Several of us on the Xian trip had tickets to the Chinese Acrobatic Show, and were sweating whether we'd be back in time to make it. Karina, the ship's tour concierge, had accompanied us on the Xian journey, and kept assuring that we could swap our tickets for the following night if we wanted. (By the way, I hereby nominate Karina for sainthood, or at least goddess status. Her patience and good humor as the only staff escort to some 80-90 lunatics was well above and beyond the call of duty.) But we made it back in time to get a shower and head back out.
I am so glad we did. The show was spectacular--people climbing on each other, amazing balancing acts, leaps, comedy, and juggling. And all the acrobats did everything. And did it well, with the possible exception of the juggling (someone kept dropping something). I developed a crush on one of them--he resembled a Chinese Jimmy Smits. A couple of the girls were quite young, maybe 8 or 9. If you ever get to Shanghai, the acrobatic show is a MUST for your itinerary. Just trust me on that.
Back on the ship, I had my first and only non-breakfast room service meal--at close to midnight. The chef's salad I ordered arrived within 10 minutes.
Because we really had only one full day in Shanghai, I decided to sign up for the full-day tour. I believe it was called "Best of Shanghai". I highly recommend it. We started by standing in line with what seemed like half of China to take a very fast, very quiet elevator up to the top floor of the Jinmao Building--the 4th tallest building in the world. Even with the haze that seemed to live over Shanghai, we had a fantastic panoramic view. Got a nice shot of the Mariner in the harbor, and a fabulous look at Shanghai's impressive skyline. And, yes, I wound up posing for a picture with a Chinese family.
Then on to the Shanghai Museum. If there are award for curators, the one for this museum should get it. It was very masterfully done. Most memorable to me were the early brasses--both the state of preservation and the elaborateness of these works from circa 1300 BC were remarkable--the paintings, the seals and and furniture displays. The gift shop, which is uncharacteristically hard to find, is superb.
We then went to lunch at an old hotel. It was the by-now-familiar multi-course Chinese banquet, but was probably the best one of the trip. The duck alone was worth the stop.
Then on the the Yuyuan Gardens. The gardens were nice, and cleverly laid out, but of course like everything else, crowded. It is surrounded by an area of shops and bazaars. Packed with people and very colorful. Our guide very smartly kept giving us meeting points and times in case someone got lost--an inevitability in that throng. So we left with everyone we came with. From what I heard, not all the tours could say the same.
I don't believe I've mentioned the almost-comical ubiquitousness of two American chains: Starbucks and KFC. They were quite visible and dominant in this area.
Our final stop for the day was an unexpected delight--the Children's Palace. This is a kind of afterschool, where children go to study arts and music. Indeed, the pianist on the ship is an alum of this Palace (and, given the quality of his playing, I'd say they do a fine job). We saw some music lessons on traditional Chines instruments, then sat in on a dance class with 5 and 6-year-olds. They were SO cute. In the end, the children came over and dragged us out on the floor to dance with them.
The highlight of the day, and perhaps the entire trip was the sight of the tallest fellow in our group dancing with the tiniest girl in the class. It was so sweet and fun.
We then were taken for the inevitable stop at the Friendship Store. That also was the stop for the shuttle between the ship and town, so I just transfered to the shuttle--the last thing I wanted was another Friendship Store. The number of people on the sidewalk hawking genuine fake Rolexes for a dollar, and other assorted similar goodies, was a sight to behold. One guy in particular was particuarly fascinating to watch--he wouldn't give up. I have to admit the Rolex with the picture of Mao on it was pretty tempting, but...
Dinner that night was with a view of the lit-up Pudong district: a sight not to be missed. Unfortunately, I failed to bring my camera up, and by the time I thought to do it, the lights were largely turned off.
The ship sailed late morning the next day. I'd meant to go back into Shanghai to walk around--the areas of old Shanghai near the dock looked intriguing, and I'd heard that they aren't long for this world. Like everything else in urban China, they're slated to be torn down and replaced with highrises. Unfortunately, I was dead to the world, and woke too late to get out.
We had a nice sailaway party on deck. This was my birthday, so I'd made appointments in the spa to treat myself to massage, etc. On my return to my room, the ship had delivered chocolate mousse cake and champagne--a very nice touch.
Had dinner that night with some fabulous women with whom I'd become friends. They ordered champagne, and we had a nice time with each others' company. At one point, the couple at the next table shushed us--I've never had that experience before and, really, we weren't that loud. I hadn't seen that couple before or since.
The next day was at sea, and was quietly spent. But that evening was the Captain's farewell, complete with a very cute show put on by crewmembers (some lip-synching, but who cares). The LCTers gathered in the lounge for a drink before dinner.
After dinner was a very bizarre show of Beatles tunes by the PGT group. I don't think any of them were born yet when those songs were written, and I rather suspect that John Lennon was turning in his grave.
The next day was Hong Kong. Perhaps the biggest disapointment to me on the trip was that we wound up docking in Hong Kong in the afternoon rather than morning as originally scheduled. I'd arranged to fly right out the next day, so really had only a few hours in Hong Kong.
The sail-in to HK harbor was spectacular. As we approached, the contrast of the shanties by the water to the high rises towering behind them was striking. The HK harbor itself was particularly impressive--though the density of the buildings was almost overwhelming (this from someone well-accustomed to the Manhattan skyline).
One sad sight though: the former Radisson Diamond in the harbor, now functioning as a floating casino. She looked so forlorn out there.
Clearing us for disembarkation took what seemed like forever. I'd signed up for a tour, given how little time we had. Mixed results. The first stop was Victoria Peak. The tram ride up was funny--it really felt like it was straining the whole way and was going to slide back at any moment. The view from the top was terrific, even with the haze over the city. Unlike the rest of China, no Chinese families asked me to pose with them. I felt so forgotten!
We then went to Aberdeen for a ride on a sampan. OK, I know, hokey touristy stuff with no current validity. I don't care--I loved it. It was fun to see the houseboats and fishing boats, and hilarious to see the sampan lady talking on her cell phone.
After that, things took a turn downwards. The tour made the inevitable stop at a "jewellry factory" with a particularly aggressive sales staff. We had so little time in HK, and I really resented wasting an hour of it here.
We then went to the storied Stanley Market. A bit of a let-down, after so many open-air bazaars in Shanghai, Beijing and Xian. In many ways, it reminded me more of the International Market in Waikiki than of the bazaars in those other Chinese cities.
The bus ride back took forever. And I faced the worst of all on return: packing to go home.
Disembarkation the next morning was pretty smooth, but sad. I'd met so many terrific people on this trip, and had such a great time. I was not ready to leave. I tried to talk Barry into letting me stowaway. But it was not to be!
Some final observations:
The crew was, as always, terrific. Graciousness and good humor prevailed at all levels. Some service problems in breakfast and lunch at La Verandah, and a little sluggishness in service at poolside. Otherwise, service was terrific.
The ship itself is lovely. Some fraying at the edges in the room, though: stains on the chairs and carpet, and overly-worn upholsterly on the couch. I've already mentioned the bathroom design problems, and the tackiness of the art auction.
The sail itself was quite smooth. I only detected choppiness twice, and then it wasn't too bad.
This is the largest ship I've sailed on (apart from a disastrous experience on HAL many years ago), yet it felt no larger than Navigator. I think that the side trip to Xian helped with the feeling of intimacy. Many of the 80-90 of us that went on that trip got to know each other fairly well, and so it helped with the sense of intimacy that I so miss from the Song of Flower.
One odd thing about this sailing: it was plagued with strange back-office snafus. For instance, the Chinese disembarkation cards were pre-printed for us, but a great many had the wrong dates of birth and passport numbers on them. A Passages announcement told us that a certain document would be delivered to our rooms, but it wasn't and there was no plan to do so. A letter to solo travelers the first night said look in Passages for a solo travelers gathering. There was no such reference in Passages. The Xian trippers were told to pick up our passports in one place, but they turned out to be elsewhere. And so on. The Reception and Tour desk people handled all these snags with great aplomb.
Again, it's the crew that is RSSC's greatest asset. They are the ones that keep me coming back.
