Part 2, Week 29: August 5-11

Katie and Webster
Aug 11, 2019
6 min read

This week, we enjoyed some more time on the cruise ship before flying to Thailand!

On Monday we had another port day in Nagasaki, Japan. We started our day with a visit to a Chinese inspired temple. We were lucky to be the first group of the day to arrive - no one else was there! This was the first time we saw such influence from China imprinted on Japan in such a strong manner. It was fascinating to hear all about those who built the temple.

Our second stop was the 26 Martyrs Museum and monument. The Twenty-Six Martyrs of Japan were a group of Catholics who were executed by crucifixion on February 5, 1597, in Nagasaki. Catholic missionaries were not welcome in Japan at the time due to political complications with the European governments. After the crucification, many Catholics began to practice in private, and were discovered 250 years later.

Our third stop was a Japanese History and Culture museum where we learned about traditional Japanese heritage and life before/after the bombing.

Our last stop was a cable car and lookout point over the city. Nagasaki isn’t too big, similar in population and land mass to Waterloo. We had a great view of the mountains and the water, where our ship had docked. It was very interesting to see where the bomb was dropped and how far away the “ripple” was felt. The bomb literally burned the insides of those who were close to ground zero (where it was dropped). Between 45,000-70,000 people were killed instantly. The bomb was felt within a 2 mile radius of the drop zone.

We really regret not going to the atomic bomb museum to learn more about what exactly happened in Nagasaki. We thought the history museum on our tour would be the atomic bomb museum instead of a traditional history museum. Although horrible things happened in 1945, everyone we met in Nagasaki was very welcoming.

On Tuesday we were supposed to dock in Kagoshima, Japan and walk the base of a famous volcano. Sadly, a typhoon was headed our way and the captain had to cancel the port. Instead we spent the day on board, trying to get ahead of the storm. It was a bumpy ride...

We spent the day relaxing by the pool, surfing, and at the casino! I played penny slots and lost the $1 I brought with me. Webster gambled $5 over the course of the evening and ended up winning $45! Woohoo! He promptly cashed out and we called it a night.

On Wednesday we had a nice sunny sea day on the ship! We woke up early to play a game of trivia before heading out to the pool. We enjoyed the afternoon laying in the sun. Then after dinner we played some mini-golf and a game of bean bag toss.

On Thursday we had our last full day on the ship. We were busy! We played one last round of trivia and ended up coming in sixth place overall! Not too bad considering the first place team had a player who won jeopardy!

Then we went to a towel folding demonstration. Our wonderful room steward, Hosen, had left us creative towel animals everyday and we wanted to learn how to make them on our own. We saw some room stewards make some really cool things.

Then, I spent the afternoon at the spa getting a manicure and pedicure! Earlier in the week I won a spa raffle! It was so nice to spend a few hours relaxing, for free!

We spent the evening playing a bunch of game shows and packing our things.

On Friday we woke up nice and early to disembark the ship. Our ship returned to Hong Kong at 7am. Since we had already spent some time in the city we took an Uber to the airport a little early. We spent some time in the lounge planning our schedule for Thailand. Thankfully, we were in a different terminal than all the protests, so we missed it all!

We flew from Hong Kong to Chiang Mai and arrived at 6pm local time. We were picked up by a hotel shuttle and enjoyed a quiet night with some yummy Thai food before bed.

On Saturday, Webster woke up with a really bad kink in his neck. He thinks he slept in a weird way and was in a ton of pain. We went for breakfast to see if it would pass, but sadly later in the morning nothing changed. Webster spent the late morning/early afternoon getting a 90 minute Thai massage in the spa. After the treatment he felt a bit better but still wasn’t 100%. I spent the morning lounging by the pool, enjoying the coolest weather we have had in weeks, it was only 26 degrees!

In the afternoon we headed to Zabb E Lee Thai cooking school. We started our class at a local market sampling different fresh spices and herbs. Our teacher, Aim, picked up some things for us to use during the class. Then we headed to the cooking school to make our dinner. We each were able to choose different menu items and add/not add ingredients that we liked.

Webster’s Menu

Fried Spring Rolls

Pad Thai

Coconut Curry Chicken

Hot and Sour Soup

Mango Blue Sticky Rice

Katie’s Menu

Fried Spring Rolls

Cashew Chicken Stir Fry

Coconut Curry Chicken

Coconut Milk Soup

Mango Blue Sticky Rice

The class was awesome. We were cooking with two other couples, one from Spain and the other from Hawaii. We made everything from scratch and cooked all our own meals in our own woks. Although she walked us through every part of making each dish, there is no way we could make them at home. The spices and vegetables are so fresh here, and the types of oils and sauces they have are much different than ones we can find at home. Needless to say, the food was delicious and it was a great experience.

On Sunday we spent the day exploring five temples in the Chiang Mai area. It took us 7 hours to see them all.

Our first stop was the Bhubing Palace. This palace housed a king many years ago who loved gardening. We drove up a mountain 1,700m above the city, literally into the clouds to tour the garden. It was filled with roses and greenhouses. It was like being in a huge rainstorm with no actually rain. It was just very misty so everything was always wet. The palace itself was a little underwhelming but the gardens were neat to walk through.

Our second stop was Wat Phra That Doi Suthep. We climbed more than 300 steps up to this temple at 1,050m of elevation. The steps were very steep and along the way many locals were selling little souvenirs, lucky numbers, and children were dressed in traditional wear to make some change. At the top we reached a beautiful gold temple with Buddha and elephant statues surrounding it.

Our third stop was Wat Phra That Doi Kham. This was a bit out of the way so there weren’t as many tourists around. We drove up the other side of the mountain to see two tall Buddha statues, one sitting and one standing. There were also various other smaller statues, some elephants statues and reclining Buddha statues. This temple was obviously more actively used by locals as a place of worship. Many people were chanting and worshiping as we walked throughout the compound.

Our forth stop was Wat Phra Singh. This was a smaller temple compound in the middle of the old city. It doubled as a market because of all the tourists that came through each day. We wandered around looking at all the gold! There were elephant statues, bells, and of course inside each building a Buddha to worship to. It was a little icky because we had to take our shoes off at the entrance to each building but it was pouring rain so our socks and shoes got all wet.

Our last stop was one of the best. We went to Wat Chedi Luang which was in the old city of Chiang Mai. We toured the temple, which was underwhelming, but actively being used when we were there. Then we participated in a Monk Chat. At the temple, there was a Buddhist university where young men are trained to be monks. We got to sit down with a monk and learn about his life. It is a neat program because tourists can learn about Buddhist culture and the monks can improve their English. We learned that there are three types of monks in Thailand. Monks need to follow 203 rules in order to keep their title and serve the temple. We spoke with a forest monk, and he only eats one meal a day, and fasts from Thursday night to Sunday morning. It was interesting to learn that the particular monastery he belongs to allows monks to use technology to improve their skills or help others. He is allowed to have a cell phone to stay in touch with his elderly grandmother. He is also allowed to use the internet to watch English television and improve his language skills. It was a great way to end our long day of touring.

In the evening we headed to a local walking street to shop at the night market. The vendors were selling everything imaginable: clothing, art, carvings, souvenirs, food. The prices were very reasonable, but the sellers weren’t too interested in bargaining as it was packed with tourists!