After sailing from Korea, our first stop in China was Dalian, the northern-most warm water port in China.
We did a little touring and had some great food. While shopping one day, we had lunch at a dumpling restaurant called Din Tai Fung. The food was spectacular. So good, we came back for dinner – a first for Debra I think. We met one of the owner’s family and learned that they actually are a very large “chain” that originated in Taiwan and that they have restaurants all over the world including NYC. Their dumplings, for which they are renowned, have both meat and broth inside and are scrumptious. Every dish and every side was perfectly done. Check for one in your neighborhood, the food is awesome!

A 250 foot drop to the fairway

Another highlight was golf at The Unicorn Course in a resort west of the city. By “resort” I mean, that’s what they intend. As with many areas we saw, local governments often sponsor what we called “build it and they will come” areas. Out of nothing (or after displacing many), new buildings, roads, parks, apartments spring up in advance of any real demand. Some become thriving new communities, some sit as ghost towns for years.
Anyhow, the course was beautiful, or would have been if not for the air quality. What was unique about it was the vertical terrain that it covered. I estimate the highest tee box was 1000 feet above the lowest part of the course. I can’t imagine what it cost to build, but it was a real adventure.

…unless edited in Picasa

Smog so bad, even the sunrise is sad…

After Dalian, we docked in Tianjin, an industrial port that is closest to Beijing. We visited a couple of factories from my working life, but the pollution was too bad to stay.
So we headed to Beijing for a couple of days. We’d both been to Beijing multiple times before, but always working. I’d never seen the sites – I hadn’t even been to the Great Wall.
To make the most of our time there, we hired a tour guide and had two very educational days. First stop was Tiananmen Square, best known by Westerners as the site of the June 1989 massacre when the government cracked down on protestors. Our guide was great, but made no mention of the event. Instead he pointed out that it has a rich history as the epicenter of Chinese historical events since its construction in 1651, from the days of the emperors, thru the revolution of 1919, and the formation of the People’s Republic of China by Chairman Mao in 1949.  Security to get into the square was very tough, especially if you had a bottle of any kind.  If you did, the police made you drink part of it in front of them – hmmm.  Turns out, they worry about people bringing in gasoline and self-immolation.  Not your typical football stadium for sure!

Debra with two former Chairmen

Next we spent a couple of hours touring the Forbidden City, the Chinese imperial palace from 1420 to 1912 when the “Last Emperor” gave up the thrown (he was 7 years old, probably didn’t understand real estate well). It reportedly took a million workers 14 years to complete – we all know how that can happen on a big project. I have to say, there’s no better way to get an appreciation for history than to have a good guide and BE there in person. Walking through this place would have been boring; our guide made it come alive.
The next day we went to the Great Wall. Again, we took the guide and enjoyed the learning more than the Wall itself. There have been many walls going back to feudal times in the 7th century BC. It was only after Qin, the first emperor conquered most of his neighbors that they were connected. But those walls are long gone, most were made of wood and mud. The wall most of us know about was built in the 14th century, during the Ming dynasty. It was about 5,500 miles long and made of stone. To build it, every family had to provide a son to work. At the peak, they could build 1.5 miles per day! It’s hard to imagine the logistics required for that pace of construction, especially when looking at the mountains and terrain this wall crossed. Time, erosion, and tree growth have destroyed the vast majority of the wall. What we saw was almost all rebuilt for tourists. But impressive never-the-less.

Our last stop before coming home was Shanghai. I first came years ago after visiting more remote cites in China. Unlike the interior, this city had a vibe of modern excitement to it. It reminded me of Chicago even then. When we arrived on the ship, we got lucky and had a rare day of clear air when we arrived – the city was nothing short of beautiful. We had a lazy couple of days, trying all the local specialty foods and basking in the sun, happy to see there was still a sky when the pollution was blown out to sea.

Shanghai and blue sky

China – My takeaway thoughts:

I first came to China on business in 1995 and visited a number of cities looking for potential aerospace manufacturing partners. They were about 15 years into their feeble move toward a market-based economy after years of strict central government control. While they tried hard to impress us with their capabilities, their whole world seemed a weak façade attempting to hide massive inefficiencies from decades of “full employment” even when there was no work. But there were glimmers of hope watching energetic young entrepreneurs selling goods on the streets – legally for the first time. I remember thinking, “They’ll never put this genie back in the bottle.”
What a difference 20 years make. I’ve been a number of times in recent years, but never focused on the amazing transformation until this visit. While their espoused “democracy” is also still a façade, the commercial progress is stunning. They somehow have managed years of explosive growth with more success than failure. There are problems for sure – especially the air quality which is slowly crippling them.  But they know it. They’ve been able to adapt and overcome tremendous obstacles over the years, and I come away convinced they will solve the pollution problems – one plus to autocratic rule is the ability to take action.

I also had a bit of a wake-up call regarding our freedoms.  I have often thought that free markets are what drives progress, growth, and happiness for most.  Democracy to me can be a clumsy form of government.  I can’t imagine how a company could be successful if the CEO had to run for re-election every 4 years.  In fact, many countries depended upon autocratic rule in their early years to make fast progress on infrastructure, education, and other fundamentals.  In Beijing I spent some time with a bright young guy who got comfortable enough with me to ask what I knew of the Hong Kong protests that were underway at the time.  Google is blocked, as are most sources of information that don’t fit the government guidelines.  I told him what I knew, and then talked about my view of the great progress the country has made without the democracy he longed for.  I told him that Bill Clinton once asked the Prime Minister of India why his country had fallen so far behind China over recent decades.  The Prime Minister’s response was, “India has too much democracy”!  My new young friend got emotional and said,   “Progress is good, we do have a better life than our parents, but it needs to be balanced with personal liberties.  Don’t you understand that here, people are arrested for what they think, or disappear overnight for something they said?”      Ouch.  A global moment for me, consider me properly spanked.  I’ve come to take our freedoms for granted.

An 11 minute video of our time in China (golf, tour highlights, calligraphy, silk making, beggar’s chicken):

When we came to Seoul in 2013, we had a wonderful tour of markets with a guy named Daniel Gray, who publishes a blog on Korean food.  We enjoyed him so much that Debra looked him up and booked a full day “foodie tour” for 14 friends from the ship who love exploring food like she does.

We started out at the fish market, where Daniel picked out a number of large live fish and other sea creatures for our breakfast.  Much of it was raw, including cut octopus whose arms were still squirming like worms and hung on to the plate with their suction cups like they knew their fate.  Of course, I had to try it for the video.  Don’t view this before morning coffee.

We sampled food all day.  Mung bean pancakes as cooked in North Korea (yum), lamb kabobs, liver and stomach (no thanks), shaved ice with milk and red beans (surprisingly good).  Everyone tried most everything and ate until 4:30 pm, even though the Canadians in the group had their Thanksgiving turkey dinner ahead of them that night!

Debra is now the food queen, and hard at work organizing a similar event for Singapore in December.

For 10 days we toured Korea, first visiting Busan in the South, then the resort island Sanji (known locally as Jeju), and finally Seoul.  For much of the time, our good friends Dave and Lori were with us from Connecticut. (Not our friend and former trainer Lori, but another workout fanatic Lori – must be a name thing). In addition to touring the sites, we climbed Crater Mountain on Jeju in 16 minutes vs the normal 30 since Lori was in the lead. 

We also tried out golf, Korean style.  Here, the clubs are all loaded into a cart for 5 people.  The cart follows on the cart path automatically as the women caddie run back-and-forth delivering golf clubs to the foursome.

The following 5 minute video captures some of the fun we had with Dave and Lori, including a funny toilet scene for those of you into potty humor.  (You know who you are.)

We spent a day in Hiroshima, ground zero for the first atomic bomb used in warfare.  Estimates of deaths in the first week range from 40,000 to 93,000.  (Imagine that the RANGE of the estimate is more than 15 times our 9/11 loss to get a sense).  A total of 292,000 are thought to have died if you include the latent effects of radioactivity.  For decades, those who survived kept their stories to themselves.  Young women were particularly concerned that no one would marry them, parents worried that all of their children would be rejected as radioactive. Others just couldn’t stand to talk because they felt “guilty” for having survived.

We were fortunate to spend the day with Keiko Ogura, who was 8 years old when she survived the blast.  Her husband was the curator of the Hiroshima Peace Museum and worked to get survivors to speak out, lest their stories die with them in old age.  When he died in 1984, Keiko decided to take up his mission, and learned English.  Her story is hard to fathom, but she told it with little emotion as we toured the target zone.  The most traumatic memory for her was when she learned that the water she gave to survivors the day of the blast caused a chemical reaction in those with severe radiation poisoning – killing them quickly.  She didn’t openly “confess” this until 1984.

The museum was well done, but hearing Keiko’s story and watching the videos of the survivors telling their stories was the most moving part of the day.  No funny videos from me today.

We took a train inland to the former capital, Kyoto – a popular tourist destination. Here, in 794AD, the forerunner to the Geisha tradition began. At that time, Shintoism held that wives were modest home-makers, and courtesans (prostitutes) were accepted for other needs. In 1617, courtesans were restricted from selling on the street and limited to working in houses called Yokaku. Beginning in 1750, Yokaku were “advertised” by performers in front of the houses (men and women) who were the first Geisha.

In the 1900’s, the concept evolved and split between courtesans and entertainers (Geisha). Geisha became an honorable profession and a way for lower-class girls to learn music, dance, singing, and conversational skills and enjoy a better life. They joined Geisha houses (leaving familial relationships behind) at a young age (not until 15 years old today) and then progressed through extensive training and “promotions” – much like someone might enter a religious seminary to become a priest or minister. While prostitution existed in the history of the Geisha, today they’re entertainers who are skilled at making businessmen feel special so they spend more money eating and drinking. FYI, the make-up job takes one hour to apply!

Anyway – despite our discomfort with the whole concept and history, we had an opportunity to have a typical evening dinner in a Geisha house and meet the “mother,” apprentices, a Maiko girl (second level) and a Geiko lady (full Geisha). After a bad meal and lots of Saki and beer, we were “entertained.” Watch the 4 minute video for a perspective and a grin.

Just our luck we’re in Japan just as a Super Typhoon (sustained winds over 120 mph) is to hit.  The captain had to alter course for safety reasons.  We had a rocking night, but check the video for how we entertained ourselves on an unplaned typhoon sea day!
 

Tasman Nat’l Park

First stop was the Abel Tasman National Park, a place that is very popular for it’s pristine forest, hiking trails, and golden beaches in the summer – but winter is approaching down here so it was pretty cool. Never-the-less, we chartered a catamaran and took a tour of the coast. The sun co-operated and strong winds made for a very enjoyable afternoon.

That night we stayed in an amazing “lodge” called Eden House in the Orinoco Valley.  (I know this is detail most don’t need, but we want to remember the names of our favorite places in case someone else wants to go).

Eden House view

We think of it as a high-end B&B, but fine dining is included for all meals.  It’s owned by a lovely couple who worked in London and built a beautiful home in this NZ valley.  They had so many friends visit, that they decided to make it a Lodge and made it their career.  They hired a great staff and provide everything you could possibly want on a get-away vacation.  When we woke up in the morning, the view from our window was stunning – like Vermont at peak autumn.

From there, we drove to the West Coast. It was as if we drove through the valleys of New England in October, then through the hills of Wyoming, and then down the rugged coast of Oregon to Big Sur in California – all in three hours! Driving on “the wrong side” through some white knuckle turns, I wasn’t able (allowed) to take any pictures. At last we found a small restaurant and had a relaxing lunch and watched the waves of the Tasman crashing against beautiful black rock formations. Further down the coast is a former mining town called Punakaiki, now famous for weird rock formations on the beach that they call “pancake rocks” because they look like stacks of pancakes (not to me). The West Coast of NZ is really rugged on the South Island. There’s really not much civilization, and very few places to stay. We stayed at the best on the coast – think Motel 6 with a view. But they did wrap the plastic cups in plastic bags. That always cracks me up – like they wash, sanitize, and re-use them?? Also, note to self: when ordering a mixed drink in a new country, ask how big their shots are. In NZ, at a bar that makes them measure, 15ml is one shot, 1/3 of a U.S. shot. I stuck with beer!

Next we boarded the Tranz Alpine Railway to cross the island through Arthurs Pass. This ride is rated as one of the top train journeys of the world. Unfortunately, the weather was pretty ugly. It was still very scenic and I managed to get some pretty good photos because they have a special car with NO WINDOWS for taking pictures. You can stick your head or camera out in the open and get some great shots – or have your camera (or head) ripped off entering one of the 14 tunnels. Seriously, you could easily touch the tunnel walls if you had a death wish.  And no liability forms to sign.

We stayed the night in Christchurch. You may recall that when Debra and I came to NZ 3 years ago, Christchurch had a very damaging earthquake the day we landed in Auckland. Sadly, the town is still struggling through reconstruction. Seemingly they had limited funds from the government, and while they have a wonderful master plan laid out, it’s mostly a vision. Entire blocks are fenced off and condemned, almost every street has construction equipment working on basic infrastructure. They did get very creative and built a lovely shopping area using cargo-tainers. Really very clever. And everyone seemed in good spirits, committed to the town. Just sad that after 3 years it has made so little progress.

We re-boarded the Ship after Christchurch to continue the trip down the East coast. We both volunteered for a role in a dinner murder-mystery enroute to Akaroa. Debra was the wedding planner (naturally).

Father Weston

Rhonda Rhubarb

I was the priest (naturally). Debra got her hair done up in a “do” right out of central casting. (At the end of the evening it took her 20 minutes to pull out all of the bobby pins. She was quite a sight in the morning for sure!) There was a huge turn-out for the event and it was a lot of fun.

On our sail south to Dunedin, a new friend from South Africa insisted we join a small group that was flying to Queenstown for a round of golf at the “most beautiful course in New Zealand.” After Cape Kidnappers (earlier post), I couldn’t imagine that we hadn’t seen the best. The weather forecast was for cold, wind, and rain. We almost declined. I’m sure glad we didn’t.
We took a small plane over the mountains at sunrise to an airfield at the end of Lake Wakagipu in a valley surrounded by trees in full autumn bloom and snow covered mountains. The weather was perfect. The golf course “The Hills” was even better.

Debra on the tee

It was built originally for Michael Hills as his own private course. He is an owner of a number of very successful jewelry stores in New Zealand (partly funded by Debra’s recent purchases). It is an extremely challenging course, with gorgeous views from every tee. But wait, there’s more! He commissioned large sculptures on almost every hole. Some were modern, some were wind activated, but my favorite was a field of huge horses. Debra loved a hole that had large dragon flies hovering over a lake just in front of the green (in the slide show below). She called it the most beautiful course by far. I’m still not sure vs. Cape Kidnappers – though I played well at Cape but had 9 penalty strokes and lost 9 balls at The Hills, so that may have influenced my assessment. I am embarrassed to admit that I thought the U.S. had the monopoly on the world’s the most beautiful courses. I was wrong about that.
The flight back to Dunedin was at dusk, and the views over the mountain and countryside were breathtaking. My favorite photo of the whole month in New Zealand is the one after the slide show (how’s that for a teaser?). I’ve never had a good shot from a plane before. I think this was the best day of our 2 month trip so far.

Next we stopped at Stewart Island, a little island at the very southern end of New Zealand (population 381). A few of the regulars on the ship started a rock band a few years ago and call themselves the Fabulous Fossils. They play their limited set of songs every six months or so for fun. Two years ago, when the ship was in Stewart Island last, they played at the tiny hotel/bar and were joined by a local named Friday (think Johnny Cash with a much lower voice). It was a big hit, so they did it again when we were in port. All the locals came out – some real characters. I decided to video the whole thing and put together a movie. I added a “50 years ago” story line using screaming Beatlemania footage. I must say, it came out great. So we hosted a “World Premeire” showing in the ship’s movie auditorium and made a big event out of it, red carpet, screaming groupies and all. It was a real hoot.

Milford Sound

Our final New Zealand stop was in Milford Sound in the Fjordland region. It was cold and rainy, but then it rains 286 inches per year there! We went on a Zodiac tour of the area despite the weather. Magnificent waterfalls and mountains soaring from the water to the sky. The thundering falls only added to our awe.

New Zealand, in summary, has got to be one of the best places on earth. I came a number of times on business and was always struck by how friendly everyone is. I first came in 1985 as a supplier trying to fix a quality problem at Fisher and Paykel, the country’s biggest appliance manufacturer. Two guys from F&P I worked with treated me like a long lost cousin and we became good friends. Three years ago when I brought Debra to NZ for her first time, they insisted we stay at their respective beach homes with them though I hadn’t seen them in 10 years. When we went for lunch in an empty little Stewart Island bar, a couple from Auckland came in and plopped down at our table to visit. After a 30 minute visit, they had to leave to catch a flight out, but they insisted we take their contact information and visit them the next time we’re in NZ.
But I don’t think I ever appreciated the beauty of the South Island. I’d heard about it, but not being a big outdoors type (hiking, fishing, etc), it wasn’t on my bucket list. Writing this post makes me realize there just aren’t enough superlatives in our language for New Zealand. When I edit my first draft, I’m sure I’m going to find I have to rotate among ‘stunning, spectacular, magnificent, etc.’
It’s just that kind of place – really.

Some of my favorite photos:

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Near Dunedin, NZ

After our Pacific crossing, we anchored in the Bay of Islands, a vacation community north of Auckland. To get a good tour of the 100+ islands, we took a short helicopter flight out to “the hole in the rock” island. The weather wasn’t great, but it was still a good orientation tour. This time I broke the videos into shorter sections so you can pick and choose.  The helo ride is a 3 minute video.

We also played two spectacular golf courses owned by Julian Robertson, the famous Tiger Global hedge fund manager. They’re both difficult to get to, and even more difficult to play – especially in 30mph wind like we had! A bit of video is below, but it’s hard to capture the essence of these cliff-side courses.

We then moved on to Auckland, just ahead of the remnants of a hurricane coming in from Australia. Auckland has the Southern Hemisphere’s tallest tower, where what they call a “base jump by wire” was first invented – a variation of bungee jumping. We wanted to do it despite the high winds. You’ll have to watch the video below to see what happened! (4 minutes)

And as scary for Debra, we went on a horseback ride on the beach at Hawke’s Bay near Napier. That video is a bit longer (5 minutes), but worth it if you want a laugh at the most annoying “safety briefing” you’ll ever see!

Bay of Islands

Hole in the Rock

Cape Kidnappers brochure

Another

Tower Jump

Cape Kidnappers

Bay of Islands

 

Helicopter ride video (3m):

 

Golf outings (3m):

 

Tower Jump (4m):

 

Horse adventure (5m):

After our stay in Bora Bora, we took a short flight back to Papeete, Tahiti to board our new apartment. From there we sailed to near-by Moorea, another beautiful island. The first day was all work, unpacking and buying provisions for the kitchen. The second day, we played golf with a group from the ship. The weather was almost too hot, but we had fun. Debra played the best nine of her life, but we all were baked out on the hilly second nine.
Next we sailed to Huahine, and then back to Bora Bora. The highlight was an afternoon at a private island that the ship arranged, along with a great barbeque. The food on-board is fantastic, that which is provided in the four restaurants, the room service to our balcony, and dinners whipped up by Debra when we stay “home.”
About French Polynesia:
The 118 islands of French Polynesia cover an area the size of Western Europe, but if you combined them all as one, they’d be about the size of Rhode Island. Many of them are surrounded by reefs, inside which beautiful turquoise lagoons give those spectacular aerial views you’ve all seen. 45 years ago, three American hotel owners got the idea of making “overwater bungalow” villas and now most resorts on the frequently visited islands have them. Despite its beauty, these islands annually have the same number of visitors Hawaii has in 12 days! That’s probably because it’s 8 an hour flight from LA, 11 from Japan, 5 from Hawaii, Australia, New Zealand and Chile. So it’s quiet and peaceful – not as touristy as you’d expect.

Raiatea

Huahine

Bora Bora mayoral campaign

Moorea

Bora Bora

Our humble home

Tonight we head out across the second half of the Pacific, with stops in the Cook Islands along the way. But we don’t get to New Zealand until 2 weeks from now! So we may be quiet for a while as satellite internet is very slow and often unreliable in the middle of nowhere.
Happy birthday Pat and Tom! Wish we could be there. Errr, no – wish you were here!

April schedule

Click for a 5 minute highlight reel of week 1:

Just boarded our new apartment on the ship. In Papeete, Tahiti – travelling thru French Polynesia, then on to New Zealand and Australia. Internet is very slow (satellite) so we may not post too often. Click on “follow” if you want notice of our postings.

Here’s a video of our apartment:
Note from 2016 – this is the original video, but the apartment has been radically redone. Refer to 924 renovation from summer of 2015 (above)

At a Charity auction in November, I “won” flights on Air Tahiti and four nights at the St. Regis in Bora Bora, French Polynesia. Since we had to go to Tahiti to take ownership of our apartment on a ship that travels the world (our new “mobile home” as daughter Margaret calls it), we thought a pre-closing vacation in Bora Bora was in order.

It is as beautiful as all the tourist pictures make it appear. Gorgeous turquois water, a lush central island with a 3,000 ft. mountain, and villas over the warm water. Not a whole lot to do, but a great honeymoon or get-away place after a long cold winter. (Well, we missed most of the winter, but you get the idea).

On our last day, we met Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue and his wife Courtney on their honeymoon. Per google, Nikki has had some tough times, including being declared dead of a drug overdose at one point. But he seems to have his head on straight now. (His autobiography is titled “The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star”). He and Courtney are both nice, and we had a very pleasant afternoon by the pool with them. The band with the four original members is on their final tour, but Nikki is also doing very well as host of a radio show called “Sixx Sense” in addition to being an author, producer, clothing designer, and whatever else he can do to recover from his bad years.

Anyhow, we would rate Bora Bora as a great place to visit if you’re in the area or on the way to Asia. It’s too far for a special trip from the east coast unless it’s to get married or have a special honeymoon. A week is enough, there’s not much to do (thus the name). Spectacular though – and water warm enough that you want to float for hours.

Tomorrow we island hop to Papeete, Tahiti to move into our mobile home and then visit more of French Polynesia before heading to New Zealand and Australia.

After the pictures, I’ve added a 7 minute video so you can get a feel for the island. And some amazing wind surfing stunts by yours truly. Don’t try this at home.

Being recruited

Motley Crue 2014 edition

And now, click to see the video: