Sydney to Adelaide

Today is Monday, March 1. It is Sunday, Feb 28 in the USA. This is our second sea day after leaving Adelaide, Australia and we are on our way towards the port of Fremantle, Australia and its city of Perth where we will arrive tomorrow, March 2.

My last post had us arriving in Sydney on Sunday Feb 21, the last day of our first cruise segment. We left the ship with our friends, Karreen and Al, whom as you may remember, we met in Olympia before going on this cruise. They had been to Sydney before, so we relied on them to give us a heads up as to where to go and what to do. When we docked in Sydney, we were right in town. I had previously read about our beautiful ship docking right across from the famous Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge which it indeed did. Our cabin is on the starboard (right) side of the ship so we were able to watch her dock from our balcony, a fantastic vantage point…of course we took lots of pictures.

We left the ship very early ahead of all the passengers who were disembarking and we walked over to the Opera House. If you don’t know what the Sydney Opera House looks like, our photos of both the inside and outside will give you a good overview. We signed up for a one hour tour and all I can say, is that it is a phenomenal building which has, just recently, been placed on the World Heritage Site of buildings from around the world. We took photos at sunrise, daytime and evening as well as the inside.

By the time we left the Opera House it was 10:15 AM and very sunny, hot and HUMID. I don’t do well in humidity. We then walked through the Botanical Gardens where we saw unusual trees, birds and fruit bats, which are apparently are rarely seen during the daytime. We also strolled through the pyramid shaped arboretum housing an exotic collection of tropical vines, flowers and plants. Very humid but lovely.

We then took a taxi to a glass domed indoor mall in the heart of Sydney, called the Victoria Mall. Many beautiful stores and shops with high end merchandise. We had lunch there and then we left Al and Karreen and took the monorail to the harbor where we boarded a ferry that took us back to where our ship was docked. Although it was only 2:30, we were hot, sticky and tired so we went back to our cabin, showered, changed clothes, had some lunch and then went back off the ship. We then took a ferry to the far end of Sydney Bay to Manly Beach which took about a half hour. The photos we took of the Bay really don’t do it justice and it’s easy to understand why Sydney, a city of 4 million people, is such a tourist mecca for people from all over the world. By the time we re-boarded the Diamond at 6:30 PM, the next shipload of passengers had boarded and we felt like the old-timers. Sail-away was at 9:00 PM and while I stayed in our cabin, Mark went to Decks 15 and 16 to shot some night shots. Take a look at our web album for those photos.

I came back from Sydney with the beginnings of a cold which developed nicely over the next few days and unfortunately, Mark also picked it up. Neither Mark nor I could remember the last time he had a cold. However, we had brought some homeopathic drops with us and along with Vitamins C and D3 and plenty of rest, we were over the worst of it within 4 days.

After a sea day, we arrived back in Melbourne on Feb 23. We had had our first Melbourne port of call on the 19th where we had visited an animal park, a winery and Puffing Billy, the steam engine train. This time we took a tour that took us in a different direction out of the city to the You Yangs National Park and the Serendip Preserve where, for the first time, we saw koalas, kangaroos and emus in the wild. This was an extraordinary experience and quite different from seeing the animals in a Sanctuary where they are still in zoo-like enclosures. In the You Yang Park we saw a male and female koala up in different trees. In the Serendip we saw many kangaroos and father emus with their chicks. This tour lasted from 9:30 to 2:30 and was excellent. It was another absolutely gorgeous day but not humid like Sydney.

After another sea day, we visited Hobart, Tasmania for the second time on the 25th of February. The first time (Feb 17) we and our friends took a hop on-hop off double decker bus for a 3 hour drive around the city and then ate lunch at the Hogs Breath Inn. There is a restaurant of the same name in Carmel, California which was owned by Clint Eastwood so we just had to eat there. Food was ho-hum and expensive. However we were very taken with Hobart, a beautiful town that would be easy to live in!
However on this second Hobart visit, I had arranged a private tour with Judy Livingston of EyeSee Tours for a group of six of us. She had been highly recommended by previous cruisers and she was great. She drove us outside the city to the Bonorong Preserve. For the first time we were able to pet the koalas and feed the kangaroos. We were the first to arrive before the tour buses and when you see our photos, you will see how happy we were! What is it about touching and feeding these amazing creatures that is absolutely joyful?

Then we went to a park for tea which Judy provided, and after this refreshment, went to Mt. Field National Park. This was a beautiful Reserve with huge trees and ferns, waterfalls and pristine streams. It felt very much like the area where we lived in Mill Valley, California. My son and daughter will remember how that felt and the unique smells of the forest that surrounded us.

We then had a lovely lunch which Judy had prepared with many veggies and preserves from her garden. After, we drove to the very top of Mt. Wellington which at 3000 ft. or so, is Tasmania’s highest mountain. It’s hard to describe in words what the vistas were like from this elevation but you can get an idea from our photos. We then were driven back to the ship and felt we had established a special connection with Judy who had gone out of her way for us.

It’s always nice to have a sea day after a port day because it gives us a chance to relax and get caught up with things like laundry, etc. The cruise staff always has fun and silly things for the passengers to do. That evening, there was a comedian and juggler act in the Explorer Lounge. Karreen, Al, Mark and me happened to be sitting up front and the guy asked for volunteers from the audience. So I “volunteered” Karreen. Karreen wound up on the comedian’s back while he was doing handstands! She’s in super good shape! THEN, later on he asked for another volunteer and (turn about’s fair play) and Karreen volunteered me! Not good.
At first it was easy stuff….I had to hand cuff him and he was able to get them off and he had a male volunteer do some acrobatic things with him. I figured I was ‘home free’ when he handed me his three juggler pins, smoothly hoisted me unto his shoulders (!), grabbed his unicycle and rode with me on his shoulders around the stage. He asked me to juggle the pins for a laugh and then proceeded to do so himself. Now, I’m no light weight and yes, he only rode with me for a very short time but still……….!!!!!!!! I don’t mind telling you that I was VERY anxious but I’m still in one piece!

Julian, this was MY zip line experience!!

On Saturday, Feb 27 we arrived in Adelaide where nine of us had a private tour with Paul of “Bums on Seats”. He took us through this city of 1 million people on the south coast of Australia and then out to Mt. Lofty, again the highest point of this area. We had been told it would be in the low eighties but it wasn’t. Rather it was windy and very cool and since we had just gotten over our colds and I hadn’t brought a sweater or jacket, AND it was still foggy this early in the morning, we stayed only a short time and then went on to Cleland Wildlife Park which was nearby. This was yet another animal experience for us and the highlights were more koala petting, the first up close experience with dingos (see photos) which are the wolf-like dogs of Australia AND observing for the first time, the many venomous (poisonous) reptiles of Australia in their enclosures. We had been wanting to see snakes and were excited that we were able to do so.

Then we went to two wineries- Foggo and Shingleback. Many of you may know that Australian wines are highly regarded throughout the world. At Shingleback, we met an Australian congressman who just happened to be accompanying Australia’s Prime Minister who was with the winemaker who was just outside touring the winery when we arrived. It was fun for Mark to talk to the Assistant Wine Maker because he was both familiar with and had a very high regard for McCrea Cellar wines! He had experienced them when he had been in Seattle. Small world story! Mark found the Shingleback high end Syrah to be exceptional.

After these visits, we went to Hahndorf Village, a touristy German vilage, very charming with lots of cute shops and delicious foods. After buying some bakery treats and having a German sausage, we headed off to Adelaide’s south shore which has a lot of similarity to South Beach, Miami.
We stopped at an opal jewelry shop and ogled the stones. By the way, Australia mines 85% of all the world’s opals and some of them are absolutely exquisite.

So, for now I will say adios as we continue to enjoy the second sea day between Adelaide and Fremantle/Perth. Mark and I hope that all is well with you and that you remain happy and healthy.

P.S. By the way, we are very aware of the 8.8 Chilean earthquake and watched some of the photos and the tsunami warnings in Hawaii as well. Mother Earth is very active!