aussielozzie18

I’ve pretty much given you all the info you need to know about Eden but I just found my photos from the info session in the Princess Theatre. It was well attended, then emptied out for the American historian who followed The only negative in my mind was that he gave us info about the local golf course - specifically a photo of a mob of kangaroos that are seen there. I can just imagine a group of overseas tourists standing in the middle of the course trying to get selfies….not good.

Ok, you are probably thinking why did I go see this? I did a 14 day cruise to PNG and there were a series of talks on board by an Australian war historian and he was fascinating. Unfortunately, this Gentleman was an American historian and his perspective was entirely from an American perspective and Australia barely got a look in apart from a couple mention of Allies. Only a handful of people attended this one.

Last night we all saw comedian Simon McKinney. He is into doing voices and impersonating people from different countries. Of the three us, the two females found him very funny. The husband thought he was awful.

Shows - I haven’t seen many. This is a R & R cruise so I have been catching up on my sleep. First night - my dining companions went to theLady Gaga Show. They enjoyed it. It was a mix of Jazz & Gaga sings with the Princess performer stronger on the Jazz. They went to the Karioke after and had a ball.

I’ve got a tonne of photos of the Horizon Buffet but I’ll post those once I am home & give my thoughts & specific cabin number when I get home too.

Sorry for the spelling mistakes, I do know how to spell but I am doing this report on my phone..,

The couple I sat next to (also Princess newbies) showed me the tables are bolted to the floor so even if you want a little conversational privacy it’s not an option.

I want to go back 😀

Right now I should be at my third & final dinner at the MDR but despite great company on Night 2, I can’t face another meal there. entree - vol au vent (ok but bland) Main breaded roast snitzel (dry & not worth eating- just ate the accompaniments) Dessert was pavlova (it was ok but the one I make is better) The couple I was sitting next two also thought the food in the MDR had been meh and one of their mains was unfinishable too. The waiter did offer replacements but neither of us were keen. This 2nd night I was seated on the other side of the restaurant and the Jamacian waiter was excellent.

Because I am a newbie and AFT I frequently got lost initially so I noticed peoples cabin doors…, Mum had a notice board with msgs & jokes.

Today

Here is day 1

I requested a physical copy of the Princess event listing via the app. That I received.

Ok. Going to keep going til the 4G dies… So, back to first night on board. Discovered my balcony has no cover and can be seen from those on the walking track above. Thankfully I didn’t plan to dance naked on the balcony and since I am not with DH no marital activity was planned so privacy wasn’t an issue but it did mean I needed an umbrella as we sailed out of Sydney in the rain and I have no couch in the cabin, so I brought in one of the deck chairs but even though I wiped it down, I still got a drenched pants when I sat down. See, overpacking is designed for these moments…. Dinner Dine my way at 5.20pm. Yes, kiddie hour. One of the limits of a late booking. I booked all 3 nights at the same time. I don’t actually mind eating early so it wasn’t a big deal. And the restaurant was only 50% occupied. Requested table for one. No problemo. Although it’s not really a private table for two when they are spaced ONE INCH apart from each other. So first night, I was on table if two but seated solo with an empty table of two TWO INCHES next to me and a very quiet couple on the other private table of two TWOINCHES away from the middle table. The waiters were perfunctory and the food was meh. Entree was the roasted pineapple honeydew (meh) Main was cafeteria level Dessert was nice but the chocolate on top was bitter. Dessert drink was awful. Didn’t finish. Monte Choco bad choice for $15.50.

Very very lucky! No idea re the blog - just info from the info session. Would love to drive down and do a day walk here with DH.

Info session staff member said he had done it 4 times and seen whales every time. Yep upstairs outdoor seats were where I sat.

Came back on board and the pool was finally full of cruisers. Pools and some of the spas were netted off due to the weather on the trip down. Below photos taken on boarding day Sydney. .

You boarded the boat only a few steps from the visitors centre. I booked this as soon as I realised Eden is known for Whales. It was fully booked and we had 55 on board but once on board there was plenty of space for everyone. I picked upstairs outside behind where the Captain sits because I knew it would act as a windbreaker which it did. It was absolutely glorious on the water as we cruised right by the Coral Princess and within 10 mins on the water we saw our first mother & calf. The first of many. We saw approx 8 separate pairs of mother & her calf. Tail flips, two amazing full body breaches and beautiful scenery (last photo doesn’t do it justice). It did get a bit bouncy but I don’t think anyone got seasick, certainly not upstairs. it got breezy, I was glad for my two jackets one with a hood, at our furthest point. They served tea & coffee, biscuits, cheese & crackers after we had our fill of whale sightings. . Back at the wharf at 2pm. It was an amazing whale watching experience. Worth every cent. Highly recommend.

So got back to the ship and being a port day the entire crew were doing an emergency drill. That was a bit daunting at first and I completely lost my sense of direction, walked the entire way forward on my deck when my cabin is only a few cabins from the rear. Sigh. Thankfully still had plenty of time to join tour.

Thank you. Beach looked really nice. Haven’t been able to do walking laps on the outside deck since we left Sydney due to weather, so it was nice to stretch the legs outdoors this morning.

Hmmm.. More lookouts on the way back to the ship.

Across the road from the beach is a cemetery and further is a sporting field which has a boardwalk behind it around the lake.

From the town centre, I knew there was a walk to Aisling Beach with a kind of boardwalk (again from info session). So followed my nose. The walk was all downhill and lots of lookouts along the way although it only took about 10mins. Saw a local go for a swim. Afterwards asked him how the water temp was “Chilly!”

Horn has just blown. The Coral Princess is about to sail away from Eden back to Sydney. To be continued….