Out and About the ship

Just thought I would post some random pictures from around the ship...

Deck 14

so this is how they clean the roof at the lotus pool

Ground Hog Day Mark III … 101 days to go

At 2 am last night our clocks went back one hour and will continue to do so over the next couple of days…. So when I woke up at 7am it was really 6am… Feeling rather guilty that everyone else was exercising except for me…. I sprung out of bed to walk the laps around Deck 7.  Busier than Pitt Street Mall on a Saturday morning, it seems everyone else had the same idea!

Still lots of activities going on, the only one I can report about is the Officers vs the guests partaking in a game of Giant Jenga.  Having lost the previous day, today the Officers were triumphant despite the gallant effort from the guests.

Entertainment Director Kelvin successfully keeping the officers in play

Things were getting tense as the tower grew higher

Lots of contemplating going on and hoping that the Captain is keeping ship steady.

Today also marked the first of what I hope to be one of many swims.  We chose to debut this in the undercover lotus pool… Not heated but still a very pleasant temperature.

Afternoon drinks under the newly repair lights..

In the evening there was the Oceania deck party. Resident band Seascape teamed up with the Princess orchestra and played a great range of hits that we of our generation know and love. 

Ground Hog Day Mark II .... 102 days to go

 A bit more of a lazy start today, which tends to put things out of whack a little bit.  Arriving up at deck 14 we found that our usual tables were all taken.  By finding an acceptable substitute, we were starting to get back on track.

The mornings seem jam-packed, and everyone has somewhere to be at certain times….  As I lazily sit on deck typing my blog until the battery runs out, Garry is off to the lectures, Carry (my sister) if off to Zumba, Brian is at the gym or anything that has the word sport in its description. 

I won’t bore you with our repetitive routine, so I will skip straight to the afternoon where we spent a few hours lounging at the back of deck 11 watching as we passed by the many little islands and reefs of the Great Barrier Reef.

Unfortunately, we would be hanging a left at Cape York in the middle of the night. It has always been a highlight when you could sit outside and watch as we pass Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday Islands… and then that small channel that takes us into the Arafura Sea.

We had heard on the grapevine that the commentary from the Reef pilot was not on the agenda for this cruise, in other words, Princess didn’t pay for that service.

Lovely sunset out the back

Tonight’s entertainment was Trevor Knight and anyone who has been on a Princess cruise would know exactly who I am talking about.  But alas all that fresh sea air has got the better of us so Garry and I adjourned for an early night's sleep.

Ground Hog Sea Day…. 103- Days to go

Another sea day, more sunshine, more ocean and more friendships to be made.

As we work our way closer to the northernmost point of Australia, we can see the small islands that dot the horizon and odd the container ship passing by. 

The Facebook page had their Meet and Greet Today.... a very large group in the Universe Lounge.

Played miserably at trivia, deciding that we really do not like this progressive trivia format.

But once again we did enjoy drinks out on our little private deck which I am sure will get busier with time…. Shh, don’t tell anyone about it…

Tonight was the first Formal night which also meant the Captain's Welcome and Champagne Waterfall. I always like this event, even if it is just to hear the few words that Captain Perra shares..

Many may recognize this couple as they celebrate their 12-month anniversary on the ship.  They boarded when the Coral came back into service and plan to disembark after next years world cruise.

Captain Perra

We are all very excited with this first one as it will probably be the night we will look our most glamorous, and as time passes and we get tireder, we will tend to lose that little bit of sparkle.

World Cruise Pressies

 It is always exciting to enter your stateroom and find pressies....  on a world cruise there are always those little special extras that will remind you of this great adventure we have embarked on.

Whoo hoo lanyards are back ....  

An A4 size printout of our cruise, it actually compliments the larger map we have up on our wall

Different type of back pack this and a great beach bag that I use everyday to carry my laptop around.

6 Days of Calm before the storm… 104 days to go

As we now have 6 sea days before we start to hit our international ports, each day I will try to find something different to write about…

Finally, the weather is starting to warm up as we work our way up the Queensland coast, and more and more people are appearing around the pool.

On this first sea day,
all the groups and activities are starting to form.

No one can complain about being bored…  Tai Chi, Zumba, trivia of every shape and form. Bridge, pickleball,  teeth whitening, diamond sales, ukelele, choir, everything is there for the trying… 

One of the nicest things about this cruise at the moment is around every corner there seems to be another familiar face.

Cards in the card room....

A little dark and cool but that will change with every passing day

First port of call…… Brisbane…… 105 Days to go

Waking up to the vibration of the ship as she maneuvers into position at the new Brisbane International Cruise Terminal.  Certainly didn’t need a window to know that we had arrived as the aroma from the neighboring sewerage works had already permeated into the cabin.  Later in the day you can see the sprinklers in use to try and keep the stench to a bare minimum when ever there is a cruise ship in port.

We had a notice in our rooms that ABF (immigration) had agreed with the ship that transiting guests did not have to leave the ship for the obligatory zero count.  They only specified that if we did we would need to do so before 11am, then understand that we would not be able to reboard until after 11.30 am to coincide with those boarding the world cruise in Brisbane.

Today we were catching up with our wonderful friends, Ros and Arnold.  Arriving in two cars they ferried us to the nearby Stargate Centre where we embarked in some retail therapy at Dan Murphy’s.  Then it was across the road where we shared a lovely lunch at the Novatel Hotel.

With more wine in tow, we were back on board by around 2.30pm.  Just like our first day, squeals of joy could be heard as friends reunited after so many years of no cruising.  If the figures I heard are correct, I believe that approx. 800 people disembarked with only 400 world cruisers boarding which would mean it is not a full ship… but let's wait and see.

Now it was Brisbane’s turn for its sail away party.  Same ship, same show just a different background.  Not as gloomy as Sydney, the setting sun behind the scattered clouds gave us a dramatic vista, as we left the lights of Brissy behind us.

Another delicious dinner in the Bordeaux dining room with our newly assigned waiters that will have to get used to our antics once again.

Tonight’s guest entertainer had us tapping our feet to his repertoire of Johnny Cash Hits.  Dressed in black he made for an excellent night's entertainment.  And with that I close off another day of our exciting world cruise.

Somewhere beyond the Sea …. 106 days to go

We awoke on our first sea day with the gentle movement of the sea lulling us in and out of consciousness.  The biggest challenge with an inside cabin that is constantly blanketed in darkness, is deciding whether it is morning or still some time in the middle of the night…

How easy is it to fall back into our routine, not a question but a statement…  Poached eggs for breakfast, blogging out on the deck, chatting to passers-by that recognize you from previous cruises. 

As Duncan calls it "The Command Centre"

Today's highlight was lunch with many of the friends we have made over our years cruising the high seas. The names you might forget, but the faces you will always recognize.  Not all of the guests at our lunch are doing the world cruise, but they are still on board as they finish their Hawaii cruise back to Brisbane tomorrow.

That night dinner in the dining room was followed by the Princess production show Encore.  Although we always say that we have seen it enough times, we couldn’t help ourselves and we sat through it once again.  

We enjoyed it as we always do, but once again made the decision that we won't go and see it again…..Ha Ha…. till next time...