Around the world...

 Viking prides itself on being the cruise line for thinking people. Now I do not think of myself as a great thinker. People seldom accuse me of having profound thoughts. However, I do enjoy learning new things. Viking is very good about providing opportunities to learn, especially on days like today when we are at sea. No chance to get off the ship and stroll through an interesting city. Our next chance to do that is five days away. 

Meanwhile, our educational opportunities today included a lecture about James Cook who traveled around the world for years. What interested me most, while looking at a map of his trips, was how he got to the orient from England.  Being from the US, I envisioned him sailing west from England, down the east coast of South America, around the Horn, then off into the Pacific. Instead, according to the map, he sailed south from England, along the west coast of Africa, around the southern tip, then east into the great Pacific. He visited sites from Australia north, all the way to the west coast of Canada and Alaska. Fun fact, he made his crew members eat sauerkraut to keep from getting Scurvy. Not so fun, he had a fiery temper and ended up being beaten to death by a group of indigenous people on a remote island. 

He did keep meticulous records and is credited with creating, or having created, very accurate maps of the Canadian, Alaska coastline. Meanwhile, back in the eastern part of America a little scuffle we refer to as the Revolutionary War was going on. Isn't history interesting?

Glass half full..

 I like to think of myself as a positive kind of person, able to make the best of a situation, but yesterday and today have been a bit of a strain. We are currently docked at Otaru, about a one hour drive from Sapporo, with a lovely view of Mt. Tengu. At least we think it's Mt. Tengu. Yesterday evening, soon after we docked we boarded a bus for an excursion up Mt. Tengu by bus and cable car, anticipating an amazing night view of the lights of the city, and a starry sky. Everything went according to plan with one little exception. A dense fog moved in and completely obliterated the view from the cable car and from the top of the mountain. As I sat at a window seat in the mountain top restaurant I gazed out the window but all I could see was my own gray reflection in the fog shrouded window. Not the least bit interesting. The tiny little cheesecake slices we were served were quite tasty, so the evening wasn't a total loss. 

But today, ever optimistic, my spouse and I were up and out and on our assigned tour bus by 8:20am, ready for a driving tour of Sapporo, a visit to a Shinto shrine, and a tour of an historic village, Hokkaido, which was full of interesting old buildings. All of this to be accomplished in four hours. Fog still hung on the mountain tops but things were relatively clear at ground level. The shrine was beautiful but we couldn't go inside because of a ceremony taking place. The historic village was interesting but one would need at least one whole day to fully appreciate it. The occasional bursts of driving rain and cold wind really didn't help either. 

I did learn some interesting things though. Sapporo was the site of the ski jumping events in the 1972 Olympics. Sapporo gets an average of 16 feet of snow every winter. Their winter lasts from September to April. They are famed for amazing seafood. Their traditional houses are built with flat roofs. This doesn't create a problem with all that snow because the roofs slope in slightly toward the center where there is a drain pipe which allows the melting snow to drain down through the center of the house and to flow away underground from there. 

We are back on board our ship now, having passed through Japanese customs one last time, waiting to cast off at 6:00pm.  Next stop Kodiak Alaska. We should be there in about seven days. Meanwhile we will eat (the food on board is delicious) sleep, enjoy the views, make new friends and generally just goof off. I have enjoyed Japan but I'm ready to move on.  

At Sea

 After two fascinating days touring Tokyo we are now on our way to Sapporo. We boarded our ship, the Viking Orion day before yesterday. This will be our home for the next three weeks. It's such a pleasure to be unpacked and settled in.  Just one little problem, I haven't quite gotten my sea legs yet and it's choppy this morning. Not a real problem. Plenty of handrails along the way from our cabin to the elevator then down to the dining room. I marvel at how the waiters, carrying trays of food and drink, usually one handed, maneuver between tables, avoiding passengers like me who are still feeling wobbly and deliver meals perfectly. I think they must be hired for their sense of balance. But enough of this pondering. It's time to go to breakfast.  

AI toilet??

 Not to be indelicate, but the hotel we stayed in for the last two nights had the most amazing toilet. We were at the ANA Intercontinental Tokyo. Now we are on the Viking ship Orion ready to set sail tomorrow for Sapporo and points north but I will not soon forget the toilet in that hotel room bathroom. First of all the seat was heated, very comfy, secondly, it flushed with no prompting when I was finished, even before I stood up. How did it know? Third, and most fun, there was a "control center" mounted on the edge of the counter right beside the toilet. It offered options for hard sprays or gentle sprays, with warm water of course, from every possible direction beneath your bottom. My spouse tells me it was a Toto brand, probably available in the US. I want one. 

Box lunch

 Today was a full day spent site seeing all around Tokyo. We visited a Shinto shrine and got to see the outside of the Imperial Palace. There was a lot of walking involved. My very favorite part of the day was the "box lunch." Our paperwork said that we would be having a box lunch at an historic old hotel and would be able to stroll through the beautiful old woods adjacent to the hotel after we ate. It sounded nice but not wildly exciting. 

Things started getting interesting when we were led off the bus and into an elegant hotel, lavishly decorated inside. Crystal chandeliers all over the place. We then took five long escalator rides down to a lovely large dining room, round tables for eight, set with linen and silverware, and at each place a black wooden box about 10 inches square and three inches deep. When we opened the boxes we discovered that the inside was split into quarters and in each section there was a little china dish holding some delicious tidbit. We had fish, beef, rice and veggies in tasty sauces or brine. Then there was 'Ancient rice with sesame' and a Japanese sweet of the day. 

I have never had such an elegant box lunch. As we were leaving the hotel we watched a wedding couple having their pictures taken. Evidently they have lots of weddings there. The bride's train cascaded down five steps of an awesome staircase. 

If I ever come back to Tokyo I will stay downtown at the Hotel Chinzanso Tokyo.

Tokyo...

 We have arrived in Japan and are ready to go touring some historic sites today. The ANA Intercontinental Tokyo is a fine hotel, good shower, comfy bed, excellent breakfast buffet. It meets all my criteria. The 13 hour overnight flight was quite comfortable. I highly recommend flying business class. It was like having my own little bedroom. Stay tuned for further adventures.

On our way...

 After an early, early start in Fort Wayne (up at 4am picked up by our Uber driver at 5am) we have arrived in Chicago. An uneventful flight although, if you count the runway time, it felt like we were driving most of the way. But we're here now. We have had brunch, not as good as Klem's but the coffee helped a lot. Now we are in the business class waiting area for our Tokyo flight. My Wonder Spouse did a great job of guiding us to the right terminal and gate. 

About that Uber driver... he was waiting when we opened the garage door (the easiest way to get the luggage out) and later as we drove admitted that he had been waiting since 4:30 having driven up from Muncie or maybe Cincinnati (it wasn't quite clear).  He was cheerful and seemed competent but his car really needed a visit to Mike's. I wondered how he could see out the windshield. Using the wipers just seemed to smear the murk around.

But enough about Ralph. We are on our way and that's what counts.