What a fantastic 3 days. We left the ship early and came back late each day. We had 2 buses of about 30 each so plenty of room and so clean it put my housekeeping to shame.

Our first venture was to Kyoto which we all agreed was the cleanest city we had ever visited . No litter anywhere, travelers polite, modern, beautiful, well-cared for everywhere you looked.

The Golden Pagoda was built by the third Ashikaga Shogun, Yoshimitsu as a lavish retirement villa.

The Nijo-Jo castle is the only Shogun residence still in existence.

Nara - the Todai-Jim is the temple that houses the world's largest Buddha statue and the world's largest wooden structure. The Kasuga Taisha Shrine is a UNESCO World Heritage site, the path to which ventures through primeval forest and is lined with some 3,000 lanterns.

Horyu-ji is home to the world's oldest surviving wooden structure and another UNESCO World Heritage site.

We arrived in Kagoshima with the active. Sakurajima volcano greeting us in the harbor. No eruption, though. Although early, there were several people waiting to greet us as we cruised into this lovely city with the most beautiful wharf we've seen. I managed to walk several miles on the track later in the afternoon. Recycled rubber.

We visited the Shoko Shuseikan museum that displays 700 years of Shimazu family history. Hard to fathom how old some of these things are. Our country is just a babe by comparison.

The fire department band serenaded our departure.