USA 2025 Cruising the Mississippi

 

© Christopher Golis 2025

Summing up San Diego

Vivienne and I had a pretty hectic time socially.

We are staying with my sister in one of the most affluent suburbs in San Diego (Mission Hills) and yesterday we had lunch at the most affluent, La Jolla.

The majority are Democrat’s convinced Trump is going to destroy the USA.   We reply, surrounded by unbelievable wealth, that actually life does not seem that bad here.

 Summing up Memphis

We spent 4 days walking in Memphis and our hotel was only a 5-minute walk from Beale Street.  On day 2 over lunch, Mayer calmly announced that Memphis is the homicide capital of the USA, per captia, and Beale Street is one of the most dangerous streets in the USA.  This was corroborated by the Trump appointed Director of FBI, Kash Patel who had declared during a press conference that this was the most surprising thing he had learnt during his tenure. To revive the town, Memphis is trying to develop a tourist industry around its historic connections to Blues, Soul ad Rock &Roll ad this was a dart to the heart.  Forget the warning, Memphis is a terrific place to visit.

Summing up the Mississippi

It is a big river that gets bigger every mile to San Orleans.  We did the cruise on Viking Mississippi, only 2 years old and staffed only by Americans.  Viking’s market niche is top of the market, no kids, no casinos, and the emphasis is on exploring and explanation.  This trip was excellent value and made you realise how important the Mississippi has been in the history of the USA.

Summing up New Orleans

Although it was hit with the double whammy of Hurricane Katrina and Covid, the city is rebounding well.  Stay at the Hotel Monteleone in the French Quarter.  Forget Bourbon Street.  My favourite story was that 10 inmates escaped the nearby state prison.  The main Casino and Newspaper immediately organised a lottery on which inmate would be the last one caught.

 

Thurs 15 May 202

The trip begins with a 21:30 flight Sydney to San Francisco,  Our taxi to Mascot that normally takes 30 minutes took an hour as our driver brilliantly drove us through a very heavy thunderstorm.  We get to the check-in counter where the assistant immediately called in her supervisor.  She took one look at me and asked if I had a medical certificate to travel.  On Monday I had a BCC removed from my right eyebrow, I also had the stitches taken out for a suspected BCC on my forehead removed 7 days earlier,.  Unfortunately, the suspected BCC was an SCC and not all of it had been removed.  The doctor said I needed to see a plastic surgeon, unbelievably I saw the surgeon at 8:45 am the day and he decided to remove it that afternoon.  The result was a massive black eye.  So I ended up in a video conference with a specialist in Los Angeles who ultimately gave me clearance to travel. 

Viviene then returns to the check-in counter to be told that while I could get on the plane she could not.  She did not have a ETSI Visa, Fortunately I had a hard copy of her visa approval and soon we were good to go.  In the Business class lounge we polished off a bottle of champagne in 30 minutes.  We arrived in San Fracisco early.  Because I brought my cane and requested a wheelchair we shot through customs in 10 minutes.   Unfortunately, the plane to take us San Diego arrived late, we missed our take off slot, we then had to wait 90 minutes before another slot became free.  Then just as we were about to land in San Diego 3 hours late the pilot hit full throttle upwards.  We started another circle and the pilot announced that the reason the first attempt was aborted was that we were outside the safety parameters to land.  We all quickly disembarked 3.5 hours late in silence.

Friday 16 May 2025

We spent the day recovering from the trip.  That night we attended a concert at the newly refurbished Jacobs Music Centre.  The first part was the Saint-Seans Piano Concerto No 5.  The soloist like the composer wss French, Jean-Yves Thibaudet.  Most of you have heard him play.  He is the pianist in the latest film version of Pride and Prejudice.

 After the interval the orchestra played the rarely performed Shostakovich Symphony No 7 The Leningrad.  I thought the first movement excellent but the rest had too many notes.  However, when I researched the history of the composition I changed my mind.  It is a fascinating story, The siege of Leningrad began in November 1941 and Shostakovich began composing it shortly afterwards.  The first movement depicts the beginning of the siege with the advance of the Germa Army.  He finished the symphony in December and the rest of the symphony depicts the ambiguity of many ‘victories’.   For Leningrad this was certainly the case.   The siege lasted 3 years and over a million Russians died.  The symphony was performed over 60 times in its first season, an amazingly high number for a first composition.   80 years later it is rarely performed.

Saturday 17 May 2025

Sunday 18 May 2025

Wendy throws her weekly dinner party for 10 people.  Somehow our conversation moves from psychotherapy (everyone in California is in therapy) to people profiling that most of you know is a subject close to my heart. Ooe of the female guests asks me to profile her using my 7MTF technology ,  I begin by saying there is some manic in her temperament,   She stands up, aggressively sucks in air and  then screams ‘‘I am not a Manic!!!’  Later on, I profile her husband who scores me 10/10 for his profile, and the same score for his wife when she is out of ear shot. 

Monday 19 May 2025\

Wendy has organised for my stiches to be removed in the morning and I concurrently receive messages that both cancers have been removed, that afternoon after touring San Diego we go to lunch in La Jolla, the most affluent suburb in San Diego if not the USA with two food friends  of Wendy: Davis & Sharrie. 

Tuesday 20 May 2025

We have a chill-0ut day.  8 of us meet for dinner at a local Mexican restaurant, The link between the two groups is Catherine Mayer, Anthony’s sister and a great fried of my sister when they both ere studying at Bath Tech.  Another great night.  

Wednesday 21 May 2025\

We fly to Memphis via Dallas a massive airport and hub for American Airlines.  We make all the flights with no food till we get to our hotel.   A quick dinner then it is off to BBKings in Beale Street which is just around the corner, Vivienne and I hit the dance floor when the excellent band start playing Tia Turner’s Simply the Best.  Vivienne turns in a=fantastic performance (She has always been a great dancer) +and we walk off to applause from the audience which turns into stunned silence when I yell out ‘You should have seen us 60 years ago.’  When people discover we are in our 80s they start shaking our hands in amazement.

Thursday 22 May 2025\

In the morning, we go to the Museum of Rock and Soul which just across the street from the hotel.  It is a terrific museum.   Two big learnings: there was a gradual buildup of blues and soul music singers being signed up.   But when Sun signed Elvis and released ‘That’s All Right’ Memphis exploded; It was radio that provided the mass appeal of Rock & Roll combined with the voice and pelvis of Elvis.

Before dinner we went to the Hotel Peabody, and saw the famous ducks.

Friday 23 May 2025

We go to Graceland, the home of Elvis and the 2^nd most visited tourist site in the USA.  See the Jungle Room.  Should be on everyone’s bucket list,

In the evening, we go to the historic Lafayette’s Music Room for Delta BBQ and Delta Music.  Food was mediocre and band was awful.  The problem is this.  If the band plays covers of old famous songs, it gets carried along by the memory.  If the band plays new, recently composed songs, they are quasi heavy metal i.e. crap.  On the way back our tour leader plays a song from his band and then ‘Walking in Memphis’.  I rest my case,

The next evening on the Viking Boat the show was a beautiful black female singer, Keia Johnston, who just sang old hits, was terrific and got rapturous applause.

 Saturday 24 May 2025

Morning is spent visiting Stax Museum (former recording studio) which was interesting (it has Isaac Hayes's Gold-Plated Cadillac), and Sun Records (still a recording studio) which was brilliant.  You heard the first recording Elvis made.  He was singing and recording a gospel hymn as a birthday gift for his mother.  The Sun secretary, Marion Keisker, was doing the recording.  She tried to get the producer to sign up Elvis and failed.  Elvis came in a second time to record ‘That’s All Right’ as a demo tape and the secretary was again managing the recording.  The producer, Sam Phillips, was just walking by, was impressed by the voice, and took over the recording session, the rest is history. 

We board our ship, the Viking Mississippi.  Very impressive.

Sunday 25 May 2025

We start our cruise and moored in Greenville whose main claim to fame is that it is the birthplace of Jim Henson, the creator of Kermit the Frog.   I decided to give it a miss and have a chillout day; and stayed on ship.  I try to read a book relevant to every trip I take,  A key meme of the Mississippi is the role it played in the US Civil war.  The book I chose was Grant Moves South, 1861-1863 by Bruce Catton.  This is the first part of the military biography of Ulysses S. Grant and follows Grant from the summer of 1861 when he takes on his first Civil War command through battles at Belmont, Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth and Vicksburg to the summer of 1863. 

Monday 26 May 2025

We are moored at Vicksburg a key Civil War battle site.  This was another victory for Ulysses S.Grant.  The ultimate realist after two attempts to take Vicksburg by force had failed  he laid siege and starved the Confederates out who surrendered the day after Gettysburg.

Tuesday 27 May 2025

We are moored at Natchez, a attractive tow that describes itself as the Bath of the South.  Having been born and bred in Bath I beg to differ but it I attractive if dead.   The tour highlight was Magnolia Hall, a magnificent townhouse residence, that has been restored by the people. Of Natchez.  Why so wealthy?  Natchez stayed neutral during the Civil War and was the major slave trading port of the Mississippi.

Wednesday 28 May 2025

We are moored to a tree near St. Francisville.  We visit the Rosedown Plantation.  Our first plantation, 400+slaves, magnificent house and tour.

Thursday 29 May 2025

Baton Rouge, State Capital of Louisiana, State Museum is again very good, and another claimant to be the birthplace of rock & roll.

Friday 30 May 2025

We moor to a tree and disembark on the grounds of the Houma House Plantation.  I spend the morning at the ship’s medical centre and succeed in getting a 5-day course of antibiotics.  My shaven tooth felt infected.  Last night on the boat drink too much.

Saturday 31 May

 Day begins with walking tour of French Quarter of New Orleans.  Guide is excellent.  City is clean but lots of pavement needs repairing.  Need to walk looking down.  History is a mix of French, Spanish and British History.

We transfer ro the Hotel Monteleone.  Highly recommended and the place to stay.

In the afternoon a coach tour of The Big Easy.  I think our guide was tipsy at the start and never dries up.   1^st bad experience of the trip.

Anthony had been complaining that there had been no cock-ups on the trip.

We agree to have dinner at The Rib Room starting at 17:30.

By 19:00 Anthony was still a no-show.  After complaining the whole trip that there have been no cock-ups, one finally happens.  At 7pm he finally turns up for dinner.   Instant karma.  His suitcase and computer bag have gone missing.  They show up in his room at 23:00.

Sunday 1 June 2025

National WW2 Museum.  Very impressive.  See the plane my father flew dropping bombs on Germany.  He flew some 25 missions and somehow survived.

That night Katherine and David again rejoin us for dinner.

Monday 2 June 2025

Anthony departs for London; we have a chillout day. 

Tuesday 3 June 2025

We return to Jackson Square and visit two more Museums.  I am beginning to suffer from information overload.  Hurricane Katrina was big storm but New Orleans has a hurricane every year.  The problem is that much of the city is behind levees and below sea level.  Mardi Gras is also a big event.

Wednesday 4 June 2025.

We fly to London overnight,  Long day but we got to London at lunchtime and Vivienne’s sister at 2pm Thursday where we are staying for a week. Sunday night we had a great meal at Ma Cuisine in Kew.  Great meal and the ambiance of Paris Left Bank Bistro,

I am stopping the blog here and will add any photos here.

Cooking Crepes at the Courtyard of Two Sisters 

 

Travel Blog Europe 2024

 

12 July: Friday

The 14 hour flight on Emirates Sydney to Dubai was terrific, on time, great food and service.  We then had a 3 hour stopover in Dubai before catching the flight to Lyon.  We left the terminal on time and were moving to the main runway.  Suddenly the pilot announced we had to return to the terminal and unload several pieces of luggage wrongly loaded onto the plane.  Ten minutes later he announced that the luggage had been unloaded.  90 minutes later we finally started to move. 

One of the great benefits of flying Emirates is the unbelievable network they have developed to the various European destinations.  It is simply staggering the number of flights departing Dubai listed on the departure board.  However there is a downside.  Miss your takeover slot and you have to wait, and wait, and wait for a free slot.

13 July Saturday

We made it to Lyon and the Villa Maia which was recommended by a friend, Gary Tilsley, and now highly recommended by me.  The hotel is located about 100 metres below the Basilica at Fourviere and overlooks Lyon.  

Again we followed his recommended restaurants.  Our first dinner was Daniel & Denise, in Vieux-Lyon.  We were jet-lagged and walked down the hill to the restaurant.  It was the only time we did it and after that it was a return trip on either of the two funiculars serving Fourviere.  The restaurant was simple and non-pretentious; the meal was terrific. I have the first of my many glasses of Provence Rose.

14 July Bastille Day Sunday.

We climbed up the hill to the Basilic, went inside where about 1000 people were attending a French Mass and singing away beautifully.  It was terrific to see a thousand people practicing their religion and not hearing chants of Allahu Ackbar.

We caught the down to Vieux-Lyon and a light lunch where we saw and talked to the French doppelganger of our younger daughter, Laura. 

That night we ate at Tetedoie, one of top restaurants in Lyon, the gastronomic capital of France.

It was an amazing meal.  Vivienne had a deconstructed ratatouille.   I had a veal chop served with grapes and miniature mushrooms.  At 400 Euros not the cheapest meal I have ever eaten but then again it describes itself as the most refined restaurant in Lyon.  That night there was a massive fireworks display fired from the top of the Basilica that Vivienne saw while I watched Spain deservedly defeating England in the Euro 2024 final.

15 July Monday

We decided to walk across the Bonapart Bridge to the Place Bellecour.  It is a massive pedestrianized public square.  Actually,it is  not that attractive.   In the centre is a massive statue of Louis XIV on horseback.

That night we ate at The Rooftop Tetedoie.  Half the price and less pretentions than its sister I actually thought the food was better.

16 July Tuesday

We travel to Chalon-Sur-Saone by train & taxi which cost us 86 Euros in total including taxis while we been quoted 200 Euros to go by car.

We were on Avalon P0etry 2.  First impressions were a well-designed boat and a mostly East European Crew who were very friendly.  We were joined on the boat by my sister Wendy and our good friend Antony Mayer.  92 passengers (max 130) and 30+ staff.

17 July Wednesday

Our first stop was Tournus, rightfully describing itself as the Pearl of Southern Burgundy.  It is a very attractive village of 7000 people; especially the medieval centre, with its narrow alleys, old stone houses, artsy shops and restaurants. The highlight is the 10th century benedictine Abbey of Saint-Philibert de Tournus, the oldest surviving church from the 10^th Century with some beautiful mosaics.

In the afternoon we did a tour of the Macon region on the southern border of burgundy and famous for its Pouilly Fuisse which was famously introduced into the White House by Jacquiline Kennedy.  We went to a tasting in the cellar of Chateau de Pierreclos

18 July Thursday

Morning we cruise down the Saone to Lyon for lunch.  No question the Saone is more attractive the Rhine and Danube rivers except the Wachau Valley.

In the afternoon we did an excursion to the Basilica at Fourbreve.  The guide pointed out the Pencil, the Eraser and the Box.  These are the Lyonnais nick names for the 3 towers puncturing the skyline of Lyon.

Then we had a 30 minute tour of Vieux-Lyon.  Really only 3 streets.  We went through several traboules which are secret passages linking the streets.

19 July Friday

We are still in Lyon.  I had a rest morning while the other 3 in our group (Vivienne, my sister Wendy and our good friend Antony Mayer) all went to Les Halles de Paul Bocuse.  They came back raving about it an convinced me to go in the afternoon.  It was very impressive but I must confess I not a window shopper.  The food was very impressive and puts Mosman’s Fourth Village in the shade.

20 July Saturday

 We go to Tournon, one of France’s oldest medieval towns.   Our guide George was from Lyon and we spent most of our time talking about Lyon.  We then went downstream to Viviers, another French village.  I gave this tour a miss having had a good walk in the morning.

21 July Sunday

Avignon known in Italy as the city of the False popes and the home of the Palace of the Popes.  If you visit the Palace, (and if you are in Avignon it is almost mandatory,) it does require climbing and descending a lot of steps.  There were only 3 of us in the ‘White Walkers’ or slow group so we had the equivalent of a private tour.  In the afternoon there was a tour to the Chateau du Pape Winery but I gave it a miss.  Wendy toured the famous Pont de Gard (Roman Aqueduct) in the morning.

22 July Monday

Arles:  Anthony Mayer had arranged a tour and lunch managed by a former work colleague Bill Hennesy and his partner, Zoe.  First stop was the famous Amphitheatre and site of many a Roman Gladiatorial Circus and now used as an occasional bull-fighting ring.  Very impressive and well used movie and TV set.  We had lunch at Le Galoubet. Highly recommended and excellent food.

23 July Tuesday

We transfer to Nice via Aix.  We do the Tour of Aix and learn about Le Roi Renȇ who is seen as the founder of Aix which becomes the capital of Provence. There are around 100 fountains in Aix.  And the architecture is quite stunning.  It is a university town comprising 30,000 students in a population of 150,000.  We arrive in Nice around 4:30pm staying at Le Meridian hotel.  That night we host our Cruise Director Amilie for dinner at the roof top restaurant located in the hotel.  The view of Nice Harbour as the sun set was sensational; Amilie has been terrifically efficient and has a delightful sense of humour,  

24 July Wednesday

On Antony Mayer’s recommendation we go to lunch at the Villa Ephrussi, a mansion and gardens set o Cap Ferrrat overlooking the harbour of VilleFranche.  The restaurant is beautiful and the salads are highly recommended.  The mansion overlooks a long rectangular pool containing fountains that rise and fall to the sound of opera.  

25 July Thursday

We fly to London Heathrow to stay with Vivienne’s sister and family in Chiswick.  At this point I will finish the blog.

If you enjoy river cruises (and at our age what’s not to like) the trip down the Rhone is probably the best in Europe.  Every stop has an interesting history; the scenery is delightful.  Similar to the Opening Ceremony of the 2024 Olympics you are immersed in a journey through French culture and values.   No matter how you slice it what the French have created in so many fields: Opera, Dance, Music, Food, Architecture, Fashion, etc France is the best epitome of style.  Unlike Paris in this case the weather was so much better.

BBC Best Bits of the Opening Ceremony

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/olympics/articles/cw4yepmknkpo

 

Japan April 2024 CHerry Blossom Cruise

 

Japan 2024 Travel Blog

Thursday 28 March

We arrived at 8:20pm met by driver Alex at Haneda Airport and taken to Grand Prince Shin Takanawa hotel.  First impressions were that Tokyo had an amazing road system and Brutalist architecture office and apartment blocks.  It was raining. cold & bleak.

Friday 29 March

Great excitement as the first cherry blossoms have appeared and the season is officially declared to be open.  Perfect timing.

We met our tour guide Alex at 10am and started with a visit to the Tokyo Tower.  This is a pseudo-copy of the Eiffel Tower.  The French connection was exploited to the degree that you could buy s Tokyo Tower Camembert and Brie package.

Next stop was Emperor Palace and park but you need tickets to get in which you need to book in advance.  As it was pouring with rain, we told Alex we had not desire to go for a walk in the park.

So off we went to the Asakusa Shinto Shrine located at the end of a long street containing masses of shops and restaurants and masses of people.  On the other hand, the weather had cleared and walking down the street had a real buzz.  Over 37 million people live in Greater Tokyo and people are everywhere.  We had a good lunch where the staff were very helpful in choosing gluten free food for Vivienne.  Here Vivienne met her favourite dog in Japan and we found the biggest Hello Kitty shop in Japan.

 

The next stop was the Shibuya Sky Tower which has great views on the 40^th Floor but you need pre-reserved tickets to get there which we did not have.  But we did get to the 14^th and we went to an NHK exhibition.  (NHK is the BBC of Japan.)  The exhibition was incomprehensible but we got fantastic views of the Shibuya Scramble Crossing. 

I have been on many tours but no question Alex was the most laconic I had ever met.  He was very courteous and had a good sense of humour.  On the way back to the hotel I asked Alex if he was doing 2-day tours every week and he replied not really.  I then asked if it was his 1^st time ever as a guide and replied in the affirmative.  All was now explained.

Saturday 30 March

A beautiful sunny day and the temperature reached 28°C.  Alex dropped us off at the Emperor Meiji Park for an hour’s walk.  Across from the entrance there was a large Uniglo shop.   Our consumption needs won and we went shopping.  I bought a pair of shorts and Vivienne found some T-Shirts for the grandchildren.

Next we went to the Ginza which is the high fashion shopping street in Tokyo.  We were walking along and when we saw a Grand Seiko store.  I have a Seiko Kinetic that I purchased some 50 years ago and it has been a terrific watch.  Unfortunately, like me it is reaching the end of days and Seiko no longer carries spare parts for this discontinued model.  So I went in and explained this to the Grand Seiko staff that I needed to buy a new watch.  They took one look at me in an old T-shirt & aging ill-fitting jeans and directed us to the Seiko shop down the street (shades of Pretty Women).  Anyway, the staff there could not have more helpful.  I wanted a kinetic watch as you do not need to wind it.  But they are no longer made by Seiko.  However the assistant explained that they had placed solar powered panels in the clock face that charged the watch.  Secondly the watch has a GPS chip and automatically resets the watch when you go to a different time zone.   Finally, the watch was duty free 10% off so I bought it.

After Ginza we went to the Tsukiji Nippon Fish Market for lunch.  Again it was packed and buzzing.  At the end of the long street is the Sensoji-temple, the oldest Buddhist temple in Tokyo.

Finally we went to the harbour where that was another park/shopping mall which had an exact copy of the Stature of Liberty.  We started Tokyo with a copy and we finished with a copy.

Sunday 31 March

We boarded our cruise ship the Norwegian Jewel.  The great news was that we managed to get an upgrade to a balcony room that was 2x the size of our previous room and we moved up from Deck 5 to Deck 8.  Every stateroom was taken.  There were 2,400 passengers on board: 1000 from the USA, 600 from Oz and the rest from some 30 countries.

Monday 1 April

Nagoya Castle, Hommaru Palace and Atsuta Shrine.

Beautiful Cherry blossoms on the trees. 

The castle has two gold Kinshashi (imaginary dolphin) weighing 44kg each on the roof.

The palace is made of a special type of cypress the hardest wood in Japan. It has spectular rooms and the floorboards creak to the sound of nightingales.

The shrine is a sacred site for the Shinto Religion.  There is a 1000 year old camphor tree with sacred snakes for whom the pious leave eggs.  Most Japanese practise both religions: Shinto is the happy religion celebrating births and marriages; , Buddhists the sad part e.g. Funerals.

Our guide Kay was the complete opposite to Alex.  Totally manic and could not stop giving us information.  On the way back to boat she stated explaining the 3 different alphabets used by the Japanese and teaching us various phrases.  On the wedding day the bride wears a white kimono and a Tsunokakushi which is a Traditional Japanese wedding headdress made of white silk shaped as a big hood and whose job is is to hide and contain the wives horns.  According to our guide for her the horns kept growing and she got a divorce.

Tuesday 2 April

8 hours in Kochi replaced with 5 hours in Wakayama.  We stayed on board and had a rest day.  A sunny morning followed by a bleak rest of day.

Wednesday 3 April

Kagoshima

As recommended, we skipped the cruise tour and caught the shuttle into town.  Then we caught the ferry to Sakurajim Island which is an active volcano and the main tourist attraction.  We caught the Island View Bus and because of the low-lying cloud and height of the observatory saw nothing but thick fog.  The trip to an hour and we caught the ferry back to the town.  Did some essential shopping and back we went on board as the rain began to pelt down.

Thursday 4 April

Busan

For Busan we were to dock at 12 noon,  We thought to beat the crowds using the Cruise ship tours we would try a private tour.   Japan Expo Tours had offered us for US$559 a private tour “for both you and Vivienne together without lunch. You will have Mr Jung who speak (sic) English and a driver with a private minivan.”  Two other people had already booked the tour,:and they kindly accepted having us join them.

“The well-laid plans of mice and men often go astray”; Tell me about it.

Disembarkation of 2400 passengers through a single choke point took about an hour.  It started at 12 noon and we finally got off the boat at 1pm. We then discovered the following.

Jung, our tour guide, spoke poor English and demonstrated he had limited experience as a guide during the tour.

Our driver, Wendy, did not drive and also had limited English.

We did not have a Mini Van booked for whole tour.  Instead, we were to catch taxis which at least 500 or so of our fellow passengers wanted to do.  We finally got taxis after 45 minutes and departed on our tour at 2pm.

The first part of the tour was a visit to the tallest building in Busan (100 floors) located at Hyundae Beach known as X in the Sky.  Living in a city that has some 50 beaches this was ironic but the good news was for the first time on tour we got tickets to actually get to the top.  In Tokyo we failed on 4 occasions to get tickets.  The contrast with Nagoya could not have been starker where twice when we needed tickets, they had been be pre-booked by the guide.

The tower was good and you could see why Busan was becoming a tourist “hot spot” according to Trip Advisor.  Inside the tower was the "Schocking Bridge" which was transparent glass that looked down 100 floors and scared everyone who did.

Around 3pm we then went to the Blue Line Train Station to catch the train to the Haedong Yonggung Temple that claims to be the most beautiful in Korea.  After waiting for 15 minutes, we were then informed by Jung that the only tickets available were at 5pm.  At that moment a rebellion started among the four tourists and we ended up catching taxis to the temple, The drive was spectacular winding around the various coves through masses of cherry trees that lined the roads and all were in full bloom.  The area we drove through, Song Jeong-Dong, would have to be the most expensive suburb in Korea,

The temple was good and the setting spectacular.  Of course, there were other travel groups but this was a blessing because we could overhear the travel guides, all speaking excellent English, providing commentary. 

It was now around 4:45pm and the decision was made that we should return to the boat.  Our taxi driver back to the boat was very amusing and told some brilliant jokes off his phone.  He had a brother in Melbourne so we had a bond.  He told us that traffic in Busan during rush hour is so bad that our return trip to the boat of around 45 minutes would have taken at least 2 hours.

I cannot tell you the relief Vivienne and I felt as we drank our first G&Ts.

Friday 5 April

Nagasaki

The first port to be open to Westerners, the setting for “Madame Butterfly” and oh yes, the site where “Fat Boy”, the second atomic bomb, was dropped at 11:02 on 9 April 1945.

Today’s tour comprised two parts: a visit to the museum and then a walk around the Peace Park.  The museum mainly showed the devastation caused by the bomb which was 30% more powerful than ‘Little Boy’ the bomb dropped on Hiroshima.  The bomb was exploded 500m above ground zero.  The devastation was from three sources: the blast, the heat, and the radiation.  There is an actual size replica of the bomb which also explained how it worked. 

One interesting section was a series of some 50 podcast interviews with survivors.  The final interview with Frank Chick who was an Australian POW working at the Mitsubishi munitions factory.  In contrast to the other interviewees he maintained dropping the bomb was a good thing.  He said his treatment by the Japanese Military was terrible and that it was the second bomb that ended the war six days later.  The then Japanese culture was based on Samuri culture summarised by the phrase “The true samurai has no scars on his back.”  To become a prisoner was the ultimate disgrace and the true warrior fights till he is killed. 

This was particularly demonstrated at the Battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa where Allied forces suffered significant greater losses than the Japanese.  This led to estimates that the invasion of Japan would result in at least 2 million Allied deaths plus even more Japanese deaths.

At the time the Japanese Military controlled the government led by a dictator, General Tojo.  Emperor Hirohito while the spiritual leader was a weak puppet.   After the first bomb the Military claimed it was a one-off event.  But then after the second, Hirohito said enough was enough, commanded the military to surrender and then to make sure they did went on the radio and said the country was surrendering to the Allied forces and the was over.  This occurred 6 days after the Nagasaki bomb.

The Peace Park is located next to Ground Zero, there are a number of “Peace” statues, coming from the usual suspects such as the Soviet Union and the GDR.  Perhaps the most interesting was a stature originally from the people of Freemantle but the widened to various other communities including the Aboriginal Community based at Maralinga where the UK government did A-bomb testing in South Australia.  There is a plaque written in what looks like Aboriginal language which is ironic because the Aborigines did not invent any written forms of the some 600 languages spoken by the Aborigines.

Saturday 6 April

Day at Sea.  The weather was bleak all day.

Sunday 7 April

Kobe & Kyoto

We docked at Kobe and then got on the coach for another tour “Highlights of Kyoto.”

Kyoto is the 2^nd largest city in Japan.  We saw another temple and another castle.

The temple was Kinkaku-Ji founded in 1397 by a Buddhist Monk and known as the Golden emple,  The grounds are regarded as the most beautiful in Japan and they are stunning.

After an interesting lunch we then went to NiJo-Jo Castle famous for where the founder and First Shogun of Togugawa Shogunate started his reign in 1603 after 100 years of civil war, Then followed 260 years of peace.  In 1867 the 15^th Shogunate transferred power to the Emperor Meiji also at the Castle.  Lots of rooms at different levels with drawings of tigers and leopards.

I asked the guide Hiro who was excellent how long she had been a travel guide.  She replied she got her licence to be a Travel Guide in 2008 but really only started taking groups in 2015.

Monday 8 April.

Into Kobe and into more shopping at Uniglo.  2 pairs of trousers, 2 pairs of shorts, 3 pairs of socks for A$110.

Tuesday 9 April

Pouring with rain and several tours cancelled.  However we finally started 1 hour late.

We started at the Momijiyama Japanese Garden in Sumpu Castle Park.  It had a replica representation of the sea harbour and Mount Fuji.  We then went to the Temple of the First Shogun where he died.  7 separate temples represented gods of health, business success, victory (for soldiers but now for sports), academic success, etc.

Finally we went to the Shimizu harbour for the best view of Mt Fuji.  Unbelievably the rain had stopped the clouds cleared and we had a great view of the snow- capped summit.  70 years ago I climbed Mt. Fuji twice; my father was in the USAF and he was transferred there for two years in 1954.

Out guide,Set, was again excellent and I continued my inquiries about Licenced Travel Agents.  Turns out you have to pass 5 exams, General, Japanese History, Japanese Geography, English Proficiency (regarded as the toughest).  It generally takes two years to study and qualify.  Set said she had a head start because she formerly was an English School Teacher for 30 years who had just retired.

Wednesday 10 April.

We disembarked at 9:30am and as our flight was not until 10:20pm we hired Alex to take us to Kamakura to see the largest Budda in Japan.  

This was followed by a visit to Tsurugaoka Hachimango Temple which also has beautiful grounds and a lot of upward steps.  

We decided it was time to return to the the Golis-Mayer tradition of finishing our trip with an excellent lunch.  Alex took us back to the Airport, dropped us off at the wrong terminal, but fortunately realised his mistake and got us to right one.

Sort of summed up the whole trip.  What is really impressive about Japan is the discipline of the people.  We never saw any graffiti the whole trip.  From the age of 4 the children spend the last 5 minutes of every lesson cleaning up the classroom.

 

Blog Europe 2023 Part 2 (Scroll down to read Part 1)

7 July 2023

We went by train from Basel to Milano with no problem boarding at 9:30am.

Milan to Venice did not start well.  Another couple had the same seats booked as ours.

The Italian conductress said it was impossible.

Confronted with the evidence she then said the computer had made a mistake.  Fortunately she found new seats for the other younger couple.

We got to Venice at 6:30pm, grabbed a porter who did a great job organising a taxi to the Hilton Molino Stucky on the island of Guidecca..  The Hilton is the biggest hotel in Venice and is extraordinarily busy.

Before going to Venice I had some research and torn out some articles.  One began by saying “Forget wandering among the canals and canoodling in a gondola.  What you should be doing in Venice is eating.”  If you have read my first blog you could say that we had already adopted this philosophy and I can only agree,’

8 July 2023

Following the advice of her nephew, Angus, we caught a ferry to the island of Lido.  We walked to the typically Italian Beach covered in umbrellas in reserved areas where you pay to stay.  Lido is a wealthy suburb.

That night on the recommendation of Marita Blood we ate dinner at the Corte Sconta, Calle del Pestrin.  A recommendation which proved to be brilliant.  Great food and great ambiance.  I asked the owner, Marco Proletto, to name his favourite restaurants and we ended up eating at two of them.  Book before going, this restaurant is well known in Venice and very popular.

9 July 2023

Thus began our education in Venice.  I woke up to find my computer had frozen.   It was Sunday so we went to the concierge to ask if there was a computer shop in Venice.  He said there was one behind the Teastro de Venice in the Calle de Molino.  Vivienne suggested we go there and the find the shop so we could easily go there on Monday.  Like a good husband I followed her advice 2 hours later we had gone up and down the street with no luck.  We then went into a mobile phone shop and was told by the techie no computer shop here but try the Strata Nova.  Another 1.5 hours no shop.  Like every other tourist wandering around Venice we were discovering GMAPs is very hard to use.  However we had one good piece of luck; it was hunch time and we were 100m from the Vini ds Gigio and 10 minutes later we finically found it and sat down to lunch.

This was a  recommendation by owner of the Corte Sconta,  Another excellent seafood restaurant.

The other good news was that I had plugged in my computer to charge it and it booted immediately.  Somehow it had not been plugged in properly.  And that evening doing the promenade to find a bar in Guidecca what was the first thing we found? A computer shop 300m from the hotel!!!

10 July 2023

Continuing our exploration of Venice we decide to cross of the Guidecca Canal  to Zattere and explore the Dosoduro area of Venice.   We started late; I had woken at 9:30am and had a local bar croissant and cappuccino for breakfast.  Vivienne was hungry so I found using GMAPS a great restaurant  Trattoria Ai Cugnai S.Vio 857.

As we were close we decided to go to the Guggenheim Museum.  Walking around and looking at the very attractive interns and not really into non-representational 20^th century modern art, I asked a young male intern if he had ever read Tom Wolfe’s The Painted Word? 

To my utter amazement he said he had read it 2 weeks ago, thought it was brilliant and was recommending it to all the other interns.  My declining faith in the young generation was suddenly restored. 

11 July 2023

Vivienne said she wanted to explore the Grand Canal and I said sure we can catch a ferry and then did the trip down the Canal.  It was now 12 noon and I had booked lunch at the Antiche Carampane for 1:30.  GMAPS said we were 15 minutes away and 2 hour later we finally found it.  Luckily they had kept a table and Marco’s suggestion proved to be excellent. 

I do not want to describe the trip back but what should have been 45 mins max back took us 2.5 hours; Venice is a tough city to navigate.

12 July 2023

We transferred to the Viking Sea our home for the next 10 days as we cruise from Venice to Athens.  Cruise ships are now banned in the Venice lagoon.  The Viking Sea was moored in Choggia, a 90 minute cruise from Venice.

13 July 2023

We were meant to sail to Slovenia but due to some complication we could not so we spent the day moored in Choggia.  We took the free offer of guided short tour of Venice which was somewhat ironical being we had already spent 4 day there,  The guide, Gabriela, who was not much younger than me was very sprightly and walks at a cracking pace.  Her commentary was first rate.

Vivienne tried to match our stunningly attractive Viking Guide, Annelise, with a very handsome gondolier who was giving Annelise the eye.  Her reply? “My father was a gondolier, so was my uncle, my brother, and my two last boyfriends.  I will never go out with another gondolier.”

14 July 2023

We sailed to the port of Zadar on the Croatian Coast.  The oldest city on the Dalmatian coat it has had a challenging history due to it always finding itself positioned on the border between two opponents in conflict.  The latest was the Homeland War between Croatia/Slovenia and Serbia/Montenegro.  Our guide was excellent and told us why it was all Serbia’ fault.

15 July 2023

Next port Dubrovnik; easily the most scenic port on the Dalmatian Coast.  We were last here in August 2008 and all I can remember is how crowded it was.  Since then Dubrovnik has survived the terrible siege of the Homeland War in the early 1990s and two years of Covid.  Again the guide gave more history about the Homeland War. 

On the other hand two great decisions by the local government have made Dubrovnik far more enjoyable to visit.  The first was limiting the number of cruise ships to two; previously it allowed up to 10.  The other was to give Game of Thrones rent free use of the city (It is the Kingdom of Lannister).  It has since been used for multiple film & TV productions.

16 July 2023

Kotor was described by Lord Byron as ‘’At the birth of the planet, the most beautiful encounter between land and sea must have been on the Montenegrin coast.’’.  And he is probably right. 

However, the most amazing part of our tour was when the guide explained the prevalence of cats which are everywhere.  Kotor managed to escape the black death that ravaged the rest of Europe killing over 40% of the population due to three reasons.

1.     Excellent sewerage systems built by the Romans.

2.     Excellent fresh water in the surrounding mountains brought in by aqueducts again built by the Romans.

3.     The large number of cats that caught the rats.

 I asked the guide what did Montenegro call the 1990 Balkan War? Her reply is that it was a civil war started by paramilitary forces based in Croatia.  It was started by politicians and was terrible the way it divided families including her own. 

There are always 2 sides to every story.

17 July 2023

It is getting hotter; today it reached 37°C.  In all my travels I have never been to Corfu and it had long been on my bucket list.  For years it was the #1 location for the Brits.  And to be honest we were both less than impressed.  There were too many people using the limited public resources.  

On the other hand once our tour had finished we had a very nice cappuccino and bellini at the Sessions Café on Liston - Eleftherias Street, easily the most attractive street in Corfu.

18 July 2023

Even hotter today 39°C.  Moored at Kalakolon and went to Olympia where the Olympic games started in 776BC.  Now is the site where the Olympic flame is lit every 2 years prior to going to the host country.  Impressive site but our tour guide could have been longer and slower.

19 July 2023

When we woke up this morning and went out onto our balcony, we were met with a convoy of cruise ships.  Six of them (including) ours were mooring today in Santorini harbour.  We were last here in 2006.  I spent 2 days in our cave bedroom in Oia recovering from cellulitis.  And the island was overrun when multiple cruise ships moored in the harbour (like today).

I booked an excursion that described as .”Cities ancient and modern.”  The first part was a visit to Akrotiri: known the Pompeii of the Aegean, a town completely submerged in the massive volcanic eruption of 1600 BC. It is now a major archaeological site and quite fascinating; the sophistication of the locals was  impressive (aqueducts, sewage systems, etc.) 

The second part was a visit to Oia.  We ended up having a great lunch at Pelicans restaurant and while crowed the town was nowhere as bad as it was in 20o6.   On the other hand the drive down to the port to catch the tender back to the ship was a nightmare.  Santorini is spectacular but I would go mad living here.

20 July 2023

We made  it to the final destination Piraeus/Athens.  We had and excursion booked starting at 1:30 and the bus said the temperature outside was 44°C which even for Australians is hot.  We did a quick 10 minute stop at the stadium used for the first Olympic Games held in 1896 and I thought this is insane. Our next stop was a 1.5 hour air conditioned tour of the National Archaeological Museum which is brilliant.

21 July 2023

Ww transfer to the King George Hotel which is one of the best hotels in Athen and has the prices to match.  We ended up having lunch in its partner hotel the Grande Bretange next door and dinner (1 course appetiser) and treating the day as a rest day which we needed.  Cost of taxi 40 euros including tip,  Cost of hire car organised by cruise 240 euros.

22 July 2023

It now so hot in Athens (39°C) the Acropolis in only open in the morning.  ontains the remains of several ancient buildings of great architectural and historical significance, the most famous being the Parthenon.  It was rebuilt by Pericles in the Greek Golden Age (460-430BC). It can be seen from everywhere in the city and has to be visited.

So on the advice of the hotel we pre-book tickets and catch a taxi to thce Acropolis at 7am.  We arrive at 7:15 am along with around 500 tourists in the queue.  By 8am there are some 5000 people queueing in a disorderly fashion but we get inside at 8:15.  The climb is quite tricky for those with limited mobility like myself but I made it..   OHS is non-existent and by 9:15 the crowds were overwhelming. 

In the afternoon Vivienne went shopping and I treated my self to a massage.

23 July 2023

Our last full day in Europe and nearly a full rest day.  The King George Hotel does a great buffet with great views and Vivienne noticed the Changing of the Guard outside Parliament House at 10am.  We decided to walk to the Parliament (2 minutes) and see the next change at 11am.  Unfortunately so did 3000 other tourists.  The view from our hotel was better.

I will finish here.  The temperature is predicted to crack 40°C so sightseeing is out and we have done enough anyway.  In conclusion it is very hard to beat the culture and history of Europe and cruises are a great way of exploring it.  (This is a plug for Viking who do a great job). 

London & Paris June 2022

London-Paris June 2022

This is my first travel blog since June 2019.  Australia went into an international  travel lockdown in March 2020 just before we were off to South America and travel restrictions were finally lifted in April 2022.  We have a trip planned in September visiting Spain and Danube river cruise but then two events sparked a sudden urge to go to Europe.

The first was an invitation to attend the 25^th anniversary of the Sutton Trust from its founder, Sir Peter Lampl on 7 June.  Then the following article appeared in The Australian by Penny Hunter Step-by-Step to Paris.  I now describe it as the piece that launched a thousand trips.

And I said to myself “I want a coffee and croissant in Paris.”  So to Peter’s amazement we accepted his invitation and persuaded Virginia (Vivienne’s sister) and Pierre (husband) to join us for five days in Paris.  And on Saturday 4 June we caught the Etihad flight to London.

The dinner at Banqueting House Whitehall was terrific.  Tim Berners-Lee the inventor of the World Wide Web was the keynote speaker.  This was followed the next night with a birthday dinner for Peter at Mosimann’s, London’s premier private dining room.  And again it was a great night.  The next day we set off on the Eurostar for Paris. 

Pierre is half French and spent his childhood in Paris.  He really knows the city.  We were staying in a great location: Hôtel Saint-Louis en l'Isle.  The Ile-St’ Louis is a small island located in the centre of Paris in the middle of the Seine.  It is amazingly quiet at night but the people watching in the afternoon from the cafes located at the west end is great fun.

On the first day we discovered that none of us had ever done a Seine river cruise so like true tourists we took a trip.  Is there a better 1 hour cruise in the world?  I doubt it.  Paris is a stunning city from the river.

We went to two exhibitions: the Musée d'Orsay to see the Impressionists and then the Musée du Luxembourg to see an exhibition about the feminist pioneers in the Arts.  Both were excellent as you would expect.  The French do art well as food.

We had a great meal at La Coupole.  Vivienne found an excellent restaurant on the island: L'Îlot Vache.  Finally, and this is a great tip from Pierre if you are returning to London on the Eurostar leave for the Gare D’Nord go early and have a great meal at the Terminus Nord across from the entrance.

Back in London we caught up with friends.  I managed to catch the Raphael exhibition at the National Gallery followed by lunch at the La Brasseria Milanese in Marleybone, The Rock and Rose in Richmond, Tea at Sothebys where I saw Princess Diana’s wedding tiara, and  several pub meals at the City Barge at Strand on the Green.  The food in London is definitely improving. And I never wore my raincoat the whole trip.  The weather was great the whole time.

Book Review of The Founder's Dilemmas: Anticipating and Avoiding the Pitfalls That Can Sink a Startup by Noam Wasserman

This is a must read for anyone in the entrepreneurial/venture capital space.

Just occasionally you read a book that you wish you had read 25 years ago.  I worked in the entrepreneurial/venture capital sector 1984-2007 and I so wish I had read this book in 1984.  Unfortunately it was not published until 2012 so it was not possible but if you are (budding) entrepreneur, potential start-up hire, angel investor or venture capitalist you should really read this book.  This is the first book that really gets to the human side of entrepreneurship but is based on the evidence of a ten year study of some 2000 technology and life science start-ups for the period 2000-9. 

Note the title; it is dilemmas not dilemma.  In this book Wasserman identifies a number of defining moments in the trajectory of a start-up where the entrepreneur must make a choice which while it may appear to be operational or tactical ends up having significant strategic consequences  For example a the first decision for an founder to determine what is his or her motivation? Is it wealth-or-control ("do you want to be king or want to be rich?").

This really resonated with me.  For 12 years I was the Executive Chairman of Nanyang Ventures which had three early stage funds doing Series A & B investments.  One of innovations when I introduced at Nanyang Ventures was to psychologically profile the entrepreneurs.  What we discovered after five years is that our winners had three key characteristics.

1.       They had high numerical intelligence.  They could understand the numbers.  We thought we could compensate for those who had high general and verbal intelligence but low numerical IQ with a competent CFO.  We were wrong.

2.      They were dominated by the desire for economic success.  The personality tool we used was the Humm Wadsworth as it is one of the few tests that measures this factor.  Initially we were looking for energetic team builders who were decisive and competitive (kings).  Again we were wrong.  Wasserman lists the problems that ‘king’ entrepreneurs and venture capital investors may have.  We had all of them, many in triplicate.

3.      They were also dominated by the desire to complete projects and saw the start-up as a series of projects.  They were extremely task orientated and focused on the technical details.  They were into planning and compulsively reading everything they could about a project.  Their passion ignited the rest of their team.  We had not picked this factor as being necessary; again we were wrong.

Some of the Amazon reviews criticise it for being academic.  I could not disagree more.  This book resonates with reality