DavyWavey70

This was looking towards Brisbane last night Ron.

I’m not flying off until 2pm tomorrow so fingers crossed it will be better. Been snorkelling on the reef today and grateful that the sun is in hiding. Just enjoying a Bundaberg Rum (Lady Elliot Lighthouse blend) and Ginger Beer on the deck right now.

Arrived at Lady Elliot shortly after 9 yesterday morning. Unforgivingly hot and humid. I’m rarely ever found in a gift shop perusing overpriced tatt imported from China but as one of the few places on the island with ac it suddenly became my new favourite spot. The only thing I could face was a paddle around the rock pools, anything more would have resulted in a pan seared (or possibly par boiled) Pom needing emergency-evacuation to the mainland. So I lay low until the sun was setting and booked myself on the nighttime glass bottom boat trip. Great trip seeing plenty of the reef and a multitude of its inhabitants. One loggerhead swam right up to the outside of the boat and I was in touching distance. After returning a few of us went for a walk along the beach and found a huge Turtle laying her eggs. Hermit crabs aplenty scurrying along. A Little further along the beach and there they were. Dozens of little loggerhead hatchlings making away for a life in the Ocean. It’s moments like that that fill you with both awe at the beauty of nature and dumbfoundment at the stupidity of mankind. Waving your torch around on a beach when hatchlings are running towards the moon is not a great move. The hatchlings were coming back out of the sea and running towards the torches. Even after being told, they thought their need to see the spectacle was more important than the poor things making it alive. At one point there was a distinct possibility that some of those torches may have shone somewhere the sun doesn’t. Sometimes I’m ashamed to be a human. So as any astute traveller is aware, when you see the gift of earplugs on your bedside table, it is not usually just a thoughtful gesture. Long after sun had retreated for the day, the constant angry arguments between the Noddy birds didn’t. It went on right through the night. Imagine sleeping on the set of the birds but at 35c and 98% humidity at 2am with a fan that looks like the elastic band gets wound up by housekeeping each morning. Earplugs aren’t always comfortable. Anyway it rained overnight! The Island feels much more comfortable this morning. Hopefully get some snorkelling in today without being boiled alive. Only a few pics for now, most from the trip was video and I can’t load it from here. FullSizeRender.MOV

Hello Lady Elliot Island. Such an incredibly beautiful place. Fingers crossed I’ll get to see Turtles hatching! Wi-Fi patchy, will check in when I can. IMG_5354.MOV

Onward from Sydney to Brisbane for a short but very sweet stop before a 5 am start and my charter flight out to the last part of my little adventure, Lady Elliot Island. A Great little Best Western was were I hung my hat last night before being picked up for Dinner by the really lovely DrRon and Rojaan. What a lovely couple. We had a trip to Bee Gees Way before a fabulous casual meal at the Scarborough Harbour brewing co. I Shall defer to DrRon for the bulk of photos and just tag on a couple myself. We had a lovely evening and again thank you so much for a wonderful evening. Off to the airport in a few mins. T’internet mightn’t be up to much out there.

Well Australia Day was just awesome from start to finish. At 9am walking down to the quay I thought I was going to die though. Unbelievably hot. A fantastic 5 hours or so was had on the beautiful 102 year old Southern Swan for the tall ships race. It was a little cooler once underway and I kept myself well and truly hidden under the canopy. Food and drink flowed freely and a fabulous time was had. The race was so exciting with the sails billowing. And yes we won the race! An amble around the Quay and a Gelato then Back to the hotel for a very cool shower and to lie low for a bit. Dinner was again at the Altitude restaurant. Being a holiday it didn’t quite have the same sparkle and sophistication as the first visit. Mostly because the waiter hadn’t had a wash since Halloween and tantrumming children were hurling themselves dramatically to the floor and trying to emit a noise that would break glass. The meal was excellent though. Caviar Tartlette, Tuna Tartare, Prawn and Scallop. Wagyu (6+) Pastrami, Wagyu Steak and Pineapple Meringue accompanied with a v nice Aus Riesling and finished with the Frogmore Ice Wine again, all helped along with a Birds Eye view of the fireworks. A very happy little me slipped gently into a food coma that night.

It’s not as bad as I expected here. I Must admit when I saw the gentleman checking in in front of me was wearing an ankle tag my heart did sink a little but it looks decent enough. Not the Shangri La but I’m back on a plane in 14 hours. Just enough time now for a nice Jacuzzi and a G&T on the balcony I think.

I’m like a vampire, I don’t show up in them anyway. Just arrived at Hotel so will be ready in time! See you 6.30!

I suppose that depends on how good your cleaners eyesight is. 🫣G’night all.

Oh I promise you JP. Maybe when I get back to the Northern hemisphere it will display correctly? 🌎 🔃

That’s really kind of you. I’ll try and pick up a hat in the gift shop on the way for you

How on earth did I end up on the ceiling?

Usually I find disembarkation day quite sad. Not today, and not for the wrong reasons either. I Had a lovely stroll around Sydney up hill and down dale, such a wonderful city. Nice to explore on foot but todays humidity didn’t make for the easiest expedition. My digs here aren’t too bad. I Came back to wave my friends old and new off on their next sector. Got some nice footage of the Edge leaving port (4.00 departure due to Australia Day preparations). Booked myself onto a Dinner cruise on the Clearview this evening and it was fabulous. I Had the best time. The Harbour was as still and serene as anything this evening. I Just wish I had a canon for those bloody awful party boats that have awful DJs and lighting from wish. Why blast the music outside the boat and ruin it for everybody else? Tall ship tomorrow for the race for Australia Day. I Think it’s going to be another fine day. IMG_5240.MOV

I Don’t want to be any trouble, I was going to get an Uber. Is it out of your way? If not 6.30 would be perfect!

Fabulous,what time and where do you want to meet up?

Sounds great DrRon. Qantas have bumped my flight back so I expect to get to the hotel 4ish so prob 7.30 would be safer? I Like the sound of the light show after dinner too. Can’t wait to meet you both.

I’d also love to visit Scarborough (yours not ours) and wouldn’t break out in a rash If I got to visit Bee Gees alley!

That was Eden restaurant Portpower on the Edge last night. Superb meal. I’ve never been an MDR kinda guy and wasn’t keen on Atlantide. Different setup on here, they have 4included MDR but not MDR but they still are MDR. Several specialities too.

Dot com? Happy with whatever you think best Dr Ron, I know it’s Australia Day weekend. No pressure.

So day before yesterday, I think, Bay of Islands was another desperately mediocre ships excursion. It’s a shame there wasn’t a brewery there but I’m not sure a p*ss up would have gone any better. The one big weakness on Celebrity in this part of the world is the excursions. Mis-sold and overpriced buses full of bewildered people being driven around the Island thinking they must have got on the wrong bus never makes for a good day out. I was so disappointed with my last port day that I took the shuttle bus to town and with an hour before sailing I found myself a helicopter trip. The South African “gentleman” on the trip was really disappointed that he lost the coin toss and had to sit in the back with his wife but I suspect not as disappointed as she was. Turned a very poor last day into a fabulous one. I’ve been told by quite a few that their excursions are usually better but they need to work much harder at it for next season. The driver of the buses have to do everything. Not a guide or Celebrity rep to be seen anywhere. Sea day yesterday and a fabulous dinner at Eden. Our last day today and the weather was fabulous. A Volleyball match between officers and passengers was good fun. The Captain threw a few heroic moves but the passengers won in the end. Well my natural aversion to short grumpy people with loud voices, elbows spaced too far apart, wearing visors and velcroed shoes and carrying plates much heavier than they should be able to has pretty much kept me out of harms way so far by avoiding the buffet, I do love a wildlife park and observing creatures in their own environments. Here you are allowed to feed them but you mustn’t pet them. I couldn’t face the full battle so just nipped to Carvery corner to grab a few bits and scarpered. The Kangaroo loin had a bit of a kick to it but wasn’t as challenging to my new teeth as my first attempt. The wild boare was nowt but fat but the turkey was ok. Cocktail tasting followed. Time to pack now and then off onto the next part of my adventure! dji_mimo_20240123_115249_258_1705971169696_video_trim.mp4 dji_mimo_20240122_142728_247_1705894048647_video_trim.mp4

So yesterday was Hobbiton! What an incredible day. We planned it with my friends months ago. I’m so glad we did. 7 of us had a mini bus and driver for the day. We set off around 7.30 and first stop was the hot springs at Rotarua. Our guide was superb and showed us a much he could in the time we had. No time for a mud bath though! A Quick wander around Ohinemutu village and all aboard the skylark and Hobbiton bound. We arrived in plenty of time for our 11.40 tour which was to be followed with a Hobbit feast. The weather was stunning and just made the whole place sparkle. The detail is quite something. Spotted many places memorable from the film. The highlight though was getting to go inside one of the Hobbit holes. They’ve only just been given interiors and reopened last month. They even had the smell of freshly sawn wood. The detail and craftsmanship involved in the interiors is next level.

Well I can vouch for how grim the sausage rolls are on a 5 hour internal. I Declined the kind offer of a second one (as did everybody else). Have a great trip JB.

Fabulous pics. Thank you for those. I wasn’t aware of the 5 runners but got up to have a look over the rail when the captain kept blowing the horn!

I don’t know if it’s the ship, the itinerary, the passengers, the weather or a combination of everything, It is an absolutely amazing time I’m having. The solo verandah has been great (apart from the zero drawer space issue) I don’t know if they’ve fixed that on her younger sisters but I do love the cabin and the tech. Things like using your ap to open blinds, set a/c and lighting etc is great. Highly recommended.

Shake my head Rojaan. I had to look it up though. Obviously I’m not down with the kids.