January 13 - Time to go home!

I’m ready!  I’m looking forward to my own bed and pillows.  I’m looking forward to being able to read signs and speak to everyone.  That’s not xenophobic but rather frustration that I can’t speak Japanese or read its characters.

I have to talk about something very ironic about the last couple of days.  I had toyed with the idea of staying on the Encore until the end of the next leg in Hong Kong, but I decided to end here so I could see Tokyo.  As it turned out because of a major storm off the southern coast of Japan, the Encore didn’t leave Saturday afternoon as it was scheduled to do.  Instead it stayed here for two nights and only left Monday morning.  If I had stayed on I could have seen the city, probably with a tour or tours, and likely have gotten more out of it than I have on my own.  That’s the way it goes sometimes.

Last night I went to the very traditional Japanese restaurant Wadakura here in the hotel.  The only thing I didn’t have to do was sit on the floor.  I sat at a table and I had an authentic Japanese meal.  It’s called a Kaiseki dinner which is a multi-course meal that includes small dishes of seasonal foods presented very artistically.  I asked if they had an English list of the things I was given and they didn’t.  I’m not sure what all the things were that I ate, but I tried them all.  I know I had both cold and hot sake (I don’t really like either).  I had sashimi which is thinly sliced raw fish and which was delicious.  I had some tempura which included shrimp, asparagus, zucchini and what I think was a lotus slice. I had a sukiyaki course which was thinly sliced wagyu beef simmered with some mushrooms and other vegetables in a broth of soy, mirin and sugar in a little iron pot.  After the food cooked in the broth I was instructed to dip it into a bowl with a raw beaten egg. It was tasty!  Then there was some sushi with raw salmon and eel and a small cup of miso soup.  Last came a dessert which was some kind of custard.  That was the only thing I didn’t take a photo of.  Everything was pretty tasty and I’m very proud of the fact that I ate everything with chopsticks! I was given a fork and western spoon but I didn't use them.  I did the use the Japanese spoon presented with the soup and broth.  I was stuffed when I was finished.  While the portions are small there are so many of them.  I’ve decided I really do enjoy sushi and sashimi, especially when it’s prepared so well and so fresh.  It was a nice evening in a beautiful venue.  Next to me was a stone wall with water running down into a little watercourse along the edge of the restaurant.  The sound of the water gently falling made it a very relaxing place.

Hard to see but the wall has lots of little waterfalls running down and tinkling into the pebbly watercourse below

That's cold sake in a very flat bowl

I'm sitting in the Sakura Lounge in Narita airport.  This is the JAL lounge which evidently Qatar uses as well.  I have to say that I hope I never have to pass through here again.  I left the hotel at the time I was advised to by the hotel staff.  It was a long taxi ride (a little over an hour) and anyone who knows me knows that I like to talk to the driver along the way.  No joy here!  He spoke no English at all so we rode in silence.  It took a long time to get out of Tokyo.  Once past the very modern downtown and close environs we drove through what seemed to be miles of unattractive apartment buildings.

When we got to the airport the driver put my suitcases on a trolley and pointed to the Terminal 2 door.  That was all the information I got from him.  Inside was chaos.  I found an information desk which could only tell me I needed  check-in desks Q or R (I was near F) and that the Qatar check-in wouldn't open until  6:55. There were throngs of people, lines everywhere, and no sign of any seating.  That was about 3 hours later and when I asked if there was a place to sit, she told me something about a lower level for which I never found the elevator.  I lucked out and found a seat, one of five, near the sign that said Q. Around me were lines going to both my left and right and a line of people next to me waiting to get into a "Repacking area."  That stayed constantly busy as I watched people open massive suitcases and transfer things from one bag to the other.  None of the lines ever seemed to get shorter and I just sat and watched.  I asked the people next to me if they spoke English. No such luck.  As 6:30 came I used sign language to ask the lady next to me to guard my seat and my luggage trolley with my massive suitcases, while I set out trying to find where at Q or R I needed to be.  Success!  A Qatar Airways sign lit up and I saw a queue forming.  I retrieved my trolley, thanked my watcher with one of my few Japanese words and got into the queue.  At precisely 6:55 the many airline people who had been standing behind the counters turned the lights on and began check-in.  The young lady at my counter wore JAL clothing and spoke very limited English.  I'm no longer ashamed to ask for wheelchair assistance in these huge airports and that took forever for me to accomplish.  First she brought me a regular chair to sit in, which I told her I didn't need.  Then she finally understood I would like a wheelchair to the lounge and gate.  After a pretty long time which I'm sure annoyed the other people in line behind me, I got checked in, passed through security and was dropped off here.  I feel like I've been traveling for days and I haven't left Japan yet.  It's going to be a very long day!

January 12 - Coming of Age Day in Japan

Yes, that is the holiday being celebrated here today. Each year on the second Monday in January Japan honors people turning 20 years old marking their transition from childhood to adulthood.  Who knew there was such a holiday?

So what have I been up to the last couple of days?  Not as much as I would have liked to or planned to do.  I have learned, or at least realized, some things about me now.  I must start by saying that while I’ve had this before, I’ve never had it as acutely as I’m having it these past few days.  I’m suffering from really bad “land seasickness;” that is, I constantly feel like everything is rocking and rolling here in Tokyo and it’s not because they are having earthquakes.  I’ve experienced this sensation before, but this time it’s much worse and makes me move cautiously.  I hope it will be gone soon; fingers crossed.

On my drive into downtown Tokyo from the cruise terminal I got a glimpse of Mt. Fuji but I couldn't get a picture.  A friend on the Encore sent me this one so that I could include it here.

Next I have come to the realization that while I may be adventurous in places where I have some possibility of communicating with the people and, just as important, being able to read the signs around me, here I feel totally lost!  In the past when I came to Japan it was either with the Sister Cities group or on tours where I was always accompanied with Japanese guides.  Not so this time and I have found it very stressful and intimidating.  Finally, when I ventured out to the most historic area of Tokyo (Asakusa) yesterday, the crowds of people jostling and pushing were overwhelming.  While it is true that Japanese people are extremely polite, when you’re trying to move around on the sidewalks packed with people, none of whom speak  your language, it is stressful.  So, I confess I’ve become a wimp.

Just a few people on the streets

My first day here after I finally was able to check in (it took longer than expected – I don’t know why), I was dissuaded by the concierge from my plan to ride the bullet train.  I wanted to ride it at its top speed and she explained that if I got on here, unless I planned to stay on to go someplace far away like Osaka or Kyoto, the train wouldn’t get up to speed so I wouldn’t be experiencing what I wanted to and I didn’t feel like spending a day going someplace and just turning around and coming back.  I’ve ridden on trains before in Europe and I know what that’s like.  So I scratched that plan.

I also had in mind that I would like to go to a Kabuki show.  I figured that it’s January and not big tourist season so I didn’t try to make a reservation before I got here.  That plan fell through when I learned that the performances at the Kabukiza Theater, the place to go for kabuki, were sold out, maybe because it’s a holiday weekend.  Anyway, that’s my fault for not planning ahead.  I did drive by the theater in a hop-on-hop-off bus.  If I want to see kabuki I’ll have to come back and I’m not sure that will ever happen.

I did walk in the east garden area of the Imperial Palace which is right across the street from my hotel.  It’s obviously winter so it’s kind of barren but the trees are beautifully pruned.  I took the ho-ho as I said but only got off once and got back on shortly thereafter because of the crowds. I took a taxi to the Ginza area which is the upscale shopping area here.  There were lots of people there too and also lots of designer outlets.  I’m not in the market for Gucci, Cartier and all those designers so I found little of interest there.  I was going to a specific shop in Ginza which I’ll say more about in a moment and aside from the streets with those fancy places, a lot of other things looked closed.  I guess because of the holiday.  I have noticed as I traveled around these last couple of days that it’s spotlessly clean.  There’s no litter around and I’ve seen hardly any graffiti painted on anything.  It’s a lot like Singapore was last year. We could take a lesson from this city.

Street in Ginza

I went to a pearl shop that I’d read about and the hotel recommended.  I’m not a huge lover of pearls, but when in Tokyo it seemed like the thing to do.  I selected a very pretty, and I thought well-priced, strand which I then watched being restrung and hand-knotted between each pearl.  That was a very interesting thing to watch.  Before today I never realized that there could be such differences in the luster and colors one can see in creamy colored pearls.  It was an education looking at the various pearls I was shown.  It’s a nice souvenir of my visit to Tokyo.

The young woman stringing and individually knotting each pearl

January 10 - Tokyo

My cruise is over and I’m sitting in my hotel lobby in Tokyo waiting to be able to check in.  It won’t be too long because it’s nearly 11AM and check-in is at 12:30PM.  I need to unload some of the stuff I carry around in my bag.  Why is it that we women load ourselves down with everything but the kitchen sink when we travel?  

I haven’t written in a while because with all those sea days there wasn’t much to write about.  We saw no land since leaving Kauai and only very rarely another ship, usually a massive container ship off in the distance.  There were a few birds that flew by; I think a couple of them were some species of albatross though I’m not sure of that.  We had a couple of very rocky days but actually smoother than I expected since it was the north Pacific.  It was also warmer than I think any of us anticipated.  We played trivia (we didn’t win), I listened to some lectures and took naps.  That’s something I never used to be able to do but I’ve discovered the pleasures of what one of my friends calls a “scan,” senior citizen’s afternoon nap. Al would be surprised because I always got after him for taking naps.  So sorry about that.

This morning when I had to vacate my home for the last two months I did feel a little nostalgia.  It’s hard to make the transition from a place where you are pampered and where you walk away from a dining venue or bar and don’t have to get a check to pay and instead reenter the real world.

I have some initial observations about this cruise which in the coming days may change but at the moment I must say that this one had a very different vibe from my more recent ones.  Only a few of my old friends were onboard and perhaps that’s part of the difference although I did meet and make some lovely new friends.  There were also some characters that I encountered that I found really annoying. This will sound very petty and childish, but I can’t help it.  My trivia team had been sitting in the same spot since I boarded the ship in Athens at the beginning of November.  On our first trivia day after setting out from Kauai on our last leg when I went down to the Club for the morning’s game, someone with whom I had played Name that Tune was sitting in our spot.  When I looked at him with a “what’s going on look” he said, “someone stole my team’s spot so I’m taking yours, get over it!”  How rude can you be? The rest of my team came and we were all flummoxed because we all were still onboard.  I know, I know.  It’s petty, but I guess that’s what I’ve come to.  

Anyway, not just because of that but there was just something off.  For one thing I didn’t enjoy the Club and dancing as I have in the past.  The bands were so-so and there were long breaks between transitions from one to the other, sometimes as long as an hour.  Since I don’t go there just to drink, there were times I just left and then I got out of the habit of going at all.  I missed that, plus it is really very good exercise.  A friend and I did have lunch with the cruise director who came on in Honolulu to talk with him about some of our concerns about the entertainment and there were some improvements, but it was almost too late.  I did still have a very nice time, better than if I was sitting at home, but it wasn’t a 10 out of 10.

I’ve written about some of the strange characters I met now let me tell you about a really interesting (to me at least) new friend.  She is a very petite French-Canadian woman who is now an American citizen.  She’s been on a couple of cruises that I’ve been on, but  this time I really got to know her.  If I were a writer I would try to get her to let me write her biography.  She has worked as a photographer and reporter for a popular magazine.  She was an advance person for a couple of rock bands several decades ago.  Then after she became a divorced single mom with two kids, she applied and became a narcotics detective.  You might think that maybe this was made up, but I know it’s true because I found some articles about her online.  Because of her background in the media and entertainment industry, she was especially suited to undercover work so she worked on joint police and DEA task forces. As I said, her life is so foreign to anything I’ve ever done that I found it absolutely fascinating, plus she’s a really fun person to be around and we also think alike on many things.  She was one of the really bright spots of my cruise.  She too is a widow and she’s been retired for a number of years.  She cruises a lot and I hope we’ll run in to one another again.

So that’s it for now.  Here are a couple of random photos from the last few days.  The first is from several nights ago when we dined outside at the stern of the ship and the full moon gave us a beautiful show as it rose.  The next is our group last night for our “last supper together” in the Colonnade.  And finally here’s a picture of the lobby where I’m waiting.  Not long now until I can check in and divest myself of my stuff.  Then, since I’m across the street from the Imperial Palace and its gardens, I think I shall go for a walk there. Sayonara for now.

Rising  full moon over the north Pacific

Walter's Harem (he's married to the pretty lady on the left) at dinner last night

Lobby of the Palace Hotel  - exciting, right?

January 2 - Happy New Year from somewhere in the North Pacific

Once again I’m behind in writing.  I’ve got no excuses. We’re in our third day at sea with 6 more to come.  The seas have been consistently rocky, but not too bad.  Evidently that’s going to change overnight and get worse.  

On December 31 there were a lot of squalls off to our starboard side and after one of them I managed to get a couple of pictures of a rainbow which was very close to the ship.  It was actually briefly a double and you might be able to glimpse it in these photos.

The New Year’s Eve party was out on deck around the pool.  Last year it was inside in the Grand Salon and I liked it much better because it was very muggy and humid outside .  I went up to the Observation Bar with some friends and that’s where we stayed for most of the evening.  We had our twelve grapes at midnight so hopefully 2026 will be a good year.  It was a nice evening but I was feeling a little melancholy.  For some reason this year more than the last few I have been missing Al more than ever. These are a couple of photos of staff who joined in on the festivities.

New Year’s Day and today have just been typical sea days.  I’ve played trivia and listened to a few lectures on taking better photos and the experiences of a former war correspondent.  I went down to the Club last night and actually did dance a few times.  And of course I seem to go from meal to meal and bar to bar with friends.  I’ve made some new good friends and we talk and laugh a lot which is good.  We also gossip about some of our fellow passengers.  As on every cruise there are a few characters who I try to avoid.

I don’t think I’ve written about them before and since I haven’t got much else to write about I think I’ll tell you about a few of them.  We have one man who is a 6’4” German who is probably the most narcissistic person I’ve ever met.  There’s a big group of Seabourn people on a Facebook group and this guy, Ullie (a nickname) every day posts lots of photos on the forum.  They always include at least one selfie which he takes standing in front of the mirror on his closet door and showing him in his evening’s outfit.  In fact yesterday he posted ones of both his daytime and evening attire.  I was at a hosted table one evening with Ullie where he was pontificating about something and no one could get a word in edgewise.  Our host was a Bulgarian chief engineer and to try to get the rest of us a chance to converse I asked the officer if Bulgarian was a Slavic language.  Big mistake!  Ullie proceeded to give the table a lecture on the history of migration from Asia to Europe covering thousands of years.  I tuned a lot of it out but I did catch along the way something about an Egyptian queen who should have helped Romans but couldn’t because there was a volcano erupting somewhere in Africa (don’t know how that fit in).  There was also something about the Turks being stopped at the gates of Vienna.  How this all tied in to my question I’m not sure.  By the way Bulgarian is a slavic language.

At the same table there was an American who looked like he could have appeared in “The Walking Dead.”  I asked where he was from and he told me he used to live in Charleston, SC but didn’t want to live there anymore so he is on his way to live in Vietnam, Da Nang specifically.  I asked if he had been there before and he proceeded to tell me that 1) he’d never been to anywhere in Southeast Asia, 2) he doesn’t speak Vietnamese and 3) he knows no one at all in Vietnam.  Maybe that seems normal to some people but I found it strange to be moving somewhere given those facts.  He’s made friends with another of my shipmates that I’ve dined with once and don’t plan to again.  She’s a bulimic from Belgium whose late husband was evidently a Michelin starred chef.  The night I dined at the same table she did it took her 15 minutes to place her order because she questioned the poor waiter about the way in which each item was prepared.  Fortunately we have choices of where and with whom we eat unlike when Al and I first began cruising when you had assigned tables and seating times.

So I’ve rambled on enough and I’ll conclude this.  We’ve been getting extra hours of sleep all along the way as we set the clock back.  Tonight we do the opposite.  When I go to bed tonight on Friday, January 2 I will wake up in the morning on Sunday, January 4.  We’ll cross the International Date Line and lose a day.  The captain on his noon announcement told us that of the approximately total 900 passengers and crew on the ship, not a single one has a January 3rd birthday, so no one will be cheated out of a celebration.  So far now, aloha.

December 30 - Kauai, the Garden Isle

I’m in my final leg of this cruise as we sail under a partly cloudy sky with a following sea so the ride is pretty good. Yesterday we had our last port call before I get to my final destination of Tokyo.  Now we have 9 sea days in a row which I don’t mind at all.  

We docked in Nawiliwili, Kauai yesterday morning. Kauai is the oldest of Hawaii’s major islands as it lies northwest of the other islands.  It was formed as the Pacific Plate passed over the volcanic Hawaiian hotspot deep below the ocean surface.  It’s the fourth largest of the Hawaiian islands with a population of around 75,000.  Kauai is called the “Garden Isle” because of its lush vegetation.  The principal industry is tourism.  Additionally many movies have been filmed here including South Pacific, Jurassic Park, and even some opening scenes from Raiders of the Lost Ark.

I’ve been to Kauai a couple of previous times with both Al and Katie and I did the same thing I did then – I rented a car to drive and see some of the sights.  I don’t know what was in my head when I rented the vehicle through Costco Travel, but I’d rented something that seated seven people.  The Avis lady suggested that since there were just two of us (my friend Colleen went with me) we get something smaller.  We wound up with a Jeep Wrangler which drove nicely but I had a really hard time getting in it because it’s so high. The problem centered around the fact that I had to bend my right knee more than it was willing to go (it’s my knee that really should be re-replaced).  Anyway, that’s TMI but I finally got in and we were off.  

This was a big tank of a car!

We saw some Nene geese which are native to these islands, but they didn't compare to this pretty rooster walking around the Avis parking lot.

Our destination was Waimea Canyon, which is sometimes called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.  It’s about 10 miles long and around 3000 feet deep.  The canyon was formed by  both the collapse of the volcano which created the island and the following erosion. The area around it is the Waimea Canyon State Park and there’s a road winding up to the uppermost viewpoint.  We left Lihue and drove along the southwestern coast. As we drove along we occasionally had a glimpse of Ni’ihau, the seventh largest of the Hawaiian island chain and the one known as the Forbidden Isle. It has an interesting story to it.  Ni’ihau is owned by the Robinson brothers who have strict rules imposed on the island and the people living there.  In an effort to preserve the culture and habitat, the island is off-limits to everyone but the Robinsons and their family, US Navy personnel, government officials and invited guests.

That's Ni'ihau in the distance

But back to Kauai. I drove up the steep and winding road and we made stops along the way ay various viewpoints.  You know what they say about memories we have that are embellished by time and we try to revisit them they never live up to our expectations.  Well, that’s what I would have to say today’s trip.  The canyon is still impressive but not as much as I remembered it.  I also thought I remembered a lodge or something at the end of the road where we had a view of the very beautiful Napali cliffs, but we didn’t find them.  It must have been on a different road. Oh well, next time!

Falls in Waimea Canyon

The canyon

On our drive back toward the east coast we took a detour to visit what the big beautiful sign on the road said was “ the most historic town in Kauai,” Hanapepe. We drove through but we didn’t stop because it didn’t seem really spectacular to us.  It does have the distinction of having the westernmost bookstore in The USA, the Talk Story.  It’s also the headquarters of Lappert’s ice cream company which runs the largest ice cream chain in the state.  Sorry, Katie, we didn’t try the ice cream.

The farthest west bookstore in the USA

On our drive back we had a couple of intermittent downpours when the sky seemed to literally open.  That’s a typical thing in some of these tropical places.  We turned the car in and got a cab back to the cruise terminal.  There was supposed to be a shuttle, but Avis had 10 shuttle buses and only 2 drivers (???) and they were busy taking people to and from the airport terminal.  We got back in time to have a salad for a late lunch out by the pool.  In the evening I met friends for cocktails and then we had a nice dinner in the restaurant.  The show was one I’ve seen multiple times so instead I went and listened to my favorite duo play in the Observation Bar.  Pretty late in the evening I went to the Club to see if there was music there.  The Band was playing but no song inspired me to dance.  I did find some folks I’d met on the second Seabourn cruise Al and I did more than 10 years ago.  They looked very familiar so I went over and we discovered that we met on an overnight trip to Luxor.  Back then we had a very nice suite we would have parties there and this couple had come to one of them.  It’s a small world.  Anyway, that was my day and now I’m on the home stretch. Aloha for now.

After dinner photo with friends

December 29 - Christmas came and then came Boxing Day

Where to begin?  Christmas Eve dawned as another sunny, warm day with moderate seas.  We had the usual sea day activities including lectures, games, and random caroling around the ship.  It  was a formal night and most people got very dressed up, more so than I’ve seen on the other formal nights on this cruise.  I had dinner in Solis, the alternative restaurant, with a friend from Honolulu and a couple who are the parents of my friend’s daughter-in-law.  (She calls them her “Outlaws.”)  We had a lovely dinner topped off with a special anniversary cake for the couple who were celebrating their actual 50th wedding anniversary.  Following dinner we went to a special Christmas show in the Grand Salon.  The onboard cast sang Christmas songs and then the highlight of the evening was the crew choir.  There were members from all the ship’s departments including housekeeping, food & beverage and even a couple from the deck crew. They sang some traditional carols and then they performed two in Tagalog since many are from the Philippines.  And to end it Santa made an appearance.  It was a lovely evening.

The crew choir on Christmas Eve

On Christmas Day we had another galley market lunch, which I’ve written about in the past.  This one was well organized unlike the one earlier on this cruise which was utterly chaotic.  The galley staff outdid themselves in their presentations.  I think we all rolled out of the restaurant.  On Christmas night a couple of friends and I were going to forego dinner and instead  just eat some of the tapas always available in the Observation Bar.  While we sat there we realized that my friend from Honolulu was looking pretty down.  Her husband died on Christmas Day several years ago, so it’s a tough day for her.  We decided to join her for dinner at the outdoor Restaurant, Earth and Ocean.  After we all went to the show which featured a black female singer with a very powerful voice.  Then we headed to the Observation Bar for a nightcap.  It was a nice Christmas.

Scenes from the Galley Market Lunch

Yesterday the 26th was Boxing Day (that’s what the British call it) and I organized a dinner for nine of us.  A British friend arranged with the chef to serve us traditional Boxing Day food.  That’s basically leftovers, but oh, what leftovers they were!  We had Bubble and Squeak which is a dish made with potatoes, cabbage, and any leftovers from Christmas dinner chopped up, mixed up and fried until it has a crisp top and bottom.  We had sausage rolls, coleslaw, turkey and dressing, baked potatoes, and too many more things that I can’t remember them all.  Dessert was a delicious English trifle.  I organized the same game we played on Thanksgiving and we had great fun with people stealing each other’s wrapped and unknown presents.  Everyone got really into it and we laughed so much that I noticed people at the tables around us looked jealous that they weren’t having as much fun.

Boxing Day and more food photos

After dinner we went to the evening’s show which included a very good Irish singer and then we were off to the O Bar for nightcaps.  You may have noticed I’m not writing much about the Club and dancing.  That’s one of the only things about this cruise I haven’t been totally pleased with.  One band is quite good; the other is so-so.  The issue though is in the schedule of their performances.  The Entertainment Manager is new to Seabourn, doesn’t know what he’s doing really, and is, to put it quite bluntly, an idiot. His schedule includes things like a half or full hour of no music in between the two bands performances.  We people who go to the Club to dance don’t want to sit and drink in silence waiting for the music to begin again. So, when one group finishes their set and announces that the next will be coming after whatever break time there is, people leave and don’t come back.  I have a sneaking suspicion that one of the motivations for the scheduling is that if the next band comes and there’s no one there, they can call it a night and get off duty early.  As a result I’ve been gravitating to the Observation Bar where I know friends who don’t like dancing anyway will be and where I like listening to the duo playing there even though it’s not a dance venue.  We have a new cruise director coming on here in Hawaii, so maybe he’ll get things back to the more normal routine.

I’m writing this sitting in the Square as we’re docked in Honolulu harbor. It’s the 29th and tonight my last leg of this voyage will begin.  We’ll have new people boarding in a little while and as usual, many will wander around lost for a day or two. What’s happened in between Boxing Day and now?  We spent our last sea day of our crossing playing our final trivia.  Our team came in 4th, not bad out of 17 teams, but it could have been better.  We played Name that Tune and won.  (Truthfully I think the two New Zealand guys on the team were scoring us pretty liberally; we got to mark our own papers.)  I didn’t go to any hosted tables and instead dined with friends.

Yesterday, the 28th we arrived in Honolulu and since it was Sunday I roused myself from bed early enough to have Sunday Champagne Breakfast in the restaurant with 7 of my friends.  I had forgotten how nice breakfast could be since I hadn’t been getting up early enough to do it for so long.  After breakfast I took a cab to go to the Ala Moana Mall.  It is enormous!  I walked the length of each level and in doing so managed to get in a little over 10,000 steps.  Near the end my feet were killing me and since I was near the Nordstrom I went in and bought a new pair of shoes.  I figured perhaps a new pair would make my feet feel better. What really felt good though was keeping my bare feet on the cool marble floor while the salesman was in the stockroom finding shoes for me to try on. I could have stayed there all afternoon just letting my feet chill.  

Friends and I had arranged to meet and go in the late afternoon to the Halekulani Hotel on Waikiki Beach to sit at the lovely bar called Earl’s at the House without a Key restaurant (isn’t that a neat name for a restaurant?).  I’d been there a couple of times before with Al and Katie to have a drink and watch the sunset.  The place is beautiful and  each evening there is a trio playing traditional Hawaiian music and a lovely young woman performing Hawaiian dance.  I won’t call it hula because that to me evokes images of wildly moving hips and this dancer is gracefully telling a story as she moves and sways.  Unfortunately, the clouds didn’t fully cooperate so we only got fleeting glimpses of the sunset in the west.  To the east we had a wonderful view of Diamond Head.

Scenes from Earl's at the Halekulani

As it darkened we came back to the ship where Carole, one of my friends was scheduled to have a farewell dinner since she left the ship today.  Colleen, my Aussie/Kiwi friend and I first went to one of the bars which has a special cocktail called the Brigitte Bardot.  Since BB just died we had to have one of her namesake drinks in her honor.  We debated what to do about dinner and decided to have what we named C & C;  that stands for Caviar and baked Camembert Cheese with honey pommery mustard.  It may sound odd, but I can assure you it is a meal fit for the gods.  We ended the evening up in the O Bar listening to Barry and Merle, my favorite performers on the ship.  It was a lovely day.

I’ve finally caught up to today.  I was scheduled to go on a tour to the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum on Ford Island and to the battleship USS Missouri.  The tour was canceled (I’ve no idea why) and so I’m spending the day on board.  I’ve seen most of the other sights on previous visits and I’ve taken tours that went round the island.  My feet are probably grateful for the day of rest.  And this has given me a chance to catch up on things.

Tomorrow we’ll be in Kauai where I’ve rented a car.  Two friends are trusting their lives to me as we see a few places I want to revisit there.  After that we have nothing but sea days until we get to Tokyo.  I think it will be 9 sea days, but I’m not absolutely certain because we’ll cross the International Date Line at some point and lose a day.  Just think of the poor people whose birthday falls on a day that’s lost.  I’m caught up and I can breathe a sigh of relief about that.  So, aloha for now!