Sometimes the joy one finds in travel is not the destination, sights, or adventures obviously associated with the journey. It’s the odd encounters never expected and so wholly out of context. As mind-blowing as Antarctica is, there was a whole other element to my trip that made it uniquely special, its name is Funassyi!
Our cruise was joined by Funassyi, a Japanese mascot character, unofficially representing the city of Funabashi, Chiba. Funassyi is neither a boy nor a girl, but a pear fairy. Its parents are ordinary pear trees; Funassyi is the fourth of their 274 children born on July 4, over 1,876 years ago. It was created by a citizen of Funabashi with the objective of cheering up local residents and to help promote its hometown. It has subsequently appeared at events and festivals, as well as on numerous TV programs and commercials, gaining popularity around Japan. While Funassyi remains an unofficial character for the city of Funabashi it is one of the most popular characters in Japan.
Funassyi was onboard the MV Ortelius as part of the Pear Fairy’s around the world domination trip, which also included Hawaii, Italy and our Antarctic Peninsula cruise. Adventures with Funassyi onboard included interviews with several passengers, dance parties on the helipad, skiing and “dogsledding” in the snow, going incognito as a penguin, and countless photoshoots. It was almost jarring to see this chubby pear in the regulation Wellie boots waddling among the equally chubby penguin friends.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.