Day 77 - Sunday March 31, 2024, Nagasaki, Japan Arrival: 08:00 All Aboard: 16:30 Departure 17:00 Happy Easter We will be docked at the port of Nagasaki which is surrounded by mountains. The port is home to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and I can see several ships being constructed here. As we make our way into the harbour, three Japanese naval ships are docked. One of them is a submarine. A Viator walking tour with a local had been booked by Janice. The guide...

Day 76 - Saturday, March 30, 2024, Busan, South Korea Arrival 11:30 All Aboard: 19:30 Departure: 20:00 As we make our way into Busan Insignia sails under the Yeongdodaegyo Bridge which connects Busan's mainland to the to the Yeongdo district on Yeongdo Island. The late arrival time does not give us much time to explore but Janice has booked a ½ day Viator of Busan. Our guide Ellie greets us at the cruise terminal. Busan is the second most populated c...

Day 75 - Friday March 29, 2024, Hiroshima, Japan Arrival: 7:00 All Aboard: 15:30 Departure: 16:00 Good Friday The clouds are breaking up. It must have rained overnight as the deck chairs are wet. Two tugboats have been directing Insignia into our berth directly outside the Hiroshima Cruise Terminal. We have a Viator booked with our friends Jean and Pete. The day will be a somber one as we will be visiting the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Site. Our guide (S...

Day 74 - Thursday March 28, 2024, Nara, Japan All Aboard: 17:30 Departure: 18:00 After an exhausting day of touring, we are up early again for a journey to Nara on the other side of Kyoto. Our friends Jean and Pete will also be along with us. The decision is to take the bullet train in both directions along with return tickets on a feeder train to Nara. The return trip to Nara takes two hours and our bullet train from Kyoto was booked for 14:00 so there is not...

Day 73 - Wednesday March 27, 2024, Kyoto (Kobe), Japan Arrival: 11:00 Overnight in port Last night the ship was rocking, but it did not affect our sleep. In fact, it made it very soothing. The weather changed for the better this morning with blue skies but blustery winds. Ray our cruise director informed us that due to the strong winds now and overnight, Insignia's arrival would be delayed by one hour until 12:00. The deck doors have been closed due to the st...