First full day at sea 30 Dec

A good night's rest and breakfast in our cabin at 9 so we thought we were in for a good day! It clearly wasnt meant to be. i had my shower and got dressed. Julie went to have her shower and the power went out in the cabin. Same thing had happened yesterday but we thought it was just a minor hiccup when everyone boarded. Anyway, a phone call to guest services and in a reasonable time the lights were back on and Julie got to have her shower. We then wandered to one of the lounges and ordered coffees via the app, which we are told is the most efficient way to order any services. After almost 30 minutes, Julie is seeing red and I think I actually saw steam coming out of her ears. Anyway, Julie has had enough so makes her way to the cafe counter when I'm finally served 2 coffees at the table. A very determined Julie returns to our table with 2 mugs of coffee a minute later. Guess which one I drank? LOL... We then continued to wander the decks. There are quite a few families on board and the pool areas are popular. So many people with no fear of skin cancers?

Its lunch time so we head to main dining room and have a lovely feed. The chicken curry was lovely.

More wandering and I head to the duty free shop where I get my 2 x 1 ltr bottles of Jamesons. Then I'm off to watch the line dancing which was woeful so didn't last long. Julie has decided to get her steps in and walk the decks. She managed 3 circuits but it got too windy. We meet back in the cabin and Julie says she has been waiting for almost an hour for a pot of tea to be delivered to the cabin. It finally arrived and the steward explains that they are very short staffed as they cant get staff to work because it's so busy. Not sure that this makes sense as there are a set number of passengers. It's not like they can put a couple of hundred extra passengers on the ship just because it is the new year! Anyway... I decide to go to the miltary veterans get together. What on earth was I thinking? about 20 people, only 2 other women currently in the Army, and just by looking at them I was ready to surrender! Typically there are a couple of alpha males who lead the conversation and it is all about them. The navy Commander who was the stereotypical short man, had the most to say and knew everything about everything. I was the first to get up and leave as itreally became uncomfortable when another ex navy wannabe asked us to share the most embarrassing initiation practices we knew of! It really wasn't worth the free glass of bubbles they offered. So, back in the cabin, I told Julie about the duty free alcohol I ordered which will be delivered to the cabin the day before we get back to Sydney. She is interested in some Gin for her son so we go back to the duty free, only to find out that they have sold out! Unbelievable! We have not been at sea for 24 hours and the duty free shop has sold out! Time for some reading back in the cabin and then we head to Deck 18 for our Platinum members canapes and drinks.

Am really enjoying the gin martini, so much so that I have 2. Time to head to dinner so we go to the main dining room which is walk in rather than allowing bookings. We finally get to the head of the queue and advise they are 2 of us. We are told that they're is a table for 2 in the Michealangelo restaurant a floor below. This is the same restaurant that woodland let us in on the first night! We fully follow the wait staff pass down a floor and eventually she takes us into the restaurant and seats us at a table for 2. A couple seated next to us apologise that they have taken our butter as there wasn't any on their table. This was a significant indicator of the debacle to come. Our waiter came to the table and asked us what would like to drink. We both said that we would like a wine. A bit later we were asked for our meal selections so we asked when our wine would be coming. Much later my entree arrived and I asked if we could have our wine. A second more senior waiter came to the table and retook our wine requests. I had finished my entree and when the waiter came to collect my plate Julie asked again when could we expect our wine. The waiter snapped back at her that he was busy! That was it for Julie. She walked out! As she left another waiter came up to me to ask what wine we wanted. Itold him that my friend had now left and it eas too late, but he asssured me that we would go and get my wine straight away, so I placed my order for the third time. Each time they came yo set the table gor the next course or clear something away I told them that my friend had left but it fell on deaf ears as eventually her main meal showed upwhich I promptly sent away. It was a most unusual dinner service and experience for sure! The couple nearby were equally appalled at what had happened to us. I caught up with Julie is one of the cafes and we headed to Guest Services again to lodge our concerns over all that had gone wrong with our cruise so far. The services officer was understanding and as an offer of apology she gave us an extra free night at a specialty restaurant. If only things had gone well from then on... We went to the later production show which was really good. 100% on the quality of shows offered on the Diamond Princess which we were on in October. Anyway, it was now 10.30 and time for bed so we headed back to our cabin only to find that the blasted power was out yet again! So in total darkness we fumbled around until I got the torch on my phone working. We tried calling our cabin steward but no answer. We had to call guest services twice before someone finally came and flicked a switch to give us power again. Im getting worn out telling them that we were not charging items so are not overloading anything... It has not been the best of days re service so we are being optimistic that tomorrow will be better! It had better not get worse!

Anchors Away…. 29 Dec

Another good night's rest in the hotel and a liesurely start to our day, checking out by 11am and making our way to Museum train station.

Our ship's app tells us that check in is between 12.30 and 3pm so we take our time to get to the cruise terminal but find that we can leave our luggage in one spot and then go straight through to check in. Unsurprisingly we are deemed Priority passengers, so get moved through to the head of any lines so that it is a very simple and fast checkin process. Once onboard, we head to our cabin but the beds have not yet been made so we head to a bar and order our first drink for the day ... coffee! It's now time for lunch so we head to the main dining room and I had a most unusual prawn and avocado dish, plus a lovely chicken chasseur. No room for dessert.

We then find the Vines bar and decide that we need to try out their version of a London Lemonade.

It was very nice, so we had two! Back to our cabin to find that the beds are all made up and our suitcases have been delivered, so time to unpack and settle into our home for the next 2 weeks.

Unpacking is thirsty work, so we head back to another lounge and try their London Lemonade which was actually a bit nicer than our earlier tasting. While we are sitting there minding our own business, an elderly gentleman walked past Julie and then leant in towards her to tell her that she looks 40 years younger without glasses! I asked Julie if she knew him, but he was a total atranger! She only wears glasses to read, so only had them on a short time to check her phone. I tried yo get her to accept the comment as an unusual compliment, but really? What ever made that fellow think it would ever be okay to say that to anyone? Oh well, I suppose it takes all sorts. At least there are a multitude of walkers and wheelchairs on this cruise, just strange men.... and an even stranger one later in our encounters. Time to set sail, so we head out on deck as we sail out of Sydney Harbour in perfect weather conditions.

We have had a good wander around the ship to get our bearings and decide to check out the Captain's Circle event for Platinum members in the exclusive Elite lounge. Canapes and drinks are offered in the Skywalkers bar at the back of the ship (that's Deck 18 Aft for the nautical types) and ofcourse we fit right in with the hoy paloy... So now it is time for dinner. We head to the Michelangelo dining room, not realising that this restaurant requires pre booking. We had already walked away from the Botticelli dining room where we had lunch as there were large crowds of people queuing to get in. After a 25 minute wait, when we were no closer to getting seated, I'd well and truly had enough of bring ignored so told Julie that I was out of there and she could contiue to wait if she wanted. We made our way upstairs to the Da Vinci dining room and it was only a short wait to be seated. Two ladies from Sydney joined us at our table and then a man was seated with ud, Ken. The meal was really nice. I had a prawn cocktail and the Cajun chicken.

Again, no room for dessert. Julie was sitting next to Ken so for the majority of the meal, I was talking to the Sydney ladies next to me. It is just as well I wasnt having dessert as when we had all finished our main meal, and some were waiting for dessert, Ken tells us that he 'hates Asian women'. I was gobsmacked and asked him why he would say such a thing. He came up with some BS about not understanding why any man would want an Asian woman instead of one like us! WTF??? He then asked us what we voted in the 'Voice' referendum. I asked him to repeat the question as I couldn't believe my ears, so he asked again. Julie answered him but I said I wasn't going to tell him as it was none of his business. With that, I excused myself from the table, told the 2 Sydney ladies that I hoped they had a good cruise and I look forward to running into them again. Didn't give Ken a second glance! Julie followed me out. I have made it very clear to Julie that if I have the bad luck to be seated at any meal with him again, I will leave the table. So with that we had a bit more of a wander. Julie was happy to sit and listen to some music for a while, but I'm ready to head back to our cabin and do the blog. Seas are calm and so am I.

Sydney

Have worked out how to add photos from phone, so you might want to have another look at yesterday's post. However now I can't upload camera photos to the blog! Merde!!! the Vibe hotel in Goulburn street is ideally located for us. The room is big, the beds are really comfortable and Julie didn't spend half an hour fussing over which pillow suited her best to sleep on, so that's a big tick in my book! All in all, we had a solid night's sleep and are much refreshed to see in our full day in Sydney. we headed down for a buffet breakfast in the hotel, which was very nice. I managed to leave the key card in our room, so had to very sheepishly head to reception for another card! We then headed up to the Museum train station which was only 1 block up the street, and caught the train into Circular Quay, 2 stops.

I had arranged to catch up with my old RAAF buddy and as I was concerned about her having to drive into the city and find parking, so convinced her to catch the train in. The poor girl, initially forgot her phone so had to go back to retrieve it, then there were works on the train line so she had to bus and train it until she finally arrived at Circular Quay an hour later than planned. She said she had gone through places she never knew existed! While we waited for Gayle, we wandered around the Rocks. Ovation of the Seas was berthed where we expect our ship to be tomorrow. It is humungous! Anyway, we finally caught up with each other and spent a wonderful afternoon together. Lots to catch up on too, having initially met as fresh faced and naive 18 year olds on our WRAAF recruit course at Edinburgh.

A light lunch at a nearby restaurant and then we wandered to the Botanic Gardens and then further afield to Mrs Macquarie's point.

Lots of work being done setting up for the nye fireworks. Finally found a cafe for a much needed cuppa, and then back through the gardens past the Opera House. Lots of people everywhere. Back at Circular Quay, we got back on the train to our hotel, and bid a fond farewll to Gayle, until next time. I just hope the poor girl gets home before dark! A much needed cuppa back in the room, and time to work on photos and the blog until...... Happy Hour! Had a lovely Haloumi fettucine for dinner and while we were chatting over our dinner somehow we were talking about phones and I said that when I still had a landline and people actually used phone books to look up numbers, my listing was still under my married name even though I had legally changed back to my maiden name! Julie then says, "You're like Nicole Kidman". WTF? I did not immediately get the connection, so when I did a "Please explain" she said that I'm just like Nicole Kidman because although she is married to Keith Urban, she has kept her real name... I never had the heart to remind her that she had also been married to Tom Cruise as I didn't want to prolong this particular line of conversation any longer! Just as well it was still happy hour! I truly wonder sometimes if Julie's synapses are all firing in the same direction. LOL! After dinner it was a quick walk around the block and then up to our room for a cuppa and Tim Tams. Time for lights out.

Adelaide to Sydney

And here we go again. Our much adored chauffeur, Amalia, had us both collected and delivered to the sirport well in time or our 9.30 am flight to Sydney. Much to our surprise, the queues were not horrendous and neither of us required strip searching to be allowed through the scanners! we headed for coffee and at boarding time headed for our gate, but the flight fromSydney had not arrived as yet so we were delayed by 25 minutes. Whilst we were waiting, Julie decided to check out the Princess app and found that the first day's itinerary for the cruise was available to view. I did not know where to look when she told me that she had booked us for the LGBTIQ catch up! Once I regained my composure and had stopped guffawing, I asked her whether she actually meant to book us for the singles and solos catch up? I'm still chuckling over it! i will keep you posted on what we actually attend...

It as a full flight to Sydney, but thankfully we had strong tailwinds so flight time was only 90 minutes instead of theregular 2 hours, so we actually arrived inSydney on time. We were both relived to see our suitcases arrive on the carousel and then headed to the lifts to take us to the train station. 3 lifts later wewere finally at the station and headed to Central which I had googled and told me that it was then a 10 minute walk to our hotel. would you believe it, but we ended up sitting next to a couple from Melbourne who are going to be on the same cruise. After another 2 lifts we found ourselves at Elizabeth Street, and it was then a 10 minute walk to our hotel, the Vibe,in Goulburn Street. much to our pleasure, our room was ready even though check in wasnt meant to ne until 3 and we were there about 1pm. the room is really nice and a quick check of the maps indicated that we were in a top spot. We headed downstairs to the dining room and were treated like princesses by the maitre'd. A late lunch and wine were ordered and once fully sated, we headed out exploring in the 37 degree heat! My map reading skills let us down as we intended heading to the Chinese gardens but I crossed the road and headed up Elizabeth Street rather than turning left out of the hotel on Goulburn Street. Eventually we found Martin Place where a lovely big Christmas tree was displayed and then a u turn back up George Street until we reached Chinatown and then the garden.

It really was very pretty and very peaceful, but became very humid and Julie didnt like the wildlife (lizards) throughout the park.

We were both tiring quickly by this stage so headed back to the hotel. Up to our room to rehydrate and check how many steps we had done - over 11,000, almost 8 kilometres in the heat! We then headed back to the bar where thankfully it was happy hour, so we had a couple of vinos, a very light dinner and then back to our room for showers and flopping on the beds. Photos of our day will have to wait until I can work out how to transfer photos from my android phone to this ipad! An early night is called for so that we are much refreshed and ready for a full day of adventures in Sydney tomorrow.

Last day at sea

Feeling a bit poorly this morning but will dose up on cold tablets and soldier on. Looks like we are in for a fine day for our last day at sea and our last day of the cruise.

After a late breakfast in our cabin, we had out for coffee. Julie is then happy to work on a jigsaw but I prefer to walk around the decks. I have bought some cough syrup and chug that down. As I still have a credit balance (mainly due to the $250 I was given by the cruise line for my military service) I have one last look in the shops and see a bag and scarf/shawl that I like the look of.

I go and watch how the bingo is being run. It isn't cheap and I was surprised that the games were played for a line and when that line was won,they then started a new game! The cruise is almost over and I haven't spent a cent in either the casino or at bingo. My mum would be very disappointed with me... Time for lunch and I have arranged to meet Lauris at Kai Sushi. It was a lovely lunch and good company.

Time to head back to the cabin and pack as we have to put our suitcases out before we head to dinner tonight. A bit of a quandry as it is a formal night when you are meant to dress up a bit but I don't want to also wear my ball gown in the morning so what to wear for dinner and what to leave out for the morning??? Problem solved. The ball gown, glass slippers and tiara are packed! Time for a pre dinner cocktail. Last one, and a good one.

Dinner was especially good. The crab cake probably should have been a different shape, or at least placed on its side, but was very tasty. The steak tenderloins were the best, and I always love my veggies. No dessert for me, but I did have a Drambuie which finished the meal well.

Now to the Wheelhouse bar to enjoy some music and then to the karaoke.K from A didn't disappoint but enough is enough. Back to our room for a cuppa and lights out. Has been a great trip but all good things sadly have to come to an end. Adelaide here we come.

Phillip Island

About 6.15 we are rudely awakened by the sound of noisy machinery outside the balconies. It is the tenders being lowered as we are not anchored in a deep sea port so anyone going ashore will need to use the tenders. Anyone in wheelchairs or motorised scooters who can't get themselves in and out of their mobility aid are not able to access the tenders, so looks like I will be surrounded by all the lame ducks today as I don't intend going ashore. LOL! Julie has a coach tour booked so she's got an early start to the day. There is a motor bike race being held here today so I have no interest in attempting to deal with crowds everywhere. The sun is shining though and no hint of rain or cold so that's a good start to the day.

After breakfast in the cabin I head to the library and grab another book and then it's morning trivia session. Once again I continue to be amazed at the trivia I don't know. Time for a read of my book in a sunny spot. Thankfully it is fairly easy to get a seat away from the main line areas where large numbers of people are waiting for their ticket number to be called for the next tender. typically there are a few complaining loudly that they have to wait. Maybe I could assist by pushing them overboard and they can swim to shore if they think they are so special that they have to be first! There's always this in the crowd that you know are going to demand attention for the get go. I have my mocha coffee and a book so I'm sorted for the morning. Julie is the back from her coach tour around Phillip Island, which of course isn't an island. Time for lunch. As we are deemed to be in a port, the International dining room isn't open so the only choices for a meal are the petri dish buffet or pizza and burgers. We opt for pizza. Cant remember when I last ate so much pizza but it really is very good and cooked fresh in front of you. Julie tries to get me to have one of the special icecream desserts but I'm able to fend off her badgering. I see a friend from Rotary and his wife who got on the ship yesterday. They are heading to the buffet for their lunch and are doing the penguin tour tonight so we have agreed to try and catch up tomorrow. I head to the afternoon quiz and ptove that I know even less than I did this morning. Julie tracks me down and we decide an afternoon cocktail would be nice and then head back to the cabin to watch a movie. Taken 3. Have seen it before but it fills the time. Then off to dinner. Entree was a disappointment. I was expecting prawns in a seaweed butter similar to how the garlic prawns were served. What I got was a little pot off green glug with tiny prawns scattered through it. A sliver of garlic bread sat on top of the pot.Suffice to say I didn't eat much. Main however was much better, crumbed chicken and vegetables.

No dessert for me but Julie had a small vanilla slice. I'm not interested in the main show so instead we head to the library area and work in a jigsaw for a while. Time for karaoke wand we now have some new 'talent' from those who got on in Melbourne. K from A and Tony are the regulars and now Rob the rocker keeps getting up to singing Eric Clapton stuff. I reckon I'm coming down with a head cold due to the Air conditioning in the ship, but his singing is doing my head in, so time for me to head back to the cabin. Julie is starting to cough too so we both order got water, lemon and honey and hope it does its magic overnight. Our last day tomorrow so need to get my head around packing and settling the onboard about. The invoices they send us are not in the least self explanatory and I've already been to guest services twice to get them to explain it to me without success. my account is showing amongst amount , but apparently that means I'm in credit! Go figure. Lights out, and I'll get it sorted tomorrow.

Melbourne...again

Back in Melbourne and it's cloudy but that's no surprise for this city.

We all have to be off the ship by 9.30 so Julie and I finally head to the International dining room for breakfast as we weren't able to have it in our cabin. There's a good reason we don't go to the Dining room each morning. The choice is limited and no say in who you have to sit with. I know I'm just a girl from a blue collar working class family from Blair Athol, but I do have good table manners and unfortunately many of our travel companions have clearly dragged themselves up in a cave! Now time to get off the ship so I queue with the great unwashed to board a shuttle to DFO which is like Adelaide's Harbour Town but under one roof on 3 levels. Julie has gone to catch up with family so I wander about the centre but there is nothing that takes my eye so it's time to stop for a cuppa and then time to wander again until I'm feeling a bit peckish and have a tuna subway for lunch. A bit more wandering but then I've really had enough so head back to the meeting point for the shuttle buses. We have been allocated times for our return buses but I can't cope with another hour plus, so am lucky enough to get a shuttle straight away. Thankfully it was a seamless entry back onto the ship.

Our cabins aren't ready yet but the public lounge areas are so, I am very happy to score a seat in the Good Spirits bar and order myself a Dirty Banana which is like a chocolate banana smoothie but with alcohol.

Julie arrives back on board and we are able to go to our cabins. The sun is out and it is actually quite warm out on the balcony. We decide we will have a few nibbles before dinner so I order a cheese plate which hits the spot nicely. Oh and we ordered wine too.

We start watching a movie 'Desperation Road'. The movies and TV series offered are pretty dated and nothing has particularly interested us to date. I keep telling Julie that the movie we are watching is not likely to have a happy ending but she won't have it so it will prove interesting who is right. We start heading out from Port about 6ish. We aren't going very fast and clearly don't have far to go as we are in Phillip Island in the morning We have booked to have dinner in one of the 2 specially restaurants and so head off to Sabatinis Italian restaurant. the ship has 2 speciality restaurants. You have to book for them and they are an extra $68 per person each. As soon as we were seated we were offered a glass of sparkling wine but as we had already started drinking wine we chose not to mix varieties and so stick with our preferred wines. The food was excellent and so much of it.

We are given complimentary Aranci balls and cheesy garlic rolls while we decide what we want for the next 4 courses.

We both start with the salad which is light and we are both feeling good that we've chosen something that isn't too filling. By the end of the meal we can't say the same thing.

Being a seafood lover I have the grilled prawns which were excellent followed by the seafood linguine. I did leave some of the pasta but made sure I ate all the seafood first. We asked our lovely waist Joseph to give us 15 minutes before the next course. Thank goodness I was wearing elastic waisted trousers.

The veal scallopine was my final choice and it was a huge meal so I could only manage one piece of the meat.

We were then presented with a desserts menu and Joseph suggested that we try the combination of all the options to share, so that's what we did. The desserts were our least favourite and we really only had a teaspoon or 2 at most from each. To finish the dinner on a high though we had cocktails.

We are officially stuffed! Time to head to karaoke as the other option is to go to the theatre where a comedian is performing but assuming he is of the same calibre as the other acts I've seen to date, I'm happier watching amateurs sing. Then it's time to head back to the cabin to watch the end of the movie which has a happier ending than I saw coming. Time for bed.