On departure from the Port of Osaka, saw a tourist boat. We left at around 7PM, and took the following photos and videos from our veranda.  We were berthed that close to largest aquarium in the world. The Tempozan Ferris wheel has a diameter larger than a football field ( 330 feet ), for a ride that lasts around 16 minutes, costing $6.  There are sixteen cabins.  LED lights put on quite a show at night. Today is Thanksgiving. So I ordered a traditional Thanksgiving meal, with glasses of Duckhorn Chardonnay and Paraduxx. We met the Chief Sommelier Leo, who convinced us to join his Caymus dinner table on December 5. This will be the menu. Ended with a pumpkin pie. Then, off to Explorers for karaoke. About Tropical Storm Koto in our path to Singapore, here are some details. Appeared as a tropical depression on November 24, the day before we boarded the Diamond Princess. November 25:  strength increased to 45 MPH. November 26:  became Typhoon Koto at 8...

Our European Christmas Cruise is one week old today.  But first, tomorrow will be  Thanksgiving , a tradition that began in the U.S. in 1619 with the English settlers on the ship Margaret in Virginia. Of course, this continued with the Pilgrims at Plymouth in 1621. Our first President, George Washington, proclaimed 26November1789 as a day of thanks. President Abraham Lincoln made Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863 as the final Thursday in November. But in 1939, President Franklin Roosevelt changed this holiday to the next to last Thursday in November to boost the economy, adding an extra week for Christmas shopping. This was not popular, so in 1942, Congress changed the official national Thanksgiving Day to the fourth Thursday in November, a compromise, for this day sometimes is not the final Thursday of the month. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy acknowledged that both Virginia and Massachusetts were the first. We are in  Germany , and they do celebrate Thanksgivi...