And the bubble bursts.......

Beautiful Brisbane

We had planned to be up on deck for our sail into Brisbane but when we woke up early, we were already docked at the Portside terminal in Brisbane.  During the night, it had felt like we were hardly moving and looking at the map this morning on the TV it looks like we have just been filling in time before docking – coming the long way in.

Arriving into Brisbane - the long way - who was driving??

After the last of the packing was finished into the overnight bags, we had our last breakfast in the main dining room and prepared for our assigned disembarkation meeting at 8.45am. Arnold wanted to go for ‘one last walk’ around the ship which had been our home for the past three and a half months ..….  suddenly he veered off through the wheelhouse bar … and knocked on the door of the future cruises office … my crystal ball gazing had been right … before I knew it we were booked onto the 19 night Singapore to Sydney cruise on the Diamond Princess in November …. yippee … sudden lowering of the withdrawal symptoms knowing we will be cruising again in about 10 weeks.

We met up with the other 10 passengers who had been lucky enough to secure a cabin from Sydney to Brisbane. Jorge from the purser’s office was entrusted with the task of escorting us from the ship – but he held up his hands and said that he had an announcement … “the captain has just decided that you can’t leave the ship until you teach the new passengers how to find their way around the ship and read signs and instructions – they are hopeless"!!! …. hahaha ... I know just how they feel on the first day when it is all so new......

Portside terminal in Brisbane - a new facility with supermarket, cinemas, restaurants and apartments - still being constructed.

A walk through the terminal ....  collecting the luggage …. showing our declared goods ….. we had kept them in a separate bag ….. then through the outer doors ….. searching for the one familiar face we wanted to see ….. there he was …  our wonderful son Rob, head down ….. focused on his phone!! It reminded me of when Joanne and I were looking at our phones at dinner in Colon and Dennis put on his sternest father voice and announced that ‘phones are banned at the dinner table’!!

He looked up … a big smile took over his face and he rushed over to give us great big bear hugs … the best feeling ever! He pushed the trolley of luggage as we stepped through the doors … …and back into our own reality.

Coffee under the Eiffel Tower - in Brisbane??

Trying to prolong our adventure ... and delay our entry to the real world .... Rob took us to a restaurant located under an Eiffel Tower where we had a coffee with him before he had to go to work and we drove home …… unloaded the bags into the hallway to be emptied as the mood takes us ……..wandered around our house checking everything out ….confronted with such alien objects as the washing machine, iron, stove, kitchen sink, refrigerator … an avalanche of mail (I thought we had dealt with most things before we left but the junk mail just keeps on coming) and the dreaded trip to the supermarket. Rob and Ruth had been over last weekend to make sure that the pool was clean, house dusted, fridges etc turned back on and had even washed our cars …... aren’t we blessed??

Everything is right in our world … we have picked up our beautiful dog, Bella, and she did cartwheels of excitement when she saw us ….the answering machine was filled with messages from friends welcoming us back …… visits from neighbours …….. cards in the mail …… welcome back emails …. life is good.

We have been travelling in a DAWN PRINCESS bubble around the world … with limited contact to our real lives – family and friends, limited newspapers as we have visited new countries, made new friends, tasted new foods, wondered at new cultures, embraced new experiences, seen amazing places, and visited confronting places … we have seen so much which will enrich our lives for ever … but there really is ”NO PLACE LIKE HOME”.

Now I have just one more thing to look forward to … finally sleeping in my own bed again.

Cheers

Ros

Just like the first day of school.... between Sydney and Brisbane

We are heading for home after our last port..

Do you remember the first day at a new school, when you looked around and didn't know anyone .... welcome to our world today ....  overnight we seem to have been transported to a very strange place – when we finally left THE PALACE and ventured to the Dining Room for breakfast …… everything had changed ……  all the familiar faces have vanished to be replaced by a new set of confused lost passengers, staring into space in front of the lifts ... did we ever look like that?

  Arnold got into the lift and pushed the button to close the door … one elderly lady asked him ‘and what floor does the lift stop at when you press that button, it doesn’t have any numbers?' …we suppressed a giggle … all our world cruise companions knew how to close the lift door … and patiently explained about closing the lift door using the button …as soon as the door opened again, we  both fell out and rolled around laughing!!

I went along to the first cruise critic meet and greet – There was a sign at the door to Jammers 'G'day mates private function' ... with about 66 cruise critic members who are called 'g'day mates' …… and attended by all the ship’s hierarchy … a great welcome for the new passengers …. Princess had really stepped up  ......the bar was opened, waiters served drinks and bar snacks were available on all the tables!!!  Dave embraced his new position as Cruise Director and did a great job … although he was obviously taking his promotion seriously … trying to be more serious than I remember him from the Wake show …. he and Becs stayed around until the end chatting to all the passengers and answering their questions. 

After the introduction of the crew, the microphone was passed around and each member introduced themselves and gave a little of their background. When the mic reached me, I officially handed over the Dawn Princess to her new inhabitants, welcomed the visitors to Australia and wished them well.

Armadeo - doesn't he look like every cartoon chef you have ever seen ... a lovely man ... and responsible for many expanded waistlines on the ship!!!

Each member had brought along a gift from their hometown (to a specified value) and participated in a gift exchange – a nice ice-breaker. Like most people we have had the pleasure of meeting through cruise critic, they seem like a great bunch of people, so I am sure that ‘our Princess” is in good hands.

We headed up to the Horizon Court for lunch – you know how it is when you keep an eye open for familiar faces and there aren’t any … a couple of times we thought we saw Joanne … then Trevor … then Paula… out the corner of the eye …. but it can’t be … just the mind playing tricks. 

As we were leaving the Horizon Court, a lady stopped us and asked for directions to the theatre  for the afternoon movie ….. we told her it was on deck 7 but she said that she thought it was on deck 12 or 14 … we corrected her telling her it was on deck 7 and sending her on her way in the lift … after the doors closed and she had left, we looked at each other … both hit by the same thought … Oh no .... I bet she was looking for the MUTS screen … for the afternoon black and white movies which have been resurrected, and we’ve sent her to the Princess theatre … Oh oh!

The great chefs... aka Arnold and Garry with our head waiter .. Maurizio ...he has looked after us so well!!

Dinner was a great treat and surprise … we had been allocated to a table for two in the centre of the Florentine Dining Room for our two night adventure to Brisbane. Last night, our new waiter, Arfan, was wonderful, but we had the feeling tonight that our service was very slow and he was distracted …. not to worry we were happy to linger and savour the last of our  onboard dinners. … and share a lovely bottle of red … the last one before the diet starts …. suddenly we looked up to see the head waiter Maurizio, and our special table waiters, Watchara and Neil, coming up to our table … they had been reassigned to the upstairs dining room but they had asked Rui and gained permission to come down and say another farewell to us after their table guests had their coffee … what a wonderful surprise … another round of hugs and tears  … they stayed and chatted for a few minutes … told us how much they had enjoyed sharing our cruise with our table … how much fun they had …. and that the new people at their table weren’t speaking to each other just sitting and eating … no laughs and fun … some had already asked to be moved .... they had asked Arfan to go slow when he served us so that we would still be there when they were able to come down ….. we really took them into our hearts, and they definitely helped to make our dinners very enjoyable  ….. Maurizio heads back to Italy for a few weeks break tomorrow, leaving in Brisbane …. he is so excited to see his son and sister again.

Watchara and Neil have joined in the craziness at our table .. and had fun with us along the way ... thanks guys .. you are the best!!

A couple of changes we have already noticed already … the Horizon Court closes at midnight every night and reopens at 5.00am. …. no more 24 hour meals, although room service is still available. The next change will tickle the interest of all the world cruisers after the back flip we experienced ……the alcohol policy on the front of the patter states that ‘absolutely NO alcohol can be carried onto the ship at any port’!!! 

We have just placed the pink tags onto our luggage and placed them (only 5 in total) outside our door and we are sitting here facing a good dose of reality ... it really is almost all over .... tomorrow we disembark in Brisbane after 106 days .... pinch me ... I have just been around the WORLD ... and what a journey it has been!!!!

I think it is time for one last bubble bath ... I'm dreaming of my first big bear hug from Rob ... it really has been a long time and my arms are aching for a cuddle from him.
Cheers

Welcome to Sydney .....

There is nothing like the feeling of sailing back in through Sydney Heads to make your heart swell with pride and bring a lump to the throat. Even though the morning was cold and windy, the decks were full as we made our way through the heads completing the final stage of our wonderful world cruise for most passengers ..... braving the winds, passengers of all nationalities were enjoying the vista of this magnificent harbour .... the most beautiful in the world .... the sun broke through and it was a fabulous warm, sunny day. The sea was rough during the night as we rocked and rolled in our beds ... to excited to sleep anyway .... and so we arrived back more than an hour late, which definitely complicated the disembarkation and embarkation process for the rest of the day.

We had arranged to have breakfast with Randy and Carol before they headed to the airport for the long flight back to California ... we met up with many of our friends and the crew that we have become friendly with .....  many teary goodbyes...... and all too soon the announcements were made for passengers to meet in their designated embarkation areas.

Col and Judy were our table mates until Dover and since they had arranged to come to the pier to drive Jo and Garry (and their mountain of luggage) home .... we walked off the ship and were happy to meet up with them in the terminal until Jo and Garry finally left came through the door ... about two hours late. While we were talking to Judy and Col about our shared love of cruising and future cruises, they mentioned the Diamond Princess cruise from Singapore to Sydney in November ... I could actually see a light bulb flash above Arnold’s head .... gazing into my crystal ball ..... I can see a visit to the future cruise sales specialist in our futures … maybe as early as tomorrow.

Once all the luggage had been safely secured in Col’s 4WD, we said our last goodbyes to our cruise buddies and headed to Darling Harbour. We wandered up to Paddy’s market to buy another  ‘just-in-case’ bag .... we haven’t finished packing yet .... and decided to have lunch at Chinatown .... yum cha ..... wonderful salt and pepper calamari ...... white wine .... and relaxing in the sun .... a divine afternoon for the last port of the trip. We walked back in the sun, and watched the deck crew busily painting out all scrapes and scratches -the evidence of the adventures that the Dawn Princess has shared with us over the past 104 days...

Lunch in Chinatown

Preparing for the next adventures...

The ship was scheduled to sail at 4.00pm, so all aboard was at 3.30pm. .... we arrived back at 3.00 to absolute chaos in the terminal ..... long queues of passengers still being processed through immigration ... and many disgruntled campers .... one American couple were complaining loudly that they had arrived on their flight at 6.30am. and had been at the terminal since 7.30am (surely this is a lesson about arriving the day before and enjoying the facilities of the hotel as late as possible) The terminal is not adequate with food, coffee and toilet facilities for up to 2000 waiting passengers ... it was never designed to be a long term waiting area ... and we saw the flow-on effect of the late morning arrivals ..... smiled sympathetically ... and guiltily ducked in through the ‘transit passengers and crew’ entrance.

Wecome to THE PALACE!!

Our belongings had been moved over to our new stateroom when we got back.... we  have dubbed our new accommodation ...‘The Palace’ ..... a luxurious mini suite .... so we spent a bit of time organising ourselves, checking out all the facilities ... and of course, I had to have a long bubble bath and enjoy my latest book!!!

We enjoyed our final sailaway for the cruise on the balcony of ‘The Palace’ ….. Sydney turned on a spectacular sunset as we sailed past the city and out to sea on the final leg of our remarkable voyage. Since we are only onboard for two nights, Rui organised a table for two for us in the dining room .... we didn’t want to join a group at a large table and then leave in a couple of days..... and we had a great meal together .... toasting our usual table buddies ... and then returned to ‘The Palace’ to enjoy a movie and glass of wine.

Customising your Stateroom- Notes for Future World Cruisers

Nearly home again!!

Today is our last day at sea before Sydney, and everyone is packing up the staterooms which have been home for more than three months. I have recently had emails and comments asking for suggestions about what to pack to make the most of the limited space in the staterooms, as well as other items which may be useful on the world cruise.

I conducted a mini survey - asking other passengers for suggestions (apart from clothing) about the things they found useful and the things that they wish they had brought along.

These are the suggestions in random order. Obviously this list is not exhaustive and depends on the type of stateroom you have and the activities you want to be involved with on the ship.

• A large multi pocket hanger on the back of the bathroom door - it comes with a coat-hanger at the top which fits on the door hook - a great place to put toiletries - easy to see and doesn’t clutter the small shelves in the bathroom. We bought it at Howard's Storage World.

• Large suction hooks which can be used to hang up jackets, bags, backpacks etc. The smaller ones will lose their suction easily and fall off the wall - so go for the larger better quality ones.

• A supply of magnets - the walls of the stateroom are metal - magnets can be used to attach articles to the walls - a magnetic bull dog clip can hold any notes, invites, information sheets etc together - surprising how everything can get lost on the desk.

• Family photos - you will be away from your loved ones for a long time - use the magnets to personalise your walls.

• A world map - we used the magnets to put a large map on our wall - and often we referred to it during the voyage.

• Boxes which fold flat for packing, but hold all sorts of stuff on shelves - these help to keep everything accessible and tidy - we found these at Howard's Storage World.

• Room freshener - you are sharing a very small space - say no more!

• Some basic stationery items - pens, post-it notes, highlighter, sticky tape, glue stick - very useful in many situations.

• A supply of blank multi-purpose cards - there are many occasions where you may like to give a card and they can be hard to find in ports or on the ship  - we have shared a number of special occasions with our new friends on the ship - birthdays, anniversaries, births of grandchildren, thank you’s etc.

• A folding mesh laundry bag - folds into a small corner of the luggage - but holds the dirty laundry and has handles to carry to the laundry - a small line with pegs to hang things on the balcony - available at any $2 shop. 

• Favourite pillow - some passengers bought pillows in Darwin - the pillows on the ship are quite flat.

• Flag from your home country - there was some friendly rivalry in the onboard games -  golf,bowls, tri-nations rugby, etc - many passengers hung flags from their balconies during the Panama canal transit - we bought our flag in Woolies on Australia day for about $5. 

• There are a number of theme nights - white hot; red, white and blue; country and western; island; pirate - if you like to join in these activities, you may like to bring some accessories to dress up. 

• A basic medical kit to cover most common illnesses - colds, coughs, tummy bugs, bandaids, antiseptic, antibacterial wipes etc (visits to the shipboard doctor for minor illnesses are very expensive) 

• An ereader, Kindle or similar loaded with books for sea days

• Sticky labels preprinted with the names and addresses of children, grandchildren, friends etc to make addressing postcards easier if you intend to send them.

• Cards with name, address and contact details to share with your new friends.

• Spare batteries and chargers for everything you have - phones, cameras, torches, clocks etc. The morning show read out lots of requests to borrow camera and phone chargers.

Let me know if you have any other suggestions and I will add them to the list.

Cheers

Auckland with Happy Feet

Our visit to Auckland was very bittersweet because more than 500 kiwis left the ship including many that we have become very close to - including Anthea, Dennis, Ray, and Paula - our wonderful table companions.

Loved this animation screen from mickey mouse to Tiki Tu Meke

The stopover in Auckland was very short ... we arrived at 7.00am and left at 2.00pm. We expected cold weather ... and weren’t disappointed ..... we have been to Auckland many times before ... so we decided to join up with Carol and Randy to take a trip out to Kelly Tarlton’s .... an underwater aquarium .... we were most interested in the Antarctic Encounter ..... with a sub-Antarctic penguin colony.

Free shuttle

Great perspective on the position of Antarctica

This sign at the door tickled my funny bone - I thought we were going to see animals???

A reconstruction of the Scott’s base and hut in Antarctica was very interesting, with all sorts of memorabilia from the expedition. A large relief map of Antarctica on the wall gives a great perspective view of the its position relative to South America, Australia and New Zealand.

Scott's hut and research centre

We climbed into snowmobiles for our trip around the penguin enclosure .... there are over 80 in the colony and we took a slow ride over the snow through the colony as they preened in their social groups ....some were sitting on eggs and a few newly hatched chicks surveyed all from their special enclosure. 

Nesting

The other parts of the Underwater World had displays of stingrays, sharks, tropical fish and amazing sea horses. We have been to similar more modern aquariums in Sydney and Mooloolaba in Australia .... they have a much greater variety of species ... but we hadn’t been this close to penguins before ... and we loved them.

Inside the play centre for children - climb in - I won't bite!!

11 metres tentacles on a giant squid

Beautiful corals

Everyone loves Nemo

Amazing sea horses

Returning to downtownAuckland, we had a short time to do some shopping and return to the ship. The rugby world cup starts next weekend in New Zealand with matches over the next seven weeks, so there was a great festive atmosphere as the kiwis prepare to welcome the rest of the world. One t-shirt that we saw said ‘We support New Zealand and every team that is playing Australia’ .... there is that friendly rivalry again!! 

Once again, we congregated on the back deck ... and watched one of the tugboats entertaining the passengers by spinning in circles behind the ship. Auckland is known as ‘the city of sails’ ....  there were a lot of sailboats out on the harbour on this Sunday afternoon, as we made our way down the harbour. We passed by Davenport wharf, where Ray and Paula were frantically waving as we sailed by .... and later I received a text from Anthea as we sailed northward along the coast as they could see the Dawn Princess from their home. We miss them already at dinner .. and there are so many new faces around the ship as about 500 new passengers embarked in Auckland ... some just doing the two day trip to Sydney ... while others are doing the 28 day circumnavigation of Australia.

We are now heading due west towards Sydney where most will disembark on Wednesday.

Note to future cruisers: If you want to do the penguin encounter at Kelly Tarlton’s www.kellytarlton.co.nz, there is a free shuttle bus to the site which leaves from across the road from the ferry terminal ... only a five to ten minute walk from the ship - it leaves every hour - on the hour and returns at 10 minutes to each hour. The entrance cost is $34NZ for adults, cheaper for over 65’s, with 10% discount if you book online beforehand. There is also a free shuttle which takes you round downtown Auckland.

Cheers