I’ll soon be off to the ship…

I had dinner in the hotel last night.  The view of the harbor was beautiful with

large yachts and boats arriving back to the dock.

There was a big soiree last night at the hotel, and I saw the beginnings of the festivities as I ate a delicious steak salad. The party must have been related to a wedding, and the attendees were largely Indian.  The women were dressed in beautiful embroidered gowns and sarees.  Photos were being taken by a photographer as everyone arrived at the party on the hotel's patio overlooking the harbor. 

Well, I retired for the evening and slept until 8 AM (California time).  I’m up and will soon be off to the harbor.  I’ll be glad once I’m finished with the embarkation process and unpacked for the duration of the trip.

A long travel day, but I'm in Los Angeles...

The shuttle picked me up at 2:30 am.   I made it from GSP to Dulles (Washington, DC), and then safely to LAX (3 pm LA time).

Senator Corey Booker (someone with presidential ambitions) sat across from me on the plane.  There was a slight incident on the plane in the back during the flight.  I wasn't aware of it until they announced for us to remain seated at LAX while they removed two folks. It was an older Asian man and woman who had to be escorted off the plane.  I'm not sure what it was all about, but they were conversing with police officers as I walked into the terminal.

There was a little communication error on the car service that was to take me to my hotel.  I was looking for a Lincoln, but the driver was in a Suburban.  The driver and I finally connected.  He was extremely nice and originally from Sri Lanka.  He was excited when he discovered I had been to his home city of Colombo in 2015.

I'm now at my hotel, and I have a view of the harbor.  I think I'll turn in early tonight after some dinner.

The view from my hotel room.  I'm in the port area of Los Angeles for the night before boarding the ms Amsterdam tomorrow afternoon.

I have a couple of extended land trips on this journey in Asia...

I have two extended overland trips while on this voyage.  After a tour of Beijing on the second day of the visit, I will be traveling for four days.  The first stop will be to visit the Temple of Heaven and the Great Wall of China.  I will then take a flight to Xi’an to visit the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda and the Terracotta Warriors Museum.  On the fourth day I will fly to Shanghai for a tour of Yu Yuan Garden and Old Town Shanghai before rejoining the ship at the pier. 

The second extended tour required an additional visa to Cambodia.  Getting the visa to Cambodia was really easy (an e-Visa that you apply for and receive online).  After a visit to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and sights, I will fly to Siem Reap, Cambodia.  On the second day I will spend the day at Angkor Wat.  This is the largest temple/religious monument in the world.   The trip includes both a sunset and a sunrise the following day at the temple.  Several other temples and sites will be visited before a flight to Singapore to rejoin the ship.  

Grand Asia and Pacific is a little over a week away...

Two of my suitcases will leave by FEDEX today, and I hope to catch up with these pieces of luggage in the Port of Los Angeles when I board the ms Amsterdam on September 30.  

My cabin has changed three times in the past year since I booked this trip.  I usually start out with an interior room (lowest cost and the first to fill).  They bumped me up (no additional charge) six months ago to a room on the same deck with a window.  I made the third move last June when I was offered a chance to move to the veranda deck.  The "Vista Suite"  was the option for a reasonable fee.  They're still offering upgrades to the Neptune level, but I've resisted at the charge they want.  Single folks must pay 200% of the charge for such upgrades.

There have been a few changes, and I've had a few excursions canceled and rebooked.  I'm getting excited, and I hope no hurricanes interrupt flight schedules on September 29.

Date                                                              Port of Call

Sunday, Sept. 30                                          Los Angeles – Embarkation

Oct. 1 – 5                                                     At Sea

Saturday, Oct. 6                                           Dutch Harbor, Alaska

10/7-10 (Intl Date Line – 10/8)                   At Sea (no October 8)

Saturday, Oct. 11                                         Petropavlovsk, Russia

Oct. 12 – 13                                                  At Sea

Sunday, Oct. 14                                            Kushiro, Japan

Monday, Oct. 15                                          At Sea

Oct. 16 – 17                                                  Yokohama, Japan

Thursday, Oct. 18                                         Shimizu, Japan

Friday, Oct. 19                                              Kobe, Japan

Saturday, Oct. 20                                          Kochi, Japan

Sunday, Oct. 21                                            Kanmon Strait & Fukuoka, Japan

Oct. 22 – 23                                                  At Sea

Oct. 24 – 25                                                  Tianjin/Bejing, China

Oct. 26 – 27                                                  At Sea

Oct 28 -29                                                     Shanghai, China

Tuesday, Oct. 30                                          At Sea

Wednesday, Oct. 31                                     Naha/Okinawa , Japan

Thursday, Nov. 1                                          Ishigaki Island, Japan

Friday, Nov. 2                                               Keelung/Taipei, Taiwan

Saturday, Nov. 3                                          At Sea

Nov. 4 – 5                                                     Hong Kong, China

Tuesday, Nov. 6                                           At Sea

Wednesday, Nov. 7                                      Nha Trang, Vietnam

Thursday, Nov. 8                                          Phu My, Vietnam

Friday, Nov. 9                                               At Sea

Nov. 10 – 11                                                 Singapore

Monday, Nov. 12                                         At Sea

Tuesday, Nov. 13                                         Semarang, Java, Indonesia

Wednesday, Nov. 14                                    At Sea

Thursday, Nov. 15                                        Benoa, Bali, Indonesia

Friday, Nov. 16                                             Komodo Island, Indonesia

Saturday, Nov. 17                                        At Sea

Sunday, Nov. 18                                           Darwin, Australia

Nov. 19 – 22                                                 At Sea

Thursday, Nov. 22                                        Cairns, Australia (Great Barrier Reef)

Nov. 23 – 24                                                 At Sea

Sunday, Nov. 25                                           Mooloolaba, Australia

Monday, Nov. 26                                         At Sea

Nov. 27 – 28                                                 Sydney, Australia

Nov. 29 – 30                                                 At Sea

Saturday, Dec. 1                                           Noumea, New Caledonia

Sunday, Dec. 2                                             Easo, Lifou, New Caledonia

Monday, Dec. 3                                            Mystery Island, Vanuatu

Tuesday, Dec. 4                                            At Sea

Wednesday, Dec. 5                                      Port Denerau (Nadi), Fiji

Thursday, Dec. 6                                          Suva, Viti Levu, Fiji Islands

Friday, Dec. 7                                               At Sea

Sat., Dec. 8 (Intl Date Line)                          Apia, Upolo, Samoa

Sat., Dec. 8 (Intl Date Line)                          Pago, Pago, American Samoa

December 9 – 13                                          At Sea

Friday, Dec. 14                                             Honolulu, Hawaii

Saturday, Dec. 15                                         Lahaina, Hawaii

Dec. 16 – 20                                                  At Sea

Friday, Dec. 21                                             Los Angeles Disembarkation