Nagasaki, Fukuoka, Sakaiminato, Kanazawa

 We have not cruised with Crystal Cruises previously.  We are told that our ship was originally designed for 800-900 passengers but then was reformatted by Crystal for about 650 passengers, and I tend to believe it.  Our cabin is 430 square feet, fairly spacious.  Two full-sized sinks in the bathroom, king-size bed, three separate rooms plus a walk-in closet.  We have a walk-in shower with a rain shower head about 18 inches in diameter which delivers an enveloping warm rain experience.  It is easy to find lounge space onboard (like I am doing now) to do some quiet reading or writing.  We enjoy a wide deck walking/ jogging track 0.27 miles per lap.  There are three specialty restaurants besides the general dining room.

What has really caught our attention is the fact that, wherever we have docked, we have been the only cruise ship present in each port.  As the entry title indicates, many of our stops are at ports not often visited by cruise ships (but what about Tokyo?).  Many excursion options are offered, arranged in groups of less than twenty persons.  Additionally, free shuttle buses to the town center are also offered.  Dawn and I enjoy walking and can usually find places of interest such as Chinatown, the fish market, a castle, restaurants, or a shopping district nearby.

Yesterday near sunset, we had a band, of drums and flutes, serenading us as the ship left the dock.  Many of our selected excursions have included castles (smaller than the European version), gardens, fish markets, or shopping.  Museums show you how life used to be.   We prefer shopping areas, street arcades or malls, which show you how people live today.

Nagasaki symbolic statue at the site of the atomic bomb memorial.

This one is not symbolic; it is the actual remnant of a cathedral devastated by the atomic bomb explosion.

A park view of Nagasaki harbor (on a misty day).  The landscape of hills and valleys made the damage from the atomic bomb explosion variable depending on the proximity and surrounding terrain.

A different view showing more of Nagasaki harbor and surroundings.

A statue of 'Madame Butterfly' a world-renowned singer from Japan's past.

A busy covered shopping arcade.  We never found anything to buy but it was fun looking.

Our ship, Crystal Symphony, at the dock.  A rather large and imposing shape but carrying only about 650 passengers.

The next city our cruise stopped at was Fukuoka.  Both Nagasaki and Fukuoka are on Kyushu Island.

Another castle; for a long period in history, Japan was a feudal state with numerous wars between competing shoguns.

Not a large castle but good for tourism today.  Many have been destroyed and the remaining castles are great attractions.  A nice shopping mall was located directly adjacent to this castle.

To me, this (tele)photo looks like a painting, the composition is so exact.  But it is an actual woman performing a tea ceremony which a 'snapped' through a window.

Children visiting the castle.  The world is an amazing place at their ages.  They are so cute to watch.

We ended the day sampling saki at a local distillery.  Saki has never been a favorite of mine; I prefer plum wine.

Sakaiminato was the next cruise stop.

Food, flowers, and forest all in a large private park.

A central feature of the park was this large open sphere framework with many internal displays.

Early May and the flowers are in full bloom.

Great scenery plus Daisen volcano in the background.

The park was in a hilly region with surrounding forest.

Another view of flower fields and the Daisen volcano in the background.

Does anyone know who the comic artist is who created these characters?  He is very famous in the Fukuoka area with statues in many local places. 

Our cruise ship next moved on to the port at Kanazawa, Japan.

We love these Japanese nature parks; artistry using nature as the canvas.

Even the trees are sculpted using selective pruning to create distinct impressions.

A young Japanese couple wearing traditional garb in the park.  Was this their idea, or were they paid actors?

The wooden arch shown here (and similar arches elsewhere) symbolizes a 'gateway to the gods', although we were told that many Japanese don't take their gods too seriously.

Clear water with a glass-like surface in a slow-flowing stream and lush green surroundings.

Not seen, off to the left is an area of 'old town' narrow streets with shops, but we found this family-oriented festival on the river to be more interesting.

Children examining the brightly colored streamers while monitored by their parents.

 

            

Drummers providing a farewell concert for our cruise ship.  They put a lot of energy into this loud, rousing concert on the dock, and it was appreciated by our cruise passengers.

List of Entries, June 2026

  Entry titles are listed in order from oldest to newest (top to bottom) in this index; however, the actual blog entries are posted from oldest to newest (back to front).  Thus, the 2005 entry will be at the back end of this blog.  Find a topic in the left-hand column, then click on the corresponding archive year in the right-hand column to get close on a time scale to the desired entry before scrolling up or down for the specific entry.

 December 2005-   Building my first boat, Leaving home and Nebraska (my bio) 

February 2016-     Travel Blog, Croatia preview

March 2016-         Iceland, Copenhagen, Zagreb, Slovenia, Croatia, Montenegro, Ireland

July 2016-             Scandinavia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Berlin

September 2016-   Colorado

November 2016-   California coast

December 2016-   Washington DC, Island of Maui

March 2017-        Argentina:  Buenos Aires, San Carlos de Bariloche, Mendoza

May 2017-           Northern Italy preview

July 2017-            Alaskan cruise

September 2017- Venice, Lake Garda, Lake Como, Lake Maggiore, Genoa, Nice, French hill villages,                                        Portugal & Algarve 

October 2017-      Lisbon & Sintra, Washington DC

December 2017-   Eastern Caribbean cruise:  St. Kitts-Nevis, Martinique, Antigua, Barbados, Grenada,                                Puerto Rico

February 2018-     South Pacific preview

March 2018-         Tahiti & Tuamotu cruise, New Zealand

April 2018-           New Zealand South Island, Australia

September 2018-   Road trip to Colorado. Idaho, Wyoming

September 2018-   Galapagos Islands, 2015

September 2018-   Panama 2014 trip

September 2018-   San Blas islands cruise 1981

October 2018-       Krakow, Poland

November 2018-   Zakopane, Danube, Budapest, Azores

January 2019-        European trip preview

May 2019-              northern France, cruise to Med, Mallorca, Rome, Copenhagen

July 2019-              Azores, Maine, Cape Cod preview

August 2019-         Omaha visit

September 2019-   A Voyage to Remember, Florida to Panama, 1980

October 2019-        Azores, Maine, Cape Cod

December 2019-    Puerto Vallarta

February 2020-      Madeira Island, Azores

April 2020-            The Lost Vacation (due to Covid), Switzerland, (now rescheduled)

August 2020-         Road trip to Montana

October 2020-        Road trip to Arkansas

April 2021-             Living in Panama, 1979-1982

July 2021-               Brazil preview (canceled and rescheduled April-June 2022)

August 2021-        Raising Children in the Military

September 2021-    Switzerland:  Lausanne, Interlaken, Lucerne, Zurich

April 2022-             Road Trip to Omaha, Washington DC, and Florida 

May 2022-              Roatan snorkeling, Our 1972 Road Trip

August 2022-            A Lifetime Travel Partner

June 2022-              Bocas del Toro snorkeling, Panama               

October 2022-         France:  Strasbourg, Colmar, & Mulhouse

                                Switzerland:  Basel, St. Gallen

April 2023-             Spain, Canary Islands, France, England, and DC

September 2023-    Scotland, Sardinia

November 2023-    Travel Planning Details

December 2023-    DC, Dubai, Mahe Island (Seychelles)

January 2024-        more Seychelles Islands, Maldives Islands, Sri Lanka

February 2024-      South Africa, a brief stop in Brazil

March 2024-          Snorkeling Sri Lanka & Maldives

April 2024-            Military Travel

September 2024-   Revisiting the Past, Germany

October 2024-      Garmisch, Germany to Hall, Austria

                              Salzburg, Munich, and Onward

                              Istanbul, first encounter

                              Cappadocia, the Balloon Capital

                            

November 2024-    Back to Istanbul and a Cruise

                               Tuscany, Italy

                                Living in the Sweet Spot

January 2025-           New Destinations 

February 2025-         A Time for Reflection

March 2025-             Puerto Rico, instead of a Cruise

May 2025-                 Japan

                                   Taipei, Taiwan

                                    Manila, P.I.

                                    East Malaysia, Brunei

                                    Semarang + Surabaya, Indonesia (Java)

                                    Celukan Bawang, Bali

                                    Benoa (Bali) plus Sumba, Komodo 

                                    Cruising

                                    Perth, Adelaide, Tasmania

                                    Maui

August 2025-            Careers and a Hobby, New Travels

September 2025-        Rewards Beyond Money

                                    Dentistry is about people

October 2025-            England

                                    Colmar, Alsace, and the Vosages Mts.

                                    Arrival at Basel

                                    Montagny les Buxy, and Burgundy

                                    Annecy & Cruseilles

                                    Yvoire & Evian, France, and Geneva, Switzerland

December 2025-        Buenos Aires to Puerto Madryn, Argentina

                                    Falkland Islands to Ushuaia

                                    Punta Arenas to Santiago, Chile 

February 2026-            Island of Hawai'i

May2026-                    A Visit to Japan

                                    On the Ship

June 2026-                    South Korea

South Korea: Yeosu, Jeju, Incheon, Busan

 In South Korea, our ship makes stops at Yoseu, Jeju Island, Incheon, and Busan.  Overall, we are very impressed.  Did you realize that small S. Korea produces many more ocean-going vessels than the US?  Its auto manufacturers, Hyundai & Kia, are major world players.  Korean’s Samsung is ubiquitous in electronics.  In the entertainment industry, K-Pop is a world force.  Prosperity there is similar to the US or Europe. 

 We visited a shopping mall in Incheon that matches or exceeds anything we have experienced elsewhere.  At this huge mall (six levels), we visited a store, Uniglo, with an open storefront where checkout is self-service.  We visited another store which had NO clerks.  Checkout was on the honor system!  The mall was serving many shoppers, unlike the vacant failing malls at home.  We spent our time exploring only the first floor of this complex and took few photographs.

Looking toward central Incheon from the harbor.  Can you pick out the tallest building at 1001 feet tall?  Many of the buildings are quite tall, and this is not the only complex of such buildings.  We chose not to go to Seoul; it would have meant a long bus ride to spend time in an even larger urban complex.

The crime rate is extremely low.  They are a very hard-working, moral society.  But they also have an artistic/aesthetic aspect.  Looking at central Incheon from the harbor, you see a mass of very tall high-rise buildings.  The tallest is 68 stories, 1001 feet high, which is only slightly taller than other buildings in the vicinity.  At first, we thought, “It must be terrible to live in such dense surroundings.”  But as we approached downtown, we discovered many lush parks with flowers, trees, grass, and walking paths.  Outdoor relief has been provided for those high-rise apartment dwellers.

The harbor at Yeosu, impressively modern skyline.

Camellia Island provides a nature preserve right on the harbor at Yeosu.

Part of the Heungguksa Temple complex located inland from Yeosu.  There were very few people present at the time of our visit.

          

Central shrine at Heungguksa Temple which contains a huge bell, rung by swinging a wooden log suspended by chains.

      

A temple complex should always include flowers.

.... and more flowers

Our cruise next stopped at Jeju Island.

Jeju harbor, looking north toward mainland South Korea.

We visited a 'folk village' where many of the aspects of a traditional lifestyle are retained.  It was here that we visited a self-checkout store with no clerks.

Statue at small temple at Sunrise Peak parking lot. The Peak is a very popular attraction.  You can trek to the peak (on this day wrapped in clouds) or descend to the beach and even take a boat ride.

Sunrise Peak located on the eastern shore of Jeju Island.  On this morning the sun was blocked by clouds, but it was still a very popular destination.

Boats loading tourists for a seaward view of Sunrise Peak.

If you were impressed by the tall buildings at Incheon, consider that the tallest building at Busan is 1350 feet tall.

United Nations Memorial Cemetery at Busan with a bit of the city skyline in the background.  Soldiers of many nations served, and died, in South Korea during the war with North Korea and China.

I was very impressed with the immaculate condition of the Memorial Cemetery and the respect with which it is treated.  There were many Korean visitors to this Memorial commemorating the sacrifice of foreign soldiers in defense of the country.  

Those Korean soldiers looked very sharp in executed a well-rehearsed ceremony.

Look at all the tall buildings in Busan!  A great contrast with the well-groomed green fields of the military cemetery.

On a visit to a beach, a group of South Koreans posed at the end of a glass-bottomed platform extending out above the ocean hundreds of feet below.

Full coverage for this female diver harvesting marine creatures off the coast at Busan.  (telephoto)

In this part of Asia, when you visit a 'fish market', the display is extensive and impressive.  Every possible product of the sea is on view from many vendors.  Here we see crabs.

 

This is one of many displays of fish, most of which are laying on a bed of ice.

I believe that these are called sea cucumbers.  I have no idea how they taste but would be willing to try one.

Dawn and I spent much of our time in Busan taking walks on our own.  Streets, arcades, a terminal, and 'China town' and good exercise (better than doing laps of our ship deck).

Sign outside a transportation terminal that we passed through going from our dock to nearby sights.

A view of the Chinatown area.

 

Our ship at the pier with nearby pleasant landscaping and walking areas.

Tall buildings and an artistic suspension bridge, all very modern and visually appealing.