lyndarra

In 2017 we had a Solstice starboard Concierge balcony cabin. Instead of going up top somewhere, as we have done previously, that time from our balcony, we watched the Opera House and other sights float by while sipping complimentary bubbly. Nice but if it's your first time it is best to get up as high as you can and change sides as you go as there are many things to see.

This morning one of the TV stations, I think it was 9, did their weather from Redhead Beach. It was another example of not having done their research by saying it is in Newcastle. A Google check would have shown them that Redhead is a suburb of the city of Lake Macquarie.

Thanks for the good wishes. I believe we have Coca-Cola to thank for Santa and his red suit. I thought How to Make Gravy was a a lovely song until it got flogged to death on the radio. And Little Drummer Boy has to be my least favourite carol of all, it is so boring and drones on and on. Call me the carol Grinch. David Bowie and Christmas always reminds me of his part in the movie Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence. Merry Christmas to all and look after your health.

In general conversation many, including myself, call them BMs. The two wheeled models we sometimes call Bavarian Murder Weapons.😄

No wharf at Mystery Is last time I was there. It had a jetty.

I had to bite my tongue once. Question was what does BMW stand for? Answer given was Bavarian Motor Works. My slightly literal mind choked as that answer was incorrect. It was a ladies v men trivia and the question was asked of the ladies. Safer to keep quiet.😨

Me too. I'm sure there's a pie in my freezer somewhere.

Last night I had a bottle of Monteiths Black beer with dinner at a local restaurant ( Sesame's Belmont, Asian fusion). It was a very nice drop. It wasn't on the drinks list per se but was listed as a "craft" beer. You had to ask. My favourite restaurant for this birthday boy.😊

Celebrity no longer call it a "formal" night. IIRC Casual Chic is the term. I have never gone in for formal attire (travel light) - slacks and collared shirt.

The Australia Zoo (Steve Irwin) is not just about crocs, it is well worth a visit. I don't know if it is included as a cruise tour option as it's a long way from a port IIRC. I remember a fantastic bird show there a few years back, much better than the Sydney Taronga bird show, which was very good, and way better than a bird show I saw at Memphis Zoo I saw in 2017 which included an an Australian Wedgetail eagle.

Perhaps go to an Australian football game. Australian football is fast and exciting, especially live. Seaon starts in March. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2023_AFL_season#Round_1

How many divers does it take to clean the hull of a cruise ship in 24 hrs? Hmm. Perhaps a drug trafficer forgot to close the underwater hatches.😉

Highest 'bidder' gets the best service? The importance of good service is keeping their job, not tips.

Have a great cruise. I'll be boarding in Sydney a few hours after you disembark, that is, if you're not doing a B2B.

Tips, or gratuities, as the ATO likes to call them, are definitely taxable, and need to be reported in personal tax returns. Whether tips are received directly from a customer or from the employer, you need to report all tips as taxable income. This means keeping manual records of the tips you earn, and reporting them when you do your tax return. square.com

IIRC where a cruise ship has a person go overboard in Australian waters they have a legal requirement to take part in searching until released by Australian federal authority. Therefore, the delay was beyond control of the cruise company i.e., not their fault, that a port or ports were missed which would mean they are not obligated to compensate.

Holland America and Celebrity are two. I can't recall if it was included for RCI.

We would hope that employers don't get the idea that they can start cutting back on wages. I am I being cynical? There's no shortage of examples of even well known, and in some cases international as well as local businesses underpaying staff in service industries.

That's a different pattern to the one Sea Princess did when a bloke went overboard shortly before reaching Sydney. I had been tracking the ship's course with my Garmin GPS and I could see that the ship followed its course back to the search area pretty much exactly. It then started figure eight search patterns until it was released, by search and rescue in Canberra, to countinue to Sydney. We spent an extra night at sea having missed our docking time. Pandemonium reigned at CS desk that night.

Have done that one. It's a nice little side trip to fill in some time having been to Dunedin five or six times already.

Taylor Swift does that for me.😁

I have registered as an ex serviceman with HAL and was approved. I have yet to test for any benefits. On my last HAL cruise I attended a get-together often put on for vets by cruiselines. I was made to feel very welcome and was the only Aussie there. I got the usual "thank you for your service" too but felt a little embarassed by it as we antipodeans are not used to it, military service is something we just do if required. I am the third of four generations of my family to serve in the AIF but the only one who didn't volunteer - Nasho😉.

Thanks for your interesting and informative logs, I've been enjoying the read. You wont find "locals" on Conflict Islands as they are privately owned (by an Aussie). The only residents on the island are staff connected to the turtle conservation and research facility. I believe the set up for tourism was done to help finance the consevation/research. The island owner, Ian Gowrie-Smith, was on board our ship Noordam and gave some talks on his background, island history and current work being done. The coral there is the best I have seen but one has to purchase a ticket to view it and you are transported by power boat to a pontoon above the coral and the "abyss". Snorkelling equipment is provided. When I was there last, Jan 2019, we needed to buy vouchers to purchase anything - my memory is hazy on how it worked but we knew this before we arrived thanks to info provided on Noordam. I donated my remaining Kina to a PNG island school before we arrived - I've forgotten which. Since my visit, I believe Eco resort development is happening.

Agree. Have never worn a tie on 'formal' nights. On my first HAL cruise, ten years ago, I was given a loan jacket to wear in MDR because I hadn't brought one. I didn't have to wear it as the maitr'd hung it on the back of my chair.

I'm always happy to score an inside seat,😄