I almost canceled this cruise.  We booked it because friends had booked it.  We used our booking to set a marker for Raven Radio, to let the board know that we had a fixed end point to our commitment.  But after the station hired a new manager, I had second thoughts based on fears. 

I feared eating in Japan.  I’m allergic to all seafood.  Japanese cooking includes a lot of fish and fish oil.

I feared the long stretches of sea days.  I love sea days but in 2023, in the middle of the Indian Ocean, I started internal bleeding.  I ended up in the ships intensive care bed and was off loaded on the island of Mauritius where I spent two more weeks in the hospital before deemed fit to fly. I had nightmares about getting sick in the middle of the ocean.

Finally, I was concerned I really wouldn’t like Japan.  My experience as a student in Taiwan 55 years ago colored my views. Taiwan had been part of the Japanese “co-prosperity sphere” from 1895 to 1945.  That didn’t leave the Taiwanese feeling fondly about Japan.  I had traveled through Japan to get to Taiwan.  My memories were of pollution and noise. 

So, I almost canceled.

But my doctor said I was fit to sail.  I needed to face my fear.  I fear flying.  If I had let that fear rule my life I would have missed some of my most interesting and rewarding life experiences. 

A Japanese student at Sitka’s Outer Coast College printed up a card explaining my allergy. That helped allay my food fears.  She also gave me a list of things in Japan that I would enjoy.  We set sail and nightmares subsided. As it turned out I was quite taken with Japan.

Aside from our first long cruise in 2015 on Prinsendam this may have been my favorite cruise.  We both needed to take a break from Sitka after the intensity of managing Raven Radio, and the surprise of enjoying a place that I was dubious of added to the enjoyment.

I was relaxed.  I have been on enough cruises now not to suffer from FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). I took things at a slower pace, doing less and enjoying it more.

Holland America has regained its stride after the pandemic.  After past cruises I sent in suggestions and I was happy that Holland implemented several of them, including a return of classical music, printed maps and tip sheets for ports and putting the lectures on stateroom TV.  The team is still top notch and some of the glitches we had seen on the 2023 world cruise have been ironed out.

There was a less intense schedule of evening entertainment on the main stage. I appreciated this.  I liked that the musicians who we have been enjoying in the music venues got their time in the Main Stage spotlight.  I liked the jazz combo in the Ocean Bar.

But what I really liked was the chance to expand my knowledge. Rob Quintrell’s talks on the Second World War in the Pacific tracked our voyage.  We learned about the overall struggle and had lectures on the war in the Aleutians, Okinawa, Iwo Jima, Midway, Pearl Harbor and the Atom Bombings.  Rob’s lectures, as well as lectures on the natural history and culture of the region, gave us context.

Some of our fellow cruise mates set up a book club.  I didn’t attend — my more relaxed attitude to FOMO.  But I read the books (including some that they ended up not discussing) and that too made the trip meaningful.  We enjoyed catching up with old friends and making new friends, with the time to cultivate those friendships.  

If you count the landing page this is my 52^nd post.  It’s the first time I’ve had fewer posts than the number of days on the ship, another indication of my more relaxed attitude.

We’re home now and I found that I have lost several pounds.  We’re putting the clothes that we only use on cruises (I have little use for shorts and sandals, jackets and ties in Sitka) in a suitcase for our next cruise.  

I have a week to prepare for the election. I’m getting political ads on my iPhone rather than ads in Japanese. Much of the snail mail we got while gone was junk mail from candidates.  I count every piece and vote for the candidate who has sent me the least mail.  (Not really but it’s fun to tell them that.)  

We’re getting back into the swing of Sitka, church, Rotary, the upcoming Whale Fest, volunteering on-air at Raven without being responsible for the place, and of course, Thanksgiving, Solstice, Christmas and New Year, when the community comes together.

Below is one final gallery of Cruise photos.