W802 Summer Sessions - a review!

[chaz cruiser]

Hi Everyone,

 

Just back from our 10 night cruise onboard the beautiful Pacific Dawn. This is probably going to be long but I won't apologise as I know you all love ready reviews.

 

Anything I miss out I am sure my Mum (Suey) and Aunt (Frog) will add for me. We had a fantastic time. We were very impressed with the ship and entertainment. I will split the review up and hopefully you will enjoy it. Any questions let me know.

 

Cheers,

Charmain:)

[kaseyoz]

that is not long!!!:D :D :D

[kaseyoz]

that is not long!!!:D :D :D

[chaz cruiser]

Firstly the basics - I am a 33 year old and I travelled with my Mum (Suey), Aunt Linda (Frog), Nan and Uncle & his wife. We are all frequent cruisers. I have now done 8 cruises, Mum has done 12, Aunt Linda has done 23 and Nan has done 35 (33 with P&O). This was our first cruise on the Pacific Dawn and we were looking forward to travelling on the "new" ship and checking out the different things like Anytime Dining. We have visited each of the islands before.

 

Ok here we go...

 

I was up early and excited!! I had a 5:55am flight from Townsville to Brisbane and then a 9:15am connection to Brisbane. I had tried the week before to see if I could get onto the 8:15am flight with my Mum, Aunt & Nan but was told it was not possible as I had to have a 45 minute transit time and with only 35 minutes between the flights this was not possible. I decided that I would ask at the airport and see if there was any chance I could change. Thought I would apply the principle that if I don't ask the answer is always no.

 

The guy at check in said that he didn't see a problem as they would need no more than 20 minutes to transfer my bags. He changed my flight and said that he expected us to be early anyway, famous last words! I called Mum to tell her that I was going to be on her plane. Unfortunately my plane was delayed for some reason and we sat on the tarmac for about 15 minutes. We were 20 minutes late arriving in Brisbane. At this stage I am thinking I have missed the Sydney connection and would end up on the 9:15am flight anyway.

 

However, I get off the plane and the Sydney plane is still boarding fortunately at the gate next door to where I got off. I was the last passenger to check in. As I went through the gate I had a sudden thought about my bag!! I asked the staff on the gate if there was going to be enough time for my bag to be loaded and if it missed our flight would it just be on the next plane. They told me they were getting my bag then and I walked down the aerobridge prepared to surprise my family. I figured as the planes were next to each other my bag would be fine.

 

I walked down the plane and settled into my seat directly behind my family, Mum was surprised about this until I reminded her that they could look up the other passengers and it was a deliberate placement! The Cabin Manager came on to say that they were just loading the last of the luggage and we would be on our way on time. Phew, they were loading my bag, or so I thought.

 

As we flew into Sydney it was overcast and then all of a sudden the cloud cleared and we saw her, in all her glory at Wharf 8. Excitement level increased a number of notches. We landed in Sydney and started bragging that we would now probably arrive at the wharf before my Uncle & Aunt from Sydney, again famous last words. We make our way down to the baggage carousel and collect Mum, Aunt Linda & Nan's bags. Then watch the carousel go round and round and not contain my bag.

 

I go to baggage services and the attendant Di checks to see if there is a message about my bag being left in Brisbane and being on the next flight. Nope, no message. She tells me it may be on the next flight and I can wait or I can go ahead and they will send it onto me when it arrives. We decided to wait the hour for the next flight to arrive. Di kindly gives us a $12 voucher for coffee so we settle down to wait for the flight. We see many people we know must be cruising and wish we were heading to the wharf with them.

 

Finally the flight arrives and I head up to the carousel to wait for the luggage. Around and around the carousel goes and still no bag. Back to baggage services and speak to Di who tells me that there is still no message in the system. At this stage I must admit there were tears welling in my eyes but I managed to calm myself down.

 

Di tells me that this is every likelihood that my bag will arrive on one of the other flights and suggests we head to the ship and they will deliver it to me. She then asks a question which gives me chills, what is our first port of call... I struggle again to stop the tears and worry about going for three days without my bag.

 

Di tells me that she is prepared to authorise a $300 payment for me to get some more clothes in case my bag does not arrive before we sail. I agree that this will make me feel better and she asks if would like the payment in cash or they can reimburse me later. Of course I ask for the cash up front after checking what would happen if my bag arrived, i.e. would I need to pay it back. Di tells me that I will not need to reimburse the money. She then gives me her contact details and tells me that I can call her before she finishes at 3pm and she will keep looking for my bag.

 

While she writes out the voucher for me to collect the money Mum talks to Nan & Aunt Linda and decide that they will head to the wharf with our bags while Mum & I try to find some clothes. Mum helps them out to a taxi while I head up to the sales desk to collect three crisp $100 notes to go shopping with.

 

Mum & I get in a taxi. Now at this stage I will point out that I am not a size 10, in fact I am not even a size 18 so the option of trying to find clothes quickly in Sydney city frightens me. We have two options, get lost in a surburban shopping centre looking for an Autograph, Rockmans &/or Target store where I know I can find clothes but might take longer or head straight into the city and try David Jones. We took the city option, after all if I get really stuck I can borrow clothes from my family.

 

We ask the taxi to take us to David Jones, who fortunately are having a sale. Even with a sale $300 doesn't go far & I pick up a couple of t-shirts, two blouses, a cami and a pair of slacks which I hope are enough to get me through. Fortunately I had been in Brisbane before cruising and Mum had brought along some underwear and my heels that I left at her place so I didn't need those. We then walked down to Woolworths where I bought some toiletries.

 

Just as we are rushing to the taxi rank to head to the ship my phone rings and it is Di from Qantas baggage services to tell me that they have found my bag and that she is sending it out to wharf now. Phew, major relief. Of course it would have been nice to receive the phone call before we spent the $300, who wouldn't want extra spending money! But I am very relieved that I will have my stuff for the whole cruise and not have to panic for another three days that my bags wouldn't be in Noumea.

 

We grab a cab and head for the ship to meet up with my family. To be honest when I got to the wharf the whole thing caught up with me and I didn't have the same level of excitement I expected when I first saw the ship. Yes she was impressive but my focus was just to get on before anything else went wrong. After checking with a few people that when Qantas dropped my bag off it would be loaded onto the ship we decided to check in and get on so we could have lunch.

 

Check in is now different to our previous cruises. The terminal building is marked for passengers only, but to be honest they weren't really checking so my Aunt's son & family who came to see us off wandered through with us without any problem. We checked in and obtained our cruise cards in the passenger terminal. My Uncle & Aunt from Sydney decided to get on while my other Aunt finished chatting with her son.

 

We usually get Nan a wheel chair to board so she doesn't have to stand in queues and this time was no different. The four of us in one cabin stuck close to the wheelchair and managed to overtake my Uncle & Aunt in the queue. After a quick stop at the TRS counter to make a claim (a very easy process) we headed onboard. At the TRS counter we got separated from Nan & Aunt Linda who continued on so Mum & I posed for the embarkation photo by ourselves and stepped onboard deck 7 (Promenade).

 

Our cabin (D111, very easy to remember) was on Dolphin deck 8 so we climbed the steps to our deck and found our cabin. We had an inside quad share midship. It was just down from the casino. For some reason Nan & Aunt Linda got lost so even though they got onboard before us we got to the cabin before them.

 

After a quick inspection of our cabin which was very comfortable with twin bunks and heaps of storage space (a wardrobe and four large draws each, plus space in the false window sill to store the suitcases.) we headed up to the Cafe Del Sol on Lido deck 12 for lunch. Yum.

 

Sat down to enjoy our lunch when my phone rings again and it is a guy from Qantas baggage services who is trying to drop off my bag and he needs a signature and the young guy at the baggage collection point won't sign. Panic again! I tell him that they told me it wouldn't be a problem to collect my bag. Oh oh there are those tears welling up again! He tells me he can't leave my bag without a signature and they won't sign. I tell him to wait and I will try to get off to sign and start to head down to the Purser's Desk to see about getting off or getting someone to sign for my bag.

 

While I am waiting for the lift my phone rings again and it is the guy from Qantas who tells me that he found a supervisor who has signed and my bag is on it's way onboard. Phew, relief again. I head back to tell my family it is on it's way!

 

After lunch we head down to unpack, still no bag! Then it finally arrives, thanks Sharma (our cabin steward). Mum calls up and books dinner for 6pm. We finally made our way out of the cabin and were in the Library when I looked out the window to see we were sailing under the Harbour Bridge and past the Opera House. For the first time ever we missed sailaway!! Oops. We head up to the Dome to enjoy the rest of the sailaway and find a comfortable lounge near the window so we can enjoy the view.

 

It's finally time to change for dinner and head down for our first experience of Anytime Dining. We get the best waiter Brill and enjoy our first dinner onboard. Then it's onto the Welcome Aboard show where we are introduced to the Pacific Dawn Entertainers (featuring lead vocals Meg Hoult & Matt Edwards) and two of our cabaret acts (Kaye Gordan - Vocalist & Greg Hudson - Magician & Hypnotist). We are pleased to hear that we also have one of my favourite performers Peter Byrne (a Neil Diamond impersonator) and also Danny McMasters (a comedian & impressionist).

 

One advantage of so many ships in the region is that they can share performers. After a quick stop to check out the casino we head to bed as the early start catches up to us!

 

More to come in part two....

[chaz cruiser]

that is not long!!!:D :D :D

 

Wait for it!!!!!!

[chaz cruiser]

We had breakfast in the dining room each morning. We find that the food is hotter and we like to get waited on!! Also an added advantage was that we shared a table with another couple of people as my uncle & aunt did not join us and we were usually put on a table for six. This is a nice way to meet people and it's funny how once you have shared a meal with someone you see them everywhere!! Of course they were there before but you just missed seeing them.

 

We got into a routine each morning as we left the restaurant Mum would call and make our dinner reservations. Here are my comments on Anytime Dining. We liked it! Although it is called Anytime Dining there is really two sittings (between 5:30pm & 6:30pm and then after 8pm). Each day we booked dinner for 6pm except the last night when we wanted to make sure we got seats in the show which was shown only once so booked for 5:30pm. Each night they were full for "first" sitting and had a sign posted to say that there were no tables for walk ins until after 8pm.

 

We decided to go to the shore tours talk in hope that we would win the prize. We didn't and decided that in the future we will just go to the lounge in the last 10-15 minutes and put in our entries like a large number of other people.

 

Then it was onto our first trivia. It wasn't until we got up into the Dome that we remembered we were supposed to be at the meet & greet in the Bengal Bar. Sorry guys!! Not sure if any of the others turned up, but it could have been interesting as we realised later at that time there was a Grandparents get together in the Bengal Bar.

 

We didn't win trivia but we had heaps of fun. For those who are keen trivia attendees they have all different questions and each of the quizes have a different difficulty levels. Was fun and very challenging. We managed to win one trivia and tied two others. Happily the trivia we won had the prize we wanted, passport wallets.

 

After trivia it was lunch at Cafe Del Sol (buffet). We ate at the buffet most days. Found it more convenient and covered each of our tastes. Have to love those bread rolls and my favourite mousse for dessert.

 

After lunch we played a few hands of cards, we found the Promenade Bar (designated card room) to be quite dark and difficult to play cards in so usually ended up in the Dome playing cards. Towards the end of the cruise someone must have said something cause the lights were turned up.

 

Then it was time for Real Live Wooden Horse Racing in the show lounge. They do it differently onboard the Dawn and I have to admit I thought it was better. Rather than have two dice going around the lounge with one being the horse and the other being how many spaces the move, they have three dice in a metal cage (looked like an egg timer) which are shaken by the host. They still have the kids being the jockeys with the wooden horses. Then whichever numbers appear on the dice the horse moves forward one space per dice. It was quite exciting because each time there was a double or triple in the cage Martin, the CD, would call out to the audience there's a double (or triple) in the cage, what number do you want? people would then shout back!!

 

We had a blast and were happy to have seats when bingo started as streams of people made their way into the lounge. The snowball jackpot did not start until the second sea day but the prizes were worth winning. Didn't even get close!

 

After bingo we dressed for dinner and made our way to the restaurant. Enjoyed another fantastic meal and finished in time to catch the first show which was Peter Byrne (a Neil Diamond impersonator). We loved him and he did different songs to those he did when we saw him on the Star in April last year.

 

Decided to check out the new game show in the Dome, Majority Rules. It works like a quiz except you don't necessarily need to get the correct answer you get a point if you have the same answer as the majority of the other teams. Some sample questions are name a villan (for both our cruise was The Joker, apparently normally it is Darth Vader), who is the most attractive man in the world (for our cruise was Brad Pitt), who is the most attractive woman in the world (for our cruise was Angelina Jolie). It was heaps of fun and we didn't win.

 

This is one of the only trivia's where you have to run up your answers. For each of the triva's you get an answer sheet where you write down all the answers, and then they are marked (sometimes you swap and sometimes you don't!).

 

Then it was down to the casion where we expected to find a raffle happening. After we didn't receive any tickets and the drawing time advertised in the Daily was approaching I finally went to the cashier to find out how the raffle worked. Was informed by one of the Casino supervisors that the raffle was cancelled because they didn't have any interest!! We were there for at least an hour before the draw and did not hear it mentioned once, probably why they had no interest. He said they would probably have it on again later in the cruise, but they didn't!!

 

Then it was off to bed and another day was down.

 

Part 3 next (second sea day)...

[chaz cruiser]

We had our usual sea day routine with breakfast, cards, trivia, lunch, sea horse racing, bingo and dinner.

 

Then we watched the Pacific Entertainers show Boogie Shoes (A production dedicated to the fancy footwear and footwork of being footloose). Was great. I noticed and mentioned to my Mum that it looked like a male dancer was missing. I was right.

 

We found out later that Jamie, one of the dancers who was from Blackpool England, was injured and was being sent home at the end of our cruise for some physio. We came to love Jamie as he took most of the trivia's and we ran into him regularly all over the place. He was heaps of fun! I'm sure he will miss the ship and I am sure they will miss him.

 

After the show it was time for a wander on deck and then a quick visit to the casino before bed.

 

More to come in Part 4: Noumea...

[chaz cruiser]

Firstly I will point out that we are not huge fans of Noumea and as our more recent cruises have been out of Brisbane we have not had a full day in Noumea for quite a while. On our last full day in Noumea we enjoyed a bowl of coffee at the local markets and this was on our agenda for this trip too. We were worried that the coffee was not going to be as good as we imagined but were still keen to check it out.

 

We enjoyed another leisurely breakfast. My Nan no longer gets off the ship and stays onboard chatting to people and doing puzzles. It's too hard for her to walk around now and she is more comfortable onboard. Then we headed off the ship for a wander to the local markets. For those interested you get off the ship and turn right. Walk past the ports and around the corner and you will see the buildings of the local markets. They sell fish, meat, fruits & vege, flowers, and a few souvenirs.

 

We found the cafe and for a brief moment was worried that they no longer had the bowl of coffee we so enjoyed. Plus there were no seats free. Then all of a sudden a family stood up and cleared three seats for us and we managed to see the bowls. We ordered our coffees and we paid for them in CPF's (cost us about A$4 each). They came and they were as good as we remembered. They have sugar cubes which are wrapped in some lovely little pictures. The coffee was a grande and comes in a bowl.

 

After we enjoyed our coffee we continued wandering around the markets and found a stall selling chocolates at very reasonable prices (didn't buy any though!!) and purchased a lovely little basket of pink & red roses to take back to Nan onboard which cost about A$15.

 

Then we walked back to the ship for trivia and lunch. After lunch we got off and went over to Casino, which is the supermarket over the road. This has been changed heaps and refurbished since we were last here. Checked out the prices as per usual. Mum got the liqorice lollies she loves and Aunt Linda picked up some bottles of Coke Zero for 110 CPF's (about A$1.64, so very reasonably priced, they don't sell Coke Zero onboard only Diet Coke so a nice hint for those on the Dawn who want to stock up).

 

Had a quick look around the markets where we picked up a few things including some lovely hair clips for Island Night for A$3 each. Back on board for a rest and afternoon trivia. Then it was dinner time again.

 

The show this night was Kaye Gordon and we decided to give it a go even though we weren't really impressed in the intro show. I'm sorry but she wasn't really to our taste. I personally found her a little shrieky (on the first night they had her microphone turned up too high, and it was only a little bit better).

 

Plus, this is going to sound petty but hey it's how I felt, the lining of her dress was significantly lower then the hem at the back and I was very distracted thinking she was going to trip over it with her incredibly high heeled shoes. I'll give her one thing, I don't know how she stood in those heels on a moving stage, although it probably explained her districting movements all over the stage.

 

We couldn't get into the show and after watching about 10 other groups leave made the decision to head out and get a seat upstairs in the Dome for the Oldies Music Trivia. Now when I read the term Oldies Music I don't think 50's & 60's but that's what the trivia was. The comp was run by Justin, one of the DJ's (who was the most active DJ during the day i think we have ever had, I don't usually see much of the DJ's as the nightclub is not my scene but saw heaps of Justin and feel he did a fantastic job). They play a snippet of a song and you have to write down the title & the artist.

 

We realised that we know nothing about music. We know the songs and could usually get the title but had very little idea about the artist! Another failed attempt to win a prize! After the quiz it was down for our bedtime flutter and then off to bed. It was very convenient being just down the hall from the casino. Tonight we realised that we are directly above the Bengal Bar and get to "enjoy" Karaoke whenever it is held there late at night. Was not a problem for me who can sleep through anything, but did keep the others awake or disrupt their sleep.

 

There was also a noisy bunch of girls across the hall who regularly got back to their cabin in the early hours of the morning with heaps of noise. Again not a problem for me but did wake up the others. Was very hard to stop them from making "revenge noise" outside their cabin each morning when we got up and saw the Do Not Disturb sign...

 

Next Part 5: Ouvea...

[chaz cruiser]

Woke up to a hot day in Ouvea. Thought I would mention here that we watched the morning show each morning. Was very different to other cruises although we enjoyed the different format with Martin (the CD) filming in a different part of the ship each morning. He was however a little hit and miss with the trivia questions we love to answer. I can proudly advise that we won quite a few of the trivias, I think it was more than 10 wins for the four of us. We had a winner in our group each day he had a question! Won some lovely fridge magnets and key rings.

 

Decided we would wait onboard and do morning trivia and have lunch and then go over when it was open tender. We went to trivia and it was us and two other teams. I can proudly report that we won!! Well actually it was a tie with one of the other teams and David who was running the trivia called out a member from each team. My Mum went out and stood face to face with the person from the other team.

 

David put out his hand and said that the first person to slap his hand, gently please girls, and give the correct answer would win the Passport Wallets. Well Mum really wanted those wallets and when David asked the question she slapped him so hard and gave hime the correct answer. David shaking his hand to stop the pain announced us the winners, I think he was worried she might slap him again if he didn't, and handed over the coveted Passport Wallets. We were happy now, had won a trivia and received the prizes we wanted!

 

All through lunch they were still calling tender tickets and hadn't called open tender yet. I guess there is a lot more passengers onboard the Dawn and it was a reasonably long tender to the shore so the process was taking longer than we had previously experienced. Open tender on other ships is usually called before lunch. Just as we finished lunch and prepared ourselves to go and get tender tickets to go ashore they called open tender.

 

We grabbed our stuff. Found a comfy spot for Nan and then headed ashore. The Pacific Dawn tendering process has to be one of the smoothest we have experienced. The tender platform was easily accessed through internal stairs and they had a different route for people getting on the tender and those getting off. The tender boats are also more comfortable and seem much more open. There are no little bum dots either so you don't need to think about the fact that if the ship goes down someone may not get off because you need two dots!!

 

The seas were a little rough and it was one of the first times we have heard the captain announce before the first tender had left that the weather report was not good and if people heard three blasts of the ships whistle they needed to head back quick as they were stopping the tender process and we would be leaving early. When we made it to the shore it was rough getting out and we definitely needed help to get off the tender. I asked the security officer if there any chance we would get the call back early and he said it wasn't likely now.

 

We wandered up the path and into the first waiting vehicle, on our first trip to Ouvea we made the mistake of walking to the beach in the middle of the day and we were not making it a second time. It is hot and we are not the fittest! Once we made it to the beach we wandered up to check out the Church which is lovely and has nice view back down the beach. We could also see the ruins of an older church right next door that is being reclaimed by the jungle.

 

Then we had a lovely walk along the beach where they stamped Mum's Pacific Daily with the passport stamp. After our walk along the beach we decided to head back to the ship. It was hot! My skin was pink even though I was slathered in sunscreen and we hadn't been out in the sun for very long. Realised when we got back onboard that the pinkness of our skins was due to heat and not sunburn so was happy about that. But there was a lot of people very sunburnt. Remember if you are in the ocean at these beautiful islands with very little polution, get out every 30 minutes and put on some more sunscreen. It was frightening to see how many people continue to get sunburnt on cruises even with all the warnings. Don't risk it, be sensible!

 

We walked back up to where the cars were picking up from. Mum & my Aunt managed to slip onto a people mover and I waited for another taxi. When we got back to the tender pontoon it was very busy with people trying to get back to the ship in time for lunch. I have to disagree with someone who posted on another thread that they couldn't understand why people went back to the ship for lunch. I think this is a good idea. Firstly it breaks the day and stops people from spending too much time in the sun giving them a chance to enjoy the coolness of the ship. And secondly you cannot take food ashore and it makes sense to go back to the ship and have lunch.

 

On this cruise they seemed to have a lot more informal get togethers: they had the previously mentioned Grandparents Get Together, Solo Travellers Get Together, Honeymooners Get Together, Adult Birthday Get Together (for anyone having a birthday while on the cruise to share a toast) and a get together for those who were engaged while onboard. I think these were a great idea and they had them several times. I also think they were to allow the crew to get all the goss and know what was going on which I think was fun!

 

Tonight's show was Do You Wanna Dance (A production highlighting greatest dance styles and songs of all time). One of the best things about going on a new ship was getting all new shows. One of the comments in the Meet the Entertainers session later in the cruise was that the shows are on the ships now for about 4 years. For those who frequently travel I am sure you agree this is about right. Although you usually get a new cast each time and they are occassionally updated. We missed the first show because we were late out of dinner so caught the later show.

 

Then it was time for a quick trip to the casino and bed time (where we got to enjoy late night Karaoke again!).

 

Next part 6: Port Vila...

[aussie down under]

Great review, keep it coming please. Sorry to hear your first day problem with your luggage, great though that they gave you some money in the interim. But what a stress you didnt need or want. Pleased it all worked out for you. I wish I was cruising soon.

Cheers,

Michele:)

[chaz cruiser]

We had another leisurely breakfast and then headed into town. The prices for taxis & the shuttle buses have gone up. The taxis are now $15 and the shuttle buses are now $3 per person. Unfortunately they only announced the increase in the price of the buses in the shore tours so there was a lot of confused people, some of which got quite cranky. My two cents, in all the years that we have been going into Vila (nearly 10 years) the taxis have been $10 and there has been no increase. We all know there has been an increase in the price of petrol and Vanuatu is no different! The cost of living has also gone up. I think the increase was fine. It just would have been better if it had been announced onboard so people were not confused.

 

We caught the taxi into town and stopped outside Fung Kwei's where we did our duty free shopping. It is still the cheapest in town and we happily left our purchases to be taken back to the ship for us. Please note a person asked a question which I happened to be standing in the middle of about whether they take cigarettes away from you when you board. I responded that they do not take them, only alcohol. I was "informed" by the person they were with that they do take them off you when you get on. Now I have cruise several times with my smoker sisters who usually buy an extra carton to smoke onboard and we have never had them taken off them but I wasn't in the mood to correct them and let them believe their misbelief.

 

Now I can inform all of you that my Mum purchased a carton of cigarettes to take back for a friend and they were placed in my backpack to make them easier to carry. Once back on board my bag was xrayed and I was at no time requested to hand over the cigarettes. There was a place to hand over alcohol but nothing for cigarettes. We made our way up to the cabin where I placed the cigarettes into Mum's suitcase to get them out of the way. So you can purchase cigarettes in Vila and smoke them onboard, they do not take them off you!

 

Now back to the city. We wandered up the street and checked out the markets on the water. I purchased some sarongs from the market which were a different design to that which we normally get for what I thought was a good price of $12.50 each. Also purchased two little girls outfits for a very good price of $5 each. Later when we stopped at the indoor markets in town where there is a little shop on the outside we found the same sarongs and some others for only $7.50 each (darn!). They also had some cheaper ones which were very nice and were only $6 each. We found them to be the cheapest.

 

A quick stop at the shop up the alley where they sell fake surfwear & shoes and cute clothes at very reasonable prices. My sister found this place when she stayed in Vila for a week with some friends and was directed to it by a local. It's great. We purchase board shorts for my nephews which cost us only $13 for three pairs. Have Quicksilver, Billabong, etc logos and we have no problem with the quality. My nephews aren't snobs and don't even notice that they aren't real. Also got my brother a few pairs. He is a larger size (is 6 foot 8 after all!!) and they cost us $13 for two pairs. Aunt Linda grabbed some shirts for similar prices.

 

We continued up and stopped at the Chemist for my aunt to get some Antihistamines and was surprised to find out that the usual brand she purchases in Australia of Telfast after conversion were going to cost A$59!! But they happily sold her a generic brand for A$9. Big difference.

 

Then it was time to stop at our favourite souvenir shop to buy those trinket "whatcha get me" gifts and picked up pens, necklaces, candles and a few other things. Jumped in a cab and had a lovely ride back to the ship. Our taxi driver was telling us about how his wife is currently working on the Pacific Sun and has just recently had her 6 month contract extended to 10 months. He stays at home and looks after their two year old daughter. His comments made it very real about what we say about the staff on board. He said that her working even for just a short while meant they could do things that they otherwise couldn't, especially for their daughter. He said it wasn't an easy life in Vila and her working on the ship meant they had a better life.

 

Back onto the ship for lunch. I can't remember which day but one day we had lunch from the Grill. Mum had a Burger and I had the Doner Kebab. It was fantastic and only cost $4.50 each. The Burger came with bacon, tomato, lettuce, onions and other toppings and the Doner Kebab came with a pile of chips... Definitely worth the money. Another day I had the special which was a Steak Baguette with chips. Also cost $4.50 and was very yummy.

 

Afternoon trivia and dinner again. We missed the early show cause we got out of dinner late again so decided to give the show a miss (was Danny McMaster) because we wanted to check out the Island Party on deck. Decided to spend a little time in the casino before heading out to the deck at 9:20pm for the party which was scheduled to start at 10:30pm. When we got up on deck it was already packed. One of our only complaints was that although there is heaps of deck space there is very little chairs. Nan can't stand for very long so we decided to give the Island Party a miss. Was nice to see the Lido deck all lit up though and must admit the stage between the pools looks fantastic.

 

Back downstairs for a little more time in the casino and then bed.

 

More to come tomorrow!! Time for bed!

[chaz cruiser]

Great review, keep it coming please. Sorry to hear your first day problem with your luggage, great though that they gave you some money in the interim. But what a stress you didnt need or want. Pleased it all worked out for you. I wish I was cruising soon.

Cheers,

Michele:)

 

I was very happy with how Qantas handled the situation. Nice to know they really care and helped to allieviate my concerns with money to buy new clothes in case my bad didn't arrive. There is more baggage concerns to come on my way home but I will share that later.

 

Cheers,

Charmain:)

[chaz cruiser]

I forgot to mention that we decided to try out the Steakhouse on the night we were in Noumea. We have loved the experience on the other ships and were looking forward to a lovely meal. Unfortunately we were a little disappointed on the Dawn. Firstly the Steakhouse is a partioned area at the end of the buffet. It is very noisy and is not as intimate as the other ships. On the Star & Sun they have lovely music and it is a very comfortable lounge. On the Dawn you get the people yelling at each other at the buffet and all the other associated noises. Then there are people sitting on the plastic chairs on the back deck looking into the windows watching you eat!

 

My Mum is a quasi vegetarian and does not usually do the Steakhouse with us. When we were settled at our table, Frederick who is the Head Waiter and was one of our waiters on a previous cruise we affectionately call Freddy!, came up and commented on Mum's absence. When we said she was in the restaurant because she doesn't eat steak he commented that she could have sat with us and had the food from the buffet for no cost. An idea for those interested!

 

They don't do the Blooming Onion. Apparently it takes too long and they don't have the facilities to cook it on the Dawn. The menu is very different!! When our steaks arrived Nan cut into her steak which was meant to be well done to find it was medium. The quickly took it back to the kitchen to recook. Then I cut my steak to find it was well done instead of medium. Darn should have cut it before they took Nan's away.

 

Looks like the messed up the orders and gave Nan my steak and me Nan's. Of course you can't then reverse the cooking so I had two options eat the well done steak or wait for a new one to be cooked. I took the former and chewed and chewed the tough steak! Nan's steak took forever to come back and we were nearly finished when it came so she really didn't enjoy it either.

 

We all agreed that we wouldn't do the Steakhouse again on the Dawn unless it was moved to a different location. It really didn't have the ambience that it has on the other ships. If you haven't been to the others it would probably be ok. Also if you went a little later it may be a little better.

 

Cheers,

Charmain

 

Now I am off to bed, more tomorrow...

[qld cruiser]

Hi Charmain, thanks for a great revue.

I am enjoying reading about your trivia wins, you must have beaten my cruise buddies, they only won 4... they are still onboard.

they rang to say everything is different now.

but, they love the ship.

kind regards, Lorraine:) :)

[wombat50]

hi Chaz , great review, good to hear qantas did the right thing and looked after you, we had Brill as our table waiter each nigh on the Pacific Sun in July and he was excellant, one morning dw and i went to breakfast in the dinning room for a change and Brill was there seating the people and when he saw us instead of taking us to a shared table said he had a special table for us and put us at a table for 2 right next to a large window it was very nice

[Brushtail]

Chazcruiser wrote: A quick stop at the shop up the alley where they sell fake surfwear & shoes and cute clothes at very reasonable prices. My sister found this place when she stayed in Vila for a week with some friends and was directed to it by a local. It's great

 

 

Fabulous Review, Charmain. Thanks for taking the time to write it.

 

I am interested in knowing where this alley is. We have been to Vila 3 times over the last 18 months and have never seen it. :o

 

I agree with you about the steakhouse. It is in a very poor position and we won't go there again either. We won the underwater competition on board and the prize was dinner, which Josh the CD paid for. Did they run that competition again? Josh said they would keep our photos to show for future cruises. :)

[aussiescouser]

Loving reading this novel!! sorry review of yours. It is always so exciting to get a nice big juicey review that just builds the excitement up for your own cruise so much, i have been on the sky and sun and the dawn in october and love to hear all the good and bad before i sail. thanks for bilding my excitement of the dawn and look forward to reading the rest of your novel ooops sorry review cheers aussiescouser:D

[kaseyoz]

Wait for it!!!!!!

 

absolutely worth waiting for charmain, loving every word. The standard of reviews is so high these days i am loath to start mine, but will get going tomorrow.

 

sorry to hear about your bags but it sounds like a happy outcome for you.

 

Lucky you got to ouvea as the next day we missed it. they did try to put the tenders in but they were bobbing around like crazy. While i would have loved to get there i didnt fancy that trip.

cant wait for wala review.

[girl05]

Hi Charmain,

Fantastic review, I've enjoyed reading it.:)

Glad your bags ended up arriving safely.

Cheers girl05

[Aussie Guy]

Fantastic review, sounded like a good trip once the bag issue was sorted. I too would love to know about the alley in Vila with the surf shop.

[chaz cruiser]

Just checked with Mum and the surf wear shop is just a few doors down from the chemist. Mum better defines it as at the end of an arcarde rather than an alley.

 

We walked from Fung Kwei towards the ship so that is the best way for me to describe it. It is on the other side of the road to Fung Kwei and is a few doors down from the chemist towards the ship.

 

They have a little store at the front but the real bargains are down the arcade. They have boards, t-shirts and shoes which are very cheap. My nephews each got soccer shoes when we were there in April last year for less than $15 that they loved....

 

Maybe someone else can give a better description. I do know that it is the sort of place you would not go into unless you knew it was there!!

 

Cheers,

Charmain:)

[chaz cruiser]

Hi Charmain, thanks for a great revue.

I am enjoying reading about your trivia wins, you must have beaten my cruise buddies, they only won 4... they are still onboard.

they rang to say everything is different now.

but, they love the ship.

kind regards, Lorraine:) :)

 

Hi Lorraine,

 

Are you buddies the more mature (didn't want to say older) couple who do 10 cruises per year and have done over 90 P&O cruises?? If it is then yes they were on the team that we beat for the tiebreaker.

 

Cheers,

Charmain:)

[Brushtail]

Thanks for that.

 

It's always good to know where the bargains are. :D

[qld cruiser]

Hi Lorraine,

 

Are you buddies the more mature (didn't want to say older) couple who do 10 cruises per year and have done over 90 P&O cruises?? If it is then yes they were on the team that we beat for the tiebreaker.

 

Cheers,

Charmain:)

 

 

Hi Charmain, yes that's the couple...DH and I met them in 2003 onboard Pacific Princess, and have cruised 15 times with them since.

I go on other cruises and so do they, but I have a great time whenever I go with them .

won't mention their names..he is a CC .

 

we are doing the Sun Princess and Sapphire Princess cruises with them this year.

 

kind regards, Lorraine:) :)

[chaz cruiser]

We woke up to rain!! We had decided the night before that we would head over to the island early. Now I wasn't so sure!! Seems like everyone else had the same idea and for the first time ever on any cruise I have been on they had open tender for about the first 45 minutes from the start of the tender process.

 

We had breakfast watching the rain run down the windows. Then moved up on deck to find a spot for Nan to watch the day go by. A hint for those staying onboard. If you want to be served drinks sit at the buffet end of the Lido deck near the bar. When we were on Ouvea Nan sat the other end near the Trattoria and was not asked once if she would like a drink.

 

The rain got heavier and heavier then stopped! By this stage they had restarted the tender ticket process so we got Blue 3 and waited for our number to be called. Before long we were onto the tenders and heading the short distance to the island. I think Wala has to be one of the easiest tender ports as the ship can get in so close to the Island and the jetty is very easy to get on and off the tenders onto.

 

I had brought pencils, erasers & sharpeners to give to the Sunday School kids on the island who normally sit in the little grotto down the end of the island past the turtle man. We walked all the way down there, past all the people offering us a tour of their village which we politely refused because we have done it before, before we found out they weren't there this time. By the way neither was the turtle man. Well the turtles were there but he wasn't, there was a few ladies there. Would recommend if it is your first visit to Wala you take one of them up on the offer and do the tour, it is very interesting to see how different their lives are.

 

We walked back up the "beach" and tried to work out where we would go into the water for a quick dip. My Aunt does not swim and Mum isn't a great swimmer so normally when I am cruising without the rest of the family I don't get into the water but this time Mum was kind enough to have a little dip. Unfortunately I had forgotten to ask Mum to pack the reef shoes which live in our dive bag at her house and so had to suffer the pain to my feet of walking across the coral beach. A big hint for those cruising to Wala and planning to go into the water, don't forget your reef shoes!

 

The water was lovely and warm but there was a fair amount of "rubbish" floating on the surface. By rubbish I mean leaves, seeds, coconuts etc. After a quick paddle we made our way back over the coral, ouch!, then headed back up the beach looking for the Sunday School kids. We found the primary school instead. I deposited the items into their donation box and we walked up the beach in the opposite direction. And there were the Sunday School kids... Oh well, as Mum pointed out it is probably the same kids anyway and the school probably needed the items more.

 

We wandered up and saw a young boy playing a conch (sp?) shell and he was very good. Took some nice photos of the ship, sorry I can't share it was Mum's camera, then made our way back to the tender to head back for lunch.

 

Back on board we headed up to Aloha deck 11 with the plans of having a spa (or whirlpool as they are called onboard) but both had a few people in each and we decided not to crowd them.

 

We had a lazy lunch and afternoon and headed up for afternoon trivia. Before trivia I headed out on deck for the auction of the last three horses for the owners cup and for a little while thought I had a shot but each of the horses sold above the limit my family had set me. Back in for trivia.

 

After trivia I wandered along the deck and caught the end of the Aussie Survivor challenge. Martin was saying for the first time ever it looked like the two competitors were going to be unable to complete the final challenge, but after quite a while one of the guys finally did it.

 

Martin then announced that the show previously scheduled for that night would be postponed to the next night and Greg Hudson would be going on instead. We already knew this was because one of the dancers Jason was sick and I guess they were hoping he would get better but then needed more time for Tammy to reblock the show.

 

Down to inform everyone the show had changed... ...they didn't believe me until Martin came over the tannoy to announce the change. We decided that we would check out the new multimedia quiz that started at 8:30pm. My Mum, Nan & Aunt are not big fans of hypnotist shows so decided to give the show a miss but I decided at the last minute to slip in and check it out. Went into the top of the showlounge and it was standing room only. Eventually I ended up sitting on the steps and it still amazes me what some people will do when hypnotised. Funny!!

 

I had to leave before the show ended to get upstairs to the Dome in time for the quiz but the bit I saw was very funny. The quiz was not quite what we expected. The first 10 questions were name the song & artist and the next 10 were about movies, tv, etc. We didn't win, again!

 

Then it was back downstairs to try our luck in the Blackjack Tournament. I have to admit one change we were happy with is they now have a wildcard seat in each tournament final. Each player is given a ticket and just before the final they draw out one player's ticket to join the final. A good idea I think so that everyone has a chance! We didn't win, so after another flutter it was time for bed.

 

More to come in part 8 Heading home...