Day 34, Fjordlands National Park – Milford Sound

Day 34, 7 Feb — Fiordland National Park

Today was different than our typical sea day as we would spend almost all the daylight hours cruising thru the scenic Fiordland National Park in New Zealand.  The casino was closed and many of the other activities such as Tai Chi and Crafts were not scheduled.

The bow was open all day and the other viewing spots were busy with observers.  It was quite chilly and windy in the morning and I only spent a few minutes out on the bow.  The observation deck on Deck 6 forward was a little nicer and I spent some time there taking in the sights as we cruised Dusty Sound.

Early in the day

Fiordland rolls, juice and coffee were available in most of the viewing stations until 9 AM and in the atrium on Deck 3, right off the lower promenade deck.  I assumed that Fiordland rolls were Panama Canal rolls by a different name, but as you can see by the picture, they have a distinctive appearance and used a kiwi fruit filling.  They were quite tasty.  We left Dusty Sound around 10 AM, entering Doubtful Sound around 11:15 AM.

Rolls and Juice on Deck 3

Fiordland Rolls

Even though many other events were not scheduled today, Ben held his drawing class on schedule and continued his discussion on drawing perspective.

Ben teaching perspective

An hour later we departed Doubtful Sound and cruised along the New Zealand coast until around 3:15 PM when we entered Milford Sound.  Milford Sound has the most interesting scenery with plenty of waterfalls and wildlife.  Some people spotted some dolphins, but I didn’t spot any.

The Norwegian Jewel, the ship that was in Dunedin yesterday along with us, was already deep in Milford Sound and we spotted her off in the distance.  She would pass us as we were heading in and she was on the way out.

While we were in Milford Sound, the sun came out and the weather warmed.  A little after 3 PM, waiters appeared on all open decks passing out small cups of Dutch Pea Soup.  No one was quite sure about the tie-in between Milford Sound and Dutch Pea Soup – and I guess there doesn’t need to be one, as it was quite tasty and a nice treat on a cool day.

Passing our Pea Soup

High Winds

It wasn’t obvious at the time, but we had a tail wind as we sailed into Milford Sound.  Once we turned around at the end of Milford Sound, the tail wind became a headwind and the once comfortable open decks became chilly and quite breezy.  We were sitting by the Lido Pool when the wind kicked up and the nearby umbrellas went airborne and flew over the chairs and crashed into the bar.  Fortunately, no one was nearby and the alert staff quickly gained control of the umbrellas and held them in place until they could close the dome.

Knitting under the dome

For dinner I enjoyed the Seafood Curry while Judy ordered the Penne Pasta with Italian Sausage.  At her request, the galley was able to substitute Marinara sauce for the Pesto sauce.  If something is not the way you prefer, it never hurts to ask for a modification.  Sometimes they can accommodate your request and sometimes they can’t, but it is always worth asking the question.

Queen’s Lounge

In the Queens Lounge – Violinist Fiona Pears was the headliner.  She put on a marvelous show and wowed the crowd with her skill and enthusiasm.  The daily “When and Where” didn’t mention she played the violin and I assumed she was a vocalist.  There is a perception, probably accurately based on experience, that when certain instruments are explicitly mentioned, the showroom attendance is down, so they tend to leave out those details when describing the some of the acts.  We are now conditioned that if the nature of the show is not specifically mentioned, it is probably a flute, violin or accordion player.  We go to the shows regardless as we enjoy them all and seeing so much quality live entertainment is one of the best parts of any Holland America Cruise and world cruises in particular.