Journey with Bill & Mary Ann on the Amsterdam's 2016 Grand World Voyage - 114 days +

Sorry I just deleted some gibberish that I accidentally typed.

Loved the pictures of your window garden. What happens to the plants when you leave? Thanks for the time you take to share your travels with us.

Report # 35 Picton, New Zealand February 4, 2016 Thursday Partly cloudy & 75 degrees Part # 1 of 3 80 Pictures

Picton is located on the northeastern tip of the South Island of New Zealand. The town of 4053 citizens is buried deep in the Queen Charlotte Sound, and caters to mainly backpackers, boaters, kayakers, cyclists, and people like us, that come by cruise ship or ferry. One other small cruise ship, the Le Soleal, was anchored quite a way from the dock in Picton. They were tendering their guests to shore. Considered small by modern day cruise standards, this vessel is under 11,000 gross tons, and holds up to 264 passengers. It was launched in 2013, and caters to the French crowd. It is an all-inclusive experience and also expensive.

Picton is gateway to the wine country as well as to the sheep and cattle industry in the Marlborough region. The waterways in the Cook Strait to Picton are loaded with dolphins, fur seals, and local enthusiastic kayakers. We will be on the lookout for those dolphins, and hope to see them jumping like we did a few years ago.

Guess who was also here? Yep, good ol’ Captain Cook in 1770, who found Maoris living here since the 1500’s. Eventually, New Zealanders bought this land from the Maoris, and moved them to nearby Waikawa Bay, where they planted sweet potatoes. In time, the fertile hillsides were planted with vineyards, fruit trees, and timber. The fields were filled with sheep and cow stations, and remain that way today. Last time we were here, we took an all day tour to a private sheep ranch. We began with a visit to the owner’s pasture, where he demonstrated how his dogs work herding and gathering the sheep. Pretty neat, especially if you like dogs, like we do. The rancher also showed us how quickly a sheep could be sheared in his wool shed. It’s hard work, and when shearing time comes, he has to hire professionals to get it done on time. The raw wool is then sold to factories in the larger cities where it is processed and eventually sold to the public.

Back at the farmhouse, his wife had a wonderful buffet lunch ready for our group. She set up the delicious food on her kitchen table, while we waited outside in their backyard visiting with her husband. Having lots of questions for him about country living, we were the last to get our plates. We discovered that the other folks on the bus with us were hungry, so much so, that hardly anything was left. Good thing the lady of the house thought to save some extra in the pot. They also joined us, and continued to tell us how they raised their two girls in this isolated area. The ride to school took the mom an hour one way, so she decided to get a job in town to be there when they got out of school every day. In time, the girls went to boarding school for their high school years, and off to university in Auckland, living there as well. The oldest daughter decided to come home to help run the ranch, while the youngest began a career in medicine, choosing to stay in a big city. They were fine with that, but did admit that once the kids went off to higher education, they seldom came back home to stay. Too isolated, and few good jobs. Anyway, it was a great tour back then, even if it was $250 per person. We learned a lot.

Other things to do and see here are excursions to wineries, a scenic coastal drive, a catamaran cruise of the pristine water way, and visits to different museums. There is an aviation center with World War 1 aircraft, and a stop at Makana Chocolate Factory. Kaipupu Point Mainland Wildlife Sanctuary is the place to see many birds, fur seals, blue penguins, and perhaps the dolphins. There are green shell mussel, salmon, and oyster farms nearby too.

As for us, we left the ship shortly after 10am. It looked like it might be a sunny/partly cloudy day, but it sure looked and felt like rain. Of course, we carried the umbrellas all day, but never needed them. In this busy port, we were required to take a shuttle bus to the town’s center, because of the large equipment and moving trucks on the dock. This port is a major hub for timber, perhaps the douglas fir trees. Besides several large ferries coming in and out of this harbor, barges transport the logs mainly to China we heard.

Once in town, we were dropped off at the information center where we found excellent maps and brochures of the town. All of the hiking trails were laid out, so we were able to chart our way to one of their most popular tracks. This took us past some major hotels with restaurants and cafes, where we crossed the road, and found their mini-version of the coathanger walking bridge. Before we began our hike, we noticed a modern-looking restroom right on the harbor front, near the local craft market. Never saw anything quite like these double unit restrooms. You pushed a button, which opened the door. Upon entering, you pushed the button on the inside, which closed and locked the door. Music came on, and a voice guided you how the restroom operated. You had a maximum time of 10 minutes in there before the door automatically opened up. Once you were done, there was an automated soap and water dispenser to use, with a dryer to dry your hands. When the water was activated, the toilet flushed. Then you pushed the button to open the door. There was a brief moment when you thought maybe the door would not open. Then what? But it did, and it was available for the next person. We don’t even have this type of technology where we live in California.

Then we climbed the walking bridge which brought us across the harbor to a large boat marina. From there, we joined a trail that took us to Victoria Domain, and the wooded cliffs above the Picton Harbour. The very steep trail seemed to go on for miles, and would eventually end up at Snout Point at the very end of the rugged peninsula. The maps we picked up had suggested that this hike would take 50 minutes. But that would only be if you were an Olympic athlete in our opinion. Most New Zealanders are young and athletic, so you could easily add another hour to that walk for some of us.

This track above the sound mostly gave us views of the opposite valley and the Waikawa Bay and marina. So we navigated our way up a road that went to a parking lot on the ridge. We really got a workout hiking up this steep road with hairpin turns, but it was worth it for the view of the sound and Picton Harbour below. Instead of aiming for mileage, we figured we would need to head back by 1pm. On the way back, we took a left turn, which brought us back down the Waikawa side. It was here that a local biker passed us, and stopped to offer water. Gosh, one of us must have looked stressed and hot. He was right, but we reassured him we had soda with us. He politely chastised us for not having water, which he was right. Since it was partly cloudy, the temperature was not high for the most part. But when the sun did peek out, it was intense. He said that was dangerous. So he wished us well and was on his way. We would run into him back at the boat marina, and he congratulated us by saying, “Good on you……you guys made it!” Yeah, we’re not over-the-hill quite yet…………

We finally came to Endeavor Park, where the trail detoured. We chose to make our way to the highway, passing through a rather new housing development. The gardens resembled ours at home in California. The plants and trees were about the same as we have. And the flowers were in full bloom….very pretty. We saw pear and peach trees full of fruit, some covered with heavy netting. They must have a bird problem. The only sign of wildlife up in the hillsides were some type of emerald green beetle, honey bees, and what appeared to be rabbit poop. No other animals were spotted except a few small birds.

Following the road, we walked past the college, which really looked like a high school to us. The kids were out in the field for a lunch break. At least six young teen girls had climbed a gum tree and were perched up there enjoying being adventurous. They giggled like little girls when we took their photos. They loved it. We heard the school bell ring, but the girls did not move too quickly getting down that tree. Doubt they would look very cool coming down.

Lunch was on the schedule next. We were really looking forward to going to the pub we spotted with a huge pizzeria sign on the billboard. You can imagine our disappointment when we found the doors closed. A sign said they open daily at 3pm. Drats! That would be cutting it too close, since all aboard time was 4:30pm. So we walked the main drag until we found a place called The Barn Bar and Restaurant. It was not crowded, and they had burgers and beer. Their special was an $8 burger with no fries, which was way better priced than the $28 burger in Paihia a couple of days ago. It was so worth it to sit down after that hike. We expected slider-size burgers, but when it arrived, it was full size. And really good with caramelized onions, tomatoes, lettuce and a slice of pickled beets, very different, but good. The Tui beer was even better.

Since this was our final stop in new Zealand (boo-hoo), we wanted to use the rest of our paper money and coins. It was enough to buy a cup of hokey pokey ice cream, of course, and 4 bags of vinegar and salt potato chips, (our only vice). We caught the shuttle back to the ship, and arrived back by 4pm. Exhausted, but happy to have had such a nice day here.

By the way, the damaged tender boat was dropped to within six or seven feet from the pier, where work continued on it. At least that way, none of the dust from the sanding of the hull was deposited on the promenade deck. It did cover the dock, because we could see it when the ship turned and left the pier.

Sail away was at 4:30pm, and was well attended. We ended up staying for three hours, watching for those dolphins. They never appeared. In fact, we saw few birds, and certainly no fur seals or other wildlife. Captain Mercer announced that he was going to perform a special test for the ship’s compass by doing a 360 degree turn further up the sound. That delayed our exit by at least 30 minutes, but he said it was a requirement that it be done yearly. And this was an ideal place to do it.

Dinner found only three of us, since Bonnie and Paul opted to eat in the Lido tonight. They had also hiked the lower trail where we walked today. Barbie is excited because tomorrow is her birthday….a big one at that. Our dining room head waiters have promised to blow up 100 balloons for her. No, she is not that old, but we shall see how many balloons she gets. Should be fun because she has invited some special guests.

We noticed that the seas are beginning to act up later tonight. Captain Mercer advised us to stash anything breakable on the floor, as he expects 15 foot swells as we sail towards Australia. There is a system coming up from Antarctica, and we cannot avoid it. Crossing the Tasman Sea can be dicey sometimes. We have three days to reach Melbourne.

Bill & Mary Ann

Please give Barbi a kiss on her big birthday I Sent a note to her but she never opens her email at sea.

Report # 36 Sailing Towards Melbourne, Australia February 5, 2016 Friday Partly cloudy & 78 degrees

Today was a special one, because it was Barb’s 80th birthday. We began the day by running a card to her room, so she would get it first thing. She’s a late sleeper, so she may not find it until almost noon. At least before trivia time. Then our host Tom, who is also a longtime friend of Barb’s, had left a special card for her that we all signed. All of us would be Bill & Leta, Don, Peter, the Purser, and the two of us. We would all meet at 8pm at our table for dinner.

The sea swells that the Captain promised that would hit us are here. Not quite 15 feet, they still are substantial enough to cause the ship to pitch severely and list as well. The morning started off fairly mild, but as the day progressed, so did the rough seas. At one point, Captain Mercer described the waters as angry and confused.

When visiting the front desk, we noticed that the telltale crackers and apples were out for the taking. Sometimes when the folks suffer from seasickness, that combination of food is the only thing that will stay down. A better bet is to take meclizine, a common drug used to combat dizziness. Think they still dispense it for free at the front desk.

Today we had to turn in a form for the Australian face-to-face passport check in Melbourne. The entire population on the ship will have to disembark, and present themselves to the authorities. We had a choice of the time we would be called off. The early people will go off, and join their tours, while those of us on our own, will go later. The ship has to be totally emptied before anyone can be let back onboard.

The weather has taken a sudden change. Along with the wave action, the temperature dropped at least 20 degrees. No way was it going to be 78 degrees today. With the wind chill, we bet it was in the 50’s. Very few passengers were outside walking or lounging in the teak chairs this morning. What we did find were the two workers still fixing the tender boat. Today they had put up a blue tarp, blocking the dust and debris from blowing down the deck. The boat is still far from being completed. The other prop had been taken off yesterday. Now two are missing along with the shafts. Not an easy fix.

We met with Barb for lunch in the dining room. They served vegetable taquitos and very good burgers with hot fries in a basket. It was nice for a change, and we spent quality time with our buddy. A nice treat for dessert, we had the mini pavlova with strawberries and whipped cream. Too good.

No pool time today….too windy and way too cold. It was a good time to work on emails and photos from yesterday.

During his PM talk, Gene mentioned that they still need 20 folks to play the game of bingo at 4pm. Don’t recall ever having had this problem getting players. Bingo used to be the biggest activity on the cruise. Especially the short ones where the final bingo was big. Someone always won it, but it sure wasn’t us. Close, but never close enough.

Chef George Geary had his first demo today as he prepared rack of lamb, Afghan and New Zealand butter cookies. He is quite the character, and puts on a good show. We are signed up with a class with him before he leaves the ship. Should be interesting.

The guests speakers continued their series of talks. We understand that the star gazing at night on deck 10 has drawn a crowd. Doubt that will be the case this evening, due to the rough seas and cold winds. It is scheduled at 10pm, but if there are clouds, then it will be cancelled.

Good thing the clocks went back one hour tonight, because our special celebration dinner ran overtime tonight. By the time we left the dining room, very few, if any, diners were left. Barb thanked her “winter friends” for being her family on this day of her 80th birthday. It was a fine night and we enjoyed being part of it.

Now we hope the seas calm down, at least a little.

Bill & Mary Ann

Thx for the update.

Thanks for all the reports.

I just received "Seaviews" from a major TA, with whom I work and obviously so do you. I enjoyed reading the article about the two of you. Very nice article and the pictures are nice too.

Congratulations!

Terri

 

Lunch was on the schedule next. So we walked the main drag until we found a place called The Barn Bar and Restaurant. It was not crowded, and they had burgers and beer. Their special was an $8 burger with no fries, which was way better priced than the $28 burger in Paihia a couple of days ago. It was so worth it to sit down after that hike. We expected slider-size burgers, but when it arrived, it was full size. And really good with caramelized onions, tomatoes, lettuce and a slice of pickled beets, very different, but good. The Tui beer was even better.

 

 

Bill & Mary Ann

Pleased you enjoyed your hamburger for lunch. Aussie hamburgers are excellent also and always include beetroot. Hamburgers with the lot include pineapple and egg. You might like to try one whilst you are in Australia this time around. The best ones, which have home made meat patties, are from cafes.

Thanks once again for your most enjoyable reports on your travels.

Happy birthday Barb!

Happy birthday to all on your special day. I hope and pray I am enjoying a sea day on my 80th birthday.

Keep up the wonderful reports from the Amsterdam. I can almost feel the ship roll from your description. Be careful.

Smooth sailing

4boysnana

Thank you for your updates.

We were at the observation area on the hill above the port when you sailed out of Picton, was hoping Captain Mercer would give more than 3 toots, but no.

Thank you for your updates.

We were at the observation area on the hill above the port when you sailed out of Picton, was hoping Captain Mercer would give more than 3 toots, but no.

Hello J, That's quite the drive for you two!! Sounds like it was worth it to see and hear Amsterdam, and especially with meeting Copper John, how nice!

I'm loving reliving my memories of our trip to your lovely land. The WC blogs are such a vicarious treat. Cold and snowy here but that's good for us... only a couple more months to collect snowpack before fire season. We're glad for it. Hope everyone stays safe and well. m--

Hello J, That's quite the drive for you two!! Sounds like it was worth it to see and hear Amsterdam, and especially with meeting Copper John, how nice!

 

I'm loving reliving my memories of our trip to your lovely land. The WC blogs are such a vicarious treat. Cold and snowy here but that's good for us... only a couple more months to collect snowpack before fire season. We're glad for it. Hope everyone stays safe and well. m--

Hi Maureen,

It was a special day to meet Copper John, have lunch on board the Amsterdam, meet Captain Mercer, also to meet a passenger who has 7000 actual days sailed on HAL, what an amazing lady.

Stay safe in the snow, maybe you could have another trip "down under".

>>>>>Never saw anything quite like these double unit restrooms. <<<

I have been following and enjoying your travels for some time. While in Australia this past Dec/Jan my 7y/o Granddaughter and I discovered these amazing "toilets" (Australian term) in Byron Bay. She just loved pushing the buttons in the very clean restroom. You forgot one or maybe it's in Australia only....a button which dispenses the toilet tissue sheet by sheet...amazing technology

Hi Maureen,

It was a special day to meet Copper John, have lunch on board the Amsterdam, meet Captain Mercer, also to meet a passenger who has 7000 actual days sailed on HAL, what an amazing lady.

Stay safe in the snow, maybe you could have another trip "down under".

It is amazing and wonderful how our "family" from all over the world can come together on a HAL ship! And Ms Dolly is a special lady - she' shared Amsterdam with us some years ago on a west side Panama Canal partial transit with overnight in Gatun Lake, a favorite cruise for us! HAL has so many unusual itineraries.

No travel plans for us for awhile - we're working on "Home'dam" putting a heating system in our old log cabin! Loving the World Cruise blog! and many thanks to MaryAnn and Bill and all who add to it for sharing it with us. m--

Report # 37 Sailing Towards Melbourne, Australia February 6, 2016 Saturday Partly cloudy & 71 degrees 4 Pictures

The seas remained turbulent throughout the night, rocking and rolling us like babies in a bassinet. Everyone we know seems to like the motion at night, when you are comfortably in the safety of the bed. Some others have not felt the same, because they were experiencing mal-de-mar, or motion sickness. This morning we noticed the absence of the usual guests relaxing on the lower promenade deck. Perhaps it was partly due to the fact it was wet from the sea spray, but also it was cold and windy. Also, the deck was closed once again, for the two fellows to continue repairs on the tender boat. The blue tarp was hung again to prevent the dust from covering all of the surfaces. Barb’s room happens to be right there at the spot of the work site. She said her room is cast in blue tones from the tarp, and she gets to wake up to the noise of power tools. In her humble opinion, she thinks the Sistine Chapel was painted quicker than these repairs are proceeding.

Gray, overcast, wind, drizzle. We are not used to this type of weather, but then, this is typical of the Tasman Sea crossing. We’ve been lucky to have crossed several times with little negative effects. This time is different. Of course, we are spoiled with warm, balmy days for the most part, so we will appreciate these days even more when it warms up.

So we did a few things today for a first time. Such as attending celebrity chef George Geary’s cooking show in the Wajang Theater. It’s neat how the theater turns into a culinary center with a functional kitchen set. He was preparing cream of chicken and corn soup along with chicken picatta. Really, his demo was more about the stories he intertwines with his cooking. With his sense of humor, the hour passed by quickly. Every one of us in the audience got a sample of the chicken, which was delicious of course. We’ll probably try attending again before he leaves.

Our big job for the day was picking up our passports at the front desk. We will have to present ourselves for the face-to-face inspection once we get to Australia in a few days. We assume the passports will be collected, and returned to the ship for safe keeping. At least that is the normal drill.

We have been taking several walks despite the cold. A big treat was watching four wandering albatrosses soaring over the wake of the ship. They seem to never flap their massive wings as they dip into the deep bottoms of the waves. Cool to watch.

As we get closer to the next port of Melbourne, a little info on Australia is in order. It’s big…….2,967,124 square miles with deadly snakes, spiders, and sharks to name a few. It sure did not stop people from coming here as today (2014), the population is 21,007,310 citizens. The capital is Canberra, and the official language is English. The beauty of the country is diverse from endless plains to dense tropical rain forests, to wild southern beaches. The Aussies love sports and the outdoors, but also have a passion for food and art. From our experiences over the years, we have found the locals to be young or young at heart. And friendly as ever. You’ll hear, “G’day mate” everywhere you go.

The best time to visit? Anytime is the right answer. It could be cold down south, yet warm up north. On this visit, we will be heading up the east coast to Sydney, the Gold Coast, Cairns (for the Great Barrier Reef), and finally Darwin. So there will be an astounding amount to see and do. We’ll cover that as we do it.

What’s to eat in Australia? Try Sydney rock oysters, kangaroo steak, cooked so rare it’s still hopping, and vegemite, an acquired taste which is similar to a concentrated soup stock. Tim Tams….a most delicious chocolate-covered crispy cookie. They are addictive.

What do they drink? Boutique beers and plenty of local wines, produced from the fertile valleys.

A random fact is many inventions have come from this country, like the bionic ear, the black box flight recorder, the notepad, and the wine cask. Bet you never would guess that?

Tonight was another Gala evening, with folks dressing up with no special theme. Barb had a date in the Pinnacle with her two “boyfriends”, Don and Peter. They were continuing to celebrate her birthday. We filled Bonnie and Paul in on the party last night. They were disappointed that they missed the extravagant caviar appetizers, and the deliciously moist carrot cake. They had been invited to the Captain’s Dinner, also in the Pinnacle Grill last night. They might not have minded being squeezed into a table for nine, if the food was more to their liking. They described it as fancy, perhaps a bit over the top, but adequate. Like us, they prefer the meals in the dining room….good “home-cooked” meals. They were hosted by an officer and his wife, both from England. That made their evening pleasant.

Our entrees tonight were excellent…..the chateaubriand was fork tender with a particularly tasty gravy reduction. Sure would love the recipe for the gravies. We ended the meal with a slice of carrot cake, almost as good as last night’s, and a healthy scoop of frozen yogurt with a chocolate sauce drizzle. OK, it was mostly healthy.

The 7:30pm spotlight show of the Sounds of the Didgeridoo was cancelled, because the musician Dhinawan had blown his eardrum during practice. He will be out of commission for a while for sure. That hurts. The main show time featured the singers and dancers performing Mundo Latino, a South American flavored production. Always a delight to watch.

One more sea day, and we will be in Australia. And, the clocks went back one more hour tonight. Like that a lot.

Bill & Mary Ann

If you wish to see the best of this area privately or on small packages try

http://www.cairnstablelandtours.com Clive and Eileen will see you have a great time check them out on tripdvisor

You were fortunate to see the four Albatrosses.

Was interested to see a jar of Vegemite in the Amsterdam Lido on Thursday.

Don't forget to try Morton Bay Bugs or bugs whichever bay they are from. They are like a cross between a crab and a lobster and are simply delicious!

You can enjoy the Vegemite, I'd rather have the Tim Tams!! m--

Report # 38 Sailing Towards Melbourne, Australia February 7, 2016 Sunday Partly cloudy & 77 degrees

As the Amsterdam sails one day closer to Australia, we noticed that the weather and the seas have improved quite a bit. Even though the day began cloudy, gradually, the sun came out, and it actually got very warm. That would keep us outside most of the day.

At breakfast, we found the dining room set up for another Sunday morning buffet. Normally, we can expect this once a month, not two Sundays in a row. Head waiter Pandi also did not know why. It is definitely more work for them to move all of the chairs from the middle of the room to set up the serving stations. It’s fine for the folks that like buffets, but for us, we do not. You end up eating way more than you should.

After our “flip-flop” walk on the promenade deck after breakfast, we went to the pool. The promenade deck is still blocked, because the fellows are still working on the bottom of the boat. One half of it is done, the holes filled, sanded, and painted. One more side to go, and that will more than likely happen tomorrow while we’re in port. So in the meantime, we walk to the tarp, end around, and walk the other way. Flip-flop.

Talks continued starting with Barbara H giving hints about Sydney. The two guests speakers continued their series…one about the Pacific War of WW2, and the other all about astrology.

The first Grand Dollar Redemption took place today, where those folks that are leaving in Sydney have a chance to spend their $ on prizes. Those folks who are traveling on for the entire trip can save them until the cruise is over, and get better prizes.

Another popular activity was whatever floats your boat sea trials. Today, at the Lido Pool, the contestants gave their creations the float test in one of the spas. These boats or ships are put together with items that the ship has in a big box, and the folks get very creative. We saw a sample of one of the ships this afternoon, when it was brought down to the desk by the front office. It was made with the blue HAL shopping bags and several plastic water bottles. It must have survived the float test to make it this far.

With tomorrow being Superbowl Sunday (really Monday for us), the beverage team offered some deals on drink packages. The game will be broadcast live at 10:30am here, and re-shown at 6pm in the Queens Lounge, and also on TV. An unlimited drink package ($8 and under drinks) for $34.95 is offered from one hour prior to the game until it ends. Buckets of beer are $22 and $25, and the front row seating for VIPs is $49.95. That will include unlimited drinks, food, a butler, and a souvenir glass. The only downside, is that we are in Melbourne tomorrow, so we’re not sure how many people will sacrifice the port for football. The powers to be sure did not factor that in to their planning this year, did they?

We had dinner with Shiv, the Head Housekeeping Officer, tonight in the Pinnacle Grill. He is always busy at work in his office, so it was nice to be able to spend a few hours with him uninterrupted. He is originally from Delhi, India, so he had many stories of living with his extended family there. He was a big help last year when we went overland to a tiger safari, as he prepared us for what India had to offer us in the way of transportation and food. Especially, the food. We barely noticed when the time was well past 10pm. Nice evening and equally great food.

Be nice to be in Australia tomorrow.

Bill & Mary Ann

I'm with you on the buffet. Not a fan. Thx for the update.

Too bad about Dhonawan's ear problem he was on the Noordam sailing that ended Jan 30 in Sydney.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Report # 37 Sailing Towards Melbourne, Australia February 6, 2016 Saturday Partly cloudy & 71 degrees 4 Pictures

 

 

 

The seas remained turbulent throughout the night, rocking and rolling us like babies in a bassinet. Everyone we know seems to like the motion at night, when you are comfortably in the safety of the bed. Some others have not felt the same, because they were experiencing mal-de-mar, or motion sickness. This morning we noticed the absence of the usual guests relaxing on the lower promenade deck. Perhaps it was partly due to the fact it was wet from the sea spray, but also it was cold and windy. Also, the deck was closed once again, for the two fellows to continue repairs on the tender boat. The blue tarp was hung again to prevent the dust from covering all of the surfaces. Barb’s room happens to be right there at the spot of the work site. She said her room is cast in blue tones from the tarp, and she gets to wake up to the noise of power tools. In her humble opinion, she thinks the Sistine Chapel was painted quicker than these repairs are proceeding.

 

 

 

Gray, overcast, wind, drizzle. We are not used to this type of weather, but then, this is typical of the Tasman Sea crossing. We’ve been lucky to have crossed several times with little negative effects. This time is different. Of course, we are spoiled with warm, balmy days for the most part, so we will appreciate these days even more when it warms up.

 

 

 

So we did a few things today for a first time. Such as attending celebrity chef George Geary’s cooking show in the Wajang Theater. It’s neat how the theater turns into a culinary center with a functional kitchen set. He was preparing cream of chicken and corn soup along with chicken picatta. Really, his demo was more about the stories he intertwines with his cooking. With his sense of humor, the hour passed by quickly. Every one of us in the audience got a sample of the chicken, which was delicious of course. We’ll probably try attending again before he leaves.

 

 

 

Our big job for the day was picking up our passports at the front desk. We will have to present ourselves for the face-to-face inspection once we get to Australia in a few days. We assume the passports will be collected, and returned to the ship for safe keeping. At least that is the normal drill.

 

 

 

We have been taking several walks despite the cold. A big treat was watching four wandering albatrosses soaring over the wake of the ship. They seem to never flap their massive wings as they dip into the deep bottoms of the waves. Cool to watch.

 

 

 

As we get closer to the next port of Melbourne, a little info on Australia is in order. It’s big…….2,967,124 square miles with deadly snakes, spiders, and sharks to name a few. It sure did not stop people from coming here as today (2014), the population is 21,007,310 citizens. The capital is Canberra, and the official language is English. The beauty of the country is diverse from endless plains to dense tropical rain forests, to wild southern beaches. The Aussies love sports and the outdoors, but also have a passion for food and art. From our experiences over the years, we have found the locals to be young or young at heart. And friendly as ever. You’ll hear, “G’day mate” everywhere you go.

 

 

 

The best time to visit? Anytime is the right answer. It could be cold down south, yet warm up north. On this visit, we will be heading up the east coast to Sydney, the Gold Coast, Cairns (for the Great Barrier Reef), and finally Darwin. So there will be an astounding amount to see and do. We’ll cover that as we do it.

 

 

 

What’s to eat in Australia? Try Sydney rock oysters, kangaroo steak, cooked so rare it’s still hopping, and vegemite, an acquired taste which is similar to a concentrated soup stock. Tim Tams….a most delicious chocolate-covered crispy cookie. They are addictive.

 

 

 

What do they drink? Boutique beers and plenty of local wines, produced from the fertile valleys.

 

 

 

A random fact is many inventions have come from this country, like the bionic ear, the black box flight recorder, the notepad, and the wine cask. Bet you never would guess that?

 

 

 

Tonight was another Gala evening, with folks dressing up with no special theme. Barb had a date in the Pinnacle with her two “boyfriends”, Don and Peter. They were continuing to celebrate her birthday. We filled Bonnie and Paul in on the party last night. They were disappointed that they missed the extravagant caviar appetizers, and the deliciously moist carrot cake. They had been invited to the Captain’s Dinner, also in the Pinnacle Grill last night. They might not have minded being squeezed into a table for nine, if the food was more to their liking. They described it as fancy, perhaps a bit over the top, but adequate. Like us, they prefer the meals in the dining room….good “home-cooked” meals. They were hosted by an officer and his wife, both from England. That made their evening pleasant.

 

 

 

Our entrees tonight were excellent…..the chateaubriand was fork tender with a particularly tasty gravy reduction. Sure would love the recipe for the gravies. We ended the meal with a slice of carrot cake, almost as good as last night’s, and a healthy scoop of frozen yogurt with a chocolate sauce drizzle. OK, it was mostly healthy.

 

 

 

The 7:30pm spotlight show of the Sounds of the Didgeridoo was cancelled, because the musician Dhinawan had blown his eardrum during practice. He will be out of commission for a while for sure. That hurts. The main show time featured the singers and dancers performing Mundo Latino, a South American flavored production. Always a delight to watch.

 

 

 

One more sea day, and we will be in Australia. And, the clocks went back one more hour tonight. Like that a lot.

 

 

 

Bill & Mary Ann

Inventions : the 2 most famous ones the hills hoist and the victa.

Of all the things I miss from home , vegemite might be the top. Don't forget to try a meat pie (check out if Harry's cafe de wheels is still in Sydney). Definitely sample a Barossa valley red.

Deadly animals: also box jellyfish, irikanji, and of course the salt water crocs! How do we survive? [emoji847]

Locals: you should always say "no worries, mate" or even better "no wuckas". If surprised by something "crikey mate" is appropriate [emoji4]

Try and check out some aboriginal art in the galleries, it's gorgeous.

Don't be offended if as an American you are referred to as a "yank" or "sepo" it will be meant with affection, and if you are Canadian don't be surprised if you are mistaken as a yank. The accent is easily confused (as others confuse Aussies and kiwis). Brits likewise may be referred to as "poms". We love our slang. [emoji12]

Note customs (as in immigration) can be very strict and serious.

In Sydney check out the historical Rocks area near circular quay and try an ale at the lord nelson or hero of Waterloo.

Have a great time

Sent from my iPod touch using Forums mobile app

I enjoy reading about your travels. I'll be on the 2017 World Cruise. This is not my first World Cruise, but it is my first time with HAL. If you get a chance can you tell me if cabin 7056 has outside access to the aft of the ship for taking pictures?

Report # 39 Melbourne, Australia February 8, 2016 Monday Partly cloudy & 69 degrees Part # 1 of 3

Melbourne is a big city in the state of Victoria. Over 4 million folks live here. Originally populated with expats from Sydney, Melbourne grew rapidly after the mid 1800’s gold rush. The city’s character evolved with their architecture, parks, green spaces, and cultural institutions. At one point, both Melbourne and Sydney vied for the capital of the country. However, Canberra won out as the midpoint city. However, Melbourne did have the county seat until the newer city of Canberra was completed.

Melbourne was the sight of the 1956 Summer Olympic Games, showcasing this city to the world.

What is there to see? There is the Arts Center, the Eureka Skydeck 88, the Southern Hemisphere’s highest viewing platform, and The Shrine of Remembrance, a war memorial dedicated in 1934. Flinders Street Station, the colonial style railway station, the Parliament House , the first seat of the Australian federal government, and the Melbourne Museum, the largest museum in the Southern Hemisphere. And one of our most favorite places, the Royal Botanic Gardens, where we would spend most of the day.

What about going out of town? On past visits, we have gone to the Mount Dandenong Observatory, 2000 feet in elevation with impressive views of the mountain ranges. The Puffing Billy Steam Train is fun, where you ride the narrow-gauge steam train over the woods and through the farmlands. Healesville Wildlife Sanctuary is a complex where you can see over 200 species of birds, mammals, and reptiles native to Australia. The wineries in the Yarra Valley are marvelous to tour and sample some of the finest vintages you can find.

Since this is the first port in Australia that we stopped, it was mandatory that we have a face-to-passport with the local officials. Yesterday, we got a letter requesting us to disembark the ship by 10:30am. Group numbers started with # 5, beginning at 8:00am. Our number was actually the letter S, where we could go off any time we wished. This was a “zero count” process, where every person had to be cleared before anyone would be allowed back on the ship.

So we went to breakfast as usual, gathered our things, including the passports and letter, and went through the Australian Immigrations check quite quickly. Sometimes, the staff will ask for your letter, but today they did not. We always carry it with us, because sometimes people get grumpy and think some folks are jumping the line, like # 20 going ahead of # 7, for instance. We have seen line fights, believe it or not. Once past the officials, our passports were gathered to take back onboard.

Free to go, we took off through the terminal building. We were joined by another group of passengers from the Europa, a small 5 plus star luxury vessel, that holds from 400 to 450 guests. She is 28,890 gross tons and was christened in 1999. Owned by Hapag-Lloyd, the Europa is a German/English speaking ship with 280 crew, 14 zodiac boats, and 20 bicycles to use for free. It is also all-inclusive, and very, very pricey.

The last time we were here, which was last year, we had bought public transport tickets called myki. It’s a transit card that works by tapping it on the trains and buses. We still had half of the money we had originally paid for ($14 Australia $), and only needed to add a little more to get to the city center and back to the pier. Easy.

So we got on the bus, that drove us to the center of town. It was from that point, the Arts Center, that we began our hike to the Royal Botanic Gardens, a 94 acre park, an inner city oasis. Started in 1846, the gardens are full of plants and trees, some 50,000 of them. There are 9000 species from around the world in this park. We have always taken the same walk, but never took the time to really get to the main park grounds by going through the Lych Gate. This time, we entered the park and followed the pathways and signage to access all of the sites. It was a wonderful discovery for us to see the amount of trees that we recognized that we also have growing in northern California. Right on our own property. The best part were the bird sightings. So many of them are only here in Australia. We could have spent double the hours exploring this massive park, but we had limited time.

So we ended back and walked along the Yarra River, that flows right through the city. Besides being scenic, this river is where boaters race, and have done so for many years. Great place to see the black swans, that love basking in the sun by the river’s edge.

Since it was getting close to lunchtime, we crossed the river on St. Kilda Road, and walked to the corner of Federation Square, Flinder’s Street Station, and St. Paul’s Cathedral. Even on a Monday, this area was crowded with locals and tourists alike. Turning right, we walked to Fitzroy Gardens, past the Old Treasury Building, the Parliament House, and on to Carlton Gardens. The Royal Exhibition Building as well as the Melbourne Museum are in this beautiful setting.

If it had been opened, we would have gone to the Queen Victoria Market, a huge complex where you can buy fresh produce and a ton of souvenirs. At least we saved some money by it being closed. With our excellent maps we had picked up in the cruise terminal, we had no problem finding the Metropolitan Hotel, a cozy place that serves wood-fired pizza. Located on the corner of William Street and Lt. Lonsdale, we found the majority of the crowd was gone, and we had no trouble finding a table by the window.

Guess you all can figure out what we ordered….a margherita pizza, naturally, and two Carlton beers. After the long hike up and down the hilly streets, it was more than wonderful to sit and relax with those ice cold brews. Since we had missed the Superbowl, we got to listen to the last 60 seconds of it in the restaurant. We are happy for our Colorado friends, since Denver won. We do remember the thrill when the San Francisco 49ers won the Superbowl more than once……..many years back now. Those were the days……………

It was time to head back to Collins Street and the 109 tram back to Melbourne Pier. All aboard was 4pm, because we all were required to attend a muster drill by 4:15pm. We had left a little extra time for when we got back to the pier, we could find the gelato shop, and get some ice cream. By now, the skies had cleared completely, and the sun was warm if you stayed out of the wind. We sat on the waterfront watching a fellow trying to get some altitude by one of those water pressure lifts in the harbor. He was doing a whole lot of flips and belly flops in the surf. Looks easy, but it obviously wasn’t.

Well, the muster drill was unusual to say the least. We gathered on the lower promenade deck, and stood in the chilly wind. Once the boat commanders got the roll call done, the Captain never followed up with his normal safety talk. The boat drill crew did not demonstrate the life jackets either. After 20 minutes of standing there shivering, we were dismissed. At least, we should not have to repeat this drill again in Sydney. Maybe only the newly embarked guests will have to attend.

This particular drill reminded us of last year’s, when our friend Ellen W, failed to show up for the exercise. She had been caught up in traffic and missed the ship. In all of her years of sailing, perhaps 50 years, she was never ever late. Well, this time there had been traffic jams, and she literally watched from her private car with relatives as the Amsterdam left the port. Lucky for her, and $400 in the hole, she was able to fly to Adelaide and join us there. So, therefore, we dedicate this lovely day in Melbourne to her. She is not here this year, but we bet she is thinking of all of us today.

Barb had stayed near the ship, and went to the Superbowl activities in the Queens Lounge at 10:30am. She loves sports, and never misses the games. We asked her how many folks were at that game time, and she jokingly said 8. Not really, but most of the peole chose to go see Melbourne instead. They did repeat the game at 5pm, and included the special drink packages again.. We are sure they attracted another group, who chose to make it their dinnertime, snacking on their specially prepared “football” fare.

We all showed up for dinner, and the two of us ordered meatballs and spaghetti. We know it doesn’t sound like gourmet cuisine, but it is good old comfort food that one of us loves. It is the first time we have seen it on the dinner menu. Comes with garlic bread too. Because of the football show in the Queens Lounge, there was no entertainment tonight. But there is always the Piano Bar, where Debby Bacon always keeps the folks happy with her sing-a-longs and singo-bingo, or name that tune events. Always fun, we hear.

Looking forward to a lazy day at sea tomorrow, Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras Day.

Bill & Mary Ann