Monday 3 December 2018
I was up early to do the last minute
chores to lock up the house and do the final packing. At 7.30 am my good friend
Steve came by to take me to the airport.
I only had time for a
very quick apple juice and a very light brekkie in the Qantas Club as we were
called early for the flight to Brisbane which I was happy about as the was only
a 30 minute stop over in Brisbane. The flight was uneventful and because of all
the bushfires smoke clouds hindered any views from the window.
The quick stop over in
Brisbane went very efficiently and I was soon on the flight to Melbourne. The
change over in Melbourne went well and I didn’t get lost on the transfer from
the Domestic Terminal for the International Terminal for the next flight.
I
only had time for a quick Gin & Tonic before we were called to board the
Qantas Dreamliner (787) for the next 2 legs to Heathrow London.
I was seated in 8E
Business class in the forward compartment of the aircraft which was very
comfortable although I had to learn how to drive all the gadgets that added to
my comfort and privacy. I had to get one of the taller male flight attendants
to put my hand luggage in the overhead lockers as they were far too high for a
shorty like me to reach.
The 3 hour flight from
Melbourne to Perth was excellent and we were served a fantastic meal. I even fitted
in a movie.
We had to leave the
aircraft in Perth and take off all our personal luggage for the aircraft to be
cleaned. I made myself at home in the New Qantas International Business Lounge
which had only been opened for a few months. It was a very enjoyable stopover
and the staff looked after us very well as the lounge was not crowded.
There was a new crew
for the 17 hour flight from Perth to London and the attendants in our
compartment were excellent.
Tuesday 4 December 2018
We arrived at Heathrow Terminal 3 at
5.15 am and I was impressed with the swift transfer to Terminal 5 and the
security check in as I was in the BA Business Lounge by 5.45 am. That must be a
speed record. I enjoyed the facilities for the next 3 hours and had a light
brekkie and caught up with the internet.
I took some food and drinks with me
on the flight as there is no free service on BA (Bloody Awful).
The 2 hour flight went very quickly
as I slept for about an hour.
The Arrival and immigration were
swift on arrival with the electronic Passport system and in no time I was
collecting my luggage and then a short walk over to the Hilton Airport Hotel.
It was great to get up to my room and
have a shower and shave after 34 hours of travelling. I met up with Vickie and
we had a light meal in the Executive lounge and then caught up with some emails
and FB messages.
I was trying to keep awake until 10pm to try to get into local
time routine. I saw my sister Frances was on line, so we had a good old chat
and then I went to bed at 10.30 pm and slept to 7.30.
Wednesday 5 December 2018
I awoke to a beautiful clear sunny
day with the temp of 8 degrees C, a bit cold for me. Vickie met me, and we had
a good brekkie in the Executive part of the dining room.
At 10.30 am Nick our driver was there
to drive us out to Civitavecchia to join the Nieuw Statendam. There was no
heavy traffic and it only took just over 30 minutes.
As we both get priority boarding, we
were on the ship in no time. We had some lunch up at the New York Deli before
going to the Mariners welcome drinks.
We were very disappointed as the
barman told us there was only Champagne to drink and neither of us drink that.
I asked if I could get some orange juice to put in it and he begrudging went and
got some.
Vickie still had nothing to drink and shortly after another barman
that knew me came along so I was able to get Vickie a Coke Zero.
Fortunately,
soon after the Assistant Beverage Manager came along to say hello and when we
told him of our predicament he went off and got us Rose and the barman was
instructed to give us Rose in future during the function. It was so funny as
now every time this Barmen sees me he nearly falls over saying hello.
Marcel and Elizabeth came and joined
us so Marcel would go out to another bar and buy himself a beer.
The four of us adjourned to the
Seaview Bar but because of the smokers left there with our drinks and went to
the Panorama Bar where we decided to stay and have Pizza for our evening meal.
We then had a few night caps at the
Ocean Bar and I called it a night about 11 pm
Thursday 6 December 2018
Today was a sea day so I had a great
sleep in as I woke at 8.15 am and after a shower, I was off to the New York
Deli for brekkie. I was greeted by the chants of ‘Papaku Papaku’.
I had a light brekkie of cereal and a
toasted bagel with Vegemite of course (as this is a new ship I bought my own Vegemite.)
I was surprised when I returned to my
cabin to find my dry cleaning and laundry had been returned, I only put it in
yesterday afternoon.
I had a little paperwork to complete
for the front office so after that I thought I would have a little rest. Well
that turned out to be a 3 hour sleep.
So just after 2 pm I went up to the
NY Deli and had my Papaku Pizza and catch up with some of my crew and officer
friends.
At 4 pm I caught up with Vickie and we
went to the Mariners Drinks and may I say we were looked after well.
I went to the Tamarind with Elizabeth
and Marcel for dinner. As usual this is an excellent venue for a most enjoyable
Asian meal. It was
good company and as most of the staff were from the Koningsdam they all knew me
so we got a great welcome and an excellent table by the window.
After dinner we adjourned for a night
cap to the Ocean Bar. I called it a night at 11 pm.
Friday 7 December 2018
After a good night’s sleep, I was up
early and went to the Lido for brekkie. I took my own Vegemite and I enjoyed it
on toast with my green tea.
Vickie decided to have a rest day and do some work on the ship.
After a short walk from the ship we discovered the Hop on Hop off bus and a trolley train. We decided to take the trolley train for a 7 Euro 40 minute tour of the city. It was a great trip and thank goodness I was well rugged up as the temp was only 9 degrees C. After the tour we walked up the main promenade and had coffee and did some people watching. I always enjoy visits to Cartagena as it is a beautiful clean city.
We came back to the ship for lunch
and was joined by Fr Joe the Catholic Chaplin on board. He was a very
interesting bloke and came from Co Mayo on the west coast of Ireland. He was
surprised when I told him I had co presented a radio segment on the local Radio
Station as a guest one night about 10 years ago in Ballyhaunis.
I then adjourned for my nanna nap
before Happy Hour in the Billboard. I
was later joined by Marcel and Elizabeth before going to the Mariners function.
We decided we would go to the Lido
for dinner and had a fun time as we sat in a area that the officers and staff
mainly go to. We went to the Lido Bar for a night cap.
I called it an early night and was in
bed by 10 pm.
Saturday 8 December 2018
I went up to the Lido for brekkie at
7.30 am I forgot I had arranged to meet up with Marcel and Elizabeth at 8.30 am
so I had finished my brekkie when they arrived so I had another Green tea and
chatted with them while they ate. Would you believe I forgot to take up my
Vegemite.
The four of us (Vickie, Marcel, Elizabeth and myself met up at the gangway to head off to explore Malaga. We bought a day pass on the Hop on Hop off bus to go sight seeing before leaving the terminal. Then we had a long cold walk from the terminal to the Lighthouse to the Bus stop. OMG it was windy and cold even though it was a perfect sunny day. The temp was about 9 degrees C.
The ride on the bus was most
enjoyable and the sight seeing was great even though there was a bit of haze over
the city. I felt so cold I didn’t get off at the first stop with the others as
I had been there last April and stayed on the bus.
After the 90 minute tour I got off at
the Lighthouse stop for the cold windy long walk back to the terminal.
In the
terminal I checked in on the WiFi and caught up on FB and emails.
Then it was back to the ship for
lunch and not long after that Elizabeth and Marcel joined me.
I had a very short nanna nap before
Happy Hour. Happy hour was heaps of fun with the crew and I was joined by
Elizabeth after a while. I now have been presented with to chooks made from
beer cans.
At 7.15 pm I met up with Vickie for a
pre-dinner drink at the Ocean Bar. I went to our allocated table for the first
time which is a big table of 8 and it was interesting however I will not be
going back there, and I will try to get my own Papaku table for 4 as is my
usual practice on ships.
I called it an early night at 9.45
pm.
Sunday 9 December 2018
Today is a sea day. I had an early brekkie in the Lido and
watched the beaut sunrise. I was waited on and looked after very well.
Elizabeth joined me for a coffee and
then we went up to the NY Deli to join Marcel. After holding court there for an
hour I went off to organise a Papaku table in the dining room. Also booked a
table for tonight at the Canaletto.
I now have the stats on the
Nationalities on board that make up the total of 2020 passengers. The main
Nationalities are:-
Yanks 1286
Canadians 239
Netherlands 153
POMS 80
German 57
Aussies 29
The other nations had less than 20.
The Mariners status break up is:-
Presidents
Club 5
5
Star 154
4
Star 395
3
Star 438
2
Star 310
1
Star 3
First
Time Cruisers 265
It was a great day as many guests
were coming up to me to say hello as they remembered me from other cruises,
also so many staff were doing the same and some that I hadn’t seen for many
years were calling me by my old name “Sir Pat”. It is always great to catch up
with friends that I haven’t seen for years.
We had lunch at the NY Deli, so I had
the Papaku Pizza which was made to perfection. Fr Joe came along to have a chat
and he couldn’t understand how a Pizza was named after me. I gave him a slice
to try and he was very impressed by the taste.
I ran into Ben a guy I met nearly 2
years ago on the Ms Veendam on a Panama cruise, so we agreed to meet up at
Happy Hour.
After my short nanna nap I was off to
the Billboard for Happy Hour which is always a great time with the crew and the
guests that drop in to say G’Day.
Tonight, I went to the Canaletto for
dinner and had a fantastic meal and the great company of Elizabeth and Marcel.
We were the last to leave the restaurant after a night of heaps of laughs.
We adjourned to the Ocean Bar for a
night cap, before I called it a night at 11.00 pm. Tonight we had to turn the
clocks back an hour as we move west in the Atlantic Ocean.
Monday 10 December 2018.
We arrived at Funchal Madeira
(Portugal) while I was having brekkie.
The sky was clear and much warmer than previous
ports.
Vickie had not been here before, so
she decided to do the Hop on Hop off bus trip. Elizabeth, Marcel and myself set
off in a Taxi to the cable car station for a scenic ride up the mountain. What a fantastic ride and the changes in air
pressure was a great experience.
On arrival we had a short walk over to where the we got on the Monte Basket Sleight Ride for 2 Km 10 minute ride down the mountain.
Wow this was great fun and I was more relaxed this time than I was on my first ride 12 months ago. We had a coffee then got a taxi down to the Markets and had a look around.
We walked back along the water side to the Marina where we had some lunch in a beaut restaurant over looking the Marina. It was great to relax and also use their WIFI to catch up on emails and FB.
.
Marcel wanted to walk back to the
ship however Elizabeth and I got a taxi.
We were back just in time to get ready
for Happy Hour and today we went to Rolling Stone Bar as Angelo and some of the
other boys wanted us to join them at their bar.
Ben joined us and he is always good
company.
Then it was a quick change to go to
dinner in the Pinnacle Grill as guests of Vickie. It was a most enjoyable meal
with the new Menu.
After dinner we adjourned to the
Ocean Bar for a night cap before having an early night after a very busy day. I
was in bed before 10 pm.
Tuesday 11 December 2018.
A relaxing sea day. The first of 7
consecutive days before we reach Fort Lauderdale.
I met up with Elizabeth and Marcel for brekkie and witnessed a beaut sunrise. We held court for a while as we planned our day. The sun was coming in through the window and was on my back and had the effect of making me feel sleepy. I said to Marcel I would go down and have a short nap and meet them up at the NY Deli about 11 am. Well I had my sleep but I woke up at 1.30 pm.
Elizabeth and I exchanged photos and I had a corned beef sandwich for late lunch.
Then it was time to go down to Happy Hour in the Rolling Stone Bar and we were joined by Ben. The band music was a bit loud but otherwise enjoyable.
Tonight, is Galah (Gala) night and I wore the white jacket with a black turtle neck. Marcel didn’t want to get dolled up for the dining room, so Elizabeth and I went to the ’Papaku Table’ for the first time. The service was fantastic, and a lot of the staff came up to say hello and chat about previous cruises we had been on.
We had one night cap at the Ocean bar
before calling it a night about 9.45 pm. Tonight the clocks will be reset an
hour.
Wednesday 12 December 2018
I was up early because of the time
change last night and took advantage of the time to download photos and update
this blog. I got the laundry ready to be collected and then went up to the lido
for brekkie.
This morning I went to a Microsoft Workshop and I learnt how to make the Mouse Cursor bigger and bolder on windows 10 which was a great achievement.
I met up with Vickie, Elizabeth and Marcel in the NY Deli where they made the Papaku Pizza for me. We held court until mid afternoon and had heaps of laughs. I went to another Microsoft workshop to learn how to turn photos into slide videos with music. These workshops have been very helpful for me as I have only been self-taught on Windows 10.
Then it was off to Happy Hour at the Rolling Stone Bar and the music was recorded and not loud ‘thump thump’ level as the live band was yesterday. ( I don’t know grumpy old men with loud music.)
I went to the Papaku table in the
dining room by myself for dinner and held court with the Officers and Waiters
so that was heaps of fun.
Elizabeth met me for a night cap at
the Ocean Bar to finish off the night. I was in bed by 10 pm.
Thursday 13 December 2018
This morning as I was going through
the Lido to my table, I noticed beautiful fresh strawberries so when my waiter
got me my brekkie cereal and juice I got him to get me some strawberries as
well. I was in heaven as I chopped them up and mixed them into the cereal.
Yummy!!
It is great having the internet now
as I was able to check in and fill in time until Marcel and Elizabeth arrived
and joined me for the remainder of my brekkie.
We then went up to the Crows Nest for coffee and exchange photos from the last few days.
Before lunch I thought I would experiment with my new skills in making videos from still photos. Wow I did a short one on the Ms Veendam Papaku Birthday cruise last July. I even posted it on FB. Yes, I know practice makes perfect, but it was my first try.
I went with Elizabeth and Marcel to the Dutch Kitchen and had the most fantastic Thick Pea soup and a toasted ham and cheese sandwich for lunch.
Well after this very active morning and lunch I headed down to the cabin for a nana nap which lasted for 3 hours making me late for Happy Hour.
We had dinner at the Papaku dining
room table. It was a great meal and loads of fun with the interaction with the
Officers and waiters.
A night cap at the Ocean Bar followed
and I was in the cabin before 10 pm. OMG I must be getting old as where is the
ever ready stay up and late night Papaku gone?
Friday 14 December 2018
After catching up with emails and FB
and then updating the blog I made it up for brekkie. As with yesterday I had
the fresh strawberries sliced and added to my cereal.
I was joined by Elizabeth and Marcel
and we planned our day.
At 11.15 am we attended the Mariners
reception and lunch, OMG it was the biggest number I have ever seen. The crowd
filled the showroom and then the lower dining room. I was impressed with the
excellent service for the large numbers and the meal was great.
I had a short sleep before Happy hour
in the Billboard. It was the Orange day for the Dutch, so Marcel put an orange
wig on me. Marcel had an orange Dutch footy jersey on with a mask of the Kings
face. It was a fun time as the photos will show.
We had a light meal in the Dutch
Kitchen as we were not hungry enough to go to the Dining room.
We met up again at the Ocean Bar to
start of the nights Orange festivities. I called it a night about 11 pm (a bit
of a late night for me).
As usual Elizabeth and Marcel joined
me for brekkie in the lido. We held court there for about an hour before adjourning up to the Crows Nest for Coffee.
Mid-morning, I returned to my cabin
to check emails and FB before having a short nap. There was a bit more motion
in the ocean today, so it was very conducive to get back into bed. Actually, it
was the first day on the cruise where we witnessed ‘white caps’ on the waves.
I met up with Vickie, Elizabeth, Marcel
and Fr. Joe for a pizza lunch at the NY Deli. Fr Joe and I shared a Papaku
Masarap Pizza. He can not get over that I have a Pizza named after me. Well it
is his first cruise.
I caught up with the news and was
pleased that Cyclone Owen had fizzled out to a Low rain depression and giving
us much needed rain at home.
We had a great time at Happy Hour in
the Billboard as we are getting a bit of a regular group and there is lots of
interaction with the crew.
Tonight Elizabeth, Marcel and myself
joined a Dutch couple (that we had all previously met on world cruises) so we
were the fun table with the staff at the Tamarind.
As usual it was a great meal
and fantastic Company. Tonight, we had to put the time back an hour as we
continued heading west.
Sunday 16 December 2018
Another smooth sea day.
I met up with Marcel and Elizabeth
for brekkie in the Lido and as usual was waited on hand and foot. After brekkie I went down to the front office to get some of my charges sorted out
and I must say the friendly staff had the wrong entries corrected in no time.
I checked emails and FB for a while
and then it was time to meet up with Elizabeth and Marcel for the Indonesian
lunch.
We left the table before coffee to escape this fellow and his goings on. Why would anyone who didn’t like Indonesian food go to an Indonesian meal?
We had a fun time at happy hour with the crew and some of the guests.
Then it was time for a quick change and get ready for dinner, Only Elizabeth joined me at the Papaku table for a most enjoyable meal.
I only had a water for a night cap
when we re-joined Marcel at the Ocean Bar. After the rich chocolate pudding I
didn’t feel like having a drink so just had some water.
Tonight, we had to put the time back
an hour so with the adjusted time I was in bed by 9 pm.
Monday 17 December 2018
Brekkie in the Lido got us started
with another sea day. We held court for an hour or so and then Fr Joe came
along so we took him outside on the lido deck to see the ‘Towel‘ animals.
What a great show the housekeeping
crew put on, I will let the photos do the talking.
It was a bit of a yucky day with rain
showers but the seas were calm so I went down and had a nanna nap to enjoy the
gentle rocking of the ship.
Elizabeth, Marcel and I met up at the
NY Deli for lunch and do some photo exchanges. I had my Papaku corned beef and
tomato toasted sandwich.
I then adjourned up to the Crows Nest for a coffee and
hold court with the crew. It is always sad to go up to the Crows Nest as on
this and some of the ships it is now a coffee shop and full of old farts
sleeping. Thank God on the older ships it is still a very popular bar and a
great meeting place.
Then it was off to the Happy Hour at
the Billboard which is always heaps of laughs and the interaction with the
staff.
Tonight Marcel, Elizabeth and I went
to the Pinnacle Grill for a fantastic dinner and a great time.
To top off the night we had a night
cap at the Ocean Bar.
I called it a night at 11 pm but as we had to turn the
clocks back another hour tonight it was just after 10 pm when I got to bed.
Tuesday 18 December 2018
We met in the Lido for brekkie and
held court there for a while to plan our day. I went down to pack a job as you
well know I hate. Actually, it was much easier as I had arranged for my laundry
to be returned folded, so it was just a matter of putting it in my port.
I had fish and chips for lunch with Elizabeth and Marcel up in the NY Deli and we did our final exchange of photos.
My final laundry was returned just after lunch, so the packing job was over and I could then relax.
We had a great time at my last Happy Hour in the Rolling Stone. The sad part is having to say goodbye to the crew.
I called it a night just after 11 pm
after I got my luggage out into the hallway for collection.
Wednesday 19 December 2018
I woke up to the sound of the bow
thrusters roaring at 4 am and was surprised we were manoeuvring to the dock at
our wharf in Fort Lauderdale.
I had brekkie delivered so I didn’t have
to go to the crowded Lido. After a shower I left my cabin to go up to say my
sad goodbyes to Elizabeth and Marcel.
I departed the ship just after 9 am
and got a taxi to the airport. I couldn’t book in for another 2 hours, so I had
to sit around with the luggage and wait.
After checking in I had another 2 hours
wait without the facilities of the lounge. I’m getting used to the waiting in
public areas and people watching.
Finally, I was on the American Airlines flight to Dallas Fort Worth for the connection with Qantas. It was a good flight and the young bloke sitting beside me was good with conversations, so the 3 hours went by very quickly.
On arrival I had to get the train to change terminals and as ours was late I didn’t have time to go to the Lounge, so I waited in the boarding gate lounge.
I was upgraded to Premium Economy and
had a comfortable seat beside a delightful young lady who was a vet. So again,
I had great conversations until after dinner when we decided to get some shut
eye for the 16-hour flight.
Friday 21 December 2018
No, I haven’t made a mistake with the
date as last night we crossed the International Dateline, so we skipped Thursday
20 December.
As one of the first aircraft in after
the curfew the immigration process went very efficiently, and I purchased my
duty free Vodka I was on my way to recheck the luggage for the domestic flight
to Cairns.
Well my good luck ran out because my
next Qantas flight had been cancelled because of the huge storm that hit Sydney
last night. It was estimated 6,000 people had to sleep in the 3 Terminals last
night and there was a huge back log to be moved.
The very kind and helpful Qantas lady
got me the last seat on the economical airline JetStar. I asked her if I would
have to say 3 Hail Marys before getting on the flight.
Now the fun begun as I had to take my
luggage in the shuttle bus to Terminal 2 and then cloak the big bag for 4 hours
as the flight was not leaving until mid-afternoon.
I then took my hand luggage over to
Terminal 3 where I was able to use the Qantas Club for a shower and a light
brekkie. I now was feeling a little bit more human.
About 12.30 pm I headed back to terminal
2 to check in for the JetStar flight. The guy that checked me in was very
helpful and as there is no lounge for this cut-price airline I again had to
wait in the public area.
Then they had a spot check on hand
luggage and I was forced to pay $60.00 so that my hand luggage could also go
with me on the flight.
When I told the rude bossy lady, I was flying on a Qantas
paper. She put me in my place and said this is JetStar and their rules apply so
pay up or never see the hand luggage again or give up my seat.
The seats on the flight were not very
well padded and most uncomfortable. Ever time the bloke behind me bumped his
knee against the back of my seat I was nearly sent into orbit. Of course, there
is no free service for tea and snacks, luckily I had bought my own water and a
snack on board.
Anyhow this grumpy old man was still great full to be at least home as many folks could not get flights until over the
weekend.
My friend Steve was at the airport to pick
me up and take me home via the supermarket for some supplies.
While I was away a big storm did
damage to my large courtyard sail and it had to be pulled down so now, I will have
to make an insurance claim. I guess with the holiday season it won’t be until
at least late January before the repairs are started.
When I left Cairns we were in the
height of a severe drought and the lawn was dead, but now after the rain
everything is green and lush.
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