LIVE from the Sapphire - 33 days from Seattle to Sydney

[Pia1913]

Wednesday morning at sea, rocking and rolling. It started last night, bad enough for them to cancel what was supposed to have been Dancing Under the Stars near Neptune pool. Can’t imagine how they would have done that anyway, since Vintage People never play the right kind of dance music.

Weather didn’t affect us, since we were in our cabin watching a silly movie, Valentine’s Day. How did they ever get so many good actors to do this movie. Sometimes silly is good.

Guess what we’re going to do tonight. Yes………move our clocks again. This time we go forward an hour. I can’t wait until we finally get to New Zealand and this nonsense stops for awhile.

On the menu for today are two lectures; History, culture and insight into New Zealand and another Oceanography lecture on “Why don’t fish freeze in Freezing Waters”. Art auction and bingo are the prime afternoon events and also the movie “The Last Airbender.”

Upcoming evening entertainment will be Shake Rattle and Roll in the theater (hope the seas calm down for them) and a new comic, Jack Wilks in Explorer’s. We choose comedy.

Time for some breakfast. I feel better but Mike says he feels like (bleep). :eek:Then again, hard to tell because his appetite is never affected, nor did he not go to the gym. BTW, some good news. CNN and ESPN have returned.

[cosecphil]

Wednesday morning at sea, rocking and rolling. It started last night, bad enough for them to cancel what was supposed to have been Dancing Under the Stars near Neptune pool. Can’t imagine how they would have done that anyway, since Vintage People never play the right kind of dance music.

 

 

Weather didn’t affect us, since we were in our cabin watching a silly movie, Valentine’s Day. How did they ever get so many good actors to do this movie. Sometimes silly is good.

 

 

Guess what we’re going to do tonight. Yes………move our clocks again. This time we go forward an hour. I can’t wait until we finally get to New Zealand and this nonsense stops for awhile.

 

 

On the menu for today are two lectures; History, culture and insight into New Zealand and another Oceanography lecture on “Why don’t fish freeze in Freezing Waters”. Art auction and bingo are the prime afternoon events and also the movie “The Last Airbender.”

 

 

Upcoming evening entertainment will be Shake Rattle and Roll in the theater (hope the seas calm down for them) and a new comic, Jack Wilks in Explorer’s. We choose comedy.

 

 

Time for some breakfast. I feel better but Mike says he feels like (bleep). :eek:Then again, hard to tell because his appetite is never affected, nor did he not go to the gym. BTW, some good news. CNN and ESPN have returned.

 

 

Hello Pia.

 

Along with everyone else I'm pleased you both appear to be feeling better (although your mention of the ship rocking and rolling was enough for me to feel queasy as I am a pretty poor sailor and have always avoided sea journeys wherever possible so I'm really "pushing the boat out" with this 29 days venture. Hopefully the stabilisers are effective.

 

Please keep up the good work as we all look forward to our dose of cruise medicine.

 

Thanks:)

[atlasali]

"Losing" a complete day like you did, was hard to wrap my head around.

 

Even stranger was flying from Sydney to SFO. We boarded the jet at 2:30 in the afternoon on Monday. We arrived in San Francisco on Monday at 10:30 in the morning! Huh?

[Pia1913]

Good Thursday Morning. The ship never did stop rocking and rolling yesterday and at 5:00 PM our CD cancelled the production show Shake, Rattle and Roll. In its place was a solo performance by one of the lead singers, Sam Holder. We went to see the comedian, Jack Wilks, who was pretty funny. Low key southern guy from Arkansas with some decent and new material.

Anyhow, we’re still rocking, though not as much. Lots of lectures on tap for today other than port talks for upcoming Christchurch and Dunedin. In the morning there’s a lecture by the oceanography person called “Shark and two in the afternoon; “Lord Horatio Nelson, Victor at Trafalgar, 1805” and “A Natural History tour of New Zealand.”

The afternoon movie is “The A-Team” starring Liam Neeson, which will also be shown again at 10:00 PM. Tonight’s offerings will be Shake, Rattle and Roll and another appearance by comic Jack Wilks. Jack told us tonight’s show would be a repeat of last night, so unless we really need to see the production show again, we’ll be reading and/or watching tv in our cabin.

BTW, CNN and ESPN are both gone again and Mike says he feels much better. Whatever I had thankfully disappeared right away.

Breakfast time.

[Woobstr112G]

Good Thursday Morning. The ship never did stop rocking and rolling yesterday and at 5:00 PM our CD cancelled the production show Shake, Rattle and Roll. In its place was a solo performance by one of the lead singers, Sam Holder. We went to see the comedian, Jack Wilks, who was pretty funny. Low key southern guy from Arkansas with some decent and new material.

 

 

Anyhow, we’re still rocking, though not as much. Lots of lectures on tap for today other than port talks for upcoming Christchurch and Dunedin. In the morning there’s a lecture by the oceanography person called “Shark and two in the afternoon; “Lord Horatio Nelson, Victor at Trafalgar, 1805” and “A Natural History tour of New Zealand.”

 

 

The afternoon movie is “The A-Team” starring Liam Neeson, which will also be shown again at 10:00 PM. Tonight’s offerings will be Shake, Rattle and Roll and another appearance by comic Jack Wilks. Jack told us tonight’s show would be a repeat of last night, so unless we really need to see the production show again, we’ll be reading and/or watching tv in our cabin.

 

 

BTW, CNN and ESPN are both gone again and Mike says he feels much better. Whatever I had thankfully disappeared right away.

 

Breakfast time.

 

Pia;

 

Glad you two are feeling better.....:):):)

 

Bob

[Cruisiesusie05]

Good Thursday Morning. The ship never did stop rocking and rolling yesterday and at 5:00 PM our CD cancelled the production show Shake, Rattle and Roll. In its place was a solo performance by one of the lead singers, Sam Holder. We went to see the comedian, Jack Wilks, who was pretty funny. Low key southern guy from Arkansas with some decent and new material.

 

 

Anyhow, we’re still rocking, though not as much. Lots of lectures on tap for today other than port talks for upcoming Christchurch and Dunedin. In the morning there’s a lecture by the oceanography person called “Shark and two in the afternoon; “Lord Horatio Nelson, Victor at Trafalgar, 1805” and “A Natural History tour of New Zealand.”

 

 

The afternoon movie is “The A-Team” starring Liam Neeson, which will also be shown again at 10:00 PM. Tonight’s offerings will be Shake, Rattle and Roll and another appearance by comic Jack Wilks. Jack told us tonight’s show would be a repeat of last night, so unless we really need to see the production show again, we’ll be reading and/or watching tv in our cabin.

 

 

BTW, CNN and ESPN are both gone again and Mike says he feels much better. Whatever I had thankfully disappeared right away.

 

Breakfast time.

 

Good evening from the UK Pia,

Glad you two are feeling much better, must have been that lovely rocking motion of the ship. :eek:

Pia, did you manage to speak with anyone who did the tour in Fiji, when I spoke with Lionel he said 16 people had a good time?

Not too long now until we find all these things out for ourselves :D

[regnig]

Pia I'm delighted both you and Mike are feeling better. Additionally hoping that you have smoother seas for awhile.

 

Barb

[cruisefreaks]

Hi Pia,

 

So glad you are feeling better!! We can't wait till the 23rd! We leave for Sydney on Oct 16th.

 

Hope that rocking slows down, our cabin is on the Lido deck. :eek: We'll be rocking and rolling for sure! :D

 

Donna

[ckl001]

Hi Pia,

Just letting you know that Christchurch had another earthquake (only small one - I think it was about 4.8) yesterday, so it seems that Chri8stchurch is still rocking and rolling.

I have enjoyed reading your posts, so keep up the good work!.

 

Chez

[margord]

So glad the illnesses didn't hang around

[Pia1913]

Sue, I've not seen nor heard from anyone who did Lionel's tour. However, I've heard lots of B******* from those who did the similar tour through Princess. They claimed it was very uncoordinated and a fiasco. Hope Lionel's was better. Will let you know if I hear anything.

[Cruisiesusie05]

Sue, I've not seen nor heard from anyone who did Lionel's tour. However, I've heard lots of B******* from those who did the similar tour through Princess. They claimed it was very uncoordinated and a fiasco. Hope Lionel's was better. Will let you know if I hear anything.

 

 

Thank you for the posting on the other board Pia, exactly what I wanted to know - you are so good - must be all that practice ;) see you soon :)

[Pia1913]

Good Morning from Auckland, which is the first of which will be our four New Zealand ports. We arrived at 7:00 AM and will be here until 10 PM. The skies appear overcast and the temperature is 60. This will be brief since we’re meeting Cruise Critic friends at 9:30; New Zealanders who have generously elected to show us the sights.

Nothing much happening aboard today, other than a movie in the afternoon; The Wonder of it All. Tonight there will be two performances of a folkloric show and we hope to see one of them for sure.

To those who were waiting to hear about the Fiji tour we didn’t do, here it is:

　

　

I spoke with someone who took Lionel’s tour in Fiji and this is what she told me.

1. Group of 16 picked up at pier approx. 8:45; 45 minute bus ride to canoe area. Restroom facilities available.

2. 45 minute canoe ride to waterfall; difficult to manipulate if you are in any way mobility challenged. Two canoes used for group.

3. Incline to waterfall steep and narrow; rope handrails. Waterfall lovely; swimming if you desire. Approx. 45 minutes. Advice is to bring water shoes.

4. All on bamboo raft to village. No seats. Raft got caught in underbrush so people had to manipulate back into canoes.

5. Village nice and interesting; good buffet lunch served inside a house; fish, chicken, fruit, etc. House is one room with kitchen, one bed and indoor bathroom. This was first chance to use restrooms.

6. Kava ceremony in another building together with Princess tours.

7. Guide was good. Folks satisfied.

8. Bus transport from village back to ship; arrival approx. 4:00 PM

　

　

Talk to you all later.

[CruzinNoony]

Hi Pia,

 

Whew!! I just finished reading all the pages of your "live from". We got back from our 16 night Grand TA cruise 2 days ago and it took me all this time to catch up on three roll calls and the wonderful posts that you have written. It sounds like you are having a great time. I am taking notes because we are booked on the LA to LA trip next October going to the South Pacific. Plus, we are going to New Zealand in February (with Donna and Tina) so will be interested in hearing about your excursions there.

 

You might want to think about having a couple of tables set up to sell your trivia winnings to the highest bidder. When you team up with Jeff and Ed on the next voyage, you will undoubtably win every time!! :)

[BayCalif-Ariz R Us]

Hi Pia - we see you're tied up in Auckland where our weather guru on the internet tells us it is cold (in the low 60s) and windy? I think I probably get cold before most people so keeping that in mind, what are your impressions? -- sweaters/sweatshirts, layering etc. are a must? Our CC people are starting to trickle out and we're just a little over a week away from sailaway so I'm especially interested if you can keep us advised on the weather. Many thanks Didi

[K-Roo-Zers]

Oh my gosh Pia and Marianne - so sorry to hear about all the illness onboard. We are going to pack plenty of meds just in case. Wow CD Richard sounds like a wonderful guy - hope he still has the energy to greet our group as royally!

 

I'm hearing from a friend who is currently on her way to Sydney and will be on our cruise that temps have been in the 70s, which is way cool for us Arizonans so rethinking the packing to include lightweight rain coats and umbrellas. Didi

 

Hi Didi,

 

We know what you mean about the temps in the 70's (around 22 for us Aussies) being low. It is cool for us too as we live in Queensland and like the heat.

 

Looking forward to the cruise, but hope New Zealand isn't too cool. Have dragged out my coat as last time we were there (March 2009) Dunedin was freezing, not even 50, and they were expecting snow!! Even the locals were complaining. What chance did a couple of "heat lovers" have????

 

When do you leave Arizona?

 

Looking forward to meeting you on the cruise, probably at the M&G.

 

See you soon.

 

Nicki

[K-Roo-Zers]

Hi Pia,

 

So glad you are feeling better!! We can't wait till the 23rd! We leave for Sydney on Oct 16th.

 

Hope that rocking slows down, our cabin is on the Lido deck. :eek: We'll be rocking and rolling for sure! :D

 

Donna

 

Hi Donna,

 

You guys won't be the only ones rocking and rolling - we will be keeping you company as we are forward and I mean forward - any further forward and we could be either swimming or fishing!!

 

Have bought enough mal de mer meds to keep me happy (I hope).

 

Have a good trip to Sydney and look forward to catching up with you on board.

 

Safe travels.

 

Nicki

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Welcome to Auckland..

 

 

 

[Pia1913]

What a day this has been! We were picked up by friends Barry and David shortly before 9:30. David, BTW, is someone you all know; Kiwi Kruiser.

We drove to several scenic overlooks and through residential areas, stopped at a bank ATM so I could “buy” money and then proceeded to Cornwall Park Farm. This is not only a beautiful park, but here you can also see cows in pasture and sheep roaming free nibbling as they go. Within the park we also visited Acacia Cottage which was built in 1841 and used during WWII by the 5th Battalion of the Auckland Regiment.

We then drove on through the wine country and the town of Kumweu and stopped for a rest and coffee at Bees on Line Café. There is a honey factory on the premises and you can see bees through the screened area. They also sell their assorted honey products of which we did not partake.

Another drive brought us to Muriwai Regional Park where the views were breathtaking. A rugged coastline with black sand beaches. This is home to a wide range of birds, but most visitors come to see the gannets. Two viewing platforms provide great vantage points to watch the gannets. It seems that the birds return here between July and October to re-establish contact with their mates. After mating, one egg is laid and incubated in shifts by both birds until the gannet chick is born about 45 days later. (would be nice if our mates could share the pregnancy too).

:) Anyhow, we saw lots of them just nesting and/or fooling around. Couldn’t really tell. :D

After bird watching some wine was in order, so off we went to Matua Winery for tasting whatever they were offering. And offer they did! I tasted two whites, but you could have tasted 6 different whites, 6 different reds, and some rose’s. Some or all. Very nice.

　

By this time we had already had a full day, so David and Barry dropped us off in the town of Devenport. Oops. Almost forgot. First we went up to Mt. Victoria and had an awesome view of all Auckland. We could see the ship and the Sky Tower, which is the tallest tower in the southern hemisphere. Devenport is a nice little town with many shops and cafes and we walked about for awhile and found a supermarket. Big purchase: Tim Tams. We took the 4:15 ferry back to Auckland city; ferry runs every ½ hour on the ¼ hour, takes 12 minutes and the fare is $5.40/PP (NZ dollars).

 

All in all, a wonderful day with wonderful friends.

Security info: You must take a photo ID with you when disembarking. When you get off all ladies purses are looked into as well as any other bag you are carrying. Coming back, you go through security inside the port area showing both your cruise card and photo ID and again both forms before boarding the ship.

The day was beautiful; weather in the hi 60's and sunny.

[K-Roo-Zers]

Hi Pia,

 

We will have to make you an honorary Aussie with all those Tim Tams "under your belt" - Hello, my name is Pia and I am a Tim Tam Aholic.

 

I am so glad to hear they are available in New Zealand - I didn't know how I was going to cope after leaving Sydney. My bag is already full of Timmys and Jaffas and I just realised I haven't started to pack!! Who needs lots of clothes when there is decent chocolate to consume - my favourite food group! Perhaps we could re-arrange the food pyramid and make Tim Tams a food group - any supporters????

 

Hope your trip across the Tasman is smooth, and see you in 8 more sleeps.

 

Nicki

[Kiwi Kruzer]

 

Its evening in Auckland now, and Sapphire has swung the cam around and you can see how close the Hilton Hotel is to where the cruise ships dock. The rest of the development is apartments and when a ship is docked you can look straight into them:eek:

 

Thank you both for a lovely day.

Its been a delight to take a step back and look at my own city through visitors eyes. A wonderful day was had by all. It was a pleasure to catch up with friends we have cruised with before, and kept in touch with , via Cruise Critic.

 

[Colo Cruiser]

What a great day with the with your gracious hosts David and Barry! :)

[BayCalif-Ariz R Us]

Hi Didi, We know what you mean about the temps in the 70's (around 22 for us Aussies) being low. It is cool for us too as we live in Queensland and like the heat. Looking forward to the cruise, but hope New Zealand isn't too cool. Have dragged out my coat as last time we were there (March 2009) Dunedin was freezing, not even 50, and they were expecting snow!! Even the locals were complaining. What chance did a couple of "heat lovers" have????

When do you leave Arizona?

Looking forward to meeting you on the cruise, probably at the M&G.See you soon. Nicki

Oy Nicki - we're looking forward to meeting you too. We leave Arizona early Sunday morning for L.A. Have an 11:30 pm Air Pacific flight via Nadi; arriving Sydney mid-day on Tuesday the 19th.

 

Even we heat lovers have been a bit tested this summer. We are STILL getting temps in the 105 degree range here in the Phoenix area. We love it when it drops into the high 80s and 90's. But I'm hearing from our CC friends Doug and Sheryl as well of course from Pia that it is around 60 degrees in NZ. Sheryl advises taking gloves as she wished she would have had some. For sure it's the layering look for me this trip - and we all know how THAT flatters our figures:rolleyes: Didi

[Woobstr112G]

Pia;

That sounds like a perfet day.....:):):)

Bob

[atlasali]

Regarding weather - Last year on same cruise, we packed light and used layers, no coats. 1-Lightest layer (I purchased onboard at one of the sales) was a super thin cotton hoodie (worn frequently from a swimsuit coverup to light indoor A/C layer), 2-a cashmere sweater, 3-a polarfleece hoodie, and 4-gortex rainjacket. Also took thin polarfleece gloves and headband. Good at the top altitude of Transalpine Rail trip and cruising through Milford sound area when it was spitting snow.

Maybe if I was from AZ, I would want a turtleneck layer, too.