September 19, 2025
LONGSHAN TEMPLE, one of the most popular in town and so pretty!
This Temple was very active with lots of locals in doing prays for their past relations, remember it's the Ghost Festival. So lots of food donations are brought to the temple, blessed by the incense burning in the big metal pot shown here and then left for those in need. The other thing is you hear coins and wood blocks being dropped all around the areas where people are praying - I asked a local what the symbolism or significance of this was and they told me your asking the spirit for direction. Not really sure I get it all but was fascinating to watch. Beautiful place especially at night and the tables and chairs and tents seem to be temporary meeting spots during this festival time to share a meal.
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Easter turned out to be a travel day for Bosco and I as we were extremely limited in when we could be seen by the Australian Border Control to disembark from the Ship, for a scuba diving adventure in Raja Ampat that I have had reserved, for over 18 months! We flew from Perth to Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia on Easter afternoon.
I have been really excited to get to Fremantle / Perth for my first time. I have had a few friends live here over the years and I have a second cousin, James Murphy, who I have only ever spoken too briefly, over the last 35 years and that I would love to meet in person. Jim is the older brother of Paul who I met up with in Melbourne a few weeks ago.
Greetings from FREMANTLE or FREO as the locals call it! Getting here took a long week at Sea, as we hid out and dodged wave surges from two cyclone systems. Our departure from Adelaide was timed to carefully avoid the path of Cyclone Narelle and we hugged the southern coastline of Australia, in the shallow waters of the Great Australian Bight . Later in the week we sheltered near Point Culver, before taking the turn and heading North along the western coastline.