For the next 23 days our ship will be sailing in an area known as High Risk for Piracy.  We will be in permanent contact with the Internatioal Task Force including U.S. and U.K navel forces.  During the hours of darkness, only essential open deck lights will be on.  Our cabin curtins must be closed.…

Ninty percent Myanmar formally known as Burma is Buddhist.  It is the poorest of the Asian countries. Yangons a commercial center with a pagoda on every block. They have 7 million people living and working in this city.  The average income for a college educated person is $350 per month. Education and medical are paid…

Penang is one of Malaysia's states without a Sultan.  They have an elected governor.  Ony 10% people are Muslim in this area. The majority of the people living her are chinese christains. A Tsunami hit Georgetown, Penang in 2004 and 68 people died. 22 of those were women and children sitting on the beach having…

Singapore is the capital of the small country of Singapore which is only 15 miles by 30 miles with over 5 million people.  The statue in the picture below is considered the symbol of Singapore which is a mythical creature with the body of a fish and a lion's head, resting on a crest of…

Bangkok is day 81. We have 80 days left so we are at the half way mark for this trip. I have visited 13 countries and 37 ports. I have passed over the equator twice. Thailand is famous for their silk and I am hoping to find some here for myself.   Bangkok is the…

Vietnam is smaller than Florida with 95 million people.  65% of the people live in the country side and are farmers.  The average income is $3,000 a year. Unlike some of the countries I have previously visited where life revolves around religous beliefs, 55% of vietnamese have no religous belief. DA NANG Round fishing boats…

"A Symphony of Lights" illumates Hong Kong's skyline every evening at 8pm combining 40 key buildings on both Hong Kong Island and Kowloon (our ship docked here) with music from Hong Kong's Philharmonic Orchestra and a laser light show to showcase Victoria Harbor. The view from our balcony was spectacular. Our ship terminal was a…

Puddy enjoyed Japan and is looking forward to China. Mt. Fuji is in the background. There are dozens of ethnic minority groups in the country of China with their own languages and their own forklore.  The Chinese Dragon is one of the most important powerful and divine creature as well as the controller of all…

  Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture.  It is best known as the first city in history to be targeted by a nuclear weapon when the US dropped the atomic bomb on 8/6/1945. The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park below honors the 450,000 people who died as a result of the bomb. Hiroshima has been…

  Toyko is the largest city in the world with 38 million people.  New York City has 12 million people. I was in Toyko for two days and I needed a week.  Shibuya crossing is the busiest intersection in the world which is in Toyko. Thousands of people cross this intersection each day and night.…