Our last port of call on the cruise was Kagoshima, still in Kyushu.  After a big couple of days, we got a relatively late start to the morning, accompanied by Captain Kumamon on his first adventure away from home.  When we got off the ship, we discovered there was a ferry service shuttling passengers to the port in the city, 40 minutes away.  It would give us a chance to see the main attraction of Kagoshima – the smoking volcano – up close.  It certainly dominates the skyline, and has led to Kagoshima being dubbed “the Naples of Japan”.

It was pleasant to be on the water, with a nice breeze, and views of our ship that we don’t usually get.  The ferry took us to its terminal close to the Aquarium.  We saw a mini-submarine outside, and googled it to discover it was used to research underwater fumaroles.

We didn’t really have particular plans for the day, so we decided to head into the city centre and see what there was to see.  Turns out, not a lot.  We visited the Tenmokan shopping centre, where I found a nice bakery for lunch.  We briefly stuck our heads inside a pachinko parlour, and decided that one glance was enough to last a lifetime – way too many bright lights and noises, and row upon row of machines. Not for us.

The shops weren’t really holding our interest, and it was very hot, so we boarded one of the trams heading south, then walked back to the cruise port.  We thought our day was finished, but just before sailaway, we were treated to another farewell drum ceremony, and lots of people waving us off.  This was followed by a spectacular pink sunset, which we watched from our favourite outdoor spot on Deck 5, enjoying the Mediterranean-like evening weather, and our last view of the volcano.