March 10th, 2024 Day 12 of 24 Dahlian, China

Today was a wonderful day. My heart is full of love for a new culture and for the people of Dalian. I started my morning at the gym so I could get those endorphins going for the day. I got to start my morning watching the ship pull into the port as the sun was rising over this beautiful city. I don’t usually get to see many sunrises at home as there aren’t many windows at my gym back at home versus here where the entire wall is filled with them. I sometimes want to stop my workout to take more photos, but push myself to work first and play later. The dock was filled with tv crews, police, military and I ever saw a drone flying over. I was to discover why later today. Megan and I got ready for our day and grabbed a quick breakfast at the Neptune Lounge. We met our tour group at the Main Stage at 8:45am and we were off for our tour titled, Dahlian Favorites. We started our tour at the home of a lovely couple. Our bus was split into three smaller groups and we each visited a different home. By home I mean the top floor of a 31 story apartment building near to the port. Our hosts was a delightful retired couple who’s family lives close by. The gentleman was so excited to tell us all about his home and life and the translator had to squash his excitement from time to time so he could take a breath so she could translate. They more than rolled out the red carpet. They had much food for us to share with them, tea and allowed us into their home to see how they live. When no one was eating he served us food and “made” us try the food that they had purchased and prepared for us. Everything was so delicious. They even made Megan take food with us on our way out as they were so eager to share all that they had. I had never felt so warmly welcomed and desired in a complete strangers home. It was the absolute pinnacle of kindness and hospitality. After we left the home visit we drove to the Oriental Music Cultural Museum. We were supposed to visit a nursery, but I assume since it is the weekend that the nurseries were not open today. Instead we were treated to several performances but local musical groups and dance groups performing traditional Chinese art. It was a fascinating to watch the performances complete with traditional costumes, make up and music. Next stop was a lovely restaurant that we found out even the locals frequent for a family style Chinese lunch. I have to say I was still so full from visiting our host family but everything here was fantastic as well. We sampled several different traditional dishes, local beer and egg drop soup. By the time we got back to the bus we were all in a food coma and I know Megan and I took a short nap as we drove to People’s Square for a quick photo stop. Then onto our next stop at the Pole Aquarium. We got to see walrus, penguins, seals, turtle, Bulga whales and dolphins. We also got to watch the dolphins and the beluga whales give a performance in their large stadium. It was packed full with locals and tourists alike. Quite an experience to watch the little ones so excited to be there and take part in the show. I miss my granddaughter very much and we bought her a stuffy while we were thinking of her. Our last stop of the day was at what is affectionately called the lovers bridge. It is on the side of cliff and it is said that newly married couples come here to proclaim their love to be taller the mountain and deeper than the sea. We had a lovely drive back to the pier along the scenic cliffs for a while as we looked out to the oceans. Much like our very own Highway 1 in California. So all day today we had a camera crew following us. The photographed us continuously. They were at every stop we were at taking our pictures and filming us. We could not understand why? We also received our usual looks of amazement from the locals for being Americans and light hair people, but these two were always there. AS we when through customs and boarded back onto the Zuiderdam. The captains farewell announcement put the days mystery into perspective. Today we were the very first ship to dock at the Dahlian port since Covid. It was a huge ordeal for the entire community to welcome a cruise ship back into their port. There was a huge banner at the port with the name of our ship and today’s date welcoming us. It was obvious that much time and care was put into preparations for our arrival and we felt the love and genuine kindness all day. Our guides were from the Dahlian University language program and all the activities we did were planned perfectly to appeal to our interests as well as to highlight the things that they are most proud of as a people. It was so wonderful. Tonight we went to the Pinnacle Grill for dinner. After dinner I went to the Billboard Lounge to spend a little time catching up with Gail and Marty and friends, sharing all about our days. I am now home and writing to you all. I have photos to upload for you and then I am off to bed. We are en route to our next port of Tianjin where will have an overland trip to the Great Wall of China and Tiananmen square. I will not have my computer so I will be MIA for a couple of days, but I will share my adventures with you all when I return to the ship in a couple of days. Enjoy my photos from today. Good morning to all of you waking up back at home. Look to the West and think of me as you start you wonderful Sunday morning. Hugs from China.