Dunedin

Great weather continued today in Dunedin as we had another full day of touring. As with yesterday, we began with a train ride. The Taieri Gorge Railway took us into the mountains, with striking scenery for the entire time. The train travelled over steep gorges and through many tunnels. We saw sheep all over, including on the railroad tracks. More than once the train had to slow to allow the sheep to get out of the way. In the lowlands we also saw cattle, horses and alpaca in the daffodil-dotted fields. From the train we boarded buses to the Larnach Castle, situated on a hilltop from which can be seen the ocean, the harbor, and the city of Dunedin. The castle was built as a private residence, but is now a bed and breakfast.

As we were leaving the port tonight, the Captain announced that the sea conditions will deteriorate and by morning we'll have rough seas. After the wonderful weather we've had for sightseeing these past few days, we can't complain!

Christchurch

Yesterday we had a perfect day in Christchurch. In the morning we rode on the Weka Pass Railway steam train through the fertile Canterbury plains. The scenery of the countryside is so beautiful; since it is springtime here, there were blossoms everywhere, and newborn lambs by the hundreds all along the way. We were told NZ has 10 times the number of sheep as people, and we believe it!
After the train trip, we stopped at a winery for wine tasting and lunch on their patio. The next stop on our tour was the International Antarctic Centre, an actual working research campus for scientists from the US, Italy and NZ. The interactive displays were very well done. One of the best was the 'simulated Antarctic storm' room. We were provided parkas, then stepped into the ice-floored room to experience conditions where the temperature and wind made the wind chill factor feel like 27 degrees below zero. We have a new respect for the those Antarctic research scientists!

Windy Wellington

Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, is living up to its nickname "Windy Wellington" today. During the night we had gale force winds and since coming into the port, the winds have continued, although they're not as brisk as last night. Wellington sits at the southern tip of the north island of New Zealand, where the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean, so that explains the breezy conditions.

We planned our own tour today, and first took the cable car from the center of the city up into the hills. At the end, we walked through the beautiful botanical gardens, with their colorful displays of spring flowers, and then through the Cable Car Museum. The cable cars were built from plans of those in San Francisco. When we returned to the main part of the city, we saw Old Saint Paul's Church, the new Saint Paul's which serves as the Wellington Cathedral, and also parliament buildings.

We had quite a change in the weather from the past few days temperature-wise. When we pulled into the harbor this morning, it was 42 degrees! Fortunately the forecast of rain didn't hold. Although we had a few very light showers while walking around, it was on and off sun all day.

Auckland, New Zealand

We had a wonderful day in Auckland, the City of Sails. The ship is docked right at the edge of the downtown, so it's very convenient. We took a bus tours of the city's highlights first, and then set out on our own. Although the forecast had been for showers, we really lucked out for the most part. I say most part because the one episode of precipitation was extreme: thunder and lightning along with the rain. We hardly ever get to experience storms like that! Luckily this was over quickly, and occured while we were on the bus. Unfortunately, we had driven to ther highest point in Auckland for a panoramic view, but we couldn't see very far. Later, though, we walked to the Sky Tower and saw for miles. One unique feature of this tower (similar to the Space Needle in Seattle) is that there are glass panels in the floor. It is really wierd standing on them and looking down. We were up there for the sunset -- perfect timing. We didn't have time to see everything we wanted to, and already know we want to come back!

Fiji

We stopped in Fiji on Friday. The ship docked in Suva, the industrial capital city which is a couple hours' drive from the resort side of the island. Bill & I hired a taxi to take us to some points of interest. The driver recommended a cultural center where we saw a show featuring Fijian customs, dancing and firewalking. He also took us to a beach popular among the locals, but unfortunately it was raining steadily so we only stopped long enough to take a few pictures. Going to and from the cultural center (about 45 minutes outside Suva) gave us a great taste of the local flavor. After being dropped off at the ship, the rain let up enough that we walked to the produce and fish markets -- what an experience that was! Really interesting to see how all the vegetables, fruits and seafood items were displayed for sale.

Busy Day

Sometime last night, we crossed the International Dateline. Last night when we went to bed it was Tues., Sept. 18th; this morning when we woke up it was Thurs., Sept. 20th.

This morning the ship passed by Niuafo'au, also known as Tin Can Island. The nickname comes from the practice of delivering mail to the island by ships dropping a sealed biscuit tin overboard, to be retrieved by the islanders. Initially a swimmer would pick up the tin, but after a shark attack in 1930, boats were used. Today cruise ships carry on the tradition for the sake of their passengers, with plastic containers having replaced the tins.

Following the excitement of Tin Can Island, Bill & I participated in "On Deck for the Cure" a 5k walk to benefit the Susan G Komen Foundation for cancer research.

Then, in the afternoon, the Scrapheap Challenge was held. Late yesterday it was determined that today's forecast of calm seas with clear, sunny skies would be perfect for the competition. Of the 4 teams that entered, 3 of the vessels (including ours) met the requirement of carrying a case of beer across the pool and back. Spectators voted on the creativity of the vessel, team spirit, and overall performance. Although our team didn't take the top spot, we did walk away with a bottle of champagne that we all enjoyed with our dinner tonight.

Pago Pago

Here we are in American Samoa. This morning as we pulled into the harbor, it was drizzling . We've had a few showers, but it reminds us of Hawaii rain -- gentle and warm. The island is green and very lush with steep mountains covered with thick jungles. All of the buildings hug the coast. Tourism isn't big here, but the people are very welcoming.

Bill & I are doing a self-tour and have discovered this "internet cafe" which contains only one computer so there's some waiting involved, but it's free, so hey, it works for us. We're planning to go to the beach after this and hopefully be able to do some snorkeling.

Sea Days

You may be wondering how we spend our time on the days at sea, besides eating of course! Both of us enjoy the lectures on the ports, plus talks given on various subjects by guest lecturers. We've attended a cooking demonstration, a wine tasting & a galley tour, participated in a game show similar to "Card Sharks" (we each won a Princess Cruises luggage tag -- wa hoo!), practiced yoga & worked out in the fitness center, walked the deck (Bill's policy is to order 1 dessert for each mile walked), and joined the trivia contests a few times. Along with our dinner tablemates, we've entered the Scrapheap Challenge, whereby we have to build a vessel capable of carrying a case of beer across the pool and back. We're really enjoying working with our 6 new friends on this. The base is made up of empty 1.5 liter water bottles, with a frame of PVC pipes that one couple bought in Papeete. We're also using a beach mat and duct tape that we picked up in Honolulu. I'll let you know how we do in the competition.

No Rarotonga!

As I said in my last post, we were having some rough weather; no rain, but gale force winds stirred up good-sized swells. The winds stayed with us as we approached Rarotonga yesterday, and actually forced the captain to cancel our port call there. It was too dangerous to operate the tenders to get us ashore. Of course we were very disappointed to miss out on our chance to visit one of the Cook Islands, but I didn't hear any of the passengers dispute the captain's decision. The ship circled the island slowly, about 1 mile offshore, so we could at least glimpse what we were missing. That took about 2 hours, and by the time we pulled away the sun was out and the wind began to let up a little, & conditions have continued to improve. Today is very pleasant, sunny, about 82 degrees at noon with light winds.

Rough Weather

Soon after we left Moorea, we encountered some rough weather. If you've checked the bridge cam, you'll see what I mean. We've been rockin' and rollin', but so far I haven't felt at all seasick, thanks to my sea bands. We've had a little rain now and then, and the captain just announced that we'll have this same weather all the way to Rarotonga. We've been so lucky with our weather up to this point, though, that we can't complain!

Moorea

Yesterday we anchored off of beautiful Moorea, another tropical paradise. Bill & I took a cab to a beach where we spent several hours snorkeling in the lagoon, walking along the shore, and relaxing in a shady spot with our books. Two highlights of snorkeling: Bill's stingray sighting, and the HUGE cucumbers we saw. Many were about the size of a large loaf of French bread! The lagoon was clear, calm and uncrowded, the perfect spot to spend the day.

Bora Bora and Tahiti

Here we are in an internet cafe in Papeete, Tahiti, using a French keyboard and trying to understand the commands in French . . . very challenging! This internet connection is so much faster than on the ship that we decided to give it a try.

We LOVED Bora Bora yesterday and definitely want to go back for a week or more. The island is surrounded by a shallow lagoon that is indescribably beautiful. The color of the water is unreal, and it is the clearest, cleanest water we have ever seen. We took a wonderful tour on a power boat which only carried 3 other couples so it was customized to what we wanted to do. We snorkeled at a spot called the Coral Garden and saw blue-lipped giant clams for the first time, as well as beautiful fish and many types of coral. We also stopped to swim at a motu, which is a small island in the lagoon. We also stopped at Bloody Marys for a drink (Bloody Mary from the show South Pacific) --- a popular restaurant and bar on the island.

Today in Tahiti we took a 4x4 jeep tour, the highlight of which was Bill climbing a waterfall and jumping in! I, on the other hand, just enjoyed a refreshing swim in the pool below the falls. This island is much more developed than Bora Bora and we will have a chance to sample the nightlife because our ship does not sail until 4 in the morning. At that time we will go 17 miles to our next island, Moorea.

Sorry I cannot add photos here, and may not be able to until Australia.

Christmas Island

Yesterday we stopped at Christmas Island, part of the nation of Kiribati. Something that I found fascinating: the islands of Kirabati, with a total land mass of 280 square miles, are spread over 2 million square miles of the Pacific. Christmas Island is so-named because Captain Cook discovered it on Christmas Eve, 1777. Due to its remote location, it has yet to be developed into a tourist destination. We heard about 10 cruise ships stop here each year, but other than those, visitors are few.

We hopped into the back of a truck to be driven around the island. There are 2 benches along the sides and the top was covered, so it was comfortable riding. The buildings we saw were constructed of either natural materials (bamboo, palm fronds, etc.) or cinder blocks, very basic. Not much English is spoken here, but the people are full of smiles and very friendly.

Maui

Aaahh . . . Maui! We're enjoying a beautiful day at Marriott's Maui Ocean Club. We were here in April with Heather and Taki. Today we took a bus from Lahaina, where the ship is anchored, to Whaler's Village at Kaanapali Beach. From there we walked to this resort. I forgot to bring the cord to transfer photos from the camera to the laptop, so I won't be posting any today.

We have to be back onboard by 5:30 in order to begin the next leg of our journey. I'll try to post from the ship sometime in the next few days. Until next time . . .

Honolulu

Aloha from Honolulu! We've had a very relaxing 4 days crossing the Pacific. One of my concerns had been rough seas, but we've had calm conditions. So far, so good . . . I haven't felt the least bit seasick!

Flat John and Flat Mary Ann have met some great people, from all over the world. The 2 of them especially enjoyed the ship's wine tasting a few days ago.


"Flat John & Flat Mary Ann with Suzy, one of the people who sits at our table at dinner."


Our dining table is made up of all Americans. Besides Bill and I, there's a couple from Oregon, a couple from Arizona, and 2 ladies from Florida. We all hit it off right away.

Today we took the shuttle from the port into Waikiki, with a stop along the way at the Maui Divers Jewelry factory, which both of us enjoyed. At Waikiki we tried something new -- a ride in an outrigger canoe which 'surfed' the waves. We were teamed up with 3 Japanese men and it was hilarious.

We're at a Starbucks now, using their wireless. The ship's internet is very unreliable, and when it is working, is extremely slow. I'm a little discouraged about keeping this blog updated, but we'll see what happens. Until next time . . .