Yesterday, we were at sea and the highlight of the day was a lecture by General Lord Dannatt on “Boots on the Ground - Britain and her Army Today.” A reflection on British history since the end of the Second World War until today, through the experiences of the British Army within the context of our foreign, security and defense policy and against the background of economic and social development. If this sound a bit dry, you now have a good appreciation for the actual presentation. However, this is history through the eyes of the top general in the British Army. Not something that I wanted to miss.
Today, we are in the port of Kagoshima at the south west tip of the island of Kyushu. It has been nicknamed the “Naples of the Eastern world” for its bay location, hot climate and impressive volcano in the middle of the bay. As Vesuvius towers over Naples, the volcano Sakurajima towers over Kagoshima. Our tour guide assured us, the volcano has not erupted lava since 1914, however it does erupt smoke and steam three or four times a day.
We took a short ship’s tour today. First to a local distillery and then to the top a hill overlooking the town. The distillery makes a blended whiskey using both wheat and rice. The mash is fermented in small batches in large ceramic jars set into the floor. It is then run through a still, aged, and blended before bottling. The whole process is very different from the process for making sake. The distillery was also much more generous in their tasting room. By 10:30 in the morning, everyone on our tour was very happy.
Second part of our tours was a bus ride through the center of town, and a drive to the observation point above the town. The observation point is set in a wooded area with paths running every which way. A number of souvenir shops are set around the parking lot. A very beautiful view of the town, the bay and the volcano in the background. For some reason, unknown to us, there was a submarine out in the middle of the bay. After a lot of pictures, a bit of walking around and a couple of ice cream cones, we were back on the bus for our drive back to the ship.
At the pier, we dropped into the local tourist information building. Sandra needed some Japanese stamps for post cards. The girl behind the counter really surprised us. She spoke perfect English without a hint of an accent. She said she had studied in Australia but some how had lost that accent. After a number of tour guides with imperfect English skills, it was a revaluation to speak with this young lady. Also, Sandra got her stamps.
At 4:00 P.M., everyone was back on the ship, the lines to the pier were removed, the Captain moved the ship away from the pier, and we were on our way to Busan, South Korea.
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| Fermentation vats |
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| Prep Area |
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| Old Still |
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| Finished Product |
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| Spare Fermentation Vats |
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| Happy Owners |
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| Volcano from the Observation Point |
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| The Submarine |
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| Volcano from our ship |
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| Sail Away Celebration on the Pier |
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