Japan Journeys: Yokohama

Disclaimer: There is a currently a travel advisory issued against all non-essential travel due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Government of Canada and the State Department have advised all Canadians and Americans to avoid all non-essential travel due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, all major cruise lines have suspended operations around the world until the end of October. I am not promoting any travel during this time. I am just sharing my past travels and continuing to work on my blog while we are all staying at home, practicing social distancing. If you are reading this, stay safe and healthy out there. Take care of yourself and each other. 

Yokohama was our last port. While we knew that Tokyo was just a short bullet train ride away, we decided against going into the city for a number of reasons. First, we just wanted a slow, relaxing day. Secondly, it is always a risk to take the train into the city on your own so we decided to play it safe. Lastly, it was also my birthday and I just wanted to eat food I love and go to a cat cafe!

We awoke to a cloudy day in Yokohama. Our plan was to visit the Yokohama Cup Noodle Museum first. It wasn't too far from the port, but sadly, we arrived to find it closed! We should have checked online before going there because it turns out it's closed on Thursdays. It started to sprinkle, so we headed to a nearby mall complex for some cover. I did some light shopping and decided to have lunch at a sushi restaurant in the mall. It had exceptional reviews and we were very pleased with the sushi (some pictured below!). It was also early so we were the only customers in the restaurant. I also treated myself to a mango soft serve.

Afterwards, we walked to the Chinatown area in search of the cat cafe I had found online. It started raining again, so we ducked in and out of the stores along the main strip. The cat cafe was just a 5 minute walk outside of the Chinatown area, tucked away on above a Familymart of an unassuming residential area. We were there for an hour petting kitties (and missing our own who was back at home).

Since we had lunch early, we were hungry again. We found a chain yakitori restaurant, Torikizoku, for happy hour. This restaurant was the first smoking restaurant we came upon in Japan. The food was great, but the experience wasn't so pleasant.

When we left the restaurant, it was dark, but we wanted to do a little more shopping. We shopped at a local grocery store, and at Donquijote a little further away from the area. There was also a few restaurants at the strip mall, so I decided to get myself a little fluffy pancake dessert as a birthday cake to celebrate.

It was time to leave and it was starting to sprinkle again so we took the taxi back to the port as it was getting late and rainy. What a day!

Sadly, our journey to Japan was over. Little did we know this taste of Japan would bring us back a few months later... but let's stay in the moment! Our cruise was not over yet, we still had two more sea days before we returned to Shanghai. Stay tuned!

Japan Journeys: Kobe

Disclaimer: There is a currently a travel advisory issued against all non-essential travel due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Government of Canada and the State Department have advised all Canadians and Americans to avoid all non-essential travel due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, all major cruise lines have suspended operations around the world until September. I am not promoting any travel during this time. Please do not travel. I am just sharing my past travels and continuing to work on my blog while we are all staying at home, practicing social distancing. If you are reading this, stay safe and healthy out there. Take care of yourself and each other. 

In comparison to Osaka and Kyoto, Kobe is a quieter and slower-paced city. We were still tired from the day before, so we decided to take it slow in Kobe. The ship provided a free shuttle from the port to the Chinatown area, so we took advantage of it. Once we were dropped off in Chinatown, we wandered the area. It was still early so most of the area was not opened yet. We grabbed some snacks from FamilyMart and melonpans from a local bakery. We made our way to Motomachidori, a "namesake" shopping street; then Sannomiyacho shopping street.

It was almost lunchtime, and we wanted to beat the lunch rush so we found a nearby Kobe beef restaurant, Steakland. Even though we were early, there was a short line. Kobe beef is Wagyu beef from Japanese Black cattle. It is valued for its flavour, tenderness and marbled texture. I didn't end up ordering Kobe beef but my husband did. The chef cooked our meals in front of us teppanyaki style. The Kobe beef is certainly very tender, but in comparison to my normal steak order, I didn't think it was a huge difference! It was a nice treat though.

While we're on the topic of food, I want to talk about food allergies. I have an anaphylactic allergy to soy and bean sprouts are included. I told our server, and asked for the chef to not serve the bean sprouts, and she fully understood but somehow, the bean sprouts still ended up on my plate. It was not mixed with my meat, so I was able to eat the beef without any issues but I wasn't happy that it was still served. After this incident, I began to notice a pattern. I personally think that food allergies are uncommon in Japan, so it's often forgotten or dismissed. So if you do have a food allergy, you may have to reiterate it several times; and if it's severe, you might have to send the plate back.

After lunch, we continued to walk around the area and stumbled upon Ikuta shrine. This Shinto shrine is believed to be one of the oldest shrines in Japan.

We walked back to Motomachidori to do some shopping, stopped to get katsu for the husband and soft serve for me. There was not much more to do around the area, so we decided to call it a day and hop back on the shuttle to port. By this time, we've fallen in love with the vending machines, and stopped to get a drink before heading back on the ship.

Our last port is coming up! Stay tuned for my milestone birthday in Yokohama...

Japan Journeys: Osaka

Disclaimer: There is a currently a travel advisory issued against all non-essential travel due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Government of Canada and the State Department have advised all Canadians and Americans to avoid all non-essential travel due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, all major cruise lines have suspended operations around the world until mid-May. I am not promoting any travel during this time. Please do not travel. I am just sharing my past travels and continuing to work on my blog while we are all staying at home, practicing social distancing. If you are reading this, stay safe and healthy out there. Take care of yourself and each other. 

Aside from the low price of this sailing, the itinerary was the other reason why we chose this cruise. Japan was on my wish list for a long time, so this cruise would give me a taste of Japan. Our three ports of call were Osaka, Kobe and Yokohama.

Our first stop was Osaka. We had over twelve hours in Osaka but we also wanted to see Fushimi Inari-taisha in Kyoto, so we booked a tour with Royal Caribbean. When you're travelling to an area that's far away from the port, we always recommend booking an excursion with the ship. By doing so, it is guaranteed that the ship will wait for you should the excursion run late. Our excursion left first thing upon arrival, which was around mid-morning. It took over three hours to get to Kyoto by bus.

Upon arrival in Kyoto, our tour group went straight to Fushimi Inari-taisha, Kyoto's most important Shinto shrine. It is best known for its thousands of vermilion torii shrine gates. The gates lead into Mount Inari, which is 233 metres above sea level. The challenging hike up the mountain takes about two hours. Fushimi Inari is dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice. There are also many fox statues across the shrine grounds, as they were thought to be Inari's messengers.

It was a particularly hot day in Kyoto (over 30°C), and it was extremely crowded. There were a lot of people at the shrine. The combination of crowds and heat didn't exactly make it a pleasant visit. The best time to visit would be first thing in the morning when the crowds are still light and the temperature is still mild. Of course, due to our constraints, we didn't have a choice in the matter. (Note: Fushimi Inari is opened 24 hours, and has no admission fee. It is lit up at night so visitors can see the trails.) My husband was a saint, and had a ton of patience taking photos of me in front of the torii gates. It was a difficult shot because there are always tourists walking by. We didn't have a lot of time at Fushimi Inari. Before we knew it, it was time to go. As with any excursions, there is a sell before you get back to the ship. In our case, we stopped at a high end Japanese craft shop. We were given some free time, but we weren't interested in purchasing any art. Instead, we walked down the block and stumbled upon a pharmacy, and stopped to buy some snacks.

Our excursion ended with a drop off back at our ship. Since we had such a long stop in Osaka, we decided to head back out to Dotonbori for dinner. From the port, we took a taxi to Dotonbori. Japanese taxis have a high rate. We paid a fairly expensive fare for a twenty minute ride. Dotonbori is a tourist area that runs along the Dotonbori canal in the Namba district. It is a popular area for shopping and eating. The area is lit up brightly at night, with prominent billboards that illuminate the streets. The best known billboard is the Glico display of a runner crossing a finishing line.

We went on our own mini food tour in Dotonburi, eating as much food as we possibly could within three hours. We stopped by the food stands along the canal and had freshly grilled scallops, takoyaki (not pictured), and melonpan. We also stopped in a ramen shop for a bowl of ramen. By then, we were stuffed. Getting around in Osaka was easy, and we felt safe in the area even though it was late at night. Our ship left at 1 in the morning, but we were back onboard well before midnight. We had a long day, and another one ahead of us! Next up: Kobe, Japan.

Quantum of... Solace

Disclaimer: There is a currently a travel advisory issued against all non-essential travel due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Government of Canada and the State Department have advised all Canadians and Americans to avoid all non-essential travel due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, all major cruise lines have suspended operations around the world until at least mid-April. I am not promoting any travel during this time. Please do not travel. I am just sharing my past travels and continuing to work on my blog while we are all practicing social distancing. If you are reading this, stay safe and healthy out there. Take care of yourself and each other. 

There are many places in China we wanted to visit but we only had two weeks, and with it being our first trip to China, we decided to take it easy. After our must-visits (Shanghai Disneyland and the Bund), we decided to set sail on a cruise. We chose a seven-day Royal Caribbean cruise to Japan; it was our first time in Japan as well.

We didn't have high expectations for the cruise. We had heard a lot about cruises in Asia, both good and bad. It's important that you do your research carefully before you head on an Asian cruise. A cruise in Asia is entirely different than a cruise in the Caribbean. The cruise is catered to the Chinese. The culture on the ship is entirely different. I don't want to discourage anyone from going on an Asian cruise, but I do want to make people aware of the cultural differences. As I've previously mentioned, my husband and I were not as affected, as we come from an Asian dominated Canadian city, and we are ourselves are of Asian decent, so we were familiar with the cultural differences.

Transportation: It was a long trek from the heart of Shanghai to the port of Baoshan, at about 75 minutes, but the taxi was cheap at around $25 - $30.

Embarkation: Because we were Emerald members, we were able to embark quite early. We were so happy to be able to do so, because we walked by a line of at least a thousand people lining up (in the heat) to embark.

Ship: We had wanted to sail on the Quantum class at some point in our lives. They mostly sail in Asia so we were thrilled to get the chance to sail on it. The ship was still pretty new, and in good shape. The Quantum is the 7th largest ship in the world, but it didn't feel nearly as big as the Oasis, but not small like the Navigator. We had a cove balcony stateroom with plenty of cabin storage. On that note, I loved our cove balcony! It felt private and it was very quiet.

Crew: The crew spoke some English, many understood what we were saying but had trouble speaking. Our stateroom attendant was great. He cleaned our room quickly. We didn't see much of him, but when we asked for anything, he delivered.

Activities: There's a chance to give acrobatics a try at the SeaPlex. There are a lot of activities such as bumper cars (shown below), rock climbing, the North Star (for a fee; shown below in action), RipCord by iFly (skydiving at sea for a fee; shown below), and of course, the FlowRider and much, much more. Tip: Book the North Star as soon as you get on the ship, we made the mistake of not doing so and it booked up fast for the rest of the week! We were bummed about that.

Entertainment: The shows are in Mandarin, but were all very entertaining and wonderfully performed. We especially loved Starwater, a visual production with robotic light technology and human choreography. There is also the casino. My husband likes to gamble, but it closed early almost every night.

Food: Dynamic dining with no set dining times, no assigned seats, and no formal nights. It was chaotic. The Chinese line up super early to get in the dining room. There are two seatings, and both have long lines. On any given day, we would wait at least thirty minutes for a table. You get a different table and a different server every night, and the menu is largely a variety of different Chinese cuisine. We aren't familiar with Northern Chinese foods, and we did try some, but we weren't a fan. We enjoyed the Southern Chinese food because it was what we were used to at home. We didn't know there was a Western menu until Day 4. The buffet was great as well, although they mostly served the same foods during the week. It was typical for long lines at the buffet, and to wait in line for the buffet, only to have someone cut in in front of you to get food. A simple (but stern) "excuse me" may get the offender to tuck their tail in between their legs and scurry away, but not always. On our last night, we were invited to Chops Grille for complimentary dinner. It was a lovely break from the crowds and the meal was superb!

Disembarkation: We strolled off the ship and grabbed a taxi back into the city. There are a ton of taxis at the port, and only the Westerners take it. The locals all get picked up.

Ports: I saved the best for last. The ports were the whole reason why we wanted to go on this cruise. Japan was on my wish list for a long time, we didn't think we would be able to visit anytime soon so we decided on this cruise to get a taste of Japan. The ports of call were Osaka, Kobe and Yokohama. All are major cities and there were so many things to do at each one. I'll be getting into what we did at each port in more details in my next few posts!

Stay tuned!

Shanghai Stories: Old City

The next day, we visited the Old City of Shanghai. The first attraction we visited was Yuyuan Garden. Yuyuan Garden is a classical Chinese garden. The garden has beautiful greenery with many grand stone sculptures, and classic Chinese architecture. There is a beautiful pond with koi fish in the middle of the garden. Koi fish attract good luck and fortune, which is why the Chinese hold such a high regard for these fishes. At the time of our entrance, the admission fee was 10 RMB. The garden is inside the bazaar. The bazaar is a maze but the garden is not hard to find as there are signs that lead you there.

One thing we missed at the Old City was afternoon tea at the Huxinting Teahouse. It is Shanghai's oldest teahouse, located by the Yuyuan Garden. If you plan to visit, I suggest making reservations ahead of time!

We also walked around the bazaar surrounding the temple and garden. The marketplace sold local souvenirs and snacks. We stopped by a well known dumpling store, Nanxiang Mantou Dian, to try out their xiaolongbaos. Shanghai's best known snack food is the xiaolongbao, or quite simply XLBs. These little dumplings are filled with hot soup and a pork filling; they are traditionally steamed in a bamboo basket. We also visited the City God Temple, with the admission price of 10 RMB.

After spending the whole day in the Old City, we decided to head to the Oriental Pearl Tower next. The Oriental Pearl Tower is located across from the Bund, on the other side of the Huangpu river. The tower had a revolving restaurant and an observation deck with a glass-bottomed skywalk for visitors. You can purchase different tour packages to visit the tower online or in person. We opted not to go inside as we didn't have much time. The tower is brightly lit in different LED sequences at night, so we spent some time watching the light show.

There are also several malls in the area, and Shanghai's flagship Disney store. We walked around the area and visited the Disney store, but soon found ourselves hungry. There weren't a whole lot of good food choices, and the restaurant (Din Tai Fung) we had wanted to go in the area had unfortunately closed down. We ended up grabbing something mediocre in the mall to fill our tummies.

Next up: a 7-day cruise to Japan!