Day 33, October 30

Wednesday, Oct 30: Up and out in plenty of time. Our scheduled shuttle from Jayride did not arrive. I called, left a message, they called back. First the driver said he would be there in 15 more minutes. Then 5 minutes later the company called back and said I should get alternate transportation due to traffic. Believe me, they will not get a good review and it will be posted in several places. The hotel staff called us a taxi and they arrived in minutes. We made it to the airport in plenty of time. Check in and security were fast. John was wanting breakfast so we split a breakfast sandwich, which was really delicious, tasting more like a good lunch to me. As it turned out our plane didn't depart on time anyway. The flight was late arriving from LAX and they needed time to clean the plane and get it ready for us. Our initial departure time was 10:10a but we actually left about 11:15a. We were told time would be made up during the flight and we wouldn't be too late. We did make up some time and landed at 6:45a. Due to the time, customs, and connections we decided to get a wheelchair. It helped a lot. I don't think we would have made our flight without that. Not only did we have customs, but we had to actually leave the terminal from the outside, ride a bus to the other terminal, then go through security again. You would think LAX would be a bit more modern even for these little flights into Fresno. At any rate, we made the flight in time and arrived as planned in Fresno. Just a quick taxi ride and we are home. Thankful for another trip and a  safe arrival home. 

Breakfast at SYD

Day 32, October 29

Tuesday, Oct 29: We were just tired today. Our last full day in Sydney. If only we had the energy to do something significant before the play tonight. What we really did is get most of the packing done this morning. About 2:30p we left the hotel and walked around the Circular Quay area and settled on a place to eat. We planned to sit there for at least a couple hours watching the harbor but the service was a bit slow and eventually John was in the sun so we left. After walking around and looking in several shops we headed to the Opera House to be sure we know where to go when the time is right for our play. We found everything easily and found a nice seat at the Port Side Restaurant, had a drink, and watched the progression of climbers on the Sydney Bridge. I can't really imagine wanting to do this but it is a popular experience.

The excitement mounts as more people arrive and the time of the play draws near. Through the bag check and to our seats, great seats! I booked months ago. The theater is not full but almost! The set was simple with greenery and benches. The play has been adapted with a modern twist but with all of Shakespeare's glory still intact. Some scenes were out right hilarious! It was a really nice experience. We planned to have an ice cream after the performance but neither of us were hungry so we just walked back to the hotel. We did the last of the packing and set two alarms for our morning departure. 

Climbers on Sydney Bridge

Much Ado About Nothing

Sydney Bridge at Night

Opera House at Night

Day 31, October 28

Tuesday, Oct 28: Today we booked an all day, all inclusive, small group trip to the Blue Mountains. An early morning schedule! Our pick up point was just a 5 minute walk from our hotel. It was the pickup point for multiple tours to the Blue Mountains. Our bus arrived and he called names to get on the bus, not in the order we were lined up in. Disappointingly, we ended up right behind the large driver's seat and over the wheel well, with an unfortunate amount of leg room. It would have been classified a child's seat I believe. Regardless, we had a decent drive out to the Blue Mountains. Our driver is also the tour guide, also a environmental activist and hater of large companies that are "ruining our world" - well, it would have been better if he kept his personal and political opinions to himself like he indicated he would (but didn't). Other than his detest for over population (mind you, he has two children) and hatred of Coke, Apple, and IBM, he was pretty knowledgeable and a decent guide. Upon arrival at the Blue Mountains we immediately embarked the Scenic World Tram to take us across the gully, viewing a small waterfall on one side and the Three Sisters mountain formation on the other side. After the short tram our guide had driven around and secured our wrist bands for the remainder of the visit on the other side. Next we got on a quite vertical, short, and steep cable car ride taking us through the forest to a walking path, also through the forest. Before we were quite through that area the tram to take us back up arrived and we hurriedly got onto that. Back up we went, with amazing views along the way. Through the ever-present gift shop, restroom stop and back on the bus. Our visit there was pretty brief, driver/tour guide Adam telling us how lucky we were getting away from there before the crowds. Perhaps that is true. We had two more viewing stops in the area and then on our lunch stop. We ate at the Pub at the Alexandra Hotel in the city or town of Leura. There was a nice selection. I had the fish and chips and John had a burger. We had the option to walk into town or relax at the pub until the bus meeting time. There was a pool table there and John found a mate to play so we did that until time for the bus.

Our next stop is Featherdale Wildlife Park. This is a small zoo, almost like a petting  zoo as far as the animals are concerned. The place started as a bird park and evolved. There are a lot of interesting birds and that means a lot of cages, which we are not really used to seeing. The Koala exhibits are very nice and we even got a photo done with the cute little things. They are not very active during the day and sleep about 16-18 hours, more active at night. They look so sweet but up close they have some pretty impressive claws and I am sure they could do some damage if they wanted to. The handler explained about the photos. They "encourage" the different bears to  come to the particular tree for photos. Usually they fall asleep when they get there (like ours did) but if they wake up and want to go back to their on stall, they can just go and they encourage another one of the 3-4 that are used for photos. Nice plan I think.

Now we are done with our tour and Adam is taking us to our boat for the ride back into Sydney. We will be dropped off right at The Rocks, Circular Quay, and we can just walk back to our hotel. This is the first day there has been no ship in port since we arrived. Lunch seemed like a long time ago but we weren't terribly hungry, we shared a plate of pasta. We really liked Caminetto so we chose to go back there. Such friendly staff and the pasta was outstanding.

The Blue Mountains

Featherdale Wildlife Park

Caminetto Restaurant

Day 30 - Oct 27

Sunday, Oct 27: We have a fun day planned. We are so excited to see Thiago and Karol his wife. It has been some number of years (4-5 or more?) since we saw him in Clovis. Even though we knew he lived in Australia we did not know he lived in Sydney! On our cruise he contacted us and we have a luncheon engagement set for today at Braza Churrascaria Restaurant at Darling Harbour. Our taxi was unsure where to go exactly, even though I had the address. After being dropped off we could not locate the restaurant. My maps app was so slow in loading. I decided to send Thiago a text that we were a little lost but close. We knew we were close. Thankfully, he sent me a map and when I clicked on that it worked on my app immediately. We were there seeing their happy faces in just minutes! We had such a e had such a nice visit. They confirmed how well organize public transportation is. In fact, they took the bus here from their home near Bondi Beach! Much faster than driving and you don't need to search for a place to park! We should have done that instead of the HO-HO bus the second day. We had a delicious lunch then they headed off to a birthday party and we walked around a bit. It was warm and we went back to Braza and had another Caipirinha - So refreshing. Now we need to rush along to make our cruise of the harbor this evening. We thought we only went to the ticket office so when we picked up our ticket we were told we had to walk down several piers to get to the boat. We made it with a couple minutes to spare. Ours was a "cocktail" cruise. I had a glass of wine and John had whatever the cocktail was they offered. After collecting that we headed to the top deck because this is our chance for terrific views of both the bridge and the Opera House. As we rounded the bend coming from Darling Harbor, the Celebrity ship in port today was just leaving. We held in place for some time for that ship to reverse from the dock and head out. It is a busy port. The views on this little tour were not to disappoint! What a beautiful city and harbor area. We got a taxi back to the hotel, well close to the hotel anyway. That was fine and we watched the festivities still going strong at the Oktoberfest!

Memorable Lunchtime

Sydney Harbour Cruise

Oktobertfest

Day 29 October 26

Saturday, Oct 26: Today we got up with many plans for the HO-HO bus. It is a quick walk to the bus stop. It is apparently Oktoberfest here in Sydney, LOTS of celebrations around the city. A nice set up here at The Rocks for later today. So arriving to our stop a bit early, 2 other couples were waiting as well. Finally the bus came but it just drove right by us. Another 1-15 minute wait and the next bus did stop. We decided we would do the "blue" line today and go out to Bondi Beach and stop at a couple more bays after that. I forgot to say it started to sprinkle and it is humid this morning. The sprinkles didn't last long. With some confusion because our bus changed from the "red" line to the "blue" line with no real explanation. It was fine with us because the necessary switch to the other line didn't have to happen. No worries, we arrived as planned at Bondi Beach and walked around the shops in the area, had lunch, looked for a particular shop we never found and decided to get back on the bus. Keep in mind, they run every 15-20 minutes. We, and many others, waited over an hour in the hot sun before the bus arrived. No explanation but we were told if we were unhappy to contact the company. People were pretty peeved and one man in front of us said he called the company and there is no answer. Well, we are on the bus now. Thankfully, we all made it on the bus. We were cautious about getting off at the other two stops we wanted because the driver could not say when another bus would follow. Regardless, we were pretty drained from the long wait standing in the sun. We got off at the point to switch back to  the "red" line and back to The Rocks area where our hotel is. This stop has staff that was exasperated and shell-shocked with unhappy passengers. They assured everyone the next "red" bus was only 10 minutes out. At least our 25 minute wait had partial shade! By now all we can think about is getting back to our hotel room. It seems most of our day has been spent waiting for buses, that is not accurate but it started to feel that way. We dropped into the EZ Mart and got some cheese, crackers, and fruit to have later, with wine or without. Regardless, of the unplanned waits, we enjoyed the experience at Bondi Beach and consider this a successful day! 

A Royal Caribbean ship was in port today. They departed about 6p. The Golden Princess left last night at 7p

The Oktoberfest fun is going strong this Saturday night. It is great hearing people having fun and seeing them in their fun hats, etc. 

Lunch with a Bondi Beach View

Fish and Chips - at Lamrock

These Beautiful Purple trees are all over Sydney

View of Sydney Coming from Double Bay

Day 28 Oct 25 - SYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES AUSTRALIA!!!!

Friday, Oct 25: We were up early, especially early since we didn't realize we had another hour turn back on the clock last night! Oh well, it gave us the extra time needed to have a dining room breakfast on board, our first. I don't usually eat breakfast but the cinnamon rolls were delicious. By the time we were done we could disembark, even a little early. We aren't exactly sure where our hotel is, even though is close by, we opted for a taxi. Maps on my phone are still not working well and with our one especially heavy suitcase we didn't want to walk. It was a quick taxi ride! 

The Rendezvous Hotel was gracious to store our luggage, give us maps, and furnished a Ho-Ho bus brochure. It is close walking distance to the bus stop so perfect choice for us.  An Aussie friend sent me a message on FB saying she was sorry we arrived on a very hot day. Well, that is no surprise for us. We seem to attract the hottest days ever! We did the "Red" route today, passing many beautiful landmarks, though we zoomed past the Opera House with barely a glance. We didn't get off until back to The Rocks near our hotel. We just don't have the energy for a lot of walking today. However, we really enjoyed walking around The Rocks area and there is a market on Friday so we enjoyed that and with a small lunch stop at dare for an Avocado Smash Board and later a wine stop in a shady, outdoor Italian cafe Caminetto The Rocks. We had a nice conversation with a friendly man from London, it is nice to meet such outgoing people with interesting things to talk about. He gave us some pointers. by now he is in the sky, heading home. After the wine we tried a combo Gyoze plate at a nearby booth. Yum!

Zooming by the Bridge and Opera House

dare - Avocado Smash Board

Caminetto The Rocks

BBQ at the Rocks 

Kangaroo, crocodile, emu, beef, 

lamb, chicken, Lamb, chicken, salmon, 

Haloumi, veg, prawns, octopus. I can't think 

about eating a Kangaroo - too cute!

Now we're back and checking into our hotel. What delightful staff. Our room is ready and we are not disappointed. It is a studio room, so we have a little kitchen with a basic utensils, fridge, microwave, hot pot, and even stove burners! This was the same prices as other hotel rooms I checked. We are really very happy with the location. There is a pool and a hot tub and a complementary cappuccino machine. What more could we want? We have collapsed and I even took a nap (not unusual for John but it is for me!). I'm sure there is more to say but I have this done for now so I will post it (at home time)! 

ps: They have Australian Amazing Race here, starts in 3 days! Some of our kids watch our version at home. 

Day 26-27 October 23-24

Wednesday, Oct 23: I can't believe the cruise is coming to an end. I dread packing, though I have tried to purge a lot of "paper" along the way. We had our last wine tasting today, it was very nice. There was a bit of a "chef cookoff" and we were served two different pastas as well. It was enjoyable. We met some nice people, that has not been the case when we  have shared a dining table. One of them told us about a wine and chocolate tasting at Vine wine bar and we thought we would try that. However, when we got there we were told they were out of one of the wines so they are no longer doing that. Seems simple to replace that one wine but that was not an option. Seemed odd, but no worries really. Dinner, the farewell from the Captain, and we braved ourselves and decided to try the production show. At least 30 minutes ahead, we got two of the last available seats. The show started out strong and enjoyable, but faltered.

Thursday, Oct 24: Our last full day at sea and it is a workday for us. Time to pack! John took off for his breakfast and I began the task. It's really not much to pack things but deciding what we will keep of what we collected along the way is the real issue! I kept souvenirs for the family to a minimum, but those add up. Then the stack of brochures and maps collected along the way (sigh). We had lunch in our cabin, took a TV break and continued the packing. John lost interest quickly! Sticking to it is the key, I wander in thought and deed when packing. Anyway, it is  DONE and we are set for tomorrow. Off to our final dinner and finishing up our wine tonight. It's been a great trip but we both admit the "appreciation" of cruising wears off after the first couple of weeks. Still quite enjoyable but we tend to take things for granted. Surprisingly, the weather has turned warmer and humidity is up tonight. Wondering what Sydney will be like?

Our Last Dinner Aboard

Baked Potato Soup

Grilled Vegetable Salad

Mussels in Cream Sauce

Apple Pie with Vanilla Anglais and Ice Cream 

Day 23-24-25 October 20-21-22

Sunday, Oct 20: Tauranga, New Zealand Ship Excursion. We had about a 1 hour drive out of Tauranga to arrive at our Village Tour in  Rotorua's of Whakarewarewa. We saw a lot of lovely countryside along the way. Apparently, there is a  lot of wind here so large pine-type trees are planted close together and trimmed to be wind breaks for the delicate Kiwi fruit that grows here. Kiwi is both green and yellow! I didn't know there were yellow ones and I hope to try that before heading home. Cattle and sheep graze in the lush, green fields. Did I say earlier that they have 9 sheep to each person living in New Zealand? An amazing fact. Rhododendrons are in bloom here and the are pruned into gorgeous trees. There are many other flowering trees I do not recognize. I hope to find out  the name of a lovely tree with light pink leaves, which is just amazing to look at.

It is sprinkling lightly as we arrived to the village but it didn't last. We have been blessed by the weather on most occasions. Surprisingly, this is not an "old" village but a modern village where the Maori people live now. Of course there are a lot more Maori people than live in this small village. This is a geothermal area with a lot of steam vents, mud pots, and some geyser activity. Our guide was interesting and informative, of the Maori tribe himself. It was a nice walking tour around the area ending with a plentiful hangi lunch (chicken, beef, corn on the  cob, carrots, cabbage, sweet and light potatoes, plus dessert "pudding" with fruit. All had been cooked in the very steam pots he showed us earlier. Now most of us are nodding off before our return trip to Tauranga. We have learned how local Maori adapted to the devastation of their home after the 1886 eruption, as well as how they have lived on the land for centuries using geothermal activity for warmth, cooking and bathing. We enjoyed a Maori cultural performance, which includes the world-famous haka. After the Village experience our driver took us through the Government Gardens near by, along a lovely lake. All the swans we have seen are black. No opportunity to get a decent photo of them, I am sorry to say. There are a lot of people enjoying the area playing bocce ball, water sports, and more. There is even a pontoon plane on the lake. 

Village Tour - John at Entrance 

Thermal Village Area Geysers

Monday, Oct 21: Change of Itinerary and we are now at Bay of Islands. They did send a list of outrageously priced local tours we could book, we decided against it. Even a walking tour was over $75, which one can usually find a map and do on your own. We also decided to avoid the arduous task of trying to secure a tender ticket early on with 1000+ others, we just waited until a ticket was no longer needed. After numbers in the 1500's were called we were all invited to take the tender, that was about 11:30a. It was fine for us as we didn't have a real plan. We were encouraged there was a free shuttle into the delightful little town called Paihai. We browsed some shops, stopped for a glass of wine when it sprinkled, walked around some more, stopped for another glass of wine over looking the bay, and then headed back on the free shuttle. A delightful day. We are glad we didn't "plan" anything because we met such friendly and kind people along the way today.

Leaving port we finally saw our first sea life since leaving San Francisco! Dolphins, really sizable dolphins, made quite a show of themselves as they escorted the Pilot boat most of the way. It was almost as though they were trained. Further along I am amazed at the  number of birds diving in the water, obviously they are feeding. Again we are warned of the upcoming weather, I suppose we are ready!  

Serene waters of the Bay of Islands

Zane Grey's where we had wine with a view 

Dolphins

Tuesday,  Oct 22: At sea. We are in the Tasman Sea now and it was a bit rough last night and most of the day. We are told it will remain like this tomorrow as well. Some outside areas are closed off. The ship does lurch a bit here and there. After ginger ale and Dramamine all is well. However, we didn't do much today. I had a few days of work on my photos and albums to do and that kept me busy. We have 2 more days at sea and then we will arrive in Sydney, Australia.By tonight we are really rockin & rollin - but it adds to the adventures!

Day 21-22 October 18-19

Friday, Oct 18: One more sea day until Auckland. At least 1/3 of the ship is disembarking at this port and new passengers will be boarding to take their place. Tonight we had a Captain's Farewell Party for those disembarking.

The Captain

Saturday, Oct 19: New Zealand Ship Excursion. Waiheke Island & Wineries is our 5-hour tour for today. This tour was a nice introduction to this charming island. We woke to sprinkles, then sun, then wind, then sprinkles and sun again - So one can see the weather changes quickly around here. It was a quick walk from the ship to the ferry pier, the ride to Waiheki Island was about 40 minutes. Waiheki is a blend of farmland, low and sort of tropical forests, sandy beaches, vineyards, olive groves, and quaint little villages. About 8K people live on Waiheki. Our first stop was at Onetangi Beach and a little café called Charlie Farley's, where we consumed a scrumptious, warm-from-the-oven scones and tasty tea. By now the sun was out and we had such lovely views of the beach. From this stop we head on to one of two wineries for wine tasting. The first was Stoneyridge. We had two tastes and neither were impressive. They also sell olive oil and we had a taste of that as well. A brief walk through the olive orchard and small vineyard completed the tour. Next was Batch or Bach (both pronounced the same) and these wines were very appealing. I will add these wineries are quite small, 17 and 11 acres respectively. We made it back with a few minutes to get on the ferry and the harbor in Auckland. We briefly explored the Historic Ferry Building, which now houses restaurants. The number of stairs and the bus steps did me in today for some reason. We relaxed the rest of the day but very much enjoyed departing port with interesting views and antics from one particular tug boat.

The Captain announced today that the Napier stop Oct 21, and cruising of the Marlborough Sound on Oct 22, due to inclement weather in the Tasman Sea. We were to go south of New Zealand and then to Sydney but now we will go north of New Zealand to Sydney, those plans have been thwarted. We will have an alternative tendered port stop at Bay of Islands. They are working up possible tours for the ship and we will be alerted to these soon. We are told we will still have some rough, but not perilous, seas when we cross the Tasman Sea to Sydney, north we will avoid the worst of it. It is disappointing we will miss cruising between the two main islands that  from New Zealand.

Onetangi Beach, Waiheki Island 

Leaving Auckland

Day 17-18-19-20, October 14-15-16-17

Monday, Oct 14: Pago Pago today, the largest island of the archipelago of American Samoa. It is a very deep water port so they have a pretty active port. We did not book an excursion but there is a museum in town and the port is right in town. Oh boy it is warm and HUMID today! Off we went for a walk, there are multiple, colorful bus, or things resembling buses ready to take you anywhere around the island. First we passed by the museum we plan to visit later. We hoped to find a place with a nice view for a cold drink. After passing fruit stands along the way we came to McDonald's, where we found a mob from the cruise ship taking advantage of the free Wi-Fi. Personally, I just needed something COLD to drink and a place to sit at this point as it is sweltering. It is only in the mid to high 80's but the humidity is so high it seems much warmer. Iced coffee was the option we chose. After cooling down we headed back toward the museum and stopped to view a lovely church along the way. What a lovely little museum, with free Wi-Fi as well. It started to sprinkle just as we arrived back at the ship, it felt good! The rest of the day we played cards and watched the activity from our balcony where there was a nice little breeze. We left port as scheduled at 5p. Surprisingly people take it seriously to be back on board by 4:30p and the gangway was up!

Jean P. Hayden Museum

Leaving Pago Pago 

                                                             

Tuesday, Oct 15: For some reason we slept quite late. Our coffee was delivered at 7:30a as usual but even I went back to sleep! We missed the morning Movie Under the Stars, oh well. Thankfully, the humidity is lower today. We spent a lazy morning even though there is much to do all day long: Gemstone drawing, Poncho show and sale to win a poncho, jigsaw puzzles, knitting, multiple other games, $10 sale, Oktoberfest crafts, Trivia, line dancing, art auction, treasure hunt, shuffleboard, and of course a weight loss seminar - yeah right… Plus many other things. If you think you will be bored on a long cruise, trust me, you will not be bored! Today the sea is 14,000 feet deep, just amazing isn't it? Tonight was the Captain's Party. There were  4 of these dividing up the Platinum and Elite people on board. You get free drinks and appetizers. The captain is personable so it was nice. They give out awards to people who are on board that have cruised the most, they had over 700 days each. Needless to say it was not us. We went up to deck 14 by the Terrace Pool and found it deserted. We played cards and there was quite a little but of rain tonight. The air is turning cooler, thankfully.

Captain's Party 

Wednesday, Oct 16: Around 1:30a this morning we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn. I might have done that before, but I'm not sure. No announcement, but I was still awake, that's what happens when I sleep in! We recently saw the movie Yesterday, but we enjoyed it again today. The movie is a little goofy but I love the music! Tonight was formal night. Lobster was served, it was tasty. They did smother it in some sort of butter sauce but it was still tender and delicious. John had a special order of escargot.

John & His Escargot

 

Lobster 

Thursday, Oct 17: Crossing the International Date Line! Lost Oct. 17! We are officially a day ahead of everyone at home!

Day 14-15-16, October 11-12-13

Friday, Oct 11: We were already docked when we woke up this morning. We watched ferries come and go and saw a local, small cruise ship enter port as well. Today our ship excursion included the following places, not necessarily in this order: Mara'a Fern Grotto, which was a pretty little stop. Vaipahi Gardens & Waterfall, which was my favorite spot with all the lovely flowers. Blowhole Arahoho, that was really just a "dry" blowhole to our surprise. It did make an interesting sound but all other ones we have been to shoot water into the air! Point Venus, which is Tahiti's northernmost extremity, Venus Point was the site from which Captain James Cook's astronomer tracked the transit of Venus across the sun in the 18th century, amazing to think about. The stately white lighthouse, which was built in 1868, was closed, not that we would have gone up that many steps. Tahara'a "One Tree Hill" where the old tree has long since disappeared, but the lookout remains and offers panoramic views of the Island of Moorea, the Sea of Moons and the surrounding coral reefs and lagoons. We saw lovely areas along the way. Our refreshment stop was at Gauguin Restaurant, where were were served your choice juice, soda, or bottled water. They had fish nets holding fish to view as well 

By the time we got back I was exhausted with over 10K steps on my Fitbit. Oddly enough my Fitbit had Anchorage AK time for multiple days, now it has French Polynesia time BUT it is 14 hours off. Once I get to Australia I will use my phone locally and be back at the right local time (I assume). Anyway, we had a quick bite at the grill and back to our cabin where I fell asleep. We missed the local dancers that came on board to perform a show for us. By the time I got up we were leaving Tahiti. It is a big island compared to Bora Bora but small compared to the Big Island of Hawaii. Hawaii is at least 15 times bigger than Tahiti. We had a beautiful sunset over Moorea as we departed Tahiti. Just a quick bite from the Horizon court buffet. Yes, we are actually getting weary of fancy food. I had chicken and broccoli for dinner! We did have a fancy drink today. We haven't finished the wine we embarked with yet either, though we brought a few bottles for dinner time. After posting 3 days of my blog we headed back to our cabin. Believe it or not, I still feel tired!

The Grotto 

Sunset over Moorea 

The Moon

Saturday, Oct 12: Today we spent the day recovering from yesterday! Seriously, we were tired so we slept in. I scrapbooked, we went to lunch, and then watched a movie. We did walk around a little bit but avoided the multiple sales on board. Lunch in the dining room and dinner at the Horizon Buffet. So yes, it was a quiet day. I expect the same for tomorrow. We enjoyed some Limoncello. 

Limoncello 

Sunday, Oct 13: Another lazy day at sea, which is actually quite nice. I am getting a bit of scrapbooking done (not as much as I thought) and we are having a good time relaxing. We secured a lounge by the pool to watch the morning movie "Under the Stars" and eventually a search for a towel was successful. Pool towels seem hard to come by. Watching Mama Mia was fun because I love the music. John was not keen to wait a couple hours for Mama Mia 2, he had enough warm weather.

Movie Under the Stars (Sun!)

Day 11-12-13, October 8-9-10

Tuesday, Oct 8: Somehow we were busy all day! It's Deb's BD and I tried all morning to get on WhatsApp to call her but it never worked. This morning there was a "Chat with the Captain" in the Theater followed by a short documentary on Captain Hook. Both were fascinating to attend. Finally the internet is up and we were able to call Deb!!! We had to rush a bit to get to our 12:15p wine tasting. Afterwards we had a quick bite at the International Café. Back to the cabin where John took a nap and I took my laptop down to the Internet Café/Library where the Wi-Fi does run a tiny bit faster. At least it is running now. It takes some time for the blog post photos to upload to the blog so I only post a few. Oddly enough they upload quite quickly to Facebook. By the time I was done there it was almost time for dinner! Feeling so full I suggested  we swim or something. Almost no one goes to the pools this time of night even though the weather is warm still. First we went to the hot tub on deck 16. It was pretty windy but nice just the same. John enjoyed the HOT water, me not so much. After that we went to the Terrace Pool which was much cooler, so cool John was not going to get in but he eventually did join me. The waves are really active in the pool and we thought of the many times this type of wave (or bigger) was created in the Gibson pool, fond memories. Back to the cabin and bedtime. Tomorrow we must prepare for our first port since Oahu!

Chat with the Captain  

Mushroom Quiche & Greek Salad for Lunch

Today when I was posting my blog the woman next to me got sad news of a death in her family. So sad for her I cried too. I gave her tissue and comforted her. So sad when one is away from home and loses loved ones, no family support around you. At least her husband was there too and seemed very attentive with his arm around her. I can't get her off of my mind…

We saw photos from home with the family celebrating Deb's BD. Feeling a bit homesick. The Family had this great Friends Cake for her, she is a big fan of Friends as we all know.

Other news from home is the house we bid on for Julie is back on the market. To bid again or not? It needs SO MUCH work but could be a nice little house for her. Deb is talking to Tamera and the family will collectively decide what to do.

Wednesday, Oct 9: Today we finally heard about tender tickets for Bora Bora tomorrow. I do hope we are able to make our tour with Viator on time tomorrow. Supposedly we meet on the dock at 9a. We are supposed to be in cleared by 8a, but we need a ticket for the tender and I suppose cruise ship tours will be a priority. We shall see. I would assume that others taking this tour will have the same time constraints and it will work out, if not - that's the way it goes. We spent a very relaxing day as I scrapbooked most of the day. John brought us up something from the International Café for lunch and we went to dinner early. We are all set for tomorrow!

Night Sky

 

Thursday, Oct 10: Bora Bora!!! We were up and out early so we could pick up a tender ticket and be ashore by 9a for our excursion. This is the only excursion I booked outside of the ship but when I did it, I did not realize we were tendered. What a mad house to secure a ticket, a real mob scene. Too bad they didn't do it the day before like I have seen in the past. Anyway, we were on the tender and to the pier before 9a so it all worked out. Unfortunately, we sat there for an hour in the 4X4 vehicle waiting to leave. We were never sure why we were waiting, but we saw the cruise ship excursion with the same company leave before we did. This is a Circle Island tour, there is one road around the island and it is 20 miles in distance. Once we got going we had a good time. We went up 3 "private" roads to see views and WWII remains of cannons. The first road was pretty steep with most of it on blacktop. We saw stunning views on one side and walking 20 ft over stunning views on the other side. I have never seen such amazing waters. Every shade of vibrant blue you can think of. A barrier reef surrounds the island with the only inlet being where the US dredged through the reef during WWII to bring munitions in. No attack ever came here. We have 3 4X4 vehicles in our little group and a commentator telling us what we are looking at for each stop. On to the second stop and the "road" was less paved, mostly dirt and lava rock, and much steeper than the last one. It made me nervous when the tires skid. The vehicle in front of us stopped  on the steepest incline, for an unknown reason, and so we were stopped to. It felt to me like we might slide down the mountain, but all was well. After this we stopped a Matira Beach. There was some explanation about it being the only public beach but then he also said we could go to any beach on the island, so that is unclear. I will need to look that up. Sparkling white sand and pristine water. I enjoyed putting my feet in! Now on to our 3rd and final hill climb. I will not say it was a road because I know it was at one time but it really doesn't resemble a road anymore. I saw the vehicle in front struggling over the large rocks and sinking in the gullies. When one tire raises a foot or more off the ground, it is a bit off-putting for me! But once again we  made it. This stop was the remnants of cannons from WWII. On we go around the island, we had the typical shopping stop where we were given delicious fresh fruit and coconut. Oddly enough, no drinks for sale. It is pretty warm and they would make a fortune selling cold soda or beer I am sure. Our 3.5 hour tour was over and we were dropped off at the pier. We walked around for a little bit but it was hot and we decided to go back to the ship, have lunch, and go for a swim. We really enjoyed that and switched from a lounge to a table near the pool and played cards the rest of the afternoon until it was time to set sail. What a gorgeous island this is. Neither of us are hungry for dinner but we took a look at the buffet and it was "Mexican Night" so I had a taco with great guacamole. John had a variety plate, a little of everything. Tomorrow we will be in Tahiti!

Bora Bora Map

Matira Beach

 

Good-Bye Beautiful Bora Bora