We went on a private shore excursion organized by Mary from Cruise Critic. Our little group of 8 left the ship around 8:15am and quickly met our guide Fumie and boarded a jumbo taxi.
Our first stop was at a tea farm where we learned how tea was grown and harvested. The tea combine was a cool piece of machinery. Afterwards we enjoyed a sampling of hot and cold teas and a delicious taste of tea leaves served with a touch of soy sauce.
Our next stop was at the very scenic and World Heritage site Shiraito no Taki Waterfalls where we did a 45 minute walk to view the falls.
Our last stop was at the main shrine devoted to worshippers of Mt. Fuji. It's called Fujisan Honju Sengentaisha. Besides a large shrine there were lovely water features and a large samurai statue.
We had to be back on board by 3pm but we walked to the 100yen store for some misc items before reboarding the ship. We watched the sailaway and participated in the end of the Cruise Critic meet and greet. While tonight was a gala night we opted to have a free quiet dinner in the Caneletto.
Our evening entertainment was the Jersey Tenors who had two members we saw on prior cruises (Jacob and Danny). Jacob remembered us and said he wondered if we were still on the ship from when we last saw him. Joe Holliday presented an Evening Insight on sea birds of Japan and Marc Wilson told a chilling bedtime story.
We're looking forward to returning to Shimizu in two weeks when we return on our second loop. Stay tuned.
No comments:
Post a Comment