This morning, National Geographic Resolution cruised into Kagoshima Bay, with the nearby Sakurajima Volcano steaming. We spent the day around the southernmost city on the Japanese mainland, Kagoshima.
We split up into our groups based on the excursions we chose. Half of the guests went to a memorial and museum to learn about the story of World War II kamikaze pilots, who were largely based here near the end of World War II. They also went to a beautiful samurai village, walking down streets with historic wood houses and gardens built by samurai in the 1800’s.
The other group took a ferry boat to Japan’s most active volcano, Sakurajima, where they visited a volcano observatory where they wore hard hats in case of an eruption. They also went to outdoor hot springs to soak their feet as is part of the Japanese experience. Finally, this group visited an historic house and botanical garden built by the local lord of Kagoshima, and they took part in a tea ceremony.
As the ship left the dock, a local group of dancers and singers gave us a farewell musical performance. Then, we sailed away during a beautiful sunset.
