The International Date Line is an imaginary line on the surface of the Earth from the north to the south pole and demarcates the change of one calendar day to the next. It runs roughly along the 180th longitude in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, occasionally zig-zagging to avoid splitting apart countries into two…
Continue reading →We docked at the deep port of Maura, a city in the tiny sovereign state of Brunei Darussalam on the north coast of the island of Borneo. Apart from its coastline on the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the Sarawak state of Malaysia and, with a total population of about 421,000, Brunei…
Continue reading →As I’ve mentioned before, this journey has been a great lesson in geography and culture, not the least of which includes the island of Borneo, which seemed like an almost imaginary place until now. It does indeed exist and on the island is the city of Kota Kinabalu, the Malaysian state capital of Sabah province,…
Continue reading →The impact of war has widely influenced Asia and I am struck by the remains of it, both physically and emotionally, at the places we have visited. As much as the South Koreans dislike the Chinese, our Filipino tour guide expressed an equally unmasked disdain for the Japanese. An hour’s ferry ride across from Manila,…
Continue reading →Real time, May 15, 11:00 a.m. We are are on the northern edge of the Tasman Sea, arriving in Sydney, Australia tomorrow morning. Rough mounting seas, 14 to 16 foot waves with heavy gales to 47 knots. The view from our veranda on deck 6, overlooking the bow.
Continue reading →At Keelung, our port was within easy walking distance to the city, so we took off to explore on our own. When we stopped on a busy street corner to pull out our map and get our bearings, a very friendly man asked if he could help. This was Jeremy, originally from Keelung, but living…
Continue reading →I have always loved the Japanese sense of design for its well-planned simplicity, serenity, purposefulness, and calm order. This is most evident in their gardens, one of the things I most wanted to see during my visit to the country. I spent an overcast morning touring the small village of Chiran just outside the port…
Continue reading →It is both unfortunate and important that Nagasaki is probably most remembered as a target for the atomic bomb that ended WWII. It is as much a part of the city’s fabric as the charming hilly landscape, winding sidewalks, and welcoming, friendly people. Detonated at 11:02 a.m. on August 9, 1945, Fat Man, the name…
Continue reading →Flashing neon lights on the ceiling and colorful upholstery banners over each seat of our tour bus, embroidered with “Have a Nice Day”, were sure signs that South Korea was a happy place with friendly people. Our charming tour guide pointed out that, unlike China, sculptures and dieties in Korea were always depicted smiling and…
Continue reading →When we originally booked our “around the world” cruise, some of the great perks it included were several complimentary events. Some of those got left behind when almost the entire first half of the trip was cancelled, but we have been hosted to a wonderful evening of cocktails, dinner, and a traditional Thai puppet show…
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