MMDown Under

I hope you and your family members are nowhere near the stabbings. Keep safe on your travels.

I don't know. My cruise was par of a world cruise. Acapulco was the port which most impressed me. It was so different to anywhere I'd previously visited. My biggest disappointment was not going on a ship's tour to see people jump off a high cliff in to the water far below. Everyone raved about it. As a bonus, John Wayne was at the restaurant! We chose to go to local entertainment and didn't understand a word!

That would be wonderful to do that. On my first cruise overseas, our ship departed Acapulco at 4 am. I sat on the balcony, like you suggested, and watched a whole new world of bright lights take place. Happy crew disembarked to spend a night on the town, Passengers returned at all hours, prior to 4 am.

Thanks for the laugh.

Beautiful photo. You must be on right side of the ship overlooking the Opera House.

Vegemite. Also delicious French bread sticks!

Mine were delicious with a lot of whitebait, but it was a long while ago. I hadn't tasted whitebait prior to that experience. Your home made fritters sound delicious.

I've heard of whitebait fritters in NZ.

I hadn't heard of potato fritters? Is the potato grated?

What a wonderful priceless experience you are having staying with friends in the South of France. Reminds me of when our family stayed with a family in Meze in the South of France, where we swapped hospitality (meals and accommodation). It was an incredible experience!

Sounds like you are enjoying a wonderful family time with your nephew's family. Fresh eggs and veggies straight out of the garden must be a joy for a cook like you. Happy Birthday from Australia to your great nephew. Enjoy the birthday party.

I have a singlet with two small zippered pockets, one passport size, one for money, which I bought from the YHA. Caused a stir in LAX in transit when they asked me to show them the contents. Explained I couldn't as contents were in singlet. Two women took me to a room so I could show them.

Someone picks a ring up off the ground and asks if it is yours, handing it to you to see. They then won't take it back, saying it doesn't belong to them and you may as well have it for a reasonable price for gold. Of course, it is not gold! I used to ask people being scammed if they spoke English. If not, I would shake my head and finger and say "scam" hoping they would walk away. The lady where we stayed in Paris made my friend take her solid gold bracelet off with soap, saying you can't wear any jewellery. And you never stop for anyone with a petition! We were forewarned.

We enjoyed our day bus trip to Whistler also, including a ride on the chairlift (in snow must be Aussies!)

Didn't know that one! However, I knew the ring one and saw several attempts in Paris. Pays to check latest scams on internet before you travel.

Butchart gardens.

If you are planning to visit Bucharest Gardens, you might like to split your five days between Vancouver and Victoria. I have done that lots of times and prefer Victoria. Vancouver is more expensive because of cruise departures from Vancouver. Beware of less expensive accommodation in Vancouver. My friends were so disgusted with their prepaid accommodation, they checked out and lost their money and paid for a better place, which was expensive.

Yes Juneau is the Capital of Alaska so has more local Alaskans, but the tourist people leave at the end of the season. Be careful at Fiji Market if someone tries to hand you wooden craft as they won't take it back hoping you will buy it. Of course, I've met more genuine kind locals than con artists, which is a highlight of overseas travel.

If you cruise in to Alaskan ports after the end of the season,, all the tourist staff have gone home outside of Alaska.

Their Australian Customer Service is - Cruiseadmin.au@rcclapac.com Toll free number - 1800754500

$3000 excess for you and your wife seems excessive for a domestic cruise. If you did have to be evacuated, your medical in Australia would be covered.

Like many cruisers, who are frequent travellers, prior to Covid, I was happy to cruise in inside cabins. I used to choose inside cabins which were surrounded by more expensive cabins, so shared excellent staff. i was wondering how cruise lines are going to entice passengers back to inside cabins. If the ships aren't sailing full, maybe they could keep some balcony cabins to transfer Covid passengers.

But you have already paid for your meals in your cruise fare. So to compare the cost, you need to add the surcharge to what you'd pay in a restaurant in Australia.

Just checked my cruises,, and it was 2010 when I last cruised on a big ship. It had 3,000 passengers and I vowed I wouldn't cruise on a big ship again. So my more recent experience of excellent food in the MDR is on small ships. As a solo passengers I enjoy the company of fellow cruisers in the MDR.

Thank you for that valuable information. I will certainly contact Qantas when I travel overseas next. Do you know who the underwriters are?