Discover 7 Continents with Bill & Mary Ann as we sail on the 2012 World Cruise

[WCB]

Report # 53 February 22, 2012 Wednesday Day at Sea

 

Shipboard life quieted down today after the extravaganza last night. There were many more passengers laying low on the teak lounges on the promenade deck this morning......probably a little too much partying perhaps. Oh well, that gave us much more space for walking. The weather remained warm and sticky, but slightly cooler than yesterday. There was a following wind, decreasing the breeze outside.

 

Today we were supposed to have the stop in Easo, Lafou, New Caledonia. We have never been there before, and despite the fact that it is a very small island, we feel that we all missed out on something special. If this island is anything like Ilse des Pins, also New Caledonia, we would have loved it. A couple of years ago, we had a stop at there and found a little bit of paradise. There were no organized tours, but there were fine white sandy beaches with some local tourists from Noumea, the large city on the main island of New Caledonia. We tendered over and spent our time walking around the island, checking out the few nice resorts and restaurants. The snorkeling right off of the beautiful beach was the best, and it was free if you had your own equipment. In fact, all you had to do was walk in the shallow water around the rocks and watch the bright tropical fish swim around your legs. Oh well, maybe there will be another time to see this island. We both got a whopping $1.49 refund of a returned port charge, which won't even cover the cost of a Coke.

 

The big job of the morning was going to the mandatory Australian Immigration Inspection. We have done this so many times that we know the drill well. Last night, we received a letter with a number on it, which represented the group that would be called to present ourselves to the officials. Ours was # 14. Now Bruce, our CD, said that the numbers would not necessarily be called in succession, so do not line up outside the Hudson Room. At 9am, the first number called was 5. OK, so what happened to 1 through 4? Nothing, it turns out, because there never were numbers 1 through 4. That's the trick to keep us guessing what is coming next. Bruce, we are wise to you...... Now the only group that was given special attention was the group marked S. Wonder if the S stands for suites? Duh...They could go any old time they pleased.

 

We knew we had plenty of time to eat breakfast in the dining room, and if we missed our group number, we would go at the end around noon. As it turned out, we ended up going early, because we were sitting in the library, and Christel said go ahead, the line is short. We picked up our passports from the staff outside the room, then waited our turn to see the Australian official. These fellows are really nice as they are doing their job of matching you to your passport photo. And of course, they check for your Australian visa, which was copied at the front desk right after we boarded the ship in January. We passed the check, and he welcomed us back, since he had seen the numerous Aussie stamps in our piggybacked books. Our next face-to-face check should be before Hong Kong, where our temperatures are taken as well. If you are ill with a fever, you are not allowed off of the ship. Period.

 

You know, it has come to our attention from reading Cruise Critic that some folks have the impression that there is little to do on sea days. On a world cruise, that is far from the truth. Counting the daily activities today, we came up with a total of almost 50 things to do. And that doesn't account for the movie shown in the Wajang Theater, spa treatments, casino activites, or shopping onboard. It does not include mealtimes, which if one desires, you could eat all day long. We chose to do some of the fun things, but love relaxing by reading and swimming at the aft pool. There is absolutely no excuse to ever say we are bored.

 

At dinnertime, we were finally back to our original six. Most all of us did something different last night at the Mardi Gras celebration. We gathered by talking to many friends this morning that not everyone felt comfortable going to that melee on deck 8. It just was not safe for the elderly or frail passengers to try to mix in that crowd. Our Terry, who is a spry 82, did not go near it. Her thoughts of being trampled kept her faraway from the crowd. Mel and Helen, who are also in their 80's, watched the activity from deck 9 for awhile. Mel reported that he saw several ladies collecting full cans of sodas and beers, sneaking them into an HAL canvas bag, then taking them back to the rooms. Even though it was not advertised that the beverages were complimentary, once the folks found out, it was a free-for-all. Of course, that reminded us of the lady back in 2009 that filled the basket of her electric chair with piles of fortune cookies. She thought no one saw that, but we sure did. Funny the things you wished you never saw, because you can't forget it.

 

Showtime this evening featured the Belinda King Singers and Dancers who presented "Red Hot & Blue", featuring old songs brought up to date with new musical arrangements. Beautiful costumes were promised.

 

Tomorrow, the Mariner Appreciation Days continue.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[Aussie Gal]

Mary Ann & Bill,

 

What a shame you didn't get to go to New Caledonia. Was it because you were short of a day, though I thought you made that up when you missed Pitcairn Island? Anyhow, not long until you arrive into Sydney. I do hope the weather smiles down on you as Australia has been having a very wet summer except for over in the West.

 

Jennie

[DAllenTCY]

As always, thank you for the post. What I find intersting is the response to the internet question. I've had serious delays signing in onto the internet in San Diego, Seattle, and Vancouver, just to name a few ports. My suspicion is that the technology is inferior, and that there little priority given to fixing it.

David

[WCB]

Report # 54 February 23, 2012 Thursday Day at Sea

 

The "Mariner Appreciation Days Continue" with several different events taking place today. Some are behind closed doors, so to speak. Those passengers with 500 days (or 700 days, we're not sure) or more sailing with HAL were invited by invitation to either a lunch today or tomorrow in the Crows Nest at noon. Our day is tomorrow, so we hope to talk to friends who attended today. They can fill us in on the details such as menu choices, officers in attendance, and possible tablemates.

 

A dinner for the President Club members, including the new four inductees, will be held in the Kings Room this evening. Barbie is one of the members, so we look forward to hearing all about her experience. If their menu is the same as the dining room's, she will be in caviar, fois gras, and escargots heaven!

 

The other big event was a cocktail party in the Queens Lounge for all guests. The first 45 minutes of the party was dedicated to listening to music from the orchestra and dancing on the rather small dancefloor. Stein Kruse then took the stage to recognize crew members who had over 30 years of service with the company. They earned a big applause from the audience.

 

Then Mr. Kruse told a story about his "bucket list" of to-do things in his life. We all chuckled when he said one of those wishes is to visit Easter Island. We always assumed he would have been to all of the places we visit, plus more. Well, Easter Island was one he has missed. Of course, that led into giving thanks for the Captain getting us there and back safely that day. We felt that Captain Olav performed the same feat last year, but without much ado over it. We also feel that Captain Mercer walked a fine line that day, perhaps taking a bit more of a risk than he bargained for. Even the doctor onboard remarked that she was surprised there were not many more injuries. In addition, we read that other ships that had scheduled stops there soon after we left, cancelled them. Yes, we were happy to have made the visit there, but we sure are glad we did not wait for the very last tenderboat to go back to the ship. If we heard correctly, the second pontoon had been damaged by then, and the rest of the guests had to board the front of the lifeboat, through the small window that opened on the bow. What a trip! Anyway, the officers and crew involved in the operation were also due a round of applause.

 

We had company for dinner this evening since it was a formal night. Jacquie, the internet manager, joined us. She is a very friendly and talented young lady, who has helped us often. Lucky for us, she knows the older computers better than the new models. We teased her that perhaps we would be getting the new Kindles for a gift tonight. She said she would shoot herself if we did. Did we mention that our friends emailed us and said that the full cruisers on Crystal's world cruise got iPads? Jacquie said that would be a nightmare for her, because few people would know how to use them. That would include us for sure.

 

Tom M., our host, and Pamela, the opal expert also filled our table. She will be leaving in Sydney, where she has her business, Gogoanna Jewelry.

 

We had been making bets whether or not we would receive gifts this evening. They have been few and slow in coming this year. But with the CEO onboard, we figured something would appear on the bed tonight. And something did.....2 crystal votives for candles from Tiffanys, no less. They are lovely and heavy, but not exactly Kindles. Yeah sure, like we really expected those! One of us loves the pretty turquoise boxes they came in, just like the boxes that last year's engraved covered candy dishes came in.

 

One more day at sea, and we will be in Sydney, Australia. Since we have been traveling southwesterly, the weather has cooled significantly. It is still warm, but the heavy mugginess is gone. Much more comfortable.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[WCB]

Report # 55 February 24, 2012 Friday Day at Sea

 

During our light morning breakfast, Captain Mercer announced a surprise.........he intended to go off course and steer towards Lord Howe Island and Bols Pyramid, an ancient volcanic stack, the largest in the world. The Captain had been asked yesterday by a guest if we could sail by these strange isolated islands off of the coast of Australia. His answer was originally no. However, he was able to gain enough speed last night to go the 65 nautical miles out of the way to see this UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

By 10:30am, we climbed the steep steps to the access to the bow with our cameras ready to shoot this site. Barbara Haenni, our port lecturer, came on the mic and gave us a quick narrative about Lord Howe Island and the peculiar volcanic stack by the name of Bols(sp?) Pyramid. Belonging the Australia, specifically the state, New South Wales, Lord Howe Island is an isolated resort for the nearby Aussies. There are a few things to do here such as snorkeling, diving, and fishing. The other attraction is the top of a volcano stack, which juts straight up from the seabed. The only life on this pyramid-shaped rock are birds, a rare crab, and an ancient insect. Access to this peak has been regulated by the government, but was climbed by a group of four mountaineers in the 80's or 90's, according to Barbara.

 

What was photographed almost as much as the islands, was a bird that had chosen the front antenna for a perch. From what a friend told us, the bird had circled for hours yesterday at dusk, then finally got a foothold on the base. There it sat all night, until we all came up and found it. Sometimes birds fly into the ship's windows, and get stunned or injured. This may have happened to this bird, which we identified as a possible red-footed booby. We soon discovered why no one was standing downwind of this bird. Well, at least the smart ones. At one point, the bird let loose, and the white stuff sailed about 25 feet splattering the deck below. We warned the new people that had just come out not to stand there. they sure moved fast when they saw the mess on the deck.

 

Since we had a lunch date in the Crows Nest at noon, we had about 10 minutes to change and get there on time. But that will be in the next report.

 

Mary Ann & Bill

[WCB]

Report # 56 February 24, 2012 Friday Day at Sea Lunch and Dinner

 

Continuing on, we were invited to a special Mariner Lunch in the Crows Nest at noon. This was the second day that this event was held, since there was only enough space for about 60 of us. Usually, the cutoff for this event is having 700 days sailed with HAL. We heard through the grapevine that there were not enough 700 dayers, so they included those with 500 days. None of us know who is who, nor do we care who has the most days. And whether that fact of having the most days has anything to do with whom and where you sit, is not revealed to anyone.

 

We always hope that we are seated with people we know, and more so, people we like. Each table seated 6 passengers, with one or two officers or staff persons hosting each table. We filed through a quick receiving line, meeting the CEO, his wife, and two Mariner Club personel. The four of them do not join a table to dine, but visit each table for a couple of minutes each. That way no one is hurt or envious about who eats with the bosses.

 

When we were escorted to our table, we found our name tags were separated with one person in between us. That person was Mrs. Captain, Karen. Our other host was Captain Mercer. They soon put us all at ease as the conversation flowed. As we mentioned before, the Captain is British, but his wife appeared to be American. "Down to earth" is the best way to describe this couple. Karen talked extensively about the Captain's regular assignment on the Nieuw Amsterdam, where he shares the helm alternately with Captain Edward Van Zaane.

 

The meal was elegant, with conservative servings, which was great. We are not used to eating lunch, so we did remember to keep our breakfast on the lighter side. The menu had three courses. The first was an appetizer of lobster, asparagus, and roma tomato petals. Since one of us does not eat shellfish, the staff offered a salad wrapped in a length of cucumber. It was already flagged on Mary Ann's name, so this salad was prepared ahead of time. Three choices were offered for entrees. The vegetarian one was a mushroom, onion, and goat cheese tart. The fish entree was halibut with bok choy and rice. And the beef dish was roasted Sterling Silver tenderloin of beef. The wine selection was a white pinot grigio from Italy, and a red cabernet sauvignon from Australia. Dessert was the best......a bittersweet chocolate mousse, which was encompassed in a tube of dark chocolate with light ginger cream on the top. A scoop of ice cream on a rice krispie-type of cookie underneath was added to the rich plate.

 

We were the last to finish, since Captain Mercer had to leave at 12:30pm to deliver his daily talk at 12:45pm. We all waited to continue the lunch when he returned. At the end of the meal, the four bosses came over for a brief chat and posed for a photo with all of us. If we recall correctly, this photo should be delivered gratis to our stateroom tomorrow.

 

Relaxing by the pool and downloading pictures took up the rest of the afternoon. It had really cooled down a lot today, not even warm enough to go in the pool. It should be perfect weather for Sydney, although the Captain mentioned that it has been very rainy there. Hope it stays away for a few days.

 

Our buddy, John, had a special birthday party today for his 70th. Twelve of us met in the Crows Nest for pre-dinner cocktails. Henk and Christel Mensink joined us for a while. It is seldom that you see them together, since they have very demanding jobs with long hours.

 

By 8pm, we all went down to the Pinnacle Grill Restaurant, where we ate at the large table in the back room. The best part was that we could order from their usual menu, which included their delicious bone-in ribeye steak we love. It was a very nice dinner for John, and it was also his third day of celebrating this milestone birthday. By 10:30pm, Diane, his wife, announced that the birthday was officially over and he would not be having a 4th one.

 

There was a show this evening......Marty Brill, the comedian, and the New Orleans Band. We were exhausted after eating all day and doing almost nothing! So we turned in for the night. Gotta save up the energy to tackle Sydney for the next two days. Can't wait......And since we had one hour back on the clock last night, we did not get another one back today. The time should be the same now for at least a week.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[Aussie Gal]

Mary Ann and Bill,

 

I hate to tell you but your clocks will be altered when you leave Sydney for far north Queensland as they do not observe daylight saving up there! So make the most of being on Eastern Standard time whilst you are in Sydney and going up the coast of N.S.W.

 

Jennie

[airlink diva]

Still enjoying your reports from the world cruise!

I read both Sondra's and Erika's blogs on the world cruise!

I feel that not demographics, but rather mindset and research is why Sondra's not having such a great cruise.

She didn't seem to really research the world cruise sailing. If so, she would known about cabin size, time in ports, cost on board,etc. With the exception of my first cruise, I look at the ports, the ship, read reviews,etc. There's too much access to info before spending this type of money. Her best bet would have to book a certain portion of the world cruise and mix it with flying into ports. She is doing that now and spending even more money!

Her mindset is also a factor. I'm in my 40's and some of my best tablemates and fellow cruisers are older than me. I had Ron on my 2008 cruise in his 80's and I couldn't keep up with him at times :D:D:D!

I found the perfect mix of ship items and things to do on my own for every cruise.

I have a coworker who's looking at longer cruises including the world cruise. I suggested that he start with a 14 day, then a 30 day to see if they (him and his wife) would enjoy being on a ship for a longer period of time. I suggested for him to read the blogs of people who take the longer cruises to gain insight of daily life on board.

From 3 day to 112 days, research is vital!!

But back to the regular program, Bill and Mary Ann, keep up the great work!

A fan for years!

Tamara!

I hate the Sondra is sailing something so many of us would love and enjoy to do and not having a great time.

[WCB]

Report # 57 February 25, 2012 Saturday Sydney, Australia Day One

 

The weather could not have been more perfect as the Amsterdam sailed into the entrance to the Sydney Harbour early this fine morning. We were treated to a hour of scenic cruising accompanied by Barbara H. giving her commentary on the way in. Here are some facts. Sydney is the most populated city in Australia with a total count of 4.5 million people. You should see commute time here....... Anyway, around the time of the arrival of the first Europeans in 1788, it is estimated that from 4,000 to 8,000 Aboriginal people lived in this area. There is evidence that these hardy folks lived here for over 30,000 years. Hard to imagine this beautiful area was used as a prison colony with convicts from England back then. Today, Sydney is one of the most multicultural and multilingual cities in the world. People from over 180 nations, speaking 140 languages, have replaced those Aboriginal natives. During our 2 days here, we saw few. The sail into the harbor was stunning, except we did not take our usual berth across from the Opera House, as the daily newsletter said. This time we would be alongside in Darling Harbour, which was actually fine with us. But not with everyone. On the plus side, the local Port Authority did offer complimentary shuttles which took us over the hill to Pitt Street and Circular Quay. Nice touch. By the way, the berth at Sydney Cove across from the Opera House was taken by the Saga Ruby.

 

Since we did not have a tour planned, we enjoyed a dining room breakfast, but a light one. We had to save ourselves for lunch out later on. Despite the fact that we had docked by the promised time of 8:30am, we still did not get cleared by the local officials. Something was up. As we were attempting to walk downstairs to our room, we found the stairwell was full of guests waiting to get off. Friends told us that the "drug and food" dog, a black lab, was working Main deck 2. This was a first for us. We heard the story that there was a random cabin check, around five of them, for the dog to sniff out possible offenders, illegal drugs we suspect. Come on guys.....the passengers are not exactly that young and stupid age anymore and especially not on a world cruise. However, the dog must have smelled something good, because they were calling one person on the intercom to come to his room on deck two. We believe they are not allowed to search a room without the guests there. Whatever was happening, it delayed the clearance for one hour. It was hard to get the skuttlebutt on the searches, but a very funny story evolved from it that we'll tell you tomorrow, since we did not hear about it until then.

 

Our plan was to stick to this side of the harbor with a long walk through Darling Harbour. It took us about 15 minutes to exit the pier building, where our bags and purses were searched by the officials before they let us loose. There is a very strict quarantine regulation here where one cannot remove any food, flowers, plants, or seeds from the ship. Only bottled water is allowed off. The officers checked anything made of wood, plant materials, shells, coral, animal products, nuts, seeds, and even our shoes. On the spot fines can be imposed, and they are steep. Everyone seemed to take these rules seriously, so all appeared to go well, just slow.

 

Darling Harbour has 39 restaurants, 30 bars, 11 cafes, 60 shops, 2 museums, a Chinese Garden, and 1 IMAX Theatre. It faces Cockle Bay and is connected from one side to the other with an impressive large footbridge by the name of Pyrmont Bridge. It dates back to 1902, and is the world's oldest surviving electrically operated swingspan bridge. The harbor can also be accessed by a monorail which runs in a circle from several large hotels. As we passed the restaurants, we noticed they were rather empty, but the day was young, and by this afternoon, things would be jumping. Many pleasure boats originate their trips from this harbor. There are rivercat vessels that go up the Parramatta River, showboats that offer dining with dancing and singing by glamorous showgirls, ferries, and sight-seeing boat tours, as well as thrilling speedboat rides.

 

At the end of the bay was an area that was under construction last year. It was finished and now we found an amusement park for the little ones called Tumbalong Park. A large expanse of lawn had been planted creating an area for events like weddings or concerts. A McDonalds restaurant is very popular here. We soon found ourselves at Paddy's Markets in Chinatown, a huge building with numerous souvenier stalls downstairs and food upstairs. It reminds us of Hong Kong's Night Market, where you can find treasures of all kinds. We found another "singing bird" in a cage (batteries included). It reminds us of home to hear the little bird singing when you clap your hands. Hope our room stewards like it. Also located two new swimsuits for a terrificly good price. Surprisingly, they were made in Australia. A large fruit and veggie market was located in the back with a fish market alongside that. It was well maintained and clean as a whistle. The produce looked wonderful, big and healthy as can be found.

 

We had intended to continue on to a larger fish market, but we had to watch the time...it was going too fast. And truthfully, we were not sure we would be able to make it back from that far away. Well, one of us could have. But, lunch sounded like a better option, so we headed for the Hard Rock Cafe at Darling Harbourside Shopping Centre. Always on the lookout for tshirts, we were disappointed to find they were out of all large sizes. Hmmm, same thing last year. You would think they would learn.

 

Gosh, it felt good to sit down at a window table overlooking the bay. The hamburger and chicken salad we ordered were delicious, but the sodas were not refilled complimentary, like they are at home in California. It turned out to be a fairly expensive meal, but most enjoyable. However, that was when we had a strange experience that began when we left Australian money to pay the check. Prior to leaving for this cruise, our friends had sold us some Australian money they knew they would not be using anytime soon. We did not notice, and we are sure they did not know, that the bills were much larger compared to the money we bought here on the ship yesterday. The US dollars have changed in the last ten years, but there is never a problem using the older bills. Not so here. Long story short, we had handed the cash in the leather folder to our waitress upon leaving. But before we exited the restaurant, one of the staff called us back, and told us the money (12.00 of it) was no longer in circulation. We asked to speak to a manager, who explained that any local bank would exchange the money for us, but they could not accept it. They apologized for the mixup, we paid the difference in new bills, and left a bit embarrassed by the unexpected situation. You learn something new all of the time.Now on the other hand, while purchasing the bird cage, the Chinese vendor, an elderly woman, checked the bill over and gladly took it. Maybe she knew it could have been a rare one...who knows? We looked for a bank in the mall, but since it was Saturday, they closed early. We did locate a Citibank foreign exchange store, and they verified that the bills were very old, but only cashable at a bank. Perhaps we will have time in Cairns, where we will stop next on Wednesday, a banking day.

 

We had some shopping to do, so we walked up the side streets to Woolworths, a large variety and food store across from the QVB (Queen Victoria Building). We found some snacks for our room, then hauled it back to the pier. It took probably 45 minutes to get back, but it was good to get some quality exercise in today. Entering the port tents, we had to put our bags through the xray, like we do in all ports. It is much easier doing this onshore than on the ship. At least, we are never asked to take off our shoes. Don't think we would have had the energy.

 

Another thing we had problems with was the internet service. We had major problems. Once we arrived to this dock, we lost the ability to turn on the computer in our room. Just turn it on to work offline was not possible. We had to go to deck 5 to do anything, so therefore, these reports will be delayed. Recalling previous problems here, we'll have to wait until the ship leaves tomorrow for things to go back to normal. There is no doubt that our older computer is also the culprit with this problem, as our friends here have had no such problems.

 

At dinner tonight, we figured there would only be the three of us......Terry and the two of us. But Ellen, Barb, and Sky joined us by 8:15pm. They had had a long day of touring the countryside to a winery, and negotiating the drive in a rightside driver car, going down the "wrong side" of the roads (at least for us Americans). Ellen did the driving, and did OK despite the fact she has not been feeling well. The dreaded cold with a dry throat and earaches have got her down, but not out. It would take a team of horses to keep that girl from going full speed ahead. Good thing we have some sea days ahead of us where she can lay low. Some hot green tea with lemon and honey wouldn't hurt either.

 

Tomorrow, 300 passengers will be leaving us, and 160 newbies will be joining the ship. And we will have one more day to explore the city, at least until 4pm, when we are scheduled to depart. Hope the weather remains the same......sunny and warm.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[Aussie Gal]

Mary Ann and Bill,

 

I can understand the restaurant not accepting your old money as we changed over to the wonderful plastic notes in 1988 so young people and anyone who isn't around 50 years of age probably wouldn't remember those larger, older notes. All four main Australian banks will accept them eg. Westpac, CBA, NAT and ANZ, and I hope you have time to go into a bank when you are in Cairns so you can get rid of them.

 

Jennie

[CairnsGuyCruiser]

G'Day Bill & Mary Ann

 

As usual your reports have been great.

 

Enjoy your visit to Sydney and the cruise up the east coast.

 

I look forward to catching up with you again on Wednesday evening in Cairns.

 

Cheers

 

Pat

[windsor26]

I love your reports and just wish that sometime in the not too distant future we could do a world cruise Please keep threading:D

[WCB]

Report # 58 February 26, 2012 Sunday Sydney, Australia Day Two

 

Well, another day brought clouds and heavy overcast with it, darn. At least the early morning rain had gone, but the humidity was high. Sure glad we had sailed into the city yesterday under perfectly blue skies. Luck of the draw.

 

Since the all aboard time was 3pm, we knew we had to set out early to get in all the site-seeing we could muster in about 5 hours. Today was Sunday, so we knew much would be closed or opened later in the morning. Not wanting to waste too much time walking, we took advantage of the complimentary shuttle that loaded up right outside the terminal. Once it filled to capacity, the driver brought us around the harborfront, past the Rocks area, and up Pitt Street to the front of the Marriott Hotel. That saved us a steep hike to Circular Quay from Darling Harbour, which would have taken us at least 45 minutes.

 

We wandered on over to the Pacific Princess, which had docked, in our spot, sometime this morning we presume. A tourist desk was set up right outside the terminal, so we picked up some better info and maps than we had gotten off of the Amsterdam. From listening to the guests passing by us on the Princess ship, it sounded like they were mostly British. We think that their cruise ends in or near London, which attracts many more Europeans than we do.

 

It is always fun walking past the many ferry terminals at Circular Quay located in Sydney Cove. This is such a bustling place with people running willy-nilly to catch various ferries that go in many different directions all day long. These ferries are a great alternative to the millions of weekday commuters, and also for the weekend partyers. We have taken several organized tours from here as well. Many restaurants line this harborfront, and were very full of diners this morning. Checking the menus and the prices, we found that every one of the cafes were expensive. For instance, two pieces of toast with jam cost $7.50, and that is with no coffee. Wow.

 

Continuing on, we walked to the Opera House, taking the wide walkway around the perimeter. Yesterday's sail in was the best time to take photos, since being right on top of it, it was hard to get anything that was not over-exposed. Built in 1973, this iconic building is divided into several venues, and was recently added to the World Heritage List. One of the ship's tours offered a night of opera last night for the hefty price of $299. We passed on the chance, and would have been out of luck if we had changed our minds. This tour was Sold Out when we boarded in January!

 

Right next to the Opera House is the Royal Botanic Gardens, which actually was established as the colony's first farm in 1816. The greens and trees start at the water's edge, then continues up the rolling hills for quite a ways into the downtown area. It is a botanical paradise, complete with birdlife, native flying foxes (bats), and over 17,000 plant species. There are many displays of Aboriginal history, a Conservatory of Music, cafe, restrooms, and benches galore for relaxing or picnicing. The most impressive building is the Government House, built in 1845. This structure is perched high on the hill overlooking the harbor, and retains the 19th century furniture. Public tours take place each week, however, on Sunday, you can only wander around the gardens.

 

The birdlife is prolific as we spotted the black and white ibis, gulls, rosella parrots, cockatoos, and the flying foxes. Not a pretty sight, these large bats hang upside down in the trees, sleeping during the day, and ready to fly at nightfall. We noted several large poles throughout the park, which we later discovered were for trapping the bats at night. The park rangers are trying to band these bats to track their migration and feeding habits. Nets are attached to the poles, and are raised when the bats start to fly. Sure would not want to be the ones that handle them for tagging, but someone has to do it.

 

We have strolled this park nuerous times in the past, but for some reason, we never took the low road. Today, we did and found a cafe and souvenier shop. In front of that was a huge lily pond that was connected by a canal to a freshwater pond. The few birds that were swimming in the pond seemed to be bothered by something underneath them in the water. At a closer inspection, we discovered long black eels as well as carp. A sign said that these eels are regularly taken out of the pond, but somehow return. They found that baby eels actually found their way to the grass at the bay's edge, and wiggled their way over the lawn to the freshwater pond. Go figure.

 

Two hours had escaped us while enjoying the park, so we headed out of the gardens to continue some shopping. It was a hike, but we made our way back up George Street to Coles, a local supermarket. Thanks to a conversation with Sky last night, he mentioned he was going there and told us where to find it. We wondered why we never saw it........you had to go down an escalator where it is located underground. It is one block from Woolworths, where we also bought some more supplies.

 

Loaded down with our purchases, we decided to forego the Rocks area and take our stuff back to the ship via the shuttle. Lucky for us, the bus was loaded and ready to roll. Disappointed we did not have time for the Rocks pizza, we opted for the ship pizza in the Grill, where it was being served today from behind the counter. Meeting up with some friends, we all shared our Sydney exploits for the last two days.

 

The mandatory passenger safety briefing was held at 3:15pm, because this is the start of another segment to Hong Kong. As we stated yesterday, 300 guests left and 160 boarded today. You could spot many of the newbies at the aft sailaway party. For a change, there was live music, drinks (for a price), and hot food. We never saw the hot food, because there was little if it.....chicken tenders we heard. Yeah, we can live without the extra hot snacks, but we all enjoyed the treat, which fills the void before 8pm dinner.

 

While we were snapping pictures, a gentleman approached us and asked if we had been on the 2007 world cruise. We said yes, and he told us he remembered us. He had an interesting experience, since he and his wife missed the ship in Ft. Lauderdale. His wife had sent for an Indian visa (required for this cruise), and did not get it or her passport back in time for the January 6th sail date. He ended up flying to Las Vegas for a few days, then on to San Diego, where he picked up the Pacific Princess. They left it today to join the Amsterdam, and by his comments, we can say they are happy campers to be back onboard this ship. He complained about the size of the Princess rooms especially the bathrooms. He said they were terribly small quarters. The food was OK, but the ambience was not the same as the HAL ships. Like we said, interesting......

 

The sail out of the harbor paled compared to the sunny sail in we had yesterday. However, one thrilling moment was when the Amsterdam sailed under the bridge, with just a mere 13 feet for clearance. Bridge climbers cheered from the very top as we glided under them. The bays were filled with pleasure boats and ferries, all kept away from us by the pilot. Many of the Sunday revelers followed alongside the ship for a while in their boats. Once we exited the cliffsides, the waters of the ocean got choppy and rough. Greg and Heo, our Aussie buddies, happened to at the aft deck with us, and gave us much info on what we were seeing. Things like Manly, where the sharks attack, the nude beach areas, a cliff where illegal bungee jumpers dive from the top, and one spot where sadly, some commit suicide. It is very close to Bondi beach, a popular spot for world class surfing. Eventually, the high winds drove us all inside.

 

We had three new guests join us for dinnertime. A couple from the states, Lloyd and Marilyn, and Ron, another Aussie friend of all of ours, will be on until Singapore. They were thrilled to be here and we were glad to see them. During dinner, we questioned Martha about an incident we got wind of concerning the drug dog search. To her utter surprise, Martha was pulled from the line of guests exiting the ship yesterday with the help of the black lab, who was more than interested in her. Something suspicious was on her clothing and handbag. The officials took her aside, and searched her clothing and contents of her bag even closer. Finding nothing more, they allowed her to go, but must have red-flagged her for a room search. Now how she knew they searched her room without her there, we did not hear. We do know there was a random search for drugs on the first day here, delaying disembarkation by an hour. Martha's case may have been one of them. Did we give her a bad time? You bet we did, and she loved every minute of the teasing. Of course, she put all of her clothes she wore while in Pago Pago in the laundry. That is where she figured she gathered the aromas of marijuana perhaps while in the taxi cab she shared with Greg and Heo on a four hour tour. She even scrubbed her shoes and bags in the tub, just in case there is another drug dog in Cairns on Wednesday. Funny story, but it could happen to anyone.

 

Two more sea days, and we will be in Cairns and the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[Aussie Gal]

Mary Ann and Bill,

 

Believe it or not we love those smaller ships which are the ex "Renaissance ships. Eight were built around 1999-2000 and we have cruised on them many times including with Oceania, Azamara and of course Princess. In fact we have just had to cancel a 20 day cruise on the Ocean Princess leaving from Sydney to Singapore in 3 weeks time as my DH had an AMI out of the blue and we are not allowed to fly or cruise for 8 weeks from when it happened which was the 5th February.

 

We love the mini suites on those ships as the bathrooms are as large as HAL's and of course the cabin is much larger than an HAL balcony cabin, plus the balcony is also bigger. Too us, they are an ideal size with only 650 passengers and of course they can cruise to places that the bigger ships never visit. Altogether we have been on them 8 times!

 

Jennie

[Bescotti]

 

Come on guys.....the passengers are not exactly that young and stupid age anymore and especially not on a world cruise.

 

Mary Ann and Bill, there was such a stupid world cruise passenger on P&O's Aurora which arrived in Sydney the week before you. A 59 year old British passenger was found to have 30 kilos of cocaine with him - and the drug sniffer dogs picked it up! He could now be sentenced up to life in prison.

[Aussie Gal]

No wonder our Police were searching the Amsterdam. It is quite an easy way of bringing drugs into the country, especially if the ship had visited Thailand or Indonesia on the way to Australia. Perhaps that is where the Aurora had come from.

 

Often those that look the most innocent are often the culprits. Who would have suspected a man of 59 years to be a carrier of drugs. Good luck to our wonderful Customs Police and our fantastic dogs. They are worth their weight in gold.

 

Jennie

[WCB]

Report # 59 February 27, 2012 Monday Day at Sea

 

Hoping to see sunny skies when we woke up this morning, we were disappointed to see clouds and rain showers. The waves kept the ship rolling last night, which is nice enough to lull one to sleep. Recalling the weather in this very same area last year, it was much worse, due to the flooding cyclones that had passed over the east coast. Breaking record amounts of rain had brought many mudslides down the hills of Cairns, along with massive damage from the winds. At that time, Pat, our most friendly Australian tablemate, needed to go home to access the damage done to his home. Thanks to the help of his brother and good neighbors, we believe they were able to keep his house water tight. We remember that his brother or friends had thrown all of his outdoor furniture in his swimming pool, to keep it from causing more damage from the winds. We are certain he had much work to do once he got home. By the way, we hope to see Pat on Wednesday, as he will be a guest onboard the ship for cocktails and dinner.

 

At least the computer worked this morning, and we are on our way back on track with these reports. That is bad to get behind even a day or two, as the memory tends to slip. We did forget two things. The Princeton Custom Tailors from Hong Kong have joined us from Sydney to Cairns. They are invited on every Grand World Voyage as long as we remember. And since they do good work with excellent quality fabrics, it was decided prior to joining the trip, that a new tuxedo, a white tux jacket, and 2 sets of vests and ties would be purchased by us. We have done a lot of homework, comparing pricing at home at our local stores. Since the dress style in California has tended to go casual, it was difficult to find regular stores that provide the formalwear anymore. Yes, there are rental shops, but they are not the best place to purchase one.

 

The tailor's desk was set up outside the Ocean Bar, so we stopped to ask some questions. We have also been in touch with the owner by email, so we didn't need to know too much more. All of his fabric swatches and designs were laid out on the table, so the choices were easy to make. It took the expert about 20 minutes to take the measurements, along with a set of photos he took.The clothing will be ready for fitting on our first day in Hong Kong. If there are any adjustments to be made, Bill's new threads will be ready the second day in Hong Kong. Easy....ready to go. And another good thing is we can put this charge on our shipboard account, and the amount will not be billed until we leave the ship in San Diego.

 

The other job we had was to fill out the entrance and exit forms for Indonesia and Hong Kong. The front desk staff had already typed in the major info, so all we had to do was add our address and sign all the forms. They needed to be turned in to the front office by 9pm this evening. Definitely, not a hard job.

 

The Academy Awards Show was televised in the Queens Lounge around noon today. It was not advertised in the newsletter, since they can never promise they will be able to get it by the satellite. It must have worked, because there were few people out and about the ship. We chose to try the aft pool, since some sun had appeared after the rain showers stopped. It was warm, but the wind was brutal. Once we got the towels secured somewhat, we stuck to the chairs just to hold them down. We were able to read for awhile, but gave up by 3:30pm. When we packed up, we noticed there were only five guests outside. Captain Jonathon mentioned in his talk that we are doing 20 knots, while fighting a current that is against us. It is giving us quite a ride, which should smooth out once we are in a more positive current. That should be tomorrow, when we get closer to the Great Barrier Reef islands.

 

It was a great time to catch up with photos and reports, while watching "Gone With the Wind" on TCM in our room. The movie went on and on until 7pm, and we enjoyed every minute of this classic. They don't make flicks like that anymore.

 

Dinner was formal, with a theme of "Under the Sea". The dining room was decked out with hanging fish and palm tree mobiles in the colors of blue and aqua. Big crepe paper pufferfish were the centerpieces on the tables. By the end of the meal, Barbie was wearing the cardboard eyeballs of the pufferfish behind her glasses. We really had a good laugh over that one, as Martha took several photos of her. Too bad Ellen missed the evening, because she was too ill to attend, Tom told us. He has ordered her to lay low, even if she has to take it easy all the way to Hong Kong. One of our new tablemates was also absent, due to something tainted he ate at lunchtime. And our expected officer never showed up as our host for the formal night. The wine did arrive, and that made everyone happy. Many of us ordered the honey mustard parmesan-crusted chicken with mashed potatoes. That entree is always a winner with us.

 

One more day at sea and we will be in Cairns, pronounced Cans. And good news....the clocks went back one hour this evening.

 

Mary Ann & Bill

 

PS Thanks Jenny, Aussiegal, for letting us know the Australian bills were discontinued in 1988.

[CairnsGuyCruiser]

G'Day Bill & Mary Ann

 

Looks like it will be a rainy day for your visit, but not the torrential rain we had last year when the Amsterdam was in Port, just showers.

 

It will be great to go on board the Amsterdam again and catch up with you and my many other friends. It is a pity the visit will only be for the evening.

 

Oh well, in 12 months I will be joining you in Sydney for 88 days (Sydney to Ft Lauderdale segment) of the World Cruise.

 

Enjoy your day in Cairns.

 

Cheers

 

Pat

[WCB]

Report # 60 February 28, 2012 Tuesday Day at Sea

 

The Amsterdam is now sailing in the Inner Route, situated between the Great Barrier Reef and the east coast of Australia. Once we entered this area, the waters became much calmer compared to what we experienced yesterday. The Captain had promised smoother sailing, and we were greatful for it.

 

As we were walking the promenade deck around 10am, the Captain requested the reef pilot to come to the bridge. As we were not scheduled to do any scenic cruising today, we assume the pilot was summoned to guide the ship through this Inner Route. We began to see islands in the distance, as well as land on the port side. Even though the day had started rather sunny, it was apparent that the clouds were becoming heavy and dark as we sailed north. And the humidity was so thick, you could cut it with a knife, so to speak.

 

There were new Exploration speakers onboard. The first one was John Lucas, who spoke about piracy. The afternoon lecturer was George Sranko, who talked about Australia's crocs, devils, and the creatures of Oz. Will catch these talks on TV later.

 

We had a lunch date at noon in the Pinnacle Grill Restaurant, so we left our walk to do some emailing first. There were no problems connecting and the speed was better than a week ago. It will be interesting if we get shut down in Cairns like we did in Sydney with no way to turn the computer on in our room. Maybe that was just a fluke.

 

Our tablemates, Janice and Mike, from the 2005 world cruise, had invited us to dine with them in the specialty restaurant. We had a wonderful time catching up on old news and current ship gossip with them. Before we knew it, we had eaten a delicious lunch of appetizers and Pinnacle cheeseburgers, the best on the ship. Two hours had passed by as we laughed over good times seven years ago. They have not changed a bit since then, and are truly a very nice couple. We will have to do this again before the end of the cruise.

 

Swimming at the aft pool was our next adventure, so we headed back to the room to change and get our pool stuff. Ten minutes into our change-over, we looked out the window of our room to discover than it had started raining big time. No need for sunscreen or anything else. It appeared that this storm was here to stay. Instead, we decided to go for another walk, and were glad we did. Many islands had begun to appear, and very close ones at that. Captain Mercer came on the speakers to announce that we had come to the Whitsunday Island and the several small islets surrounding it. He slowed down so everyone would have a chance to see and film them. Too bad we hit numerous showers along the way. But then, he said this is their rainy season, so it was expected. We have done this sailing in a dryer season on previous cruises, and remember it to be quite colorful.......especially the seawater, which is many shades of aquamarine. We had hoped to see some birds, but perhaps because of the rain, we saw none. But we did see some sailboats, a few isolated beaches, and a couple of resorts along the way. Bet this area is visited by the locals often in good weather.

 

Tonight we were invited to join the other table of our buddies...........Susie, Woody, Greg, Heo, Eloise, and Sky. They had room for two more (us), since John and Diane left in Sydney for two or three days in Cairns. They will come back tomorrow. The new guest chef, George Geary and his friend Neil, were also joining us tonight. It was cozy for ten, but since the table is oval, unlike ours which is round, it was more conductive to conversation. George, who we have met on previous trips, is a Certified Culinary Professional and Pastry Chef, who has taught classes for over 24 years. He has appeared on ABC, NBC, and PBS, as well as published numerous cookbooks. While onboard, he will give cooking demos and specially booked classes for small groups. He is also a fan of cork-forking, which we gladly played once the dining room emptied out. Always good fun with this group.

 

The entertainment was a group called Soul Mystique, a "quick change" act. We know that the show is fast, amusing, and quick as the gal mysteriously changes outfits in a matter of seconds, while standing behind a screen. No one that we know has been able to figure this act out, no matter how many times they see it.

 

Last night's show was Bernard Walz, a pianist. We were told his show was excellent.

 

We should be in Cairns early tomorrow morning. If the weather remains like today's, it will not be a good day for the reef. That is one thing you do not know until you arrive there, and the smart folks book an independant tour instead of the ship's tour. That way, you do not lose 10% if you choose to cancel at the last minute.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[newfarmers]

Report # 60 February 28, 2012 Tuesday Day at Sea

 

 

The entertainment was a group called Soul Mystique, a "quick change" act. We know that the show is fast, amusing, and quick as the gal mysteriously changes outfits in a matter of seconds, while standing behind a screen. No one that we know has been able to figure this act out, no matter how many times they see it.

Bill & Mary Ann

 

Hope the weather improves for you Mary Ann and Bill. We do try to turn it on for our travellers ;)

 

We saw Soul Mystique on our Rotterdam cruise and then on our following Legend of the Seas cruise. Agree completely - amazing

 

Loving the trip as always. One day....

 

Pete

[chasinraynbowz]

Hi Bill and MaryAnn

 

Thanks so much (again) for taking us all on this wonderful world cruise! I get up every morning, grab a cup of coffee and sit down to read your reports.

 

Hopefully one day I will be the one doing the reports!!

 

Pam

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks Bill and Mary Ann for taking us along on your wonderful cruise. Really love all your reports.

[WCB]

Report # 61 February 29, 2012 Wednesday Cairns, Australia

 

Today, the Amsterdam docked in the harbor of Trinity Bay in the city of Cairns. It is located on the east coast of Australia, and is between the Coral Sea and the Great Diving Range. Originally the city was established to export sugar cane, gold, precious metals, and agricultural products from this fertile area. Today, it is most famous for the starting point for tourists snorkeling or diving on the Great Barrier Reef, one of the world's greatest natural wonders. The population is much smaller compared to Sydney, a sharp contrast compared to the hustle and bustle of that huge city. Things appear much more laid back, with little traffic, and far less crowding no matter where you wander. It's rather nice for a change.

 

The weather looked promising early this morning when we peeked out our window. This would be good for the folks that were taking the 8 hour tour out to the reef by a high-speed catamaran ($319. per person). We have gone out to the reef on past trips, and were most lucky to have had good weather. We chose not to tempt fate, and decided long ago that we would not book it through the ship. On our last couple of visits here, many people got terribly ill taking these tours in bad weather and high seas. We know now that we could have booked a trip right from town the morning we got here, especially with the help of our Aussie buddy Pat, who happens to live here. Bless his heart, he emailed us and offered any assistance in booking tours. However, we had planned on going on an independant tour to the mountains, but changed our minds due to the wet weather we knew would hit today. Yes, Captain Mercer had mentioned the possibility of rain showers or thunder storms. Little did he know how intense these "passing" showers can be. Last year, the rains had been so severe that the hillsides melted away, even while people were on tour to Kuranda. Some had problems getting back to the ship, because the roads had washed out, or trees had fallen across the highway. Since we have taken that tour in the past in good weather, we figured we should stay in town.

 

So that's what we did right after breakfast on the ship. Even though the daily newsletter said the temperature would be in the high 80's, we were shocked to feel how unbearable the humidity was when we left the ship. If you think Hawaii is sticky, you can double that here. Of course, this is the rainy season, so it was no surprise that rain was imminent.

 

The first order of the day was to find a bank, and exchange the old money we brought from home.. At the local Commonwealth Bank, it was not a problem to do that transaction. But it did take a lot of time, since the one bank gal was helping another customer. It took perhaps 15 minutes or more before another girl came to help us. We also bought a little more Aussie money, but soon realized that there was an extra fee. Should have done this money exchange on the ship, because they do not charge a fee. It's no wonder that most people use credit cards.

 

We made our way towards the local shopping mall, Cairns Central. On the way, we stopped to take pictures of more flying foxes hanging in the trees in the local central park. They are just creepy, but tolerated since they were probably here first. We did not see any of the beautiful parrots that Sydney had, but the shoreline would house a slew of seabirds. The two story modern mall had a variety of shops and mega stores such as Coles (groceries), Target, and Myer, a large department store. There were numerous restaurants as well as a food court. The best part was that this mall was well air-conditioned.

 

We always like to browse through the grocery stores, so we checked out Coles. That's where we saw packaged fresh meats for dogs or cats. It was either chicken, beef, or kangaroo cut in small cubes. It was ready to eat raw or cooked if your pet preferred it that way. The cat mixture looked much darker, like there was liver mixed with the meat cubes. Pampered pets, but we bet that the aroma from this meat would be way better than that canned stuff.

 

Large eggs were in cartons marked "Happy Eggs", as opposed to sad eggs? Just kidding..... The cases of Pepsi were a better price here, but you had to buy two 24 packs to get the sale price. No way were we going to haul that much weight back to the ship. Even though we prefer the Pepsi, we'll do fine using the ship's soda card we purchased.

 

There is a very nice walking boardwalk that follows the bay's edge for a long ways. We headed that way after leaving the mall. Hopefully, there would be more of a breeze closer to the water. At the start of the esplanade, is the city's swimming lagoon, which is totally free to the public. There is a good reason for this large pool here at the beach. The waters here are full of boxjellies from October through June, and people cannot go near them......they are lethal...literally. If a swimmer is stung by one of these creatures, we understand the pain is terribly unbearable, and the wounds can be severe, even fatal. For that reason, we saw no one on this beach or near the water.

 

What the muddy sands that the low tide left behind, was a buffet for the many types of seabirds that thrive here. There are sandpipers, gulls, spoonbills, plovers, and many more that we do not have at home. On our next trip, we need to remember to bring a bird book to identify these different varieties. It was interesting watching some of the long-billed birds search in the bubbling mud, and come up with a shellfish of some kind. It was so darned hot and humid that we had to duck under the nearby trees to get some shade. The skies were getting darker by the moment, and we hoped to make it back before the rain came. We had no doubt that it was coming......

 

Strolling back, we stayed clear of the bike lanes, which were not too crowded. But there were some kids on their scooters, who also used these trails. They just loved showing off their skills, especially the boys. Kids are the same everywhere. Part of this seaside park has an area set aside for the young ones called Muddy's Childrens Playground. It had all the usual equipment, including fountains for waterplay. It was so warm that we wouldn't mind joining these kids.

 

There was a spot where people can play volleyball or soccer. A nearby tree held numerous pairs of old shoes that some players must have thrown up there. The habit grew to where the tree looks like a monument now and is comical to see. Aussies are known for their wicked sense of humor.

 

Well, it started to sprinkle by the time we reached our intended lunch destination. Sprinkles turned to rain about the time we entered Olano's Restaurant by the boat harbor. No sooner than we sat down, the skies opened up big time, pounding the corrigated roof with a vengence. Gosh, this was a rerun of last year. We didn't know what we enjoyed the most.....the driving rain storm or the delicious margharita pizzas and sodas we had. Yeah, the pizza really won out, and the rain let up by the time we were ready to leave. This was tropical rain like we see in the Amazon River.

 

Coming back to the ship, we went to the aft pool to find it was almost empty of guests. We did have about an hour to cool off in the pool, until the rain started again. The inside pool was an option, but the staff was preparing the area for an Aussie BBQ for tonight at 5:30pm to 8pm. We did see a real grill ready to fire up the briquets for the party later on. The cooks must prepare the meats, then fill the containers on the serving tables. When we came back later around 6pm, those BBQ's were already taken away.

 

Wanting to check out the Night Markets in town, we left the ship again at 5pm. It was still raining lightly off and on, but once at the nearby market, we found all of the shops to be inside under cover. Typical souveniers were being sold here, somwhat like the Night Market in Hong Kong, just a whole lot smaller. We searched for an hour, but could not find a suitable t shirt to buy. So we visited some of the smaller shops on the way back to the ship. We ran into friends Susie, Woody, Eloise, Barb and Ellen also shopping their way to the Night Markets. They were not having much luck. The weather was not helping as it was very sticky without a breeze this time of day.

 

The very last shop happened to have the perfect shirt, one like a favorite one we found in Freemantle a few years ago. We had been told then that the Freemantle shirt had been made specially for this particular store, but here we are in Cairns, and the same shirt had this city's name on it, only trimmed in navy blue instead of red. Bet we could find the same shirt, different colors, in every city in Australia. We used the last of our money for small stuff and potato chips in a tiny Chinese market. That's when the big rain hit again. By the time we got the umbrellas up, we were soaked. Oh well, at least it cooled us off.

 

Dinnertime brought us company. Our buddy Pat, who had been our tablemate last year for half of the cruise, had come onboard around 5pm. Originally, we thought he had wanted to dine in the Lido with another lady friend, Helen, but Ellen must have changed his mind, and asked the both of them to our table. He looked wonderful, since he was able to lose a bit of weight since the last time we saw him. He said he had to limit the Guinesses to accomplish the weight loss. Two other Aussie friends of Pat's also came to the dining room with him, making our table totally full with 12. Our waiter handled the situation quite well. He had us served and out of there by 10pm. Many guests must have chosen to go to the BBQ on deck 8, or perhaps they went out to dinner. The ship won't leave until 3am, so there was lots of time for many to go off for dinner.

 

As for us, we were exhausted from a full day of walking in the heat and rain, so we turned in by 11pm. This is one sailaway we will miss.

 

We're heading towards the reef for some scenic cruising for the following three days.

 

Bill & Mary Ann

[MMDown Under]

Report # 61 February 29, 2012 Wednesday Cairns, Australia

 

What the muddy sands that the low tide left behind, was a buffet for the many types of seabirds that thrive here. There are sandpipers, gulls, spoonbills, plovers, and many more that we do not have at home. On our next trip, we need to remember to bring a bird book to identify these different varieties. It was interesting watching some of the long-billed birds search in the bubbling mud, and come up with a shellfish of some kind.

Bill & Mary Ann

 

Specialised bird books are: “Birds of Queensland’s Wet Tropics and Great Barrier Reef” by Lloyd Nielsen and “Where to Find Birds in North-East Queensland” by Jo Wieneke.

http://www.wettropics.gov.au/st/rainforest_explorer/Resources/Documents/factsheets/birdsOfTheWetTropics.pdf

 

Thanks once again for sharing your world cruise experiences.

[hpf]

Here sitting in the house with the outside temperature of minus 15 degrees celcius the heat and rain are rather appealing to me.

I am enjoying you trip, through your writings, so much. Thank you for taking the time to post.

Helen