Our first stop in Japan was to a brand new port for Princess Cruises, Kumamon Port Yatsushiro. It is a relatively new port and was well designed for disembarking. We were met by a bevy of artisans, musicians and food vendors. There was a strong chance of rain, so we had geniuses not to do an excursion and just stay in the port area.
Kumamon Port Yatsushiro has a park adjacent to the terminal and features over 18 statues of black bears including a large one with red cheeks dedicated to Kumamon, a mascot black bear for the island. They are extremely cute and we wondered through the park finding the bears on the trails. There is a large choir of bears, a circle of them representing the Chinese years, a line of them leading back to the entrance and several placed upon the wooded walkway.
After walking through the park, we explored the vendors, food stalls and food trucks. There even was one named “Little Josh’s Tex-Mex” which Sharon and I had to try. It was pretty good for a Japanese Tex-Mex.
As we made our way back to the ship, Sharon met some school girls who were translating your name into Japanese. It was so much fun seeing their reactions as they spelled her name and it translated it.
After exploring the port, we spent a relaxing afternoon getting ready for a long excursion in the morning.
