September 3, 2026

So excited to get out and explore this huge city. Our Port is attached to a huge shopping mall - so it is a bit of a hike before we even get outside. When we do the heat hits us like a brick wall! There are typhoons, in the area and according to a local, when the storms come in, they first bring a wave of fog, heat and humidity to Hong Kong.

I saw this sign in the Mall and thought it said Patty's! Bosco took the photo, and had to fill me in on the correct spelling! Oh well!

We walked along Victoria Harbor taking in the sights on both sides. There were tons of people, as it was the weekend. We took a break at another shopping area along the way, when the heat was so oppressive! We started googling activities recommended for super hot days in HK. We had already seen the two movies playing in English, and we didn't feel like a museum, shopping or eating. We were only a few minutes walk, to the iconic Bruce Lee statue in the Avenue of the Stars. So we decided to press on and see Bruce and that was when we had a nice conversation, with lady at Big Bus ticket booth, who explained about the heat and recommended that we take a 5pm non-stop loop on the Big Bus since it was a special 1/2 fare. So that's what we did for the next 1.5 hours. It was considerably cooler on the open top of double decker bus, with the wind from the ride, cooling us off.

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Afterwards we both agreed a sushi dinner would be great and looked on google maps for one with a good rating, nearby. We found a winner! Han Dining had a choice of 2 fixed price meals where you each got a tastings of 4 appetizers, 6 sushi and the main course was huge plate with tempura, seasoned spinach, tuna tartare, pork belly, dallae soybean soup and a sizzling mushroom rice in stone pot with crunchy good topping. It was all so good and the serving sizes perfect bites! It finished with a dried persimmon creme brulee! Perfection!

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.