The Macs’ Big Adventure

March 5, 2023

We docked in Singapore a little later than expected which delayed people’s planned activities a bit. However, what delayed them even long was the Singapore immigration process. The day before we got to Singapore, we received notification from the ship that Singapore requires an online health certification to be completed no more than 3 days before we docked. I was able to easily complete Brian’s and my certifications and got them uploaded and accepted.

We had booked an excursion through the ship which would take us to Little India, Chinatown, and to a Chinese tea demonstration and tasting. A Chinese set lunch was included along with a Singapore Sling at one of the nicer hotels. Originally, we were supposed to go to Raffles Hotel where the drink originated but out ticket said we would be going somewhere else for operational reasons. Anyway, we met at our assigned time in the Princess Theatre and waited and waited to be led off the ship. Finally our number was called and we thought we were making progress. Then we hit Singaporean immigration. We stood on the gangway for awhile (which was a very long gangway) until there was room inside the building for more people to enter. Brian and I were the last two in our group. We were greeted by a long zigzag lines (like at airport security or a Disneyland ride) that was slowly moving forward. After roughly half an hour, we reached immigration where our passports were processed and we were fingerprinted and we where sent on our way. Later on, this process was taking a lot longer. We headed downstairs and went through customs. Since we had nothing to declare, we just had to go through a security scan. We found our tour guide and proceeded to wait until our other tour companions arrived. All in all, our tour left an hour and a half late.

Throughout the day, the weather reminded up we were in the tropics. It was overcast with occasional downpours. The overcast helped keep the temperature down so it was only slightly sweltering instead of extremely sweltering! I was able to take some pictures from the very nice bus through raindrop covered windows.

Our first stop was Yixing Xuan Teahouse where the founder’s daughter, who know works with her father after years in finance, explained how tea was processed and brewed. I didn’t realize that all tea (other than herbal and flowery and fruity teas) come from a single plant. The type of tea depends upon which leaves are picked from the plant. Our time here was truncated due to our late start but we had time to sip four types of tea. Included I. The tasting was the best jasmine green teas I’ve ever had. During the tea appreciation class, we learned that white tea is extremely high in antioxidants and other cancer preventatives and extremely low in caffeine. It is an incredibly lightly flavored tea.

We were hustled back onto the bus, which was blocking the road and causing a lot of drivers to lay on their horns with enthusiasm. We went off to Chinatown for lunch and while we would have time to shop then, we would spend more time here later.

Singapore is a fascinating city to observe. It is multicultural (Malay, Chinese, Indian, and Eurasian) with a lovely mix of old and new. Almost everyone speaks English and there is generally English signage along with another language.

Komodo Island is one of the over 17,500 islands that make up the country of Indonesia and is the home of Komodo National Park, a World Heritage site. No one can visit the park without being part of an organized group. We were part of one of the ship’s shore excursions. There were about 20 in our group.

I awoke as we were slowly approaching the island. The view from our balcony was stunning.

The ship would be at anchor for the day and we’d, again, be using the ship’s tenders to go ashore.

When we got to the island, we got the first indication that we weren’t in a first world country anymore. When we tied up to the dock, we had to negotiate tall steps carved out of the cement in order to reach the pier. The steps were not in pristine condition and there was no railing. Crew members were there to provide a steady arm to help people up the steps. This was a little more rustic than some folks in our group had anticipated, but it really wasn’t a problem if you were in average shape. There was a long pier we had to walk to reach the beach and the park. Boats in all sorts of conditions lined the pier and numerous one floated out in the ocean.

We met our guide, Fan, on the beach and were given a short safety briefing. Accompanied by two helpers with long, forked sticks to keep the Komodo dragons away, we headed out into the forest. I’m always in awe at the beauty and diversity of nature. We hiked through forest and up the hill into meadows and back down to the forest. We saw insects, flowers, birds and dragons.

This tree had a branch twisted around the trunk. It reminded me of a giant stick insect hugging the tree.

We hadn’t walked too far one the trail when we reached a watering hole the park had built for the dragons. All the Komodo dragons in the park are wild and are the apex predators of the area. They are not fed by the park, so they hunt for prey like deer, water buffalo and each other. They are cannibals. There was some activity at the waterhole.

This was just the right amount of activity for me. The group that was two tours behind us “enjoyed” seeing a young Komodo dragon eat a baby deer whole. I guess the sounds accompanying were something people would never forgot. Another group saw dragons mating.

As we continued on, we saw a couple of dragon hidden in the long grass.

The day was hot and humid and the walk was a couple of miles or so. There were certainly people who were struggling and had overestimated their level of fitness. We ended the hike near the ocean that, of course, had a lovely view.

There was a large local vendor marketplace we were funneled through. The vendors were more aggressive than we’ve seen before. They were selling the usual t-shirts and trinkets along with carved Komodo dragons. We didn’t buy anything. I knew I didn’t want a giant reptile on my chest. Before heading back to a tender, we stopped to have our picture taken to prove we were here.

We look just a little warm!

It’s another sea day today and tomorrow and then we’ll be in Singapore. That stop will be incredibly different than Komodo Island.

It’s rarely a good thing when the ship’s Captain addresses the whole ship over the speakers, but that is what happened last night. We are no longer going to Darwin, Australia because the weather was getting too bad. The Port Authorities in Darwin suggested the ship not dock so, in the interest of safety, we’re on to Indonesia.

There have been many more sea days than scheduled on this portion of our trip, due to storms. We won’t get to Komodo Island for three days now and the ship’s crew is working hard to keep everyone occupied. Sea days blend one into the other and passengers can get grumpy.

Living this long on a cruise ship is like living in a small city. There are about 2,000 passengers aboard along with the crew necessary to support the operations of the ship. That is a lot of people! The crew members have been wonderful without exception, doing everything possible to make our trip great. I can’t say the same for the passengers.

Like any city, there are the grumps, the complainers, the entitled, and the just plain miserable. These people we do our best to avoid. Luckily, they are in the minority.

Everyone seems to have developed their own routines and places to be. As Brian and I wander around the ship following our own routine, we greet the same people daily. We are not sun worshippers, so we don’t know the folks who spend their days by the ship’s outdoor pool. Even with all the people on board, we never have to look too hard for a seat in the buffet or by the indoor pool. The elevator usually appears right after we push the call button. We rarely have to wait.

Of course, with all these people, there are emergencies and instances of bad behavior. Evidently, a couple of men got into a fight that turned physical in one of the laundry rooms. Laundry is serious business around here! They were put off at the next port. More seriously, we have had two mid-ocean medical evacuations by helicopter in the last month, which is very usual. The helicopter hovers over the ship and the patient is lifted up on a gurney. All the outside decks are closed for everyone’s safety. This is another time the Captain speaks to everyone.

As I write this, I’m sitting in Crooners Bar—our morning go-to place. Not for an adult beverage, but for the quiet.

In the spirit of full disclosure, we have been known to have a drink or two here before dinner.

Brian has been fighting a cold, so I think the enforced rest will help him get better. I have choir rehearsal later this morning and then we’re going to try to arrange a rousing games of Five Crowns this afternoon with some friends. The weather is worsening outside now, so remaining indoors is a good bet!

Cairns (pronounced “cans”) is a city of about 130,000 on the Coral Sea. It was also a gateway to the Great Barrier Reef. Since we had chosen Airlie Beach for our reef excursion, today we booked the Rainforest Station Experience.

Rainforest Station is a privately owned park in the Kuranda Mountains in the middle of the rain forest. We would get to enjoy a number of experiences here throughout the day.

We got on a bus with about 40 of our new friends for the drive through the town and up into the forest. Carmel was our tour guide and, as a native of Cairns, she was a wealth of information. There are a lot of sugar cane fields here. In fact, Carmel’s father and mother came to Cairns in the 1930s to work the cane fields.

Random road sign.

The drive through the mountains was lovely and soon we reached our destination, Rainforest Station.

Our first scheduled activity was lunch and, since it was about noon, we appreciated it. We had an Aussie style BBQ buffet with all sorts of meats, tropical fruits, and accompaniments. When we finished eating, we were free to head over to the wildlife park.

This private zoo has many native Australian animals on exhibit. We saw kangaroos, wallabies, koala bears, dingos, Tasmanian Devils, a cassowary, crocodiles and reptiles. The kangaroos and wallabies were free wandering. Actually, the kangaroos did less wandering and more sleeping or relaxing. Here are some pictures.

We headed off, then, to listen to some didgeridoo playing and watch a spear throwing demonstration. I have to admit, I do love listening to a didgeridoo. The people leading these demonstrations where members of Aboriginal tribes,

Our next activity required audience participation. We got to learn to throw boomerangs. Our group was evidently very good at it. Brian and I both took part and one of us was much better than the other.

Me:

Brian:

Aboriginal dances were the next program we enjoyed. Accompanied by the didgeridoo and rhythm instruments, three men demonstrated a few dances.

Finally, we had a Duck Boat ride through the rain forest. We were in a 1942 original duck boat much like this one. It had been shipped over from the US during World War II and remained behind.

The rain forest is beautiful with such a variety of plants and animals. It had become very overcast, so the butterflies and other animals would not be out. The colors of the forest were amazing. So many shades of green!

A termite mound.

We even did a little water traveling.

We had a little extra time when we were finished at Rainforest Station, so Carmel decided she would like to take us a little north of Cairns to the beach. We drove out to a place called Pearl Cove which is a very nice local area. There were lots of restaurants and shops along with a lovely beach. Notice the white flotation boundaries around the swimming area. That netting keeps the jellyfish out.

On our return back to the ship, we passed a couple of fields of wallabies. When a new housing area was developed, some wallabies were trapped inside the fences and they have flourished. Not everyone is happy about this because wallabies love vegetable gardens!

We made it back to the ship right on time at 5:00. We relaxed with some adult beverages, had pizza and French fries for dinner and called it a night. It was dark when we left Cairns and all the lights where gorgeous, especially those on the boats.

We’re now on the second of three sea days before we get to Darwin. As of today, it is going to be very rainy there and very warm at the same time. We have no plans except, possibly, to run a few errands and do some exploring as weather permits.

Airlie Beach is the gateway to the Whitsunday Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. I imagine it is an extremely beautiful place if you aren’t there in the middle of a huge storm. Almost all of the shore excursions offered here were cancelled. Ours, however, was still on. We were taking a high speed catamaran on a 2 hour ride out to the Great Barrier Reef. The boat had about 150 passengers and, not long after we headed out, people started getting seasick. The barf bags were being well used over the course of the next two hours. I had taken Bonine before we headed out just in case and, boy, am I glad I did! Neither Brian nor I were sick, but it wasn’t a pleasant ride out.

When we got to the reef the water was still a bit choppy, but not too bad. Lots of sea birds (along with their accompanying smells) and the pontoons that were being used to access the reef were in the distance.

Once on the pontoon, Brian had to put on a stinger suit this time to snorkel. That would protect him from jellyfish stings.

While Brian snorkeled, I returned to our catamaran where there were comfortable seats (not covered in bird droppings) and air conditioning. I enjoyed reading a new book, so I was quite content. Before Brian came back to report on his snorkeling, the catamaran crew put out a lovely lunch buffet which I decided not to partake of since we had to sail back over the same ocean we came out on. Not everyone made the same choice, and it came back to haunt them later.

Brian returned very happy to have snorkeled in the Great Barrier Reef even though the water was murky and choppy. This was our small window of opportunity to have this experience and you grab the opportunity when you can.

I thought I’d share my view of the reef.

During our ride back to our ship, I decided to stay in the lower level of the catamaran where the ride should be, in theory, smoother and the air conditioning worked. It had been very hot on the ride over. Brian returned upstairs to sit in the fresh air.

I sat next to some college age kids traveling with family. They had met on the cruise and became fast friends. The two hours passed quickly as I enjoyed their company. They were playing Harry Potter Uno and I watched and laughed with them. Again, lots of other folks were not having such a good time. I can’t say enough about how hard the young crew on board worked taking care of all the sick tourists. They were so kind to everyone and it could not have been the best work day they had ever had.

Everyone seemed to be quite happy to be back on the cruise ship. There were lots of disappointed people that the Barrier Reef experience hadn’t been what they’d hoped it would be. I know it wasn’t how we had imagined it. However, we were there and the Great Barrier Reef was something we never thought we would experience. And experience it we did!

Moreton Island is the third largest sand island in the world. Today we were at anchor in the Coral Sea and the ship’s tenders (large lifeboats) would shuttle passengers to shore at the Tangalooma Island Resort. All the excursions the ship offered took place at the resort. Brian had booked a snorkeling adventure for the morning which he enjoyed quite a lot.

The resort had sunk some ships a number of years ago hoping to build a reef. Brian said there was coral growing of the metal hulks with lots of fish swimming around. He had to wear a thick wetsuit to protect him from the sharp edges of the metal.

He also enjoyed watching the many birds on the beach.

I stayed on board in the morning doing some chores (and writing my last blog post). There seemed to be lots of issues with the tendering over process. Shuttles were having mechanical problems and, since it was a 20 minute ride to the resort, folks were delayed getting over.

Brian was back around 1:00 and told me there wasn’t much to do or see over there, and since sun and laying out on the beach is something I don’t do anymore because I’ve had melanoma, I decided just to remain on the ship.

We spent the rest of the day doing what we normally do…a whole lot of relaxing.

The night before we got to Sydney, we said goodbye to two of our dear dinner companions. Bill and Heather were getting off in Sydney and spending five weeks in Australia. Heather, though she now lives in Pennsylvania, is originally from Tasmania. Their children are joining them for a portion of the trip and they will visit family and friends in Tasmania. Heather had asked Brian to play his guitar and sing some songs for them before they left, so, after dinner, a small group of friends met in the chapel and Brian did just that.

I was up bright and early when we sailed into Sydney the next morning. Our passenger choir had to be on deck 14 at 5:45 so we could sing while we sailed past the Sydney Opera hHouse. Evidently, this is one of the most beautiful sail ins on the cruise and, since I couldn’t see it, Brian took pictures for me.

I’m at a loss for words to describe Sydney. It is really the most amazing place! A young, vibrant city, Sydney has a lively, welcoming feel. This is a place I could easily spend much more time in. There is so much to see and experience. The mix of old and new architecture, all the public art and the lovely green spaces were a treat for the senses. Our shore excursion for the day was a Hop On, Hop Off bus tour. We spent about an hour and a half riding around this beautiful city. I took way too many photos. These are some of my favorites.

Sydney was celebrating a many weeks long Pride Festival and the city was decked out in honor of that. The Pride rainbow was everywhere.

We even saw some local wildlife. Only one of these creature is real. Hint…it’s not the giraffe.

After we hopped off the bus back where we got on, we decided a cold beer was in order. We stopped in at the Fortune of War pub, which is the oldest pub in Sydney. The Australian beer was good and the locals were very friendly.

After cooling down, we wandered around the area near the cruise port poking our nose in shops and having lunch. There were way too many options of things to do, so we decided we’d just have to come back for a longer stay. It would take weeks to experience everything Sydney has to offer. Brian decided to hike over to the Opera House and I walked back to the ship. It was a beautiful Saturday with lots of young families out and about.

We left Sydney in the evening during a rainstorm. The passengers on the other side of the ship got to watch an amazing fireworks show over the Opera House which, I understand, occurs every Saturday night in the summer. We didn’t even know it happened until yesterday.

Our call in Sydney marked the beginning of the next segment of the world cruise. This portion of the trip ends in Dubai. Over the next month, we turn our clocks back an hour 9 times. This should be interesting!

Yesterday was a sea day, so my choir began rehearsing new music for our next concert which will be the night before we get to Dubai. After dinner, we went to trivia with our friends and dinner companions Mike and Karin and Steve and Carmen. It was music trivia and the topic was Cher. The host plays 20 second snippets of a song and we have to guess the title. We discovered that we suck at Cher trivia. We got a total of 7 out of 20, but since the winner only had 9, we did ok!

Today we’re at anchor off Moreton Island which is a private resort. Brian took a snorkeling shore excursion and I stayed on board to do laundry and write this blog. Passengers are being tendered to shore on a water shuttle and it is going very slowly, so I’m not certain if I’ll go on shore or not. It’s very nice and quiet where I’m sitting right now and there is a lot to be said for that!

Our cool New Zealand days deserted us in Melbourne (Mel-bun). By the time we headed back to the ship, it was 99 degrees and humid.

Our ship’s shore excursion was a Yarra River Cruise and visits to the Shrine of Remembrance and FitzRoy Gardens. We took a bus from the cruise port to our destinations and, again, saw some amazing architecture.

The building above with the yellow “belt”around it is the tallest building in Melbourne and is an apartment building.

The Yarra River splits Melbourne in half, and we spent an hour learning about the River and enjoying the sights. This was our transportation.

The river was bordered by beautiful trees and parks and is well used by locals. We saw a number of bridges and, probably most importantly to Brian, we passed the home of the Australian Open Tennis Tournament and Rod Laver Arena.

A few more bridge pictures.

After the cruise, we headed to the Shrine of Remembrance, which is a memorial that was originally built to honor those people from Australia and New Zealand who fought in and perished during World War I. Additions have been made to include men and women who served in later wars. The Shrine is an incredibly impressive building with displays on the inside and statues on the grounds.

By now, it was getting much hotter. We headed to our last stop, FitzRoy Gardens.

I am amazed by the number of beautiful public gardens in Melbourne. At these gardens, we saw Captain Cook’s Cottage, which is actually his parents home that was transported, brick by brick, from England and finished as it would have been when the cottage was occupied by them. It was very small but nice and cool inside. Those thick walls really work! Again, there was statuary scattered around the park. Here are two we saw, Captain Cook and Diana, the Huntress.

Behind the statue of Diana is the Conservatory. I walked in and it took my breath away! I have never seen so many large and colorful begonias, impatiens, and coleus plants. It was stunning.

When we completed our visit, we hopped back onto our nicely air conditioned bus and headed to the ship. The tour was letting people off, if they wished, to do some shopping before the bus got back to the pier. We decided to get off on Bay Street hoping that we could find a bank that would exchange our New Zealand dollars for Australian Dollars. We were unsuccessful in that quest and were referred to some money exchange companies in the Central Business District. Since we weren’t in that area, we decided to find a money exchange in Sydney in a couple of days. We were able to use an ATM and to get some of the local bank notes.

Our walk back to the ship was quite warm and we stuck to as much shade as we could find. It was only about half a mile, but I was soaked when we got back. I figure the walk was great practice for our visit to Petra where we have to walk 5 kilometers through the desert. I don’t think that trek will be as quite as humid though. We’ll find out in a few weeks.

There was a pioneer in Melbourne, before the British arrived, and there are a number of places named for him. My favorite sign of the day…

We’re in Sydney on Saturday!

We woke up to a markedly rougher Tasman Sea today. We’d been lulled into thinking that we would miss the normal very active ocean out here. Wrong. It’s not the worst seas I’ve been in on this trip, but we are rocking and rolling.

We got to turn back our clocks another hour last night. We are 19 hours ahead of Pacific Standard Time. My body clock doesn’t know what’s going on! Luckily we’ll stay right where we are for awhile.

My day started with a haircut at the Lotus Spa onboard and I think it turned out quite well. Nothing is cheap at the spa but when you need a haircut, you need a haircut. Our travel agent gifted us with a generous amount of onboard credit, so we can use that to pay for the it.

This morning, there was a Valentine’s Day Renewal of Wedding Vows ceremony held on the ship and presided over by the Captain. Anyone who wanted to could sign up. The choir I’m in sang “Love Me Tender” at the start of the ceremony and there were a lot of people participating or observing. It was very touching and the decorations were beautiful.

I had a short choir practice after the celebration. Our next mini-concert is outside on deck 14 as we sail past the Sydney Opera House before we dock. It happens very early in the morning and we all wear our bathrobes. We’ll be singing “Waltzing Matilda” and “I Still Call Australia Home”.

Its just past noon now and I’m relaxing in our cabin waiting for Brian to get back from his walk around the deck. Our afternoon is totally unscheduled until dinner. There are plenty of opportunities to find something to do, if we wish. We’ll see what happens!

Tomorrow is another sea day and then we’re in Melbourne.

We had a cloudier day for our visit to Tauranga yesterday. There is a major cyclone heading towards New Zealand and everyone has been keeping a sharp eye on it and where it might hit the islands.

Our shore excursion for the morning was called “Highlights of Māori Culture”. There was a complex welcoming ceremony all our our tour group took part in. I’ve posted pictures of the handouts that explain, in depth, what we did. We couldn’t take pictures because we were in the sacred Meeting House.

It was a very special experience and our group sang the song on the first page of the handout. We actually echoed what our guide sang, but it was still very moving. The only part of the ceremony that didn’t occur was the Hongi greeting. The touching of noses and foreheads was a victim of Covid protocols, so we shook hands instead with a squirt of hand sanitizer to follow.

After the ceremony, we headed over to the social hall where we had coffee or tea (served in lovely china cups and saucers) and cookies. There were some craft booths set up for us to shop from if we so desired. The location we were at was not a tourist recreation of Māori living. It is a living breathing village where the tribe gathers for celebrations, funerals and meetings. There is a preschool attached where young Māori children start becoming immersed in Māori culture.

After our time at the village, we were bused over to the Māori high school for a cultural performance presented by some of the students. All of the classes at the school are taught in Māori except English and some of the sciences where the terminology doesn’t easily translate.

This is a lovely school which our guide was rightly proud of. It took a lot of work by the elders to get the school built. Here’s Brian outside the entrance.

The performance was a lot of fun and both Brian and I participated. He learned the Haka and I learned the Poi. I use the term “learned” very loosely.

Here is a photo of Brian. The picture of me is very conveniently, for me, on Brian’s phone.

Here’s what it’s supposed to look like.

The Māori shared their most important proverb with us:

He aha te mea nui o te ao
What is the most important thing in the world?
He tangata, he tangata, he tangata
It is the people, it is the people, it is the people

After we returned to the ship, Brian headed out for a hike up a mountain and I stayed behind to do laundry. What I did is much less interesting than what Brian did! As we sailed into the bay in the morning we saw this hill:

Brian had heard there was a path to the top where there was an amazing view, so he decided to check it out. The hike was more strenuous than he expected, but he was very glad he did it. He got some lovely photos both during the climb and on the way back to the ship.

We did not have the lovely view off our balcony as we did in other ports. However, we did get a bird’s eye view of provisions being loaded on to the ship.

Before we went to dinner, we headed down to the Shore Excursions desk to see if there was anything available for Wellington, NZ. We were told that none were available. Not five minutes later, the Captain announced that, due to the cyclone I mentioned at the being of this post, all of the remaining ports in New Zealand were cancelled for safety reasons and the possibility of the harbors being closed. We would spend the next four days at sea running away from the storm. Melbourne, Australia has been added to our itinerary and we’ll head on to Sydney from there. This does leave us with an unused amount of New Zealand dollars we will have to exchange for Australian ones when we get to Melbourne.