Category: Experience

 

Find content I have written about by a specific experience topic.

My Most Memorable Princess Cruise – A Complete Majestic Princess Review With Photos

In this extensive Majestic Princess review, I share my expereinces onboard after spending 21 days on a repositioning cruise from LA to Auckland. I also share a lot of photos of one of my favorite Princess ships.

As I was planning my holiday in New Zealand, I discovered a Princess repositioning cruise from Los Angeles to Sydney on the Majestic Princess, with the option to disembark in Auckland.

I could take a long, grueling, and difficult flight from the US and deal with jet leg for a week once I reached NZed. Or, I could take a leisurely 3 week cruise that slowly changed time zones which meant that I arrived pampered, relaxed, and rested. On top of that, Princess was offering fares with no single supplements which was very appealing since I was cruising solo.

SOLD!

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A Taste of All the Discovery Princess Dining Options, Including the 360 Experience

On a recent cruise, I tried as many of the Discovery Princess dining choices as I could reasonably fit in one week, including the exciting new 360 experience.

As Princess Cruises’ newest Royal Class ship, the Discovery Princess is a popular choice for cruisers, and it offers itineraries to many of the cruise line’s most popular destinations.

On my recent sailing on this beautiful ship, I tried to fit in as many of the Discovery Princess’ dining options as I reasonably could in one week. This was quite the challenge for my waistline, but my taste buds certainly appreciated it.

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Discovering New Horizons with Princess – A Complete Discovery Princess Review With Photos

In this Discovery Princess review, I share a lot of detailed information about the ship from my personal expereinces on a recent cruise.

I have recently developed a love for cruising in all forms. Big ships, little ships, ocean, river, or canal, I love being on the water. So, when I had the chance to take part in a travel writer’s conference on the Discovery Princess, I didn’t have to think twice to sign up.

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2024 Princess Cruises Drinks Packages and Fare Packages – Which One is Best?

This guide has all the information needed to make an informed decision about which Princess cruises drinks package or Princess Fare package to choose. I keep this post updated with the latest Princess Cruises information.

One of the most common questions I see about a Princess cruise is which of the Princess cruises drinks packages or fare packages is the best. I have put together this guide to help cruisers (especially first time Princess cruisers) make that decision. I keep this post updated with the most current information from Princess.

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Indulging My Obsession With Japanese Temari Balls

I discovered the unique art of Temari balls in Japan and collected a variety of examples throughout my recent trip.

I am walking uphill in one of Tokyo’s residential suburbs. It’s my last day of a six week sojourn around Japan, and I am as far as I can get from the Tokyo hotspots of Shibuya and Shinjuku and still be within the greater Tokyo Metropolitan area.

I am looking for a very specialized museum, well off the typical tourist beaten path, but despite walking up and down the sidewalk, I don’t see it. My Google maps app has reliably brought me to the appropriate subway station, but now it says that my goal should be right here. Yet it continues to elude me.

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How An Origami Paper Crane Became a Symbol for Peace – The Story of the Hiroshima Children’s Peace Monument

For me, the most moving monument at the HIroshima Peace Park was the Children’s Peace Monument with its statue of Sadako Sasaki holding an origami crane. I am sharing Sadako’s story and how her paper cranes became a symbol for peace.

 

This is our cry;

This is our prayer;

For building peace in this world

These were the words that greeted me at the Children’s Peace Monument in the Hiroshima Memorial Peace Park. On August 6, 1945, the world’s first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Three days later, a second atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Nagasaki. After the second bombing, Japan surrendered and the World War II conflict in the Pacific was over.

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A Heritage Expeditions Review – Cruising in Style on the Heritage Adventurer

In this Heritage Expeditions Review I share all my expereinces cruising around Japan on the beautiful Heritage Adventurer expedition ship.

I love cruising, especially small ship cruising. I also love Japan – it’s one of my favorite travel destinations. So, a cruise on the Heritage Adventurer expedition ship that took me to some of Japan’s less visited sights was a dream come true.

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Experience the Kyoto Shibori Museum – Keeping an Ancient Artistic Tradition Alive

On two of my visits to Kyoto, I took a traditional fabric dyeing class at the Kyoto Shibori Museum which preserves and promotes the old traditions for producing decorative Japanese textiles.

The Kyoto Shibori Museum preserves and promotes a disappearing tradition for producing decorative Japanese textiles. On my two visits to the museum, I learned that the Japanese art of shibori fabric dyeing is to tie dying like Leonardo da Vince’s Mona Lisa is to a paint by number canvas – it’s a whole different world of artistry.

I tried a couple of the museum’s shibori dyeing classes where I learned all about this ancient Japanese technique and also went home with a beautiful handmade souvenir. Continue reading “Experience the Kyoto Shibori Museum – Keeping an Ancient Artistic Tradition Alive”

Exploring Japan’s Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park From Tokyo – A Look in the Mirror

Getting to the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park from Tokyo was an easy day trip that I did on my own during my winter visit to Japan.

Ever since I watched the PBS Nature episode about Japanese snow monkeys, I hoped that one day I might be able to see them in person. When I had the chance to visit Japan in winter with my husband, we took the opportunity to do a day trip to the Jigokudani Snow Monkey Park from Tokyo.

The experience with the snow monkeys was as engaging and entertaining as anything I could have wished for. In many ways, it was like looking in a mirror.

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