I think the ship is all but empty this morning. There’s the occasional ghostly staff member or passenger passing by but the corridors are deserted and no one is at the buffet. We’re in Hakodate on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido and fleets of buses have been transporting our passengers away since we docked at 8 o’clock. Marilyn and I decided that going in to the town would be just more of what we have been experiencing over the past week, so we’re having a quiet day reading and eating.
We’ve found a quiet corner in the Crown Viking Lounge on Deck 11. The seats are comfortable and the views panoramic. We had breakfast quite early and were up here by 8.30. Marilyn got fidgety and wandered off to check out the mini-golf course but I was enjoying the sun and let her get on with it. I closed my eyes and dozed off but was woken abruptly by the sound of a man chipping away at some rust outside my window. When I came to, I was aware of official-sounding voices not too far away. I went to have a look and on the other side of a partition, out of my sight, they were holding a Civic Reception for the Mayor of Hakodate to welcome the ship to the port. Everything was being translated and I found out that this was Legend of the Sea’s first visit to Hakodate and the first cruise ship to come here for more than two years. The mayor was also delighted that it was the largest cruise ship ever to visit here.
The captain replied by saying that we were, in fact, one of the smallest ships in the RCI fleet and that the mayor could expect bigger and bigger ships to come in future years. There was also a Question and Answer session with local reporters and I’m pleased to say that the questions were just as inane from the Japanese press as they are in Australia. What do you think of Hakodate? Are you pleased to be here? What do you hope to see when you go to town?
Among the Mayor’s entourage was Miss Hakodate, looking very smart in her prim suit and little hat and wearing her sash which proclaimed her celebrity.
Although I really shouldn’t have been there, I couldn’t resist stealing a picture of her. When they had all gone, one of the waitresses brought me morning tea from the leftovers.
At dinner last night we had, next to us, a table of 10 passengers from the Ukraine. We thought they were Russian but at the late show we were given a rundown on the 26 countries represented in the passenger list and Russia was not among them. It seemed like a family gathering but they were mostly young men. One of them insisted on buying a bottle of Chinese Rice Liqueur which they doled out. It smelled of Ethyl Alcohol and I’ll bet it tasted like turpentine. However, they finished the bottle. There was only one child at the table, a boy of maybe 12 or 13 and he amused himself by swapping his almost-finished plate with the fresh dinners of the older men – it caused gales of laughter, although that might have been the rice liqueur.
Getting back to the passenger list, I can’t recall the full details but the there are 99 Brits, 250 Australian, 274 Japanese and over 300 Chinese. We’ve noticed wherever we go, whenever the subject of Australians comes up, someone always says Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, and we dutifully reply Oy, Oy, Oy. It was Dan the Cruise Director who said it last night and, when he got the response he expected, he said, ‘Oh, you Australians are so reliable.’ Or maybe it was predictable. Anyway, there are times when it can be embarrassing.
Marilyn has come back from her reconnaisance of the golf course and reports that nobody turned up for the 9.30 Golf Tournament and the staff at the Climbing Wall had to talk to themselves because there was no-one else there. As I said, it’s a ghost ship.
This ship has some differences with ones we’ve been on before. They don’t serve as much fresh fruit and we saw apples and oranges this morning for the first time. Marilyn is missing her daily banana. Drinks are cheaper: $6 for a glass of bubbly compared to $7.50 on Princess, and they have a cocktail list which includes scotch-based drinks. I had a Rusty Nail on Sunday night (Drambuie and JW Red Label shaken with ice - $6.50) and last night I had a Chivas Sidecar (12 yo Chivas Regal shaken with Grand Marnier and sweet and sour worth every cent).
The price of duty free alcohol is also ridiculous. Sydney Duty Free will sell you 2 bottles of JW Red Label Scotch for $49, in Singapore it was $40 for 2 bottles of Teachers, on the ship you can get two bottles of Dewars or Red Label for $35. Two bottles of Smirnoff Vodka, $19.95 or 2 bottles of Baileys for $35. 1 litre bottles too.
We’ve found a quiet corner in the Crown Viking Lounge on Deck 11. The seats are comfortable and the views panoramic. We had breakfast quite early and were up here by 8.30. Marilyn got fidgety and wandered off to check out the mini-golf course but I was enjoying the sun and let her get on with it. I closed my eyes and dozed off but was woken abruptly by the sound of a man chipping away at some rust outside my window. When I came to, I was aware of official-sounding voices not too far away. I went to have a look and on the other side of a partition, out of my sight, they were holding a Civic Reception for the Mayor of Hakodate to welcome the ship to the port. Everything was being translated and I found out that this was Legend of the Sea’s first visit to Hakodate and the first cruise ship to come here for more than two years. The mayor was also delighted that it was the largest cruise ship ever to visit here.
The captain replied by saying that we were, in fact, one of the smallest ships in the RCI fleet and that the mayor could expect bigger and bigger ships to come in future years. There was also a Question and Answer session with local reporters and I’m pleased to say that the questions were just as inane from the Japanese press as they are in Australia. What do you think of Hakodate? Are you pleased to be here? What do you hope to see when you go to town?
Among the Mayor’s entourage was Miss Hakodate, looking very smart in her prim suit and little hat and wearing her sash which proclaimed her celebrity.
Although I really shouldn’t have been there, I couldn’t resist stealing a picture of her. When they had all gone, one of the waitresses brought me morning tea from the leftovers. At dinner last night we had, next to us, a table of 10 passengers from the Ukraine. We thought they were Russian but at the late show we were given a rundown on the 26 countries represented in the passenger list and Russia was not among them. It seemed like a family gathering but they were mostly young men. One of them insisted on buying a bottle of Chinese Rice Liqueur which they doled out. It smelled of Ethyl Alcohol and I’ll bet it tasted like turpentine. However, they finished the bottle. There was only one child at the table, a boy of maybe 12 or 13 and he amused himself by swapping his almost-finished plate with the fresh dinners of the older men – it caused gales of laughter, although that might have been the rice liqueur.
Getting back to the passenger list, I can’t recall the full details but the there are 99 Brits, 250 Australian, 274 Japanese and over 300 Chinese. We’ve noticed wherever we go, whenever the subject of Australians comes up, someone always says Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, and we dutifully reply Oy, Oy, Oy. It was Dan the Cruise Director who said it last night and, when he got the response he expected, he said, ‘Oh, you Australians are so reliable.’ Or maybe it was predictable. Anyway, there are times when it can be embarrassing.
Marilyn has come back from her reconnaisance of the golf course and reports that nobody turned up for the 9.30 Golf Tournament and the staff at the Climbing Wall had to talk to themselves because there was no-one else there. As I said, it’s a ghost ship.
This ship has some differences with ones we’ve been on before. They don’t serve as much fresh fruit and we saw apples and oranges this morning for the first time. Marilyn is missing her daily banana. Drinks are cheaper: $6 for a glass of bubbly compared to $7.50 on Princess, and they have a cocktail list which includes scotch-based drinks. I had a Rusty Nail on Sunday night (Drambuie and JW Red Label shaken with ice - $6.50) and last night I had a Chivas Sidecar (12 yo Chivas Regal shaken with Grand Marnier and sweet and sour worth every cent).
The price of duty free alcohol is also ridiculous. Sydney Duty Free will sell you 2 bottles of JW Red Label Scotch for $49, in Singapore it was $40 for 2 bottles of Teachers, on the ship you can get two bottles of Dewars or Red Label for $35. Two bottles of Smirnoff Vodka, $19.95 or 2 bottles of Baileys for $35. 1 litre bottles too.
Hi John, sounds like you're having a great time! I particularly liked your analysis of the characters on the train, I too am an avid 'people watcher'. The train journeys sound fantastic and makes me want to pack up the family and go on a train trip. I don't think it would be the same though with the two little ones causing havoc throughout the journey. Keep up the blogging, it took me a while to catch up but I'm enjoying the experience ;-)
ReplyDeleteRegards
Mike