We headed to Mount Rokko which was about a 50 minute drive from the port. We were going to a "scenic viewing" area along with a souvenir shop. But the closer we got, the more our guide focused on the souvenir shop since the weather was taking a turn. It was rainy and very foggy as we headed up the mountain with our driver carefully navigating the hairpin turns. We arrived at our destination and it was quite clear that we wouldn't be seeing any part of the mountain.
Angie and I often say that some excursions require an attitude of "imagine if you will". That goes back to a trip we had in Turkey where our guide brought us to a pile of rocks which were allegedly the Temple of Artemis. He started his talk with "imagine if you will". It was that way here. But you have to make the best of every situation. There was a lovely gift shop and a covered area. And also a vending machine that has Asahi beer!! So when life gives you lemons, get a lemon sour shandy from the vending machine.
After the stop at the viewing area, we got back on the bus and went to a ropeway. Ropeway is the term used in Japan for what would be called a gondola or tramway in the United States. In this case, it was actually a funicular, similar to those I've seen in Pittsburgh. We got a glimpse of the view from the top.
It was about 20 minutes to get to the bottom of the mountain. There were a bunch of Japanese school kids that were apparently on a field trip that joined us on the funicular. Two of the kids joined us at our seats. They were probably about seven years old. When we had been at Universal Studios Japan, some of the team members had given us Minions stickers. We weren't sure what we'd use them for. Angie had the perfect idea. She retrieved them from her travel bag and handed each of the kids a sticker. I'm not sure if they knew who the Minions were since they just stared at the stickers for the longest time. Memorized? Confused? Bewildered why two giant white people gave them these strange things? Eventually we got to the end of the tram and we all got off the funicular. I am sure both kids will have a great story to tell their parents about the strange Americans they met. And hopefully our passports won't get flagged. :-)
We got back on the bus and headed to our final stop on the tour which was the Hakatsuru Sake Brewery Museum. They had a two level museum witj displays showing the entire process of making sake.
At the end, they had two sakes to taste for no charge. And two others which were 500 JPY (~$3.85 USD) each. These were very expensive bottles of sake.
We tried them all. We then walked around the gift store since we were considering some sake to bring on the ship. We found one that had a sticker saying it was under 24 hour surveillance which certainly seemed odd. But maybe that meant it was in high demand? That was the one we picked. It was 3740 JPY (~29 USD).
We got back to the ship and headed to the buffet for some lunch. They had some really good short rib lasagna and I also had some roasted turkey breast and broccoli. Alas, no cranberry sauce. We both had one chocolate soft serve with cookie crumble topping. We then headed back to the cabin. Rachel the Cruise Director on this ship has done a nice job providing "on demand" port talks on the cabin TVs. We watched the one for Kochi which is where we will be tomorrow. I guess Rachel has a very soothing voice since we both fell asleep and had a 3+ hour nap. I guess we needed some rest.
About 6PM we were both ready to head out for some dinner. But first we stopped to see Freddie and Alfred at the Pinnacle Bar. Freddie makes an excellent Tanqueray 10 Martini. And they have blue cheese stuffed olives which I know my father-in-law would appreciate. Hopefully they have them on the Koningsdam when we sailed in May. We chatted with a nice couple from Hawaii and shared travel stories. That is another wonderful thing about cruising. You are travelling with other people that generally love to travel. You can always share stories about favorite places or learn about places you want to go. We talked a lot about the South Pacific and South America - two places we want to go but have yet to book.
We headed to dinner and they sat us at a table of four so we had lots of room. Angie looked amazing in her lavender dress. We both ordered seafood deviled eggs which were so tasty. I also was so impressed with the plating. Angie ordered French Onion Soup. This is usually a food nemesis. Not here. Angie said this was the best onion soup she had on a cruise - maybe anywhere. I had the hit and sour soup and it was also very good. The crunchy vegetables really added a nuance to the soup. I ordered the parmesan chicken breast. Such great flavor and moist chicken. And basil mashed potatoes!!! With a basil oil drizzle. Again some great playing. Angie has the pork belly and it was some of the best we have ever had. Wonderfully tendered. Crispy skin. Moist pork. And a savory gravy with hints of apple.
A really great meal. No dessert tonight.
We then headed to a Game Night in the Rolling Stone Lounge. The room was divided into two teams. They had two games. The first was called "Dynamic Duos". They showed two side by side photos of famous actors and you had to name the film they were in together. It was tricky since the pictures weren't scenes from the movie. They were regular photos of the stars. For example, they had a picture of Harrison Ford with a beard along with an older picture of Carrie Fisher. It took you a minute to figure out who they were and that the movie was Star Wars. The funniest one was a young Tom Hanks, probably from the "Bosom Buddies" days, along side a volleyball. Can you name the film? Our team came in first place. We won some Asian pins and a free drink!! First time a game show or trivia prize included a drink.
After the game show we headed to Billboard Onboard which is a dueling pianos venue. The two talented pianists were doing an "Icons" set. Some good renditions of the Beatles, Whitney Houston, The Eagles and Frankie Valli.
It was then time to head back to the cabin. We are in Kochi tomorrow. We have no plans yet but after watching Rachel's port talk, we may have some ideas. It's supposed to be sunny and warmer tomorrow - close to 20°C.
No comments:
Post a Comment