The Daily for Monday September 27, 2021

[garlictown]

😊 Don't we all wish!!!! 😊

Katie

[smitty34877]

@StLouisCruisers,hope the medication helps and that you feel better soon.

@VMax1700,sorry about the fractured  collar bone.It can be very painful.

[Vict0riann]

Good morning, all!  Lots of exciting news today, but some difficult bits, too.  I'll be thinking of you all  I have dermatologist today, and I have a bump right near one eye which I'm hoping can just be zapped.  I can't really tell what it is.  But I'll probably have a black eye when we board next week, @VMax1700!    We are getting excited about the cruise, too, a week from now we'll be heading for the Travel Medicine place to get tested and then to the airport, heading for Venice.  @VMax1700, did you do plf's for both Italy and Greece?  We haven't done them yet, as we haven't been able to do seat selection on Lufthansa.

 

My ancestor story:  My grandmother's maiden name was English, and her family had come west from Maryland and Virginia.  When my genealogy class had a trip to the Library of Congress in DC, we were each given a computer (this was a long time ago, not much experience with computers), told to type in the family name we were researching and push a button.  So I typed in E-n-g-l-i-s-h and pushed the button, and alarms went off, lights started flashing and the supervisor rushed over to turn my computer off.  Evidently there are so many references to English, I just about blew the whole system!   @St. Louis Sal, "Smith" might just do the same.  

 

We visited Sydney on our way to Perth in 2010, and it was also on our Oosterdam cruise for next year, which was cancelled.  My pictures from our visit are about the same, but I'll add a couple.

 

Bondi Beach

 

 

The like their statues properly attired!

 

[jimgev]

2 hours ago, smitty34877 said:

My ancestors  came from Ireland and Sweden.My cousin traced our Swedish relatives  back to the 1600's.

My ancestors came to America from Ireland and Netherlands in the mid 1800's. I was able to trace the Dutch side back to the early 1700's but have not had much success tracing the Irish side.

[NextOne]

Happy to say that DS and DDIL have been successfully relocated to Maryland! Thanks for all your good wishes. Two very long days of driving with three adults and two cats -- I don't recommend it!! Of course the moving van won't arrive until sometime between Wednesday & Saturday - sigh.

The next order of business is to set DDIL up with some good doctors!

[VMax1700]

22 minutes ago, Vict0riann said:

did you do plf's for both Italy and Greece?

Yes I did both and the one for Slovenia as well!  You will definitely need the Italy PLF to be able to board the flight to Venice (We had to upload both PLF and Covid Vax Certs during check in and now our boarding passes are 6 pages long!)  Greece does require PLF for those arriving by ship, so we have that.  I am not 100% on the Slovenia one, but I did it just to be safe.

[kazu]

21 minutes ago, jimgev said:

My ancestors came to America from Ireland and Netherlands in the mid 1800's. I was able to trace the Dutch side back to the early 1700's but have not had much success tracing the Irish side.

 

I have had difficulty tracing my family’s Irish side too but I was excited when I found my family’s crest (my mother’s maiden name) in Cobh, Ireland.  I only bought one as that was all there was.  Never found it again.  Wish I had as I would have gotten one for my brothers & sisters.  Maybe next year when we return to Ireland?

[VMax1700]

24 minutes ago, jimgev said:

My ancestors came to America from Ireland and Netherlands in the mid 1800's. I was able to trace the Dutch side back to the early 1700's but have not had much success tracing the Irish side.

Tracing Irish ancestory is really difficult.  Although record keeping had been ever present, the 1922 burning of the Public Records Office, in the Four Courts, Dublin, during the Civil War,  destroyed nearly all the records going back to the 16th century.  There is ongoing work to try to restore some of the remaining records using modern technology so maybe in the future you will have better luck. 

[VMax1700]

7 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

I have had difficulty tracing my family’s Irish side too but I was excited when I found my family’s crest (my mother’s maiden name) in Cobh, Ireland.  I only bought one as that was all there was.  Never found it again.  Wish I had as I would have gotten one for my brothers & sisters.  Maybe next year when we return to Ireland?

Jacqui - email me the name.....🤞

[GeorgeCharlie]

1 hour ago, Horizon chaser 1957 said:

The pilot disembarks. The water was incredibly rough at this point. This was the moment when ‘Sydney Harbour Pilot’ hit the top of my list of jobs I never want to do! 

 

 

 

Here's an interesting article regarding harbor pilots. 

 

Meet the harbor pilots who make $434,000 a year, face high fatality rates, and are responsible for guiding hulking cargo ships into ports | Business Insider India

 

[kazu]

22 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

Jacqui - email me the name.....🤞

 

Aww that is really kind.  I did but please, don’t go to a bunch of work for me.  DH teases me that my Irish shows up in my character all too often 😂 

[JazzyV]

Good afternoon. Thanks for the Daily.

Excellent days. As cruisers we like world tourism. Family day is every day for some; unfortunately I have no living family, but am researching ancestors.

Good quote.

I like the meal. I'll pass on the drink and wine.

I have been to Sydney on a Statendam Auckland to Sydney cruise, my first HAL cruise, in 2006.

 

It's clear liquids/prep day. So far I've had apple juice, lemon ice, and chicken broth. Fun times! I spent yesterday trimming shrubs, so the yard looks nice. It was quite windy.

 

@StLouisCruisers Hoping you feel better soon.

@VMax1700 Sorry to hear about DGD's injury.

@Sharon in AZ Congrats on the upsell to a Neptune suite!

@NextOne I'm glad you all arrived safely.

 

Arriving in Sydney Harbor in the early morning.

 

 

 

The story of the Opera House Shape

 

 

Aborigine playing a Didgeridoo in the Circular Quay

 

The First Impressions Sculpture in The Rocks

 

View from the pylon lookout on the Harbor Bridge

 

Harbor Bridge Walkway

 

Luna Park

 

Sydney Conservatorium of Music

 

Pyramid and Arc, Royal Botanical Gardens

 

St. Mary's Cathedral

 

Sydney Town Hall lit for Christmas

 

Atop the Sydney Harbor Bridge

[Vict0riann]

59 minutes ago, VMax1700 said:

Yes I did both and the one for Slovenia as well!  You will definitely need the Italy PLF to be able to board the flight to Venice (We had to upload both PLF and Covid Vax Certs during check in and now our boarding passes are 6 pages long!)  Greece does require PLF for those arriving by ship, so we have that.  I am not 100% on the Slovenia one, but I did it just to be safe.

 

Thanks.  I guess we'll have to get on to it.  Hope they accept our BC Vaccination certificates.

[VMax1700]

42 minutes ago, kazu said:

my Irish shows up in my character all too often

😇

[puppycanducruise]

@Sharon in AZCongrats on the upsell.  Enjoy!

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

We were fortunate to be able to spend a few days in Sydney during our 2013 circumnavigation cruise of Australia. It was a B2B2B cruise starting in Auckland, NZ; then over to Sydney where the ship stayed for two full days before sailing on. In addition, when we disembarked the cruise several weeks later, we stayed a few extra days in a BnB just a short distance from downtown Sydney.

 

We found Australia and Sydney a fabulous place to visit. As with most major tourist cities, Sydney has too much to see in a few days, but we did try and get out and see sights away from the main downtown/harbor area. On the first day of our two day stopover on the ship we had a full day independent small bus tour which took us to the Featherdale Wildlife Park, then on to the Blue Mountain Area. At the end of the day, we were returned to Circular Quay by the River Ferry.

On the second day we again had an independent arranged tour by a local couple which took us around the outer reaches of Sydney. This couple were fantastic guides and gave us interesting and fun insights into local culture.

Over both days we took many pictures, and it will be difficult to cover anything in much detail through this forum. I’ll try and do a quick look at what we have and see if I can find a few which are different from the many excellent pictures people have already posted.
 

Here's a short video I took of the lunch/snack from the second day tour.

 

 

Edited September 27, 2021 by GeorgeCharlie

[grapau27]

5 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

Good Monday morning everyone!  I'm not feeling 100% today but we still worked out this morning.  Hopefully things will turn around and I'll feel better soon.  

 

Today's days to celebrate are all good ones.  I found two different websites showing yesterday and today as Family Day so why don't we just celebrate it every day?  Ancestors too!  World Tourism sounds good to me!  I would love to be out traveling again.  Quote is so true and I've heard slightly different variations of it.  Always ready for some slow cooked pork.  We ate quite a bit of it in the last week made by the young man in the food truck nearby.

 

Thanks for providing the Daily for us @richwmn.  Also thanks to @rafinmdfor the Care and Celebration lists.  Prayers and cheers for all involved.  

 

@mamaofamigood luck with your dental cleaning today.  Stay warm!  Also congrats on your DGS's career plan.  We can always use EMTs.  @cunnorlfingers crossed your Australia circumnavigation goes off as planned.  @tjcox9what a great and very unique photo!  Those long necks come in handy sometimes, right Mr. Giraffe?

 

We were lucky enough to see Sydney quite a few times on our trips down under.  In 2013 twice and four times in 2017 on our B2B2B2B cruises.  It's one of my favorite places on the planet to visit.  Most of us are looking forward to Australia opening up again.  Only problem, I'm not sure how I'm going to get DH back on a plane trip that long again.  He can be stubborn!😎

 

While I'm stretched out on the sofa resting I'll look for some photos.  Have a good day!

Sorry to hear are not feeling well today Sandi.

Hopefully you are feeling a lot better soon.

Graham.

 

[smitty34877]

@kazu,my DH so makes numerous  references  to my Irish heritage, 😄 

[mamaofami]

5 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

Good Monday morning everyone!  I'm not feeling 100% today but we still worked out this morning.  Hopefully things will turn around and I'll feel better soon.  

 

Today's days to celebrate are all good ones.  I found two different websites showing yesterday and today as Family Day so why don't we just celebrate it every day?  Ancestors too!  World Tourism sounds good to me!  I would love to be out traveling again.  Quote is so true and I've heard slightly different variations of it.  Always ready for some slow cooked pork.  We ate quite a bit of it in the last week made by the young man in the food truck nearby.

 

Thanks for providing the Daily for us @richwmn.  Also thanks to @rafinmdfor the Care and Celebration lists.  Prayers and cheers for all involved.  

 

@mamaofamigood luck with your dental cleaning today.  Stay warm!  Also congrats on your DGS's career plan.  We can always use EMTs.  @cunnorlfingers crossed your Australia circumnavigation goes off as planned.  @tjcox9what a great and very unique photo!  Those long necks come in handy sometimes, right Mr. Giraffe?

 

We were lucky enough to see Sydney quite a few times on our trips down under.  In 2013 twice and four times in 2017 on our B2B2B2B cruises.  It's one of my favorite places on the planet to visit.  Most of us are looking forward to Australia opening up again.  Only problem, I'm not sure how I'm going to get DH back on a plane trip that long again.  He can be stubborn!😎

 

While I'm stretched out on the sofa resting I'll look for some photos.  Have a good day!

Thanks, but that’s not his career plan. It’s just something to do over vacations and summers. He’s studying music and wants to go to Med school to study music’s effect on the brain.

 

 

[grapau27]

4 hours ago, VMax1700 said:

An early good evening from a windy and wet Cork.

Thanks for the lists................

As it is World Tourism Day we went up to the attic and dusted off our emotional baggage (suitcases) and brought them down to let air circulate before we start packing them for our Eurodam cruise next week. 😁

We celebrated Family Day yesterday as we had our 3 granddaughters up for lunch yesterday afternoon.  The eldest granddaughter was in pain as she broke her collarbone on Saturday afternoon while she was horse riding.  😢

I really appreciate my ancestors as without them, would I be here???

 

@StLouisCruisers Sorry to hear you are not feeling 100%.  Hope you feel better soon.

@smitty34877 Cork women are strong women.  I know, I married one! 😁

 

Take care everyone.

So sorry to hear your eldest granddaughter broke her collarbone.

Prayers 🙏 for a quick recovery.

[aliaschief]

Holy Cow! We just got a reasonable upsell and we will now be cruising in MS Nieuw Amsterdam Pinnacle Suite!

[NextOne]

2 minutes ago, aliaschief said:

Holy Cow! We just got a reasonable upsell and we will now be cruising in MS Nieuw Amsterdam Pinnacle Suite!

Congratulations!!

[grapau27]

My grandmother was Italian and my late dad traced his family history back to the Renaissance period in Venice.

[kazu]

24 minutes ago, aliaschief said:

Holy Cow! We just got a reasonable upsell and we will now be cruising in MS Nieuw Amsterdam Pinnacle Suite!

 

Wow!!!!  That is really nice 👍 Enjoy - very happy for you 🥂 

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

Good afternoon from central Texas.  I started reading the daily early this morning and off and on during the day. 

 

This morning turned out to be busier than planned.  Besides, laundry (the last load is now in the dryer!), I took the convertible to the neighborhood service staton to be inspected.  After breakfast, we took the motorhome there to be inspected.  That is more entailed than just driving a car there.  Fortunately, I was able to resgister them online in prepartation for the fall migration to Quartzsite in a few weeks.

 

We have been to Sydney twice.   The first time was in 2000 on P&O's Oriana world cruise.  (It was the only one that was going all the way around.)  In 2002, we were on the 64-day APEC cruise on Volendam, and spent 1 1/2 days in Sydney.

 

I'll post my pictures, some of which may be a version of ones already shown, but others are new.  When I'm finished, I'll go back and reread the daily and probably make some comments.

 

In 2000, when we were a lot younger, we had a busy day beginning with the sail in.    We took the Ho-Ho and then walked around downtown Sydney.

 

The sunrise as we sailed in and the pilot boat.

 

Our first view of the skyline and the Opera House as we headed toward Circular Quay.

 

Just one picture of the shopping district

 

When we got back to Circular Quay, we decided to take the ferry to Manly across the bay.

 

I couldn't resist the sunset pictures on two iconic symbols of Sydney.

 

In 2002, Volendam sailed into the bay about noon.  This was Volendam's maiden call in Sydney, and we were greeted by a fire boat who lead us to Circular Quay.

 

When we left the ship, two wildlife experts greeted us, one with a Koala and one with a Sugar Baby, who had the softest fur.  Sorry it's a little blurry.

 

That afternoon, we took the Ho-Ho and visited a couple of museums, including an old electric power plant, but I don't have pictures. 

 

The next day, we rented a car and drove to the Blue Mounstains, and on the way back, around some of the far reaches of Sydney.

 

We saw this unusal bug that seems to have a face on his back.  It looks like some type of moth.  I had to really zoom in so the "face" would show up.

 

Some pictures of the Blue Mountains

 

I've always thought Dali's work while different was interesting.

 

The Rocks

 

Sailway

 

The sunset over Sydney as we sailed toward the Bay of Islands.

 

Lenda

 

Edited September 27, 2021 by Quartzsite Cruiser