Petra, Jordan

It is as great as is expected.  Tourist allowed to climb on the relics.  Not a good idea.

Job's Tomb.  He seems seven feet tall with a huge foot imprinted outside.  There is another Job's tomb in Lebanon?

Salalah, Oman

"One of the rare times it rains in the Middle East desert. Very short shower.

Fujairah, UAE

We found the shopping center and after 15 minutes looked for a cyber cafe. 
"Fujairah (Arabic: الفجيرة‎ Al Fuǧaira) is one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates, and the only one on the Gulf of Oman in the country's east instead of on the Persian Gulf (the other six emirates)." Wikipedia

Dubai, UAE

Magnificent view of Dubai skyline from the ship.  Most days are hazier than this.  The ride up the tall building on the readers right costs $30 and does not go to the top.  Friends who went said the view was similar as a view out an airplane?  The Saudis plan to build a skyscraper twice as tall?  Most of these buildings are largely empty?

The architect is marvelous, but overall this town is overrated.  Especially the high tea at the building on the readers right.

Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque

This Mosque was beautiful.  The chandelier did astound me.

Port Qaboos, Oman

Very pretty port.  Desert.

Elephanta Islands or the Indian name, Gharapuri

It was an hour boat ride from the Gate of India to Elephanta Island.  The most interesting aspect of the ride was to see one of the five nuclear power plants in and around Mumbai.  This was in stark contrast to the middle east where the only country with a nuclear power plant is Israel.

There a quite a few steps to get to the caves of Elephanta.  There are crews of locals who will carry you up the steps.

The famous three-headed bust of the Hindu god Shiva.

Six Brahmanic caves, carved (8th cent.) from solid rock some 250 ft (76 m) above sea level. The Great Cave, the largest (130 ft/40 m long), contains gigantic pillars supporting its roof and colossal statuary.

This cave has quite a few ancient relics. 

This monkey confronted our lady guide and screeched at her.  A local said the monkey wanted her Cola.  The guide put the Cola on the wall and the monkey got it. 

 The caves are much visited by Hindu pilgrims.  The caves were restored in the 1970s.

Entrance to India

Traditional tourist photo.

Biggest surprise of the Cruise: Cochin, India

"An early 3rd-century Syriac work known as the Acts of Thomas[ connects the tradition of the apostle Thomas' Indian ministry with two kings, one in the north and the other in the south. The year of his arrival is widely disputed due to lack of credible records.
However, Ishwar Sharan rebuts the traditional claims in the book The Myth of Saint Thomas and the Mylapore Shiva Temple."  Wikipedia.

Politically incorrect? Not in Cochin.  Muslims, Christians and Hindus live in harmony.  It was the crossroads of the ancient world.

A pivotal period in history.  The people in India that Vasco discovered were not primitive people.  To show his strength and his resolve he cut off the hands of many of the local people.  What is extremely interesting is that he found a Christian church already in Cochin.

Chaukhtatgyi Temple, Yangon, Burma

Chaukhtatgyi Temple in Myanmar’s capital city Yangon has one of the biggest and most graceful Reclining Buddha statues in South East Asia

The Shwedagon Pagoda, Rangon, Burma

The Shwedagon Pagoda is to Buddhism and the Vatican is to Catholicism?

The Shwedagon Pagoda also known in English as the Great Dagon Pagoda and the Golden Pagoda. It is the most sacred Buddhist pagoda for the Burmese with relics of the past four Buddhas enshrined within, namely the staff of Kakusandha, the water filter of Koṇāgamana, a piece of the robe of Kassapa and eight strands of hair of Gautama, the historical Buddha.

This is the Disney World of Buddhism.

Phang nga bay Thailand

We rode a boat around this beautiful rock formations.

Singapore

I was a little disappointed by Singapore.  Outside of downtown it has a very cookie cutter architecture.

The Genetics of Obesity

Sales lady from Minh Pouh Lacquer factory sales room.

It is written that obesity is 40 to 70% due to genetics. 

Second Tallest Building in Viet Nam

The locals still call Ho Chi Minh city Saigon.  Bitexco Financial Tower is a skyscraper in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, owned by Bitexco Group, a Vietnamese company. 68 floors.  The tower was the tallest building in Vietnam from 2010 to early 2011 when Keangnam Hanoi Landmark Tower topped out on 24 January 2011.