OzKiwiJJ

Look for hotels that don't require a deposit for the booking. We often book hotels months before our trips. With Singapore try to get a hotel fairly close to an MRT station. That way you'll find it very easy to get around without having to walk a long wat in the steamy heat.

I must try it one day. Our Woolies reorganised their store recently and I'm still trying to work out where all the good cheeses are. Instead of having them in one place they now have a specialist cheese area with really expensive cheeses, the standard block and sliced cheese display, and the rest are on the ends of the prepared meals displays, so these day we tend to go to Harris Farm Markets for cheeses but I don't think I've seen Maasdam there.

I'd never heard of Massdam cheese but my comment about Emmentaler of the Seas was closer to the mark than I realised since Maasdam cheese was created to compete with Emmentaler

True but isn't it heritage listed? It does need some refurbishment, especially now the Tassie ferry no longer operates from there. What really annoys me about Station Pier is: a) the long walk from the carpark. Most of it is undercover, just, but on a freezing cold day with howling winds that cover is next to useless. b) you get to the terminal, go up the escalators, then have to walk all the way through the terminal to the exit onto the upper side, then walk all the way back to the gangway which is just outside where the escalators come up. And on one cruise we had an aft cabin that was directly across from the exit doors so we had to walk to midships then back to the exit doors. That was the time we were stuck there for three days due to bad weather!

There has to be more to it than that! 🤔 BTW Sydney port fees are $40.65 plus GST.

It doesn't look like any ships will be using Station Pier in 2025/6. That's very strange.

So none of the Carnival Corp ships will be homeporting there?

It can't be a Maasdam, it must be an Edam but it's a bit too holey for that. Emmentaler of the Seas perhaps?

I stopped regarding them as phones years ago. Especially since they have so much more computing power than the mainframes, mini-computers, micro-computers and Unix servers that I used to work with way back. The phone is just another app these days. I have a curious mind so I love the ability to look up things on the fly. However we've banned phones in our bedroom so sometimes late at night when I'm having difficulty sleeping I miss being able to check things that pop up in books I'm reading.

People weren't glued to their TV screens when I was a kid. In fact TV only came to NZ around 1960. I was a fairly good crib player by then even though I was quite young.

I'm not sure I'd trust a Sky News article. 🤣 That's really quite a trivial amount per person. I'm sure there are much higher port charges at many other ports around the world. However it would depend on how much notice Melbourne Ports gave the cruise lines. Too little notice would hit hard with cruise lines recovering from the pandemic shutdown.

I haven't played crib in years but I used to enjoy playing it.

We didn't win the Powerball! 😪

Yes, that does seem a little strange. I do know that although markets on some of the smaller Pacific island will accept AUD they are so grateful when you offer to pay in the local currency. It can be hard for them to get currencies changed and it costs them quite a bit. One guy on one of the PNG island was pleading to people passing by to change a AUD $5 to Kina. We had a bit of extra cash so I changed it for him. He was so thankful.

Cruise lines just pass the port charges onto the passengers so I doubt that is the reason. I recall reading something somewhere a month or so ago about upgrades to the cruise terminal being delayed. I don't think there were details about what the upgrades entailed but if they were significant it may mean the port couldn't be used for embarkations and disembarkations due to the amount of space needed for those, but day visits would still be possible as long as passengers could get off Station Pier safely.

The table is beautiful but the crib board is just stunning. I wish my late father could have seen it. He loved playing crib.

There is a Japanese restaurant at Macquarie Centre in Sydney, Umaya, that has this amazing scallop and salmon ceviche dish in a wonderful citrusy dressing. We go the for lunch sometimes and always order this. Next time you're in Sydney take a wander across the harbour bridge and try it.

Now that's a good idea - double crispy skin! Rolf doesn't like the skin either. I must try your technique. 😁

When I cook salmon at home I cook it very rare but also enjoy it cooked through.

The person asking about this is only bringing credit cards which immediately charge interest on cash withdrawals. They aren't bringing debit cards so ATM withdrawals aren't recommended. They were asking about banks, presumably where they could exchange currency. That's why I suggested the ForEx place. We used it to get some Yen and USD for our Japan trip.

That guy is so high energy, he makes me feel exhausted just watching him. 🤣 He puts on a great show though.

In Sydney there is a foreign exchange place in George St, near Wynyard Station - City Forex. You should be able to get both AUD and NZD there.

I think only Elites could book dining before final payment in the past.

Ditto. I miss our cat who passed away in 2022 but it has made travel easier.

I think sometimes they get short supplied by the laundry on embarkation day, or just forget to put them out in the rush to turn the cabins over. I vaguely recall noticing they were missing on one cruise but our steward brought us some very quickly. I think it's only happened once in 15 or so Princess cruises.