Dusky and Milford Sounds

Sorry not to have posted a blog for a while but we’ve been busy.  Lots of Ports in New Zealand and then perhaps the most spectacular cruise through Dusky & Milford Sounds. It was an unusually clear day in a place where it rains at least 193 days of the year.  Ken assures me that we’ve been here before but I am certain he is wrong.  I would have remembered something so amazing!!  I think he is mixing it up with our Saguenay trip which was almost as breathtaking!!  And we all know who has the better memory don’t we??

We have seen a lot of New Zealand on this journey and it is truly a beautiful country.  Rugged mountains meeting the sea and clean, modern cities like Wellington where the downtown is built primarily on landfill with houses perched on the side of green mountains that surround it.

Mike and Linda hosted a lovely garden party for some of the crew and a few passengers at the Picton Yacht Club.  It was perfect weather, lovely music, great food and drinks and we were delighted to be included.  A good time was had by all.  Sadly, I forgot to bring my camera to the party!

We have spent the last two days crossing the Tasman Sea and it never fails to provide an uncomfortable passage.  As I write this, I am in our suite trying to type as the ship rolls through swells as high as 80 feet.  Makes manoeuvring around the ship quite treacherous!  The Captain has ordered that nobody is to be on the open decks.  Ken went to the library about two hours ago and hasn’t made it back yet.  But knowing him, he’s probably busy chatting with people in one of the bars.

It is already Valentine’s Day here and I suspect there may be a small numbers in the dining rooms tonight.  We’ll dock in Burnie, Australia much later and at least sleep will be easier while we are tied to land.

After Burnie, our next port will be Melbourne.  Two days there and then the task of beginning to pack for our return home from Sydney.  We’ll be overnight there before we head to the airport for the long plane journey to Toronto via Dubai!!

It’s been a lovely cruise with many old friends and new.  Hard to believe it’s almost over.  I have been monitoring the weather at home and must say I am not looking forward to getting back to the cold!!  But life goes on and all good things must come to an end.

I’ll probably do one more post and then it’s back to reality!!!  Thanks for following along.

D & K
P.S.  These photos are from Dusky and Milford Sounds.
P.P.S.  Go Canada at the Olympics!!!

Coming to Kiwiland

Today we are in Auckland, New Zealand.  This comes after a visit to Aitutaki in the Cook Islands, Nuku’alofa in Tonga and Bay of Islands, N.Z. with a few  “at sea” days in between.

We’ve experienced mostly good weather but as they say, “into everyone's life,  a little rain must fall” and there is a reason why this part of the world is so green!  Two days of heavy downpour with occasional short storms but it hasn’t dampened our spirits or good times.

Lots of fun evenings including a Polynesia night where everyone was encouraged to dress appropriately,  including the crew.  The dining room was decorated with banana leaves and flowers and it was hilarious to see some of costumes people showed up in.  I think I’ve sent some photos of that night.

We crossed the International Date Line and lost a whole day so I am totally confused about dates and time zones now.

Yesterday in Bay of Islands we had a short visit with our very first Silversea Captain from the World Cruise in 2007.  Captain Chiesa retired after that journey (and no, it wasn't anything we did) and lives in New Zealand half the year and Italy the other half.   His wife Laura who was also on that cruise joined him and we had some time to reminisce about  the highlights of that journey  10 years ago.  We saw him five years ago in Italy but since then,  he has had some health issues and doesn't look as fit as he once did.  But I suppose that comment could apply to all of us!!

Tomorrow some of our passengers will disembark and newbies will arrive.   It’s always fun to look for old friends from our perch at the pool bar.

We monitor the weather back home and someone just wrote to say that Wiarton Willy predicts another six weeks of cold.    Not looking forward to that!!

Stay warm and be well.

D & K

French Polynesia

It’s been several days since our last posting.  Once we arrived in Moorea, I think we’ve been in a new port every day and those relaxing “at sea” days seem a distant memory.  This is such a beautiful part of the world and the people are so friendly and attractive.  At each port we are greeted with music, dancing and friendly faces and although we’ve been to most of these islands before, it’s nice to return. 

In Moorea, a musical group boarded and entertained us in various venues on the ship until today when they said goodbye. Five lovely Polynesian women who clearly enjoyed what they were doing.  The icing on the cake was when Fernando (our cruise director) informed us confidentially that one of the very attractive young ladies was Marlon Brando’s grand-daughter. (If Brad received the photos to go with this note, she is in the orange dress to the left of the guitar player.)  Those of you who are as old as I am will remember the huge scandal when his son Christian  killed his Tahitian daughter’s boyfriend. She left L.A. and returned to Tahiti so she could not testify in the trial where I believe he was found not guilty.  I think she was pregnant with this girl when all that happened.  I think eventually, she took her own life but I must do some more research when I get home!!  

We’ve had some amazing meals on board and in Papeete we accompanied the Executive Chef David to a  local market to purchase some very interesting ingredients which he has been using to make special treats.  We tasted moon fish for the first time last night. 

Tonight we dined at the pool with our friend Patti.  It’s so nice to reconnect with old friends. And speaking of old friends ... Dorothea Bonney wrote today to say she will drive from Merimbula to Melbourne to spend the day with us there.  We have not seen her in several years.  She stopped cruising after her husband John died but they were the first people we met on the World Cruise of 2007.  It will be lovely to see her again!!

It’s almost 11:00 p.m. and we are about to sail away from Raiatea. Tomorrow is a sea day and then I’ve lost track of where we’ll end up on Friday. Perhaps it’s Tonga.
Hope the weather back home is improving and that everyone is in good health. Thanks for following along with our journey. 

D & K

  

We are still cruising towards Moorea in French Polynesia.  As I have said before, we don’t mind these long stretches at sea and there is always a lot to do if you want to keep busy.  I prefer just relaxing with a good book and just finished my fourth this morning. Time for another trip to the library. 

Yesterday we crossed the equator and it was celebrated with the usual hilarity that goes with that event.  Fernando, our Cruise Director assumes the role of King Neptune and this year, as you can see from the photos,  his spouse was not the most attractive creature on board!  Some crew members, and a few brave passengers, endured the ritual of having a raw egg and flour shampoo before being thrown in the pool.  

A view of Moorea. Not too shabby...

Venetian Society cocktail party with our Captain.  This is an event where passengers who have reached significant numbers of sailing days are acknowledged.  Ken and I were awarded our 500 sailing days certificate which comes with a 14 day complimentary cruise.  I know that 500 seems (and is) a large number but there is one couple on board who have over 1800 as well as several others ranging from 1000 and up!  I’m not sure what the reward is once you reach those numbers. For me, the best gift has always been the one given in perpetuity after sailing for 100 days - free laundry!!! Now that’s a gift that keeps on giving!!!  

...and the winner is...

The sun continues to shine although the seas are a bit rough. Nothing that a seasickness tablet can’t fix and it hasn’t stopped us from eating and drinking. We always know a rough night is expected when we come back to our suite after dinner to see our flowers, liquor bottles and other breakables moved to the floor.

Will write again in a few days.  In the meantime, keep warm and stay happy!!

K & D

MISSILE THREAT!!! WHAT MISSILE THREAT???

Before we began this journey, I was talking to a friend about the itinerary which is primarily in the Pacific and jokingly mentioned that all should go well unless the Little Rocket Man in North Korea decides to send a missile somewhere!  The good news is that it didn’t happen and the even better news is that it was all over before we knew anything about it!

We were docked at the Aloha Tower in downtown Honolulu, having just enjoyed breakfast in our suite.  When I turned on my computer there was a news flash announcing that the Missile warning for Hawaii was a false alarm!!!  Naturally we then turned on the television to learn the details of what had occurred about 45 minutes earlier.

We keep our iPhones on airplane mode when we are travelling in order to avoid the exorbitant roaming fees that Rogers charges and unlike many other passengers who were alerted to the warning, we were blissfully unaware of what was going on.  There was no announcement on the ship and certainly no warning from the staff.  In speaking to other passengers later that morning,  we found that the majority of them just carried on knowing there wasn’t much they could do about it anyway.  One friend said, “why bother to seek shelter to avoid what might come ... if it does, I don’t want to be in this world anyway.”

Our time in Honolulu was enjoyable.  Great weather with no humidity and despite the fact that this city has changed one heck of a lot since my first visit here in l967 and our last which was over 20 years ago,  it’s still a clean and friendly place.  We did a lot of walking because there were no tours that would take us to anything we haven’t seen before.

On our second night, we slipped away from port at 11:30 p.m.  and were anchored in Lahaina Bay, Maui the next morning.  We watched whales from our suite and again from the terrace of La Terrazza as we enjoyed breakfast before going ashore.  They are such magnificent creatures and I never tire of seeing them.  They seem to know they are safe and enjoy putting on a show.  The problem is trying to get a decent photo of them because their out of water acrobatics happen in a split second and by the time I push the button on my camera, they are gone!!

The old town of Lahaina has not changed much over the years.  The ancient banyan tree is still there providing shade for the many artisans who sell their wares to the crazy tourists.  I am always amazed by the fact that many of our fellow passengers purchase large paintings and wood carvings that they struggle to get on and off the tenders.  How do they ever get them home?  And where do they put them when they do?

Last night we enjoyed a barbecue on deck followed by a brief show and then “disco under the stars”.  We were still there when the Whisper quietly weighed anchor and headed to our next port.

It is Monday, January 15 at 7:10 a.m. in my part of the world as I write this and we are just docking in Hilo, Hawaii.  We’ll only be here for half a day before we journey to Polynesia.  We are having a very relaxing time and the weather could not be better.  My apologies to all of you who are experiencing the latest arctic freeze!

I’ve sent some photos that may make it into this blog.  One was taken from our balcony and shows two happy whales just submerging after providing a quick show for us.  Not a good photo, but it will give you an idea of how close they come to the ship.

Aloha
D & K.

Sunny and Serene Honolulu

The string quartet was not playing on deck; nor was an actual doomsday-delivering Taepodong ballistic missile speeding toward the Hawaiian islands.

On board the Whisper: business as usual. Latest pictures from Ken & Di show not just a little bit of sunshine and what seems a pleasant reunion with old friends.



Historical note:
Honolulu means "sheltered harbour" or "safe harbour". It is the most isolated city of its size in the world (ca. 380,000 inhabitants).
While the territory of Hawaii was annexed by the United States in 1898, the islands that make up the current state was admitted as a member of the union in 1959. So it's kinda like Newfoundland without the icebergs: a late-comer to (con)federation with an originally geopolitical value.

BA

Still Sailing to Honolulu

It’s hard to believe that it’s been five and a half days of sailing and we’re still not there! This may be the longest “at sea” period we’ve ever experienced! Some people get bored with these long stretches of sailing but we don’t. We had two days of rough seas but all is calm now.  And unless I missed them, we haven’t encountered another ship or even a whale or dolphins!   

All this sailing has allowed us to get caught up on rest after the busy Christmas weeks. And I can’t tell you how much I am enjoying having other people cook, clean, do the laundry and make my bed!!  It’s wonderful!!

We’ve enjoyed dinners with friends the last two evenings but for the first few nights, we dined in our suite while Ken recovered from a cold.  He’s much better now and certainly past the contagious period.  

Hot Rocks dining on deck under the Pacific sky.

The weather was perfect last night for dining outdoors at Hot Rocks and we enjoyed getting caught up with Linda & Mike, old cruising friends from Los Angeles.  We first met them in 2008 when they switched to Silversea from another cruise line.  They will reach 1000 sailing days with Silversea on this segment of the journey so you can do the math and figure out that they spend a great deal of their lives aboard one or another of the ships.  They say its more efficient than having a vacation home and maintenance free!! They are getting off in Singapore, going home for a few weeks and then returning to the ship when it reaches Greece. They will leave their luggage on board so they don’t even have to worry about that for a second time. Very efficient!!  

We’ve learned that once the ship reaches Papeete, more passengers will board bringing the total from 262 to 350. That’s almost full capacity for the Silver Whisper.  It will be interesting to see if there are more familiar faces among the newbies.  

We hope all is well back home.  Delighted to see that the deep freeze has lifted at least in Toronto.  It must feel downright balmy at 1C after what it was over the holidays.  


Will write again when there is something interesting to report.  In the meantime, back to my book ....
D & K

During Cpt. James Cook’s third voyage, he became the first European to set foot on Hawaii, which he called the “Sandwich Islands” after his patron the Earl of Sandwich. Hawaiians at Kealakekua Bay celebrated Cook’s January 1779 landing with joyous celebrations, and for good reason: by some strange coincidence, the explorer’s arrival coincided with an annual festival honoring the Hawaiian fertility god Lono. His fortunes swiftly changed in February after the natives realised he was mortal, ending his life in grisly fashion when Cook tried to take the local king hostage in exchange for a stolen cutter ship.

Cruising to Honolulu

It is the morning of Day 3 of our journey and I wonder how the first two went by so quickly! I guess it is true that time flies when you are having fun.

We managed to get out of Pearson on Friday morning before the accident there. That must have resulted in a lot of delays. We were an hour late leaving but it was because of a “no show” passenger whose luggage had to be found and taken off the plane. The rest of the flight was uneventful and we arrived in Los Angeles to balmy 67F weather. We were met by a car and driver and whisked to our hotel in decent time considering the usual traffic delays in L.A.

We realized on the plane that we had forgotten to pack a few things so we asked Hector, the Concierge, how to get to the nearest shops. He summoned the Hotel’s limo driver to take us to a nearby Mall and gave us his direct phone number to arrange our pick up when we were ready to return. Very nice indeed!!

Saturday morning was a bit cool and cloudy but compared to what we’ve all been experiencing back home, it felt wonderful just not to be wearing a heavy coat and boots! After a leisurely breakfast, we were driven to the ship and received a very warm welcome from many staff.

It was only noon and we were informed that the suites would be ready at two o’clock so we hunkered down at the pool bar (where else?) and spent the next few hours getting re-acquainted with old cruising friends and crew. There are only 262 passengers on this segment of the trip. Apparently 99 are doing the full 100+ days.

We set sail at 6 p.m. that evening and will arrive in Honolulu on Friday. Lots of lovely, relaxing sea days. We have plenty of reading material but are spending more time getting caught up with old friends than anything else so far.

The internet is very slow on the ship and sometimes it goes out completely. I will try and send some photos after Hawaii. In the meantime, Happy New Year to all.

D & K

P.S. We have a new butler (female) and we asked her to bring us a power bar (so we could connect all of our electronic devices). She came back later to very apologetically explain that the ship was out of them. That seemed strange so the next morning, we mentioned this to Norman the hotel director. Flash forward an hour and of course a power bar was delivered. Minutes later, Raquel arrived apologizing for the mixup. She thought we wanted edible energy bars!! Do we look like we eat those things??? She’s new and has never met us before!! She will learn!!

They are underway

As of yesterday, the Silver Whisper, with Ken & Dianne (plus wires and a small store of pharmaceuticals) were underway using engine heading WSW (251°) at 16 knots. The temperature at sea was 18 degrees celsius with a southerly wind of 14 knots.