Mareblu

I should add that you need to remember to switch back to Flight M before the 24 hours are up.

I switch to Flight Mode as I board the flight to leave Australia. I use hotel or ship wifi for WhatsApp. I also upgrade my Telstra pack for overseas, which allows me to use data or ring anywhere in the world for $10.00 on the day I switch it in. If I need to make a local call say, in the UK (to a hotel or restaurant) I switch it on by turning off Flight Mode. For 24hrs from that moment, I pay $10 to communicate in any way and limitless times to anywhere. It worked perfectly 15 months ago.

We use Uber in lieu of taxis in Sydney and other Australian cities, including our home city of Canberra (where we usually share with friends if we are attending a function or restaurant where we would be enjoying a glass of wine). We've also used them on the rare occasion we order a takeaway meal delivery. No longer, as the last time we did that (fairly recently) we're pretty sure the delivery driver consumed half our order before ringing the doorbell. I hadn't believed it when hearing similar tales, but now I do.

You’re correct in your thinking Lyle. I use booking.com as my first go to, and I’ve never been able to book beyond a year in advance.

It certainly is a big call, Les. I knew it was on the market for a while, so hope the new owners keep it up.

They are indeed staying with us, and I have neglected writing to you direct Lyle. Will do so without fail tomorrow. I've never tried the Batehaven Bakery pies. We are fond, though, of Bernie's fish and chips from Batehaven, if we're doing takeaway. Kids have all taken over the house...can't get near it😂 Will ring you tomorrow, Les, for a catch-up chat.

No, and certainly not the same quality, as it's usually farmed. I found some beautiful, rich, red Canadian salmon imported by Harris Farm in Bowral last year. It was another level. Very costly though, so maybe only a yearly visit to Bowral, as I can't trust myself in the fresh fish section at Harris Farm. I actually prefer the taste and colour of ocean trout, but it's usually not deboned. The skin on the ocean trout can be grilled to a perfect, rich crunch. We're lucky we have a vast variety and abundance of exquisite fish in our own waters, usually white fleshed.

Not at all fun to drive in. It's so beautiful, though. Ethereal.

Ditto

Then pass it to me🙂

Looks delicious, Lyle😋

My ancestors rest peacefully in the Highlands (Dalmally, and by Loch Tulla, and in Perthshire). We have visited many times, and are returning in May. Such beauty. I weep whenever we leave.

Such offerings may well have been on the menu, which does differ in the various restaurants throughout Queen Elizabeth. I have only recorded our choice of roast pheasant in Queens Grill, but I recall sampling haggis offered I vaguely remember as appetisers in some form, and I think it may have been entree tarts or something similar. Haggis definitely featured. Sorry I can't be more specific.

I don't have 26 January listed in my travel diary as a gala evening, and if it was, it's the only gala I haven't noted. It is in fact Australia Day, and I recall, and have recorded, spending a marvellous hour or two in the Golden Lion listening to and singing along with The Newfoundland Duo as they entertained us with superb renditions of traditional Australian songs and bush ballads. It may well have been a gala evening, of course. I only recall the Australiana theme.

I always keep a travel diary, so have opened it to refresh my memory. Burns Night was indeed held on 25 January (hilariously, we were visiting Burnie, Tasmania that day, and I remember remarking to my husband that we would be commemorating Burns in Burnie). We enjoyed a Black and White gala evening on 21 January, after a Roaring Twenties on 18 January. As the cruise was technically a b-2-b (Sydney-New Zealand-Sydney, then Sydney-Tasmania-Sydney), there were only two gala evenings on the shorter second leg, but more on the first. Burns Night did not coincide with a gala evening, but it would be a good idea to combine the two. Red and Gold would be perfect, and kilts and tartans could abound. My diary tells me we dined on roast pheasant on Burns Night, and I recall (although didn't record) that mini-haggis tarts were offered as appetisers in Queens Grill. We would repeat that cruise experience in a heartbeat; it was marvellous. Sadly, that will no longer be possible, as you know, as Cunard will shortly be discontinuing its Australian waters cruising. We are very much looking forward to our Queen Anne "British Isles" cruise in May. We have our fingers crossed there will be no delay in her readiness.

We enjoyed a wonderful Burns Night a year ago (2023) on QE in the Queen’s Room during a 3-week Australian/New Zealand cruise. The haggis was piped in and addressed, followed by some Burns readings by various officers (with mesmerising Scottish accents). After, traditional Scottish music and progressive dancing. A superb experience, not to be missed if you’re aboard.

Thank you so much for your consideration of others. It is pervasive, and even on a corner of the deck, is really horrible to walk past. I can say this because like many of my generation, I used to smoke, even though it was many years ago. It is rare to see anyone smoking in Australia these days, and absolutely forbidden (for many years now) to smoke indoors in public places, which includes private clubs, etc.

Sounds a perfect Sydney day.

Perfect. Will be in touch Lyle.

I completely agree

That’s terrific, Lyle, and we look forward to it. Sorry, lapse in concentration had you doing the road trip the other way round. Never mind, just reverse my suggestion, which is only that.

Particularly between Sydney and Nowra-Mollymook, but such beautiful scenery to miss. The alternative, of course, is to drive to Batemans Bay, with any desired designated stops on the way. The scenery to the Bay on the coastal route is stunning. Then take the Kings Highway through the Clyde Mountain climb and historic Braidwood to Canberra. Here we again offer accommodation, with a free sightseeing tour thrown in. Canberra to Sydney on the Federal Highway and then Freeway to Sydney is then not a long drive at all.

DH projects a superb figure in black tailored pants, white formal shirt with cufflinks and studs, as mentioned above, and his favoured midnight blue velvet dinner jacket with black lapels to match pants. Although he has formal pants with said stripe at home, he always packs for holidays in the other hemisphere, very finely tailored black pants with a hint of a sheen to match said lapels. That way, the pants can also be worn with a sports jacket on less formal evenings. Daniel Craig, eat your heart out, IMHO😉

That’s a great itinerary, Lyle. The main highway between Sydney and Melbourne is not overly scenic, apart from vast stretches of grazing and farmed rural land, which of course holds its own special beauty. Most of the towns the road used to pass through are now bypassed, so I would recommend the longer, but incredibly scenic, coastal route. It offers beautiful, captivating vistas. You may have missed my previous post where I mentioned you and Lynn are most welcome to stay with us at our beach house in Batemans Bay, which you will pass on your way. The offer still stands, but we realise you may prefer to be independent, in which case we can arrange to meet anyway, and more importantly, with Les, perhaps in Moruya where he’ll be by then, or at his favourite Chinese restaurant, Raymond’s, in Malua Bay, which is part if the wider Batemans Bay area.

That’s really sad. Yes, 3 nights may be a magnet for the wannabes. Every culture has them.