19. Homeward bound

Diamond Princess arrived back in Yokohama before dawn, all our goodbyes had been said the evening before, and as our flight did not leave Narita until after 10pm we opted to take a disembarkation tour, partly to use up a few hours and more importantly, to see a little bit more of Tokyo.

The first of two stops was at the Asakusa shrine, the same place that our friend, Hiromi, had taken us to when we had first arrived in the city. But this time it was different; there was not a rain cloud or an umbrella in sight and the locals were out in force. There were many schoolchildren taking their weekly lesson away from the classroom but more striking were the teenagers. Unlike the US or the UK where the teens hang out at the mall, here, the thing to do is to dress in a yukata (a less formal and less expensive kimono) and promenade with your friends, taking selfies. It really was quite a colourful sight.

The second stop was the Meiji shrine which is a Buddhist temple in the middle of a man made forest in the centre of the city. Once again, there were as many locals as tourists because this temple is where parents bring their 3 to 5 year olds to receive a blessing from the monks and to wish them good luck and good fortune. Hence there were lots of family groups all dressed up, dad and young sons in suits, mum and young daughters in yukatas, and often proud grandparents looking on.

Thus our trip came to a close as we were dropped off at the airport and I am composing these final thoughts at 35,000ft, somewhere over South Korea.

Although we have had the disappointment of the missed ports of call, this has still been a very special and interesting trip, as we had both wanted to visit Japan for a long time, me to experience the culture first hand after so many years of dealing with the Japanese through work, and Claire to see Mt. Fuji and ride the bullet train. It's also been fascinating comparing the Japanese culture with those of Korea and Taiwan. We felt the latter two countries were far more "westernised", for example, nearly everyone in Japan was dressed smartly or smart casual, whereas in Korea and Taiwan jeans were the order of the day. Politeness abounds throughout the region but in Japan it is taken to (from our western perspective), extremes but that is all just part of the charm and appeal of the country. Long may it stay that way!

I could not end this travelogue without mentioning Luca, the solo guitarist entertainer aboard the ship. He is from Italy and lives in Mexico and although he doesn't have the best singing voice, he is a very good and versatile guitarist. He looks as though he has just come off the set of Spinal Tap and has all the moves and faces to match and when he looks at his his watch, you can't help wondering if he is checking to see if he is still in the seventies. Obviously he has to play songs that the majority of the older passengers like, the usual "standards". However, when he had the late night slot, a younger and more discerning audience would buy him tequilas and get him to play the things he would much rather play such as anything by Santana, Clapton's "Cocaine", or Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water". Fabulous!

Finally, just a couple of amusing anecdotes from along the way.

Yumi - (trivia question hostess) - which creature can sleep for twelve months at a time and mates just once every three years?

Carrie -(one of our sometime team members), shouting loudly from the back of the lounge "My husband!"

(The correct answer is evidently a snail.)

At dinner, talking about famous people we have met.

Terry - "I bumped in to Senator Teddy Kennedy at a convention in Boston once."

Me - "I hope you didn't ask him for a ride home" (I'm not sure he appreciated that one!)

So, it is now time for us to say "sayanora" to Japan, but you have just whetted our appetite and we definitely intend to be back again someday soon!