drron29

The next morning had us arriving in Busan, South Korea. Rojaan still wasn't up to an excursion so I went on the one to the UN War Cemetery, Busan Museum and fish market. First from the parking lot at the cemetery. Then the cemetery. Now I thought I knew a bit about the Korean War. I was educated here though. Didn't realise how many countries fought under the UN flag.

That night it was again Indochine. You are served a complimentary cocktail first. A couple of the appetisers. Chicken thigh on a skewer and water paper rolls. Tom Yum soup. Aloo chicken Pork ribs. Noodle side dish. Char sui beef. And their cheesecake.

Inside they had a display of their major festival. Then time to catch the shuttle. A last look at the tulips. Just before we left the open top bus tour returned. What a fun ride they must have had.

Some really good flower displays. You could even buy a Zen Garden.

I decided not to go to Nishi Park as the rain was getting more constant. So back down the Main Street and back to the Fukuoka Town hall. The Ritz Carlton. And a Catholic Church. At the Town Hall they have a map of the City on the floor. And out the back the Garden Department was having their Spring Show. Nurseries and supply businesses there but whilst I was there only 2 other ladies walking around.

Sorry I am far from live on this report. Too many cherry trees to see! I was in Fukuoka on April 8th. As for rain it was only this day and April 3rd that rain was any problem on the cruise. A couple of cloudy days as well but they are not really so bad.

It is pretty amazing even in this awful weather. Obviously old trees at nearly peak blooming but very few people around. So many stalls and none will make money today.

I was getting hungry and came across an upmarket Convenience store with some nice looking take out meals. The sushi looked nice. They have a small eat in area. Which says if eat in is busy please get up and leave when you finish eating. Back to the walk and I reach the castle ruins. I pass by the Lotus ponds. The rain is starting to get a little heavier. A pity because their Sakura Festival is in full swing.

And I hear the choices are very much reduced as well!

On our 2 cruises since October 2023 the bar in Dolce Vita has been open from 2pm. I would never be any good at the putting without sourcing my double G&T there.

I now walked down the main street towards the castle. The rain was intermittent and light. At every traffic lights a tune played when the pedestrian lights went green. At the main intersection that meant a long excerpt of "Coming Through the Rye". Loved it.

I caught the 1130 shuttle into town hoping to have a lunch and go to 2 cherry blossom parks - The ruins of Fukuoka castle and Nishi Park if the weather allowed. Along with the cherry blossoms tulips were everywhere in street plantings. The shuttle dropped you at the Town Hall. A nice park across the road with a few cherry trees.

The next morning was Fukuoka. The day didn't look the best. I was feeling much better about deciding not to take an excursion here. Nothing really sounded suitable as we have been here before.

We wander the room listening to accents. The ideal team is for a mixture of countries and if possible ages. Most people attending do so as couples. With us being Australian we look out for a couple from the UK and a couple from the USA plus whoever else is available.

Slummimg it in Bangkok at the IC. Brought back to me the downgrading of F&B on SS. The IC can fit more and better seafood in this little canape dish than SS can put in a bowl of seafood chowder.

Then back to Atlantide for dinner. I started with the foie gras terrine. Not the best. The Prime Rib though was excellent. Rojaan had the beef tartare again and the lobster tail which she felt was better tonight. She is also expanding her wine selections and not just sticking to the Sauvignon blanc. And I had a reasonable wine from the South Australia.

The sun sets as we sail away.

Indeed they were giving us a send off. Unfortunately sail away was at 5.30pm and I had my golf. About 20 players so I had a bit of time to pop up to 5,watch and listen then back to the golf. Leaving a Japanese port is unlike any other. Some wonderful send offs. And they really do mean what they say. The younger ones ran to keep up with the ship. And as the sun sinks slowly in the west we say our final sayonara to Hiroshima.

Nothing basically inside this construction apart from a mini version. Going back on board it was obvious a send off was being prepared.

Back in time to have lunch with Mrsdrron in Atlantide. I had a vegetable soup and fish and chips with mushy peas. Nice. Rojaan had the marsala chicken and the Japanese cheese cake. She liked both. After lunch Rojaan and I took a walk around the small park at the port. The locals were enjoying their Sunday and sakura viewing. Great to see that smile again.

Finally the last of the gardens. I really enjoyed the show that nature put on. Now I set off to walk to the shuttle bus. Some lovely trees in the back streets. How often do you see stacked police cars? Crossed a main street on my way to the shuttle bus. Saw 3 different tram types. Near the shuttle bus stop I came across another couple from the ship. He was in bad shape with back spasms. they were unsure where the shuttle stop was. They had been helped by 4 young fans of the local soccer team who had gone out of their way to help them. They didn't think I was rightv wh I recognised so I signalled to them to comeen I said I knew where it was. So I got them to sit at the corner whilst I went to see if there was the shuttle stop. I hadn't gone far when I saw a sign -Shuttle Bus stop and a couple of crew so I signalled to them to follow me. Just as well I was a good Samaritan as they turned out to have the suite across the hall from us. A couple of shots from the shuttle on the way back to the ship.

Another bomb survivor.