lyndarra

I rented a car (pre-booked) from GO Rentals at AKL in Jan 2020 for a 7 day pre cruise tour. The rental fee included a basic excess (deductible). I can't remember the actual amount. I did purchase extra insurance so that in event of damage I would have no deductible. I also can't remember how much the extra was. However, during the rental period the windshield acquired a stone chip, not uncommon in NZ as there are many unsealed, gravel ("metalled" in Kiwi speak) roads. The chip was noticed on inspection when I returned the car. I was told the stone chip was not covered by the basic excess but was covered by the extra insurance I paid. I do recall the extra payment was much less than the cost of a new windshield. Walk away, nothing to pay😁. I always purchase extra cover when I rent a car. On one occasion in UK it saved me from forking out for expensive panel repairs after I scraped a fender on a low, stone wall in Caernarfon. You should, at pick up, receive an inspection paper listing any existing damage. I also take photos of the car at pickup and on return just in case.

There was an article in today's Sunday Telegraph about travel insurance claims. It seems some have had a problem with Cover More. In particular trying to prove they were not intoxicated when injured by a fall. One insurance company was wanting copies of bar receipts to see what the claimant had been drinking.

If you want to try a shiraz in NZ ask for syrah.

When I flew back to Sydney from Vancouver a couple of weeks ago, I was not looking forward to the 14 hour flight. When checking in I could not buy a BC upgrade so it was cattle class for me. It turned out to be not so bad after all. Instead of the rubbish old, cramped Qantas plane from Singapore to Sydney back in January, I was on a fairly new Qantas 787 with 3-3-3 seating. I scored a port aisle seat about eight rows from the back with an empty seat between me and the starboard aisle seat. Plenty of leg room in this one for me which means I had no need to stretch my legs into the aisle (I'm a tad over 6'). I could stretch my legs straight out under the seat in front. Getting back to the flight. It left YVR at about 21.00, just getting dark. It was a night flight all the way to SYD arriving 06.30 which worked out really good as it turned I had very little jet lag to overcome (flying east to west is always better). Probably the most comfortable long haul, cattle class, flight I have done. So, if anyone is considering that route I can recomend a late departure and choosing a plane like the 787 with plenty of leg room.

Best of everything city not listed. Same population as Hobart but I'm not saying where.😉

Not sure I can afford that. https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/275915650785?hash=item403ddab6e1:g:gvkAAOSwE-JklDJP&amdata=enc%3AAQAIAAAA4AWJU1wU0m%2FXEn30Pe94IdYnwGpR77mWOSuwOHpzHunCAq4Pn9Jfk17%2FT62dU7MSoK25jRxoN6ja6hU7f%2BOrYsm0KQkHa7yA5kAUYKTbR40lD6qhd2BnoRHNAF7sDgfVJxS8yNGqm6%2BxQtUhl5hbl6jFEBgXtXHBIGnhjRRYGcfiiy1NXqxuTDYdzjDBe1dE7h1PUIDxnoD2x56DQsxRdnGygIRUsi9ZhalKgxmghqjJAyp8AStNIZi%2BcrCTr6yM1m%2BxVEnQf%2Bkyrdlv80v1pKox7%2B0A0dvGgFDIhmLGI78F|tkp%3ABk9SR_7-rqCfYg

Got it. Spot on. Taken from right behind the seating area.

This ship has a few fans here. I wonder where it is?

White Knights could do that too.

Slightly OT but I have a theory about that. Having done three Alaskan cruises (most recent was Jun 4), I have found that most of the cruisers I have chatted with are first timers and mostly unaware of CC or Roll Calls.

Can confirm. Boarded on June 4. Also, barely a wiff of smoke from the outdoor smoking areas.

Since my return on Monday I had my first fish and chips yesterday (my local fish and chippery is closed on Tuesdays) so I should have a pie (or two) today to make up for lost time.

Having done cruises from Australia/NZ on RCI, Celebrity, Princess and, most recently, HAL. My pick would be HAL their ship sizes are a good fit for me. I have cruised on Noordam, Westerdam and recently Nieu Amsterdam, all similar sizes and not too big. HAL seems, to me, to have slightly better itineraries than others. You can fly into Sydney and fly home from Auckland or do it the other way round which as previously mentioned, avoids a two day return trip Sydney/Auckland giving you more land time. My last cruise from NZ was on Maarsdam which is no longer a HAL vessel. It included Hobart and also Oban, NZ which is rarely included in other itineraries.

On my recent Alaska cruise there was no checking prior to boarding, it was business as usual. Today there was this post on HAL roll call for our cruise. "Message boards on another site are indicating many people got sick and tested positive for COVID-19 on our cruise or during a land portion afterwards. I personally felt there were a ton of passengers on our land portion to Denali who were sick and not masking. There was so much coughing and hacking on the train and bus tours, where we were stuck together for many hours, that it seemed inevitable to get sick from them. Alas, I tested positive for COVID-19 the day after my flight home. I'm thankful I wasn't sick during the trip. The most disappointing part was just seeing so many fellow travelers not care about getting others sick, not bothering to mask, etc." This was a surprise to me as I did not notice anything untoward during the cruise. Our post cruise tour was independent but same itinerary. We were on the same train to Denali but different car and different bus for Denali Tundra tour. We were also in different accomodation as were some people we met off an X cruise.

The Komodo tour we did in January was a private tour, not ship. It was organised by another cruiser through the HAL Roll Call.

Pink beach is on a different part of Komodo. We booked a Komodo tour that included lunch on a boat as we motored to the island where we spent some time snorkeling. Equipment was provided the snorkeling was very good. I was very surprised to see a beautiful beche de mer. Surprised at its bright blue and also that it had not been eaten - yet!

G'day all. I got back this morning. I spent a very pleasant day touring Vancouver with Lyle and his delightful wife Lynne. Lyle is as nice a bloke in the flesh as he is on CC. As Lyle mentioned we had a nice lunch. Mine was washed down with, IIRC, a peach IPA. We had a coffee stop (hot chocolate for Lyle) in the afternoon at a popular but nice waterside coffee shop before they dropped me at the airport. Wonderful to experience of XCanadian hospitality (sorry, I have trouble remembering names of places).

You must have a pre-booked tour to visit Komodo. It is strictly policed and the tour operators require government approval and registration. You cannot go ashore and wander around on your own. That's how it was as recent as January this year.

We saw a moose this morning near the Denali Visitors centre. It was crossing the railway tracks and was following a popular walking track. We were in a bus at the time but couldn't stop for photos as it, the bus, would have been on the tracks.

My wife and I were here in 2015 and we were lucky enough to see both east and west side of the mountain. The bus driver today said that it's a 1 in 3 chance to get a clear view.

My first post in a while.phone SIM still not working and was having problems with ship dial-up wifi. The predicted storm arrived to coincide with disembarking on Sunday. Our off time was 6.45, which we ignored as our bus wasn't due until 9.30 but we had to get off before then. Rain was coming in horizontal and the covered walkway from ship to terminal didn't have much effect but was better than nothing. There were several hot air blowers aimed at passengers as they entered the building. It's a long ride from Whittier to Anchorage but the closer we got, the more the weather settled. We had an hour or so to spare before boarding bus to Talkeetna. Have had no spare time here in Denali until now. Arrived 6.00pm yesterday to find our hotel shuttle had not arrived to pick us up. All other buses had left and we were left standing in the car park like shags on a rock. A local volunteer noticed our predicament and organised for a staff driver ti take us up to the Grande Hotel. We had booked Cabin Nite for 7.30 that night (which is an out of town venue). We only had time to check into hotel and board the bus to venue. It was a great night of entertainment. Back to hotel about 10.00pm but no time to socialise as we had to be ready by 04.50 next morning for bus to Denali Tundra tour. Tour was great but not as long as normal due to road damaged by a recent landslide. We saw bears, a moose, many caribou, ground squirrels but no dall sheep. Oh, we also got to see Mt Denali is bright sunshine, free of cloud. A wonderful sight. We were back at hotel by 11.00am. Been to town for lunch and now resting.

The captain said we should expect a storm from SW tonight and possibly rain tomorrow.

Do people walk at that time in the morning?😁 Too cold for me.🥶

We have just docked in Whittier three hours early due to a passenger's medical condition. Will be disembarking from about 6.30 in the morning.

My FIL had a Gladstone bag which he used for a while when he was a bookie at the dogs. It was de rigueur for bookies.