Tap Apple watch, get food

 

Sunday November 17 2024

Sasebo, Japan

That is supposed to read Nagasaki, Japan. At least that is what was on the brochure. Ya, what’s a mere 30 miles or 50km? This cruise line is starting to get under my skin. First it was the change in Osaka, now this complete port change. It might have been possible to hop a southbound (northbound?) freight and be able to visit Nagasaki. The trains here are exceptional and used by the locals, the way we use our cars back home. The brochure (yes, that again) said 8am to 6pm. Plenty of time.

Immigration and customs. Ya, those guys. As well I am on floor 11 and it is the last to be called for the legal formalities. 1130am. At least there is an ‘am’ in that number and not a ‘pm’. Then down to the bowels of the ship and into a big metal shed and I was stopped by a wall of people, waiting in the Lab Rat maze test. It moved, at not quite at glacial speed, but nowhere close to the speed I wanted it to.

The Immigration woman was friendly and got things processed as quick as her system allowed. Customs was just an exchange of paper and then Welcome to Japan.

Strange town, no destination in mind. I looked at Google maps and it wasn’t much assistance. I asked the search engine what there was to do in the town. It said shopping, shopping and more shopping. There was a small zoo, and a spa. That was all that the city had to offer unless you booked an overpriced excursion.

This was my Japan training wheels day anyway. Not enough time to get to Nagasaki and back in time. I’ll just try and slowly figure out the in’s and out’s of daily tourist existence.

A line for the currency exchange machine in the big metal building the moved slowly until I got to the machine when it happily displayed on it’s screen ERROR. I didn’t even approach the famed thing and it sensed that I was next and it was my lucky day.

Okay I have a pocket full of greenbacks I’ll find a bank. The information guy said there was one ‘over that way’ with a wave of his hand. I wondered in the general direction that he gestured. Along the way, two women who were before me at the Lab Rat test were coming back towards me. I said something about, going back to the ship so soon. They told me there was a free shuttle provided by the cruise line back the way I came. I filed that away in the important information file.

Continuing in the ‘over that way’ direction and see a Family Mart. Family Mart, Lawton’s and 7-11 are the same types of stores. And convenience is in their description, and unlike US 7-11’s actually provide convenience. Part of my YouTube Japan education was that 7-11 gave the absolute best exchange rate. I didn’t figure Family Mart could be that much different.

I slipped my ATM card into the slot, it asked if I wanted English - Yes please. it came up with several options for an amount, all in Japanese Yen. I had forgotten what the exchange rate should be, my brain was not up to importing additional currencies after Korea. I pushed the 20,000 icon and I guess I had that much in the bank at home, because the machine made happy noises and opened it’s maw and access to two crisp 10,000 notes. Cool ! I pulled up my bank’s app and saw it was now down $130’ish. So now I have a concept of value. 10,000 is about $65. I can work with that number. One hurdle down.

The SUICA card is a bus pass card, that works on busses, trains, vending machines, 7-11’s and some restaurants. It is a great little thing. I had the app on my phone with 1000 on it, and tried to use it, the last trip I’m May. You are supposed to hold your phone near the reader and it would suck the Yen right outta the machine. Only it didn’t. No matter how I held the phone of my mouth, it wasn’t getting sucked. Once I got home, YouTube was no help. On some obscure web site I read that if you had an iPhone with the app and a Apple Watch that the card defaults to the watch. Time for a test. One bottle of water coming up. Cooler, water, counter, crash register noises, watch on square, receipt !!! Sweet victory.

Have cash, SUICA card working. I think I am ready for more.

I followed the women’s general direction and found the shuttle bus. It motored through town and dumped us in the middle of a parking lot. The parking lot was attached to a shopping mall, that was only long hallway. Honestly it is probably 1/2 a mile of covered shopping . I walked from one end to the other. There was one Mexican restaurant, that caught my eye. That would be ironic going to Japan and my first meal would be Mexican. I decided instead to go with Japanese. Not full emersion just yes, but close. I got an egg salad sandwich from 7-11. Now you might be saying, that’s is not Japanese. Well I‘’ll have you know, that every Japanese kid has either carried or come home from school yo an “Egg sando”. It comes on that Japanese milk bread, and made with eggs and Kwepie mayo. I have tried and tried to make the Milk bread ad it always comes out closer to regular bread. Not the crustless soft as an Angel’s butt bread I found at 7-11am for about a buck and a half. It was great.

I wasn’t brave enough to try ‘Onigiri Roulette’. Onigiri is a triangular shaped rice ball that is filled with something tasty (to the Japanese tastebuds) and wrapped in the seaweed wrap we are familiar with on sushi. The roulette part comes with the what’s in the middle. They are all written in Japanese, and no clue to western eyes what might be inside. No picture, no western alphabet. I suppose you could cheat and use Google translate. Without it, you could get Eel brains, or Kobe beef or maybe Tuna salad. I’ll return to that game over this trip.

Back to the ship in reverse. Up on deck 13 I started talking to two women from eastern Canada who were not having a good trip. I didn’t tell them “I told you so”, but it reinforce to me to leave home a day before you need to me someplace that involves airlines and international flights. They booked to arrive the day of the cruise and the flight got AFU (All F** up) and they arrived in Incheon after the ship left. Then had to scramble book to that Island of Nowhere Korea to catch the ship. How dare the ship not welcome then aboard with Hawaiian Leis and a band. Never mind that the key cards needed to be cut and luggage (a lot of luggage by the sound of it) brought to their room. Never again NCL, I guess.

My teeth hurt, the woman at the end of the bar with 3 1/2 margaritas in her has a loud laugh at a pitch that only dogs and hear is causing me distress. Her male mate is so loud that I am 30 feet away and can hear every word and pause for breath. The pauses are far between.

Enough for now.