Seabirds

Watching for seabirds along our route is always fun for us as we travel by ship.  We enjoy trying to identify each seabird order and their respective family.  In our current location along the southern coast of Australia, there is always plenty of opportunity to see the large Albatross who travel along the lower latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere.  Late yesterday we were lucky enough to see several White-capped Albatross flying alongside of the ship.  This bird is a Diomedea Cauta.  They are the largest black-backed albatrosses, approaching Wandering Albatross in size.  They have a wing span of about 8 feet.  Here are few photos of these magnificent birds.

Last Day In Sydney



After a morning of recovering from the bridge climb we headed into the area known as Thai Town in Darling Harbor.  Several of the crew members had told us that the food in Thai Town was great.  We grabbed a taxi and ventured out for lunch.  After a little looking we decided on the Bangkok and were really surprised at the excellent quality of the food.  Cindy had Khao Pad Tom Yum (Fried Rice Cooked with Tom Yum paste with pork, carrots, mushrooms, onion, kaffir lime leaves, and lemon grass).  Our friends Gary and Pat came along with us which was not only fun but helpful since Gary speaks Thai.  We ran into a little rain both going and coming back from lunch. 

We said goodbye to approximately 194 passengers who departed the ship here in Sydney yesterday.  New passengers began boarding the ship at about noon.  I’m sure it will take them a few days to find their way around the ship. 

Sail away was at 7:30pm last night.  We will be cruising to our next stop,  Adelaide, Australia arriving there at approximately 7:00am on Friday, February 25, 2011.

Sydney Bridge Climb

Today was an adventure of a lifetime.  We climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge.  Nothing can really explain what it is like to stand on top of the world’s largest single span bridge after climbing up its exposed arch covering 1650 feet.   We weren’t really sure what to expect before the climb.  The staff of the BridgeClimb did a wonderful job equipping us with climbing suits; safety harnesses; radios; hats; shoes and doing about an hour of rehearsal/climbing to prepare for the ultimate climb.  After the preparation it was off under the bridge’s super structure and then we climbed vertically up through the pylons to the arch of the bridge.  This is where the real nerve racking climb began.  I guess what you don’t realize prior to the climb is how exposed you are on top of the bridge’s arch.  But once on top of the arch and climbing, all the way holding on to steel cables, the real fear hits home. But, once underway, who can turn back now.  The views from up top speak for themselves.  The total time of the climb was a little over 3 hours

Width	49 m (161 ft.)
Height	139 m (456 ft.)
Longest span	503 m (1,650 ft.)

 

Arrival At Sydney



We arrived in Sydney, Australia at 8:00am this morning.  The ship docked at a pier near the beginning of Darling Harbor very near the Rocks.  We passed under the Sydney Harbor bridge as we approached Darling Harbor.  The weather is overcast, 65 degrees with a slight wind.  Later today at around 2:30pm we will be climbing the Sydney Bridge.  Hopefully, more of the sun will be out by then.  So far today we have cleared immigration and now just waiting until time to head over to the bridge.  We will be here in Sydney  for 2 days, so will post more after the bridge  climb.

Auckland, New Zealand



This was our fourth trip to Auckland, New Zealand.  Never before had we really been outside of this wonderful city.  On this trip we had the pleasure of being greeted by our friends Grant and Jenny at the pier in downtown Auckland.  They planned a great day for us.  First, it was off to breakfast at the Comida, a street-side café with outstanding coffee and food.  It was our first experience having coffee in what is called a bowl.  The white bowls can be seen in the photo below.  We liked the coffee very much and the breads were the best.   Our café was directly across the street from the beach.

After breakfast, Grant drove us through the city and on to the West Brook Winery located 25 minutes north of the Auckland central business district.  It is nestled in the beautiful Ararimu Valley adjacent to the Riverhead Forest.  We were greeted there by Sue and Anthony Ivicevich who own and operate the winery www.westbrook.co.nz  They showed us around and allowed us to sample some of their award winning wines.  The winery is located on very picturesque grounds landscaped perfectly.

Then it was on to do some shopping.  Most importantly our shopping trip was to find a new netbook computer, since our laptop went totally dead a few days ago.  Grant had done some research and found some really good deals at JB Hi-Fi located in the Westfield Shopping Center in Manukau, New Zealand.  We picked out a new Acer
Aspire One and an external DVD burner.  It should meet our needs for the remainder of the trip.  While we were looking for a netbook, Jenny went to a deli and picked out some items for our lunch. 

We headed out from shopping through the countryside on to Grant and Jenny’s home.  The country reminded us very much of the rolling hills of southern Virginia.  Lush green countryside with tall trees uses them as hedges and wind blocks.  Wow, what a really beautiful home/manor they have.  When we arrived, Grant set us up with WiFi access to get all the updates for our new netbook, and Jenny gave us the tour which included an introduction to the home; several fish; two turtles; two cats; one very large pig and two llamas soon to have babies.  The views from the back yard are spectacular.  We had a traditional New Zealand chicken, tomato, and avocado sandwiches for lunch. 

Afterward, it was back to Auckland and then on to the ship.  We really appreciated our hosts, Grant and Jenny taking time to show us their city, countryside and their home.  Their hospitality and kindness was something we will never forget.  By the way, Grant is a world famous artist and lecturer.  Grant can be contacted through his association with AMFPA at  http://www.mollybean.co.nz/Art.htm

And, now it's on to Sydney and the Bridge Climb

Laptop Problems Again

This morning our laptop refused to bootup again.  So it looks like we won't be able to Post any more photos until we go shopping in Auckland in a few days.  Our friends their have graciously offered to take us to purchase a netbook and DVD burner while we are in their city.

More Postings after we get the new netbook.

Day Lost At Sea

DATES:  Due to crossing the International Date Line, the dates shown in header for each Post will not be correct.  This blog was setup on U.S. Eastern Standard Time.  So, in the future, we will show the correct day in narrative of each Post.

Over night we have continued on our course toward Auckland, New Zealand stirring around small atolls and inlands. Throughout the day we will keep the same heading, but will lose a day as we cross the International Date Line. This line is along the 180 degree longitude. This has caused us to miss February 13^th and go directly to Valentines Day. In fact, one of our passengers lost her birthday because of crossing the date line.

We were lucky enough to have Princess Cruises Master Chef Commendatore Alfredo Marzi join us in Tahiti. He has contributed to our culinary delights and provided a great culinary demonstration. This morning he set up a Valentines Day display with cakes and desserts. Here is a photo of the chef doing his magic. Also, here is a photo of us and our favorite bar attendant Charoon Suttimas who serves the best coffee on the ship.

NOTICE: Our original itinerary stop in the Seychelles has been reinstated. The Captain advised everyone that based on advice from the International Maritime Organization and other authorities, that an improved security situation in the Seychelles region allows us to reinstate the port. Additionally, the ship will maintain the new port call to Richard’s Bay, South Africa on April 7, 2011. We won’t make the Richard’s Bay port call since we will be on our overland safari to Kruger National Park!

The next port call is Auckland which is still 3 sea days away.