Bill and Pat's 2014 World Cruise: April 2014

Monday, April 28, 2014

Monday, February 17th—Cairns, Australia—Our 44th Cruise Day

Monday, February 17^th—Cairns, Australia—Our 44^th Cruise Day

After passing the Whitsunday Islands on Sunday, February 16^th, we reached Trinity Wharf in Cairns, Australia about 7:00 AM on Monday, February 17^th. Like Brisbane, we would have just 1 day in Cairns—with “all aboard” at 7:00 PM the same day—a little later than usual.

During our 2012 world cruise, we visited Cairns for the first time, and we took a ship tour out to the Reef Magic pontoon on the Great Barrier Reef. On that trip, Bill took two SCUBA dives—one from the pontoon, and one from a boat—while Pat enjoyed the glass bottom boat and the semi-submersible submarine tours and generally just enjoyed the pontoon’s sun deck. And that trip was so enjoyable, we decided to do it again!

This excursion was a bit unusual in that a shuttle boat tendered right onto the Amsterdam and we boarded the shuttle boat just like we would a tender. This was the only time during our entire voyage that a tour boat came right out to our ship. The trip out to Reef Magic took a little over an hour and it was a bit bumpy. Although no one got sick (that we know about!) passengers were taking seasick pills and wearing patches. And on the trip out, Bill signed up for another two SCUBA dives.

The Reef Magic pontoon is especially nice for Bill because getting in and out of the water with full SCUBA gear is not easy. The pontoon has a staircase with handrails leading into the water which makes entry/exit very easy. So for his first SCUBA dive, Bill was in a group of 6 divers (His partner was Joe Lobbato) and the group was led by Divemaster Amber. During our cruise, passengers on our ship formed a SCUBA dive club with regular meetings, and Bill was the recording secretary responsible for the newsletter. So on this dive at the Marine World Lagoon, Bill knew and was friends with all of the divers in the group.

On the trip out to the pontoon, divers were advised to wear a “stinger suit”—a thin one piece suit for protection from jellyfish stings. But though he tried, Bill couldn’t find a suit that fit properly and decided to dive without one. He was the only diver without a stinger suit, and he hoped for the best that he wouldn’t have any serious jellyfish encounters. (It is extremely unusual—but not impossible—for the deadly Australian “Box Jellyfish” to occur as far out as we were on the Great Barrier Reef. But Bill felt he was safer without a suit rather than wear one that didn’t fit.)

As in 2012, the dive off the pontoon was great! We went into the water about 11:00 AM, visibility was about 8 meters, we descended to a depth of 10 meters, and were down for about 45 minutes. While diving we saw the local Maori Wrasse nicknamed “Wally”, a green sea turtle eating a jellyfish, and lots of small fish and brightly colored coral. And there was an underwater photographer taking photos of divers with Wally.

Back on the surface, Bill and Pat met up for a wonderful buffet lunch—which included “all you could eat” fresh prawns. But the real surprise of the day was that while Bill went SCUBA diving, Pat went snorkeling!!! This may not seem like a big deal, but it was. Pat is very uncomfortable in the water (she is not a strong swimmer), and to her, deliberately putting her face in the water—even with a dive mask on—is very unnatural. For years her excuse has been that she wouldn’t be able to see anything while snorkeling because she couldn’t wear her glasses under her mask. But that excuse wouldn’t work this time, because Reef Magic had prescription lens masks. And it also helped that our friends, Jacob and Margaret George, were with us on this trip and Margaret wanted to go snorkeling—even though she had never snorkeled before. So this situation was an aligning of the planets—Pat had a prescription lens mask, she had an enthusiastic and encouraging “dive buddy” who was also new to snorkeling, and Bill was not around to goad her into doing more than she wanted to do.

So Pat did a brief guided snorkel, holding onto a floatation ring the whole time and occasionally putting her face and mask into the water and breathing through her snorkel tube. She even got a good view of Wally! I’m not sure one could say she enjoyed the experience—she claims she was terrified the whole time—but after she was safely back on the pontoon, I think she was glad she did it. But don’t look for Pat to go snorkeling again anytime soon!

After lunch and about 2 hours on the surface for decompression, Bill boarded a boat for his second SCUBA dive. The boat took the same group of 6 divers, along with Amber, a short distance away from the pontoon to “Pressure Point.” We entered the water using the “big step” technique (i.e. gearing up and taking a big step off the side of the dive boat) and descended to a maximum of 18.7 meters. The water visibility was better than at the lagoon—about 15 meters—and the highlights of what we saw included Clown Trigger Fish, Giant Clams with violet colored mantles, and of course numerous small fish and brightly colored coral. On the first dive, Bill had plenty of air left when we returned to the surface, but this time—after 30 minutes—he was running low on air. This situation is always awkward—no one wants to end a dive for the whole group because they are the first one to run out of air while others have plenty. Fortunately, Amber saw Bill safely to the surface (after a short decompression stop), Bill gave her the “OK” sign, and she then descended back with the others while Bill swam back to the dive boat on the surface.

For an older, overweight diver like Bill, getting out of the water and back into the boat after a dive can be a concern—especially if the bottom rung of the ladder is up near the surface of the water. It may seem a bit crazy, but that is Bill’s number 1 concern about SCUBA diving—being able to get back into the boat. The saying “Don’t get into the water if you can’t get out” is good advice. Fortunately this dive boat had a ladder with the bottom rung well down into the water, so Bill was able to hand his weight belt, buoyancy control (BC) vest with tank, and fins to a person onboard and getting back onboard was no problem.

Within 10 minutes, the others in the group returned to the dive boat, which soon returned to the pontoon. Back onboard the pontoon, we rinsed ourselves and equipment with fresh water, and returned the equipment we had borrowed. Then it was time for the shuttle boat to return us to the m/s Amsterdam. (Earlier we may have indicated that the designation “m/s” referred to “marine ship.” That is not correct—“m/s” refers to “motor ship.”) On the trip back, we filled out our dive logs, purchased any photos or souvenirs we were interested in, and enjoyed an “adult beverage”—or two!

We were back onboard the Amsterdam before 4:00 PM, and all aboard wasn’t until 7:00 PM, so our day in Cairns was not over. After a quick return to our room to change clothes, we met up with Jacob and Margret George at the gangway portside. We were looking for a good Indian restaurant in Cairns for dinner, and since Jacob was born in India, we had an expert with us. Jacob and Margaret were with us on our 2012 world cruise and they remembered a good place to eat in Cairns from that time, so we walked out of the cruise ship terminal and onto “The Esplanade” to the restaurant they remembered. Unfortunately that restaurant was closed, but we got some advice on another good Indian restaurant, and headed off further down The Esplanade in that direction. After walking a few blocks, we didn’t find the recommended place, but we did find the Royal India restaurant which was right on The Esplanade. Bill, Pat, and Margaret decided to wait at the Royal India while Jacob made a brief reconnaissance search for the other restaurant—returning when he was unable to locate it. And it was just as well—we were able to get a wonderful table on the outdoor patio overlooking The Esplanade and The Lagoon. [NOTE: “The Lagoon” is an enclosed area for public swimming—away from deadly sharks, Box Jellyfish, and other unpleasant creatures of the sea which abound in the warm waters around Cairns!] The food at the Royal India was wonderful! Jacob ordered for all of us, and a variety of dishes were served with varying degrees of spiciness. We have always liked Indian food—we have a favorite Indian restaurant in Seattle—and the food at the Royal India was some of the best we have ever had.

After dinner, we had a few minutes left, and we decided to make a wine run since this was the last chance we would have to purchase Australian wine. We left Jacob and Margaret at the Royal India and walked up Aplin Street to Abbott Street—ironically, we saw the Indian restaurant Jacob had been looking for on Alpin Street!—and then down Abbott Street to a Woolworths store that sold wine during our 2012 trip. As Pat went into Woolworths in pursuit of her quest, Bill realized that time was getting very short (we had about 15 minutes before “all aboard”) and secured a taxi. The taxi driver pointed out that there was a shop that sold “grog” (wine) right on Abbott Street that we had missed, while the grog at Woolworths was all the way to the back of this huge store—which went through to the Lake Street—the next street up.

But Bill was able to catch Pat, we bought our grog on Abbott Street and jumped into the taxi. But we still weren’t quite done—Pat wanted to mail some postcards before we left Australia! So as Bill is watching his watch and muttering “We’re gonna miss the boat! We’re gonna miss the boat”, Pat directed the taxi driver to take us to the nearest post box where we could drop off the post cards.

Of course we did make our ship, but we were probably the last ones onboard. By this time, we were tired, and since the sail away party was in the Crow’s Nest (Deck 9) rather than the Lido Deck aft, we decided to skip the party and relax in our room before bed.

Our ship departed from Trinity Wharf and Cairns about 7:30 PM and this was our farewell to Australia—for now at least. We would have just 1 sea day before our next port of call—Alotau, Papua New Guinea, arriving at 8:00 AM on Wednesday, February 19^th. Our original schedule had us arriving at Lae, Papua New Guinea, on February 20^th, but after we had left Ft. Lauderdale, the powers that be in Seattle changed our first stop in Papua New Guinea to Alotau, arriving a day earlier.

Monday February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Map of Cairns.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Sailing towards Trinity Wharf and the port of Cairns. Bill wishes one of those sailboats was his!

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Business card for Reef Magic-showing the "Marine World" pontoon and a small part of the Great Barrier Reef.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Reef Magic's "Marine World" pontoon on the Great Barrier Reef. Photo from the shuttle boat that took us out there.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--The Reef Magic shuttle boat is about to tie up to the pontoon on the Great Barrier Reef. The gangway can be seen in blue at center.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Bill is all geared up for his first SCUBA dive--the Reef Magic lagoon on the Great Barrier Reef.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Bill SCUBA diving with "Wally"--a Morai Wrasse--at the Reef Magic Lagoon.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Dive and Snorkel Tender boat (NOT the blue/green dinghy in the foreground) tied up to the Reef Magic pontoon This boat took us out on our second SCUBA dive.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Dive log for the two SCUBA dives Bill took with Reef Magic.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Onboard the shuttle boat returning us from the Reef Magic pontoon to the Amsterdam. Bill and SCUBA Dive Master Amber--who took our dive group out on two SCUBA dives.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Onboard the shuttle boat returning us from the Reef Magic pontoon to the Amsterdam. Looking at the town and port of Cairns.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Onboard the shuttle boat returning us from the Reef Magic pontoon to the Amsterdam. View of the port of Cairns.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Shuttle boat tied up to the Amsterdam after taking us back from the Reef Magic pontoon. Photo from our veranda.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Menu for the Royal India Restaurant where we had dinner with Jacob and Margaret George.

Monday, February 17th--Cairns, Australia--Looking back at Cairns as we sail away. The bright spots on the photo are caused by the camera flash reflecting off raindrops.

Sunday, February 16th—The Whitsunday Islands, Our 43rd Cruise Day.

Sunday, February 16^th—The Whitsunday Islands, Our 43^rd Cruise Day.

We departed Brisbane, Australia at about 6:00 PM, and after 2 sea days, our next port of call would be Cairns, Australia, arriving about 7:00 AM on Monday, February 17^th. But before we arrived in Cairns, a treat was in store—passing by and near to the Whitsunday Islands on our journey north. These islands are between The Great Barrier Reef and the continent of Australia, so as we headed north, they were on the port (or “left”) side of our ship—and we could see them easily from our balcony.

According to Wikipedia:

“The term “Whitsunday Islands” is a misnomer, based on Captain Cook’s naming of what is now known as the Whitsunday Passage (in Cook’s Journal, Whitsunday’s Passage) in the belief that the passage was discovered on Whitsunday—the Sunday of the feast of Whitsun or Pentecost in the Christian liturgical year—observed 7 weeks after Easter. As the International Date Line had not been established it was actually Whit-Monday.

Contention has existed as to exactly what islands are within the informally named Whitsunday Islands, in particular as to the southern extremity and the inclusions to the west. What is certain is that they lie within the chain named Cumberland Isles by Captain Cook (now officially approved as the Cumberland Islands) and a reasonably defined section of that chain and surrounding waters have become known world-wide as The Whitsundays based on a contraction of the Whitsunday Islands designation.

The Whitsunday islands are a popular tourist destination for travelers to Queensland and the Great Barrier Reef, with the area being one of the most popular yachting destinations in the Southern Hemisphere. The islands received about 700,000 visitors between March 2008 and March 2009.”

Traveling north we had some great views of the islands and they broke up our journey north to Cairns—where we would arrive the next day.

Sunday, February 16th--Sailing north through the Coral Sea--Map of the Whitsunday Islands.

Sunday, February 16th--Sailing north through the Coral Sea--The Whitsunday Islands. From our veranda.

Sunday, February 16th--Sailing north through the Coral Sea--The Whitsunday Islands. Looking back from our veranda.

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Friday, February 14th—Our 41st Cruise Day—Brisbane, Australia

Friday, February 14^th—Our 41^st Cruise Day—Brisbane, Australia

We departed Sydney, Australia, about 6:00 PM on Wednesday, February 12^th and had just 1 sea day, before our next port of call—Brisbane, Australia. We would have just 1 day in Brisbane—arriving at 8:00 AM on February 14^th (Valentine’s Day) with “all aboard” at 5:30 PM the same day.

Brisbane is not on the coast of Australia, but rather lies about 20 miles inland and up the Brisbane River—which flows into Moreton Bay and eventually the Coral Sea in the South Pacific Ocean. So for our entry into Brisbane, we followed a pilot boat slowly up river until we reached the Brett’s Wharf Cruise Ship Terminal. At Brett’s Wharf we were docked—which is always more convenient than taking a tender.

We had been to Brisbane just once before—a very brief visit during a 2 week school vacation in 1974—40 years ago—and we remembered almost nothing about the city from that visit. On that trip, we started from our home in Morwell, Victoria and drove along the coast through Sydney, finally reaching Brisbane after many days of driving. We had vastly underestimated how far it was and how long it would take us to get there, and eventually we decided just reaching Brisbane was a goal unto itself. So when we arrived, we spent just an hour or two in the city before retracing our steps back to Morwell for the start of the next school term. In that case, our vacation was the journey—not the destination!

This time we were very fortunate because we had two friends—both of whom we met during our 2012 world cruise--who lived in Brisbane and had some time to spend with us to show off their beautiful city and the surrounding area. Our plan was to spend the morning—until about noon—with Colin and Elaine Rose, who would take us to some sites around the city and then back to their home for morning tea. Afterwards, Colin and Elaine would drop us off in the city where we would meet with Jo Pofandt—one of the sisters who so kindly had taken us to the Blue Mountains during our second day in Sydney. (Jo had flown back home to Brisbane after meeting with us in Sydney.) Jo would then take us out of the city to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and afterwards, return us to our ship. So once again, we were doing this port on our own and not on a ship tour.

Colin and Elaine picked us up at Brett’s Wharf about 8:30 AM, and we immediately took a drive to a Wellington Point Park on Moreton Bay—east of the city center of Brisbane. The day was overcast, so we didn’t have tremendous views, but Colin and Elaine were great about pointing out some of the interesting sites across the water. Afterwards, we drove to their beautiful waterfront home in Wynnum which is on Moreton Bay near the mouth of the Brisbane River for tea and fruitcake. It was so much fun catching up with them! Colin and Elaine were on our afternoon trivia team during our 2012 world cruise (See our 2012 blog!) and are among our most valued friends. Both have a great sense of humor, so we all fit together very, very well and hopefully we will see each other again soon.

After our visit to their home, they took us west on a drive up to the top of Mt. Coot-tha for some spectacular views of Brisbane. Again, it was a bit overcast, but we still had some great views of the City of Brisbane and its surroundings. Colin and Elaine then dropped us off in the center of the city about noon—they had a wedding to attend that afternoon, and needed some time to get ready.

We had made arrangements to meet with Jo in the city about 12:30 PM, so we had a few minutes and found a pub in the city for a sandwich and a couple of quick beers. As planned, Jo picked us up and we drove for about 30 minutes southwest to Fig Tree Pocket where we reached the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (the world’s largest Koala Sanctuary) on the Brisbane River between Kenmore and Annerly. Even though we had lived in Australia for almost 5 years, and even though we lived where Koalas were not uncommon, we had never actually held a Koala. So this sanctuary was our chance.

The sanctuary actually has much, much more than just Koalas. Inside we were able to see koalas, Tasmanian Devils, Cassowaries, Kangaroos (which we fed), crocodiles, emus, wombats, platypuses, small, 2 foot lizards that seemed to be freely running around everywhere and more. But the highlight was holding a Koala and having our picture taken. Koalas are surprisingly heavy, and before holding them, we received instructions. To hold a Koala, one must intertwine your fingers and hold them at your waist. When placed into the cradle made by your fingers, the Koala will grip onto your chest with its forearms, and there is your photo opportunity! Koalas really aren’t very “cuddly”, but they are cute and the ones that are habituated to humans will not bite or claw when picked up—which is what wild Koalas would do.

After visiting the animals in the sanctuary, we took a moment to walk down to river to relax and enjoy the day. The beauty of gum (eucalyptus) trees on a river bank reminded us so much of our farm house and the Morwell River in Driffield where we once lived. That was a favorite time in our lives, and it was a treat to be in this similar setting.

We left the sanctuary about 3:30-4:00 PM, and drove back to the City of Brisbane—we didn’t want to have to rush to make our ship. But as we got near the ship, we realized we had time for a very important stop—a Dan Murphy discount wine and liquor store. We love Australian wine, and really enjoy a glass of wine (or two!) in the evening on our veranda before bed. Since our next stops after Australia would be Papua-New Guinea, Yap Island, The Philippines, China, and Thailand, clearly the best place to stock up on wine and other spirits would be Australia. Fortunately our ship will allow us to bring on-board all the wine and alcohol we can carry, so stock up we did! (In fact, Bill is enjoying a glass of that same Australian wine as he types this!)

After another wrong turn getting back to the ship--similar to what we did going back on the second day in Sydney—Jo dropped us off near the gangway at about 5:15 PM—with 15 minutes to spare! We thanked Jo and said our goodbyes to her, went to our room to drop off our wine purchases, and then went up to deck 8—the Lido Deck—for the sail away party. This night was a “Formal Night”—meaning we were expected to dress in formal attire—followed by a Valentine’s Day Ball. But we really don’t know how to dance very well and were tired, so we skipped the formal night and ball and enjoyed a glass of the Australian wine we had just purchased in our room.

We departed Brett’s Wharf and Brisbane about 6:00 PM and had a beautiful sail down the Brisbane River with a gorgeous sunset over the city as we left. We entered Moreton Bay and continued east into the Coral Sea where we turned left and headed north. We would have two full sea days before our next port of call—Cairns, Australia arriving at 7:00 AM on Monday, February 17^th.