Category Archives: Westerdam

Westerdam Hits and Misses

Every cruise and every ship has its high points and low points. There are always some things you really love and some things you could do without. Of course which things are hits and which are misses depend entirely on … Continue reading

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Zhujiajao, China’s Canal City

In the port talks on the Holland America Westerdam, the speaker mentioned Suzhou and Zhuiajiao as canal cities near Shanghai with old style Chinese architecture that are places worth going to see. We stayed in Shanghai a few days after … Continue reading

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Shanghai River Cruise

After disembarking Holland America Westerdam in Shanghai, we stayed in a hotel near the Bund for a few days to have some time to see the city. The word bund means an embankment or an embanked quay. That definition fits … Continue reading

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Shanghai Tall Towers

The Tall Towers of Shanghai Shanghai is full of tall buildings, but even there some tower above the rest. The Oriental Pearl Tower, Jin Mao Tower, and the Shanghai World Financial Center that looks like a bottle opener tower over … Continue reading

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Yu Garden in Shanghai, China

Not far from each other, and fairly close to the Bund on Huaihui Road, sit Yu Garden and Yuyuan Garden. The bus tour map of Shanghai that we had showed Yu Garden and our other tourist map that showed the … Continue reading

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Shanghai Tourist Attractions

After disembarking the Westerdam in Shanghai we made our way through long hallways and many lines finally making it through the port only to find another long walk to the taxi stand. Too far for the wheels on my $30 … Continue reading

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Shanghai Cruise Ship Port

Shanghai Shanghai is China’s largest city as well as a global financial hub and the place where our 4-week Canada to China cruise came to an end. The city’s population exceeds 24 million. The Chinese characters that make up the … Continue reading

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Qingdao Cruise Port

Qingdao, China Qingdao, China (pronounced Chingdow) is famous for beer and German architecture in the city center due to a German occupation from 1898-1914. This port city in the Shandong province has beaches and skyscrapers, a beer museum, and a … Continue reading

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The Great Wall of China

Considering the distance from Tianjin port to Beijing, we booked a ship’s excursion to see the Great Wall. This all-day excursion started with a visit to the Summer Palace with a lunch stop at a jade factory between there and … Continue reading

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Summer Palace in Beijing

Excursion information from Holland America gives this history of the Summer Palace: Built during the Qing Dynasty and surrounded by grounds laid out by Emperor Qianlong as a place of retirement for his mother, this summer residence took on special … Continue reading

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