August 9, 2025

Our first Port in Japan! 

Japan is compromised of 4 main islands, from North to South - Hokkaido, Honshu,Shikoku & Kyushu. We are in Japan for 30+ days and have port stops in all four islands. Today, we started in Hakodate which is on the southern tip of the first island. Below are the first views I had from my balcony coming into the Port. It was rainy most of the day, but we were still able to walk around the town.

The fish markets were right across from the Port - Crabs in all sizes - some huge! Same with the Melons! Vending machines are also everywhere. Fellow resident Laura shared her love for the 7-11 tuna sandwich that uses seaweed in lieu of bread !

We got caught in a down pour while strolling the fish market - so went back to the ship for a change of clothes, before heading out again to go further into town. This time we decided to test out our skills using the public transportation and downloaded a Suica transit card. We followed the crowd and figured out the system. We went a handful of stops on the trolley to the star shaped fort. There we ran into a bunch of other residents.

Group of ship residents at Fort - Ozzie Rina out front - L to R Me, Enoch, Anna ( pianist), Bosco, Paul, Claude & David.

 After the Fort we took the tram again and headed back past the port, to the restored red brick warehouses along the waterfront, which is now a lively restaurant, bar and shopping area. We then walked back to ship in time to cast off.

KUANTAN, MALAYSIA

By Pat Patrick • October 12, 2026
Just the other day a friend asked me if I got enough down time while living this lifestyle. My answer was "you have to make it !" In the beginning, it was go, go, go, every port. We had lots of FOMO ( fear of missing out ) and we tried to cram in as much as possible at every port. Sea days, were our only down time and there were never enough. It was a tad exhausting. Now two years into this life, I can say there are some ports that just don't call me and I opt to get other things done. Kuantan, Malaysia was one of the Ports. I never got off the ship, either day we were here. I intended to this morning, but we had storms with loud thunder late into the night and then was awoken by a crew alarm around 6:45am. My energy was low, there were shuttle issues, town was an hour ride away and there is alot of air pollution, ( due to neighboring Indonesia burning organic materials, in preparation for the upcoming monsoon season ). So I bagged my plans and continued working on my never ending TO DO LIST!

Sad Passing of ODYSSEY Shipmate

By Pat Patrick • October 11, 2026
During our two years of sailing we have had several Shipmates come and go for a variety of reasons. Their health, has sadly been the reason for many departures. Cindy Harvey , would have loved to have lived out her days here on the Odyssey and even bought a second cabin and had an adjoining door added, to have a care provider, stay with her full time. However, Cindy's limited mobility, pain and confinement got to be too much - so she left us a few months ago. She went to an assisted living facility, on the coast of Oregon, to be near her family. Tragically she fell, was trying to recover, slipped into a coma and sadly passed away this week.

SANCTUARY OF TRUTH MUSEUM, CHONBURI, THAILAND

By Pat Patrick • October 8, 2026
The Sanctuary of Truth Museum is the world's largest hand carved wooden castle, located on the coast of Pattaya, Chonburi Province, Thailand . Conceived in 1981 by Thai visionary Khun Lek Viriyaphun the structure is built entirely from 4 types of wood - Teak, Mai Daeng, Mai Takien & Mai Panchaat and put together using Thai nailless wood joinery - mainly dovetails, carrying poles and tongue & groove. We started the tour in the workshop where the artisan, mainly woman, were hard at work. Since conception, the Museum has been an active construction site, thus we all wore hardhats! The artisans continue handcarving sculptures and columns, daily and will most likely continue for years to come.