybe some time in the future, but not today. 

April 11 and 12 - Incheon and Seoul

We spent two days in the port of Incheon, the gateway to Seoul and the northernmost part of the Republic of Korea. I hadn’t booked a tour for the first day and I just took the shuttle to the Sinpo International Market.  Despite the name the market was a covered shopping street where the shops were mainly street food shops with a few traditional market stalls where one could buy foods to bring home to prepare.  There were also a couple of household goods stores there so had I wanted to buy a laundry basket or a colander I would have been in luck.  I didn’t stay long after wandering through the whole place and I came back to the ship where I listened to a couple of the lectures I hadn’t heard yet.

Sweet and sour chicken maybe

Some great big shrimp to be fried

The biggest chestnuts I've ever seen

I just had to get a picture of the Spam

On the evening we spent in Incheon a Korean dance and music troupe came on to perform.  The costumes were beautiful and the dancers were graceful as they danced to traditional Korean music which isn't based on a scale like ours.  Two musicians played some traditional Korean instruments including a 12 stringed harp kind of thing and a wooden flute.  Sadly (at least to me) they played western songs like Somewhere over the Rainbow.  I would have rather heard some traditional Korean songs, but they didn't play them.

The second day in Incheon I took a tour to Seoul, the capital of the country.  Our first stop was the royal palace.  Before I tell about the palace a little bit of Korean history is worth recounting.  If it sounds confusing, it is, at least to me.  There is evidence of people living in the country as long ago as 40,000 BC.  In the last couple of millennia Korea has been either subjugated or a vassal state of either various Chinese dynasties and emperors or under the Japanese for most of the time with only short periods of Korean independence and rulers.  From around the beginning of the 20th century it was annexed by Japan with a puppet king.  After the Japanese surrender the Korean peninsula was divided at the 38th parallel and has been that way ever since.  People of my generation have parents who fought in the Korean War (which was never a declared war and which has never officially ended).  When the North Koreans invaded on June 25, 1950 they drove all the way to the far southeastern tip of the peninsula.  Only the area around our last stop in Korea was not under their occupation. That’s a very brief synopsis of the history of the place and if it’s not precisely accurate, I apologize.

Anyway, the palace is in central Seoul and in terms of design reminds me of the Forbidden City but not on as vast a scale.  We lucked out because just as we arrived the changing of the guard began. I thought it was neat seeing the changing of the guard in Taiwan but this one had it beat by a country mile.  The guards wear what I assume are old style costumes in bright colors.  They wore different kinds of hats, some with magnificent pheasant feathers, and carried swords, scimitars and spears.  There were musicians with a variety of different instruments including something that looked like portable gongs and brightly painted drums.  It was truly a spectacle.  After that was finished we began our walk through the palace grounds.  There were several ornate gates between courtyards and buildings.  The roofs were decorated with dragons on the eaves. (These Asian people love dragons.)  In most of the buildings,  which we could only look in through the doors, the center floor was wood but the side floors were tile.  Beneath the building under those areas there were ovens which were kept heated and thus heated the center of the buildings.  There was a garden area with a pavilion surrounded by a moat which was evidently used for entertaining dignitaries.  One other thing I should mention is the number of visitors in very fancy traditional costumes.  It turns out that people dressed like that get in for free or reduced ticket prices.  Plus it’s evidently the thing to do – go to the palace dressed up and get your picture taken.  Consequently the area around the palace has all kinds of shops renting the costumes to people.

These next few are the changing of the guard

Visitors in rented traditional garb

From the palace we drove through a traditional old part of Seoul where people who worked at the palace would live so they would be close to go to work. Next we drove to a place close to the restaurant where we had lunch.  If someone offered me $10,000 to take her to the restaurant, I wouldn’t be able to do it. We walked through a rabbit warren of little alleyways too narrow for cars to get to this place.  We sat at a table for four in the middle of which was a built-in stew pot heated with a gas burner.  There was a stew of beef, some vegetables, and glass noodles cooking.  The rest of the table was covered with a variety of small bowls with things in them that we couldn’t identify for the most part.  Some like shredded cabbage and rice were easy to figure out, but the others were mysterious.  We assumed that some of it was kimchi, but for the rest I would just be guessing.  It was all pretty tasty though.

The courtyard of the lunch restaurant

A view down the alley

After lunch we raced back through the maze of alleys and passed a very promising shopping street.  Unfortunately our guide told us that we couldn’t shop there.  “We’re going to a much better one,” he told us.  Not really.  We drove to a place a few blocks away, disembarked and there we were in a street just like the one I went to in Incheon yesterday.  It was nothing but fast street food with a household goods store thrown in here and there for good measure.  Nobody bought a thing; after all we’d just had lunch.  We let the guide know we would have preferred the first street but it didn’t do any good.  

Then it was time to get on the bus and drive back to Incheon through the awful traffic.  Along the way we passed several of the satellite cities around Seoul. The metro Seoul area has a population of 26 million, roughly half the population of the entire country.  We had to leave Incheon at a precise time because to go back out to sea we had to pass through a lock.  The tide in Incheon can vary as much as 10 meters.  In order to allow shipping into the port a lock system was developed. As we sailed from Incheon I could see the nearby hillside covered with blooming cherry trees.  It was a bright sunny day with a comfortable temperature and a beautiful vista to enjoy.

The hillside by the lock with all the flowering trees

The lock control tower

Another Ferris wheel beyond the trees