Cairns, Australia and Sea Day

01-18 Saturday: Cairns, Australia. Stuart has stopped coughing and seems to feel just fine. I am glad because we have a great excursion planned: The Kuranda Scenic Railway: Gold Class. It departs: 12:30p. Tour was approximately 4 Hours, which turned out to be 5 hours. (Adult $189.95; Child $169.95) First on the agenda of the day is immigration. We already have our Australian ETA but there must be face to face immigration and everyone needs to disembark, even if you don’t have a tour or choose to get off. We did all of that, which was pretty fast. After that we walked along the Wharf and stopped at Wharf One Café for a bite to eat. We split a Peri Peri chicken sandwich. We are not sure when we might get to eat something else. After a bit more walking around, it was time for our tour. Meeting back by shore excursions, 4 of our friends were also there to go on the same tour. We transferred by air-conditioned coach to Kuranda village, which is a panoramic drive that sets the tone for the great scenery and relaxing atmosphere of the hinterland. We spent 2 hours in charming Kuranda to explore and to shop in the colorful and inviting boutique stores. Stuart bought me a twist fan, which really helped a lot in the heat. We split a meat pie, this one was chicken curry, and very good. We washed that down with a beer. Later I had a popsicle as it is so hot. I did find a postcard but once again, no stamps! About 3:15p we boarded the train, which left at 3:30p. This is a premium, themed Gold-Class carriage on the very famous, and incredibly scenic Kuranda Railway. We traveled through 15 tunnels and over 37 bridges with sheer cliff faces most of the journey. Stuart was by the window and took all the photos, a nice break for me from photo taking. Views included the Coral Sea and across Trinity Bay to Green Island, with Cairns in the foreground surrounded by sugar plantations. A taste of the tropics, local delicacies and accompanying beverages were served on the train. This included a welcome drink of your choice from the menu. This was followed by a little plate of cheese, dried fruit, crackers, and spread. All of it was very good. There was even dessert; Mango Sorbet. Everything was very good and very filling. The only thing that would have made the day better would have been cooler weather. The heat was oppressive. We were pretty tired when we got back at 5:30p, the last “all aboard” time. Of course, they would have waited for us because we were on a ship shore excursion.

After relaxing a bit, showers, and cooling off, we decided to stay in our cabin tonight. We are beat from the heat and not really hungry. We did end up ordering a sandwich to split later in the evening. It was good and plenty to eat. We played Phase 10 and had an early bedtime.

01-19 Sunday: This was the first Sunday Brunch we went to. They only have the brunch if it is a sea day. Instead of a “Tasting Menu” brunch, it was a regular order from the menu brunch. Stuart had Banana’s Foster pancakes and I ordered the Seafood Poutine. The waiter described it and noted how popular and good it was, so I tried it. I did not care for it because it was mostly calamari rings. I asked for the savory mushroom and tarragon crepes and that was much better to me. Since we slept in, we made a quick stop in the casino and still made it to Mexican Train on time. It was a relaxing afternoon resting and playing Rummikub. The heat of yesterday really zaps the energy. We walked along the outside decks for a little while. Today is called cruising the Barrier Reef, but there really isn’t any part of the reef that we see. We might not be looking in the right places. Scenery is pretty. 

Dinner was very good tonight. Stuart had the veal plicata and I had lasagna. There was a nice salad and tasty, hot egg drop soup. Stuart felt it was the best dinner he had so far. We headed to the show after that. Joyce came in to sit with us and mentioned that Chuck was at the craps table. Stuart joined him and Joyce and I enjoyed the show. It was Broadway Boys. They were 4 Broadway actors from different plays putting together enjoyable melodies for the crowd tonight. They did a great job. When the show was over Joyce and I joined Chuck and Stuart to see how they were doing. Both of them were winning, so we didn’t join in as we didn’t want to change the play in any way. Both of them did very well. After they finished there, Chuck and Joyce left and we, unsuccessfully, played a bit of Black Jack. It was the Rolling Stone lounge after that until 11p when they closed up. There is no late-night life on this ship. We played a Rummikub for a bit and then off to bed.