"Treasures of Cruising the World" with Bill & Mary Ann: Report #48 Sailing Towards Incheon, South Korea February 17, 2017 Friday Cloudy & 47 degrees 29 Pictures

We forgot to mention that all during the night, white gulls were flying around the ship. Most likely attracted by our lights, they circled right outside the windows. Could be they were diving for food, because with the icy temperature, we cannot figure why else they would be following along with us.

Today was a simple one for us. Breakfast was later than usual, so we were taken a bit by surprise when Ellen and Aart asked us to dine with them. As they were already halfway into their meal, we asked for a rain check. A better idea was to join them with Barb at lunch time. So we took our time, downing lots of hot coffee, because it sure looked cold outside.

We did find that out when we went out one door on the lower promenade deck. With only sweatshirts on, it was nowhere near enough layers to stop the bite of the chilly wind. So we ducked in at the next door. We were painfully behind with photo downloading, so the morning was spent doing that.

Henk, our hotel director, had sent a note requesting the rest of our suggestions we had discussed in his office a few days ago. He wished us to give it to him before Mr. Ashford arrived in Korea, so he could follow up discussions with him. We suspect that we are not alone with our observations and suggestions to keep the HAL product a good deal.

The suggestions were further enhanced with our lunch mates, Barb, Ellen, and Aart. All combined, we have many years of sailing with HAL, and perhaps we may be heard. You never know if you never try. We all lingered over our mini-burgers while solving the problems of the world. We stayed until the waiters were setting up the dining room for dinner. Tonight will be a farewell to Japan, with Asian-type dishes.

Speaking of Asian meals, two alternating Tamarind meals have been added to the Pinnacle Grill menu. It is featured as the cuisine of Southeast Asia, China, and Japan. As we have never sailed on an HAL ship with that restaurant, we are not familiar with the food. Appetizers will include salmon, laksa, shrimp tempura and spring rolls. The entrees are sea bass, coconut chicken, and udon noodles. Side dishes are rice, bok choy, mushrooms, and assorted veggies. The second offering has tuna zuke, satay sampler, and spring rolls. Entrees include Szechuan shrimp, beef tenderloin, and udon noodles. Again, rice, bok choy, mushrooms, and veggies complete the meal. Dessert on both menus are Java mint and coconut rice pudding, and mango cloud. Sounds interesting…….

We made a lot of progress with reports and photos, although it took hours. We got the list up to Henk, who said thanks for going to the trouble. No trouble at all. At least they will know a sample of what the long time cruisers are saying, and maybe someone will listen.

It was a good time for one of us to begin gathering what we will need for the China overland trip. It is less than a week away, so it is as good a time as any to do some packing. We are going to try to limit our stuff to one suitcase, and a few carry-ons. We will have to wear our heavy winter coats to stay within the weight limits for flying. Now that it is getting closer, we are getting excited.

We did get to see Barbara's talk on Jeju City, Korea, although we missed the one on Incheon and Seoul. Turns out it was a waste of time to watch the one on Jeju. At 6pm tonight, Captain Jonathon came on the speaker and announced that he has made the decision not to make the stop in Jeju, due to the fact that our berth was not a safe one at this point in time. Another ship had our berth, and was going to move for the Amsterdam, but recanted today. Funny, we all had this discussion last night at dinner that it was odd that we would be heading north to Seoul, then go back south to Jeju. Now the plan is to spend two full days in Incheon (Seoul). It is also the place where Mr. Ashford, President of HAL, his family, and Gerald B, the Mariner Society Director will be boarding. By 10pm, we had two new tours added for the second day in Incheon. Of course, the tours in Jeju will be refunded. So will the port charges. We found that the port charges for missing Saipan were posted to our account in the neighborhood of $21. per person.

The passengers were invited to wear kimonos tonight as we bid farewell to Japan. We saw only a couple of the robes, but the best-dressed were our waiters and their assistants in their red or black Japanese jackets. For some unknown reason, the dining room was freezing cold, as were our entrees. We all pointed this out to Philip, who stopped by on his nightly rounds. He agreed that the plates are a big factor in keeping our food hot, and promised to try to resolve the problem. Perhaps it is as simple as bringing back the old plates. At least, we all enjoyed each other's company if not the cold food. Nice desserts made up for it. Even Martha had three of them.

We know it will be more than cold tomorrow as right now at midnight, the temperature outside is already 0 Celsius or 32 degrees F. This will be a new port for us, and for many of our friends too.

Bill & Mary Ann

Photos of our sailing towards Incheon, Korea……..the seas were rough and the winds strong.

Rock formations