Colorful hues started to appear on the horizon as the time for the sun to appear came closer while the higher overcast of distant clouds set the stage for a beautiful sunrise. Pleasant, pre-dawn cool weather would soon be replaced by intense heat and higher humidity...
TOWNSVILLE - The Friendliest town in Queensland! – (and possibly the entire country!) The approach to Townsville is straight in and doesn’t require much maneuvering, unlike some other harbors. Once inside the harbor, and quite close to the pier, we begin to spin 180...
The Great Barrier Reef lies about 150 feet below our keel and is not visible from the surface at the moment, but per the Captain there is some interaction with the surface waves off in the distance. Walking on the promenade deck around 7AM this morning was pleasant,...
Overcast skies greeted us this morning, but there were a few blue spots peeking thru holes here and there. Water temperature is quite warm at 82 degrees F and with the humidity increasing you can tell we are starting to approach the tropics. The sea was churning...
The Australian coast lies about 20 miles off our port side as we sail north towards our next port. We need to stay at least 12 miles away so they can run the casino and open the shops. Not sure about Australian ports, but when we are in USA ports the ship will...
Exhausted from the late night on the town after the Opera, we slept in and relaxed in our cabin until noon. We had planned to take the HoHo bus in the morning, but resting seemed far more inviting and it was good to recharge our batteries. ...
6 am doesn’t sound that early when you set your alarm, but it is plenty early once it goes off and it’s time to get up and head to the bow for the spectacular views while sailing into Sydney Harbor. It was still dark when we looked outside our cabin but the horizon...
Today is Fat Tuesday and Mardi Gras decorations are starting to sprout up throughout the ship. We are also ending our first segment so we will be saying goodbye to about 150 people and say hello to about 150 more. It will be interesting to welcome the new folks and...
The glow of the predawn sun was matched by the distant lights of Melbourne as we made our way towards our first Australian port. Green channel markers were off the port side and we could start to make out the cranes, bridges and buildings of the bustling metropolis...
The seas have calmed considerably this morning. There is still some deck motion, but no longer enough to noticeably impact any activities. The net has been removed from the Lido pool and with the sun shining, the sunbathers have returned to their normal spots around...