Special Events, Hong Kong, My "Herzblatt"

March 26, 2012

The QM 2 has an excellent entertainment staff and there are many daily activities as well as special events, e.g. balls are scheduled at intervals throughout the voyage. The most traditional ball is the Black and White Ball, the first one of each segment of the voyage, to honour the officers.

On the 23rd, there was the MADAME BUTTERFLY Ball - it would have been perfect for Maya and her magnificent voice. Knowing that the ball was scheduled, I had asked another passenger (my new little sister) who was going on a tour, to buy a kimono for me - pink or peach. I should have described peach. I meant a light salmon colour. What she bought was gorgeous but looked more orange so I did not consider wearing it.

At first, I borrowed a bathrobe-type kimono from one of the shop assistants to wear to the Senior Officers' cocktail party, which took place before the ball. After that, on a whim, I tried to real kimono and it was beautiful. Instructions from the internet helped with everything but the obi - the large flap worn on the back. I went to the ballroom, tapped on the first woman I saw wearing a kimono, pointed to her obi, to my obi held in front of me and looked at her pitifully.

She understood, took me to the hallway, undressed me down to the underwear (there were other passengers going into the ball at this time), then dressed me properly. Two pieces were missing - cords - one to tie the kimono and the other to tie the obi. She supplied one for the kimono and tied the obi into a butterfly shape - very appropriate.

Simply put, the kimono and I were stunning. The last time I got so many compliments was at my debutante ball, back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth.

On to Hong Kong which is undoubtedly the most vertical city I have ever seen. It looks a bit like Legoland for giants. There are building sites everywhere - I only wish I had the crane concession.

There seems to be much more ethnic diversity although over 90% of the HK residents are ethnic Chinese.

Yesterday (1st day) we were at anchor and had a 30 minute tender ride in a HK tender to HK island. Then, a Star ferry to Kowloon. Many years ago there was a tv detective show, set in HK (starring Rod Taylor) and the ferry ride was fairly long.

Today, according to one of the agents, so much land has been reclaimed that the ride takes only about 6 minutes. The ticket, in this case it's a plastic token, machine is also in English as is much in HK so no problems.

The walk to Nathan Road - looking for ballroom dancing shoes - took only about 10 minutes, past Tiffany's, Gucci, Prade, LV - you get the idea.

Once on Nathan Road, there are street-side salesmen every 10 paces - Rolex watches for $15, LV bags for 10, "You want a tailor???".

Found the shop, got some shoes and an evening bag at a stall next door, a jacket and a very Chinese blouse. The shopkeeper is closing - too much competition from the mainland - so he said. He cannot compete because he has to pay HK rent and utility prices so tourists stock up in Shanghai. There are probably a lot of Westerners who know how he feels.

Sign beside the front door on a Hong Kong bus!



During the night, the ship was moved and I awoke in the container terminal - like Bremerhaven or HH but much bigger.

And, last night I said "auf Wiedersehen" to DJ Lee - the QM2's resident DJ - a real sweetheart, my Herzblatt - a leaf of my heart. His contract ended in HK, and I will really miss him. Lee is friendly, competent and very easy to look at - right, Tita??

Our next stop is Vietnam and all I can think of is the song from Country Joe and the Fish, from the 1970's - "Well, it's one, two, three, what am I fighting for, Look at me, I don't give a damn, I'm off to Vietnam...." The difference is that I go in peace, with an American Express card in my pocket.

March 22nd, Regrets and A Motto

On this day last year, I was driving to work when my cell phone rang. The number in the display was from Florida and I immediately knew the reason - my father had died. At that time, I was mourning one brother and worried about the other who was scheduled for an operation. Six weeks later, my entire birth family was gone and I made up my mind to do some of the things I had put off doing. My father and brothers had often mentioned plans never brought to fruition.

One brother voiced his regrets, the other just felt them. My father had an enormous folder with every letter I had ever sent, dating back to letters from camp when I was 12. He had traveled with me through the US, Turkey, Europe, through my letters, but had never joined me.

So, whatever it is that you have thought about doing, talked about doing, wanted to do, do it now, or as soon as possible, and tell me about it. In the meantime, enjoy this journey with me.

Now, for the motto from DeeDee which I love:

Some mistakes are just too much fun to make only once.

Osaka, My new ex-husband,Nagasaki and Japanese TV

March 18th.

It's cold in Osaka. As you may remember, I started this journey in December, planning to visit the US. So, I packed two warm blouses, 2 pullovers (sweaters to Americans) and warm trousers. This morning, I got them all out of the suitcase under the bed.

Awoke after about 3 hours of sleep (St Patrick's Day party +) and got ready to go to Nara, the old imperial city. At the Namba station I ran into Sandrine, the French hostess aboard and 3 of the pursers who were going to the Osaka castle - I had forgotten about it. Quick change of plans.

Sandrine is Parisian - chic, self-assured (aren't they all?) and lots of fun. She sings in the crew talent shows and I hope she will do M'LORD next time.

She charmed a subway ticket agent and he escorted us to the correct line. Two trains and lots of stairs from the subway to the street, we emerged into the rain. If I thought there were lots of stairs coming out of the subway, they were nothing compared to the stairs to and inside the castle.

There is an elevator in the castle, with a sign saying, "Elevator does not open on this floor". Unfortunately, it was the same sign on every floor. So, I climbed and climbed and realized that I should be doing more stair climbing on a regular basis. I will, I promise, as soon as the blisters heal.

The castle, used in the tv movie SHOGUN, is beautiful, if formidable. On a promontory and surrounded by a moat, the setting makes it easy to imagine the shogun wars and the defense.

Inside, there is a museum which details the history of the castle with exquisite exhibitions including screen panels, about 12 feet wide (about 4 m) based on fragments of a screen dating from the 16th century. It took the artist 5 years to complete. My favorite "room" was a recreation of the shogun's golden tea salon - small and perfect.

There were Shinto shrines outside and I took a minute to say a prayer. Later, I stood on the castle wall, loking down at a zen garden with cherry trees beginning to blossom and birds singing,and was mesmerized by the tranquility emanating from it - this in the middle of a mega-city with gridlock despite 8-lane highways.

In the evening, back on the ship, HORIZONS, a 3-man Motown group performed in the Royal Court Theater and one of the singers came down, had me stand up and then told the audience that he had been looking for me, I was his ex-wife. He kept up the routine for about 2 minutes leading into the song SHOUT. He is so gorgeous and sings so well, I would never have let him get away.

Nagasaki is very much like a small Osaka. I did not go to any memorials but spent quite a bit of time at the Glover Garden. Glover was a 19th century merchant who established a fishing company in Nagasaki and founded a dynasty there. He build a Western-style house on the land overlooking the harbour.

 






Beginning in the 1970's, I think, the park was established and other Western-style houses in Nagasaki were dismantled and rebuilt in the garden. There is a statue of Giacomo Puccini, author of tragic-heroine operas, especially MADAME BUTTERFLY, set in Nagasaki and apparently based on real people. The fountains and waterways within the park, along with birds singing, reminded me of the Osaka castle gardens.

As I was feeding the largest goldfish I have ever seen, a camera crew approached and asked where I was from. When I said, "Washington, D.C.", an interview followed.

In the 1920"s the Japanese government presented a large number of cherry trees - sakura - to the American people. The trees were planted along the Potomac river and there is a festival every year when they blossom. It is a magnificent sight and one of my fondest memories of Washington.

So, on April 25th and May 2nd, my interview will be broadcast on Japanese satellite tv and the internet. Autographs will be available shortly thereafter.

Shanghai tomorrow but not for me - no visa.