World Cruise #12

World Cruise 2018 #12  Date: Mon, Aug 6, 2018

Here we go again, We had two sea days before arriving in Albany, a cute little town with a busy seaport on King George Sound.  Albany grew up around the whaling industry and has wineries nearby, with tours regarding both, but we just wanted to visit the town.  

It was a short shuttle ride to the main street which had a lot of historical buildings and shops.  There was a little arts and crafts market and we talked to a fellow there that made and was selling boomerangs.  I regret not buying one.  He explained to us that they really aren’t a toy to throw and have it “come back” but is actually used as weapons or decoys for mostly bird hunting.  And they aren’t made to return to the thrower necessarily. 

 We had another question we had been searching for an answer to, and this guy seemed likely to know, so we gave him a shot.  Where did the Southern Ocean end and the Indian Ocean begin?  Albany is very close to 35 degrees of latitude south and as you travel north from there you initially go west and around Cape Leeuwin and you are in the Indian Ocean.  It’s probably one degree, or sixty miles north and west of Albany.  If you look at a world map, Albany, Western Australia and the tip of South Africa are at almost the same latitude.  

Joyce and I like to know where we are at all times...lol.  We definitely wanted to know when we were in the Indian Ocean and now we would.  We both thought being in the Indian Ocean was very cool and commented on it many times.  “I can’t believe we’re here in the Indian Ocean..oh my!!” 

 Next we walked up (and it was up hill) through Albany and back down to the Albany Hotel where we had lunch outdoors.  I was looking for a suitable and dressy white top to wear on an upcoming gala white night and was driving Joyce nuts with my stopping in every shop.  Seemed like an easy task but proved to not be the case. After lunch we needed to find a grocery store to buy a couple Australian items we’d been told about.....the famous Tim Tam  Outlook cookies and these biscuits that I can’t remember the name of.....I called them Anthrax but of course that’s not correct.  Hahaha.  

Then we sought out the winery that Mike and Donna told us was in town.  Naturally, when we arrived those two were there!!!  Never fails.  The wine was good and we got a couple bottles and successfully got them on board later without being fined. 

Albany had a nice feel to it and the people were really great.  That is until they got behind the wheel of a car!!!  They’d run you down even if you were Donna in her chair....I saw one get pretty close to doing just that...scared me.  They didn’t seem to have a lot (any?) crosswalks and a fair amount of traffic, so you just waited.  Funny the different driving habits in various places.  

We sailed away past the ships loading grain and all the logs piled up waiting for a ride to somewhere.  The little stone house on the point was very pretty and I wonder what the story is about that place.  It was all alone but there were a couple hikers, or whatever, checking it out. 

 Our next stop was to be the next day afternoon at Fremantle, near Perth, and we would spend the night and have an additional full day to see the sights.  I remember the America’s Cup being held here years ago and was interested to see the area.  I had heard that it was beautiful and remote with islands and such.  We passed one on the way in called Rottness Island which I’m told is a fun place to visit.  We even thought we may do so but decided that there was plenty to see right where we were in Fremantle.  It’s apparently smaller and more quaint than Perth and it was very very nice.  

That first evening we got off to walk to the waterfront and ran into our friends, Marilyn and Rodney, and their family.  They live in Perth and their daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren were there to greet them and then take a tour of the ship.  So the pretty blond lady is my friend Marilyn, with her two adorable grandbabies.  So cute.  

Unlike John and Mary, when we hit their hometown they jumped ship, Marilyn and Rodney were on for the long haul.  Yay....cause I like them. 

 Joyce and I made our way down to the waterfront area (taxi) that has a big boardwalk and all kinds of entertainment and restaurants.  We had a drink before walking to the Cappuccino area of town that is back a few blocks and is a busy restaurant and shop area.  We found a busy bar in an historic hotel and Joyce went for sparkling white wine but I had a red called Leapin’ Lizard and it was good.  Never found it again.  But this was our last stop in Australia so didn’t have much chance to look. 

We wound up walking all the way back to the ship with a stop at a grocery store for snacks. No show tonight so we had a good dinner and went to bed.  More Fremantle tomorrow.

I shall return, Gayle  

World Cruise #11

 World Cruise 2018 #11,  Aug 4, 2018 

So, we made it to our next stop, Kangaroo Island, on time in spite of the storm.  It’s an island five or ten miles off the shore of mainland Western Australia, with ferry service.  It’s not terribly populated and the people there have this great island mentality and are independent as all get out.  And they help one another and don’t have police and it’s very cool there. 

We had no plans but there was a tour bus sitting there when we got off the ship that looked interesting....so we got on.  We had heard somewhere that there were no kangaroos on Kangaroo Island but that was not the case.  We had a delightful tour guide that told us all about island life in this remote place and she also knew where the kangaroos were to be found.  It was a bit cloudy so it was more likely that we would see them.  We did. 

 Our first stop on the tour was at a beach on the Southern Ocean where there were lots of seals, and it was very beautiful.  Seals don’t do much for me, as I’ve seen so many all my life, but the setting was exceptional.  That done, we next visited a eucalyptus farm that had lots of eucalyptus products for sale and animals.  They made a hard cider I tried and enjoyed.  There was a wallaby rescue operation and boy were they cute, especially the baby.  They were feeding it out of a bottle.  

The kangaroos were wild and all over the place.  I guess there are so many that they hunt them for population control and some are eaten.  I understand that Australia is the only place on earth where they eat their national animal.  Someone said that....haven’t Googled it but it’s kinda funny.  We actually had some later and it tastes like chicken, just like everything else weird. 

We made a stop on the way back to the ship at a beautiful beach, again, it’s the Southern Ocean and a wild and wonderful place.  Gorgeous. Another stop with a magnificent view of the Amsterdam and back to the ship. 

The next day we arrived early at Adelaide, which is a fairly large city.  The ship docked about 20 miles or so from the town and there was a train station right there that took you in to see the sights.  It’s only $10 for a day pass that you can use for any public transportation available, including in the city.....a good deal.  

It was about a fifty minute ride because it stopped at so many little towns on the way but it’s always fun to see the sights in a place you’ve never visited. The city had beautiful buildings and seemed quite large.  We took a tram down to the marketplace near Victoria Square which was large and interesting.  It turned into Chinatown about half way through the market and I could have spent hours there.  

We decided that we wanted to eat lunch and our preference is a place where we can be waited on and have a beer.  Strange that we could not find a place that fit the bill.....and we tried hard.  We finally settled on this dark, mostly empty restaurant with sticky floors and had some calamari.  Still don’t know where the restaurants are hiding in Adelaide.  

Joyce went back to the ship earlier than I, but mostly all I did was make a phone call to Mike before heading back myself.  He told me that our neighbor, Steve, says that there are wallaby’s on Kauai!!!  Who knew??? 

 The time we’re spending on the ship is half the fun and our circle of friends is growing all the time.  Some people we ate dinner with very early in the trip, Richard and Ann and Cynthia and Robin, have finally been the two couples that we run into much of the time after not seeing them for a month or so.  They became good friends with one another since we all had our first dinner together and they’re having a ball..... which we are included in when we happen to meet up.  There is talk of us having dinner with them some night as they are now regular dinner partners.  

Richard and Ann are Canadians and Cynthia and Robin are from Australia.  I think the two guys are twin sons from a different mother....lol.  We’re spending more and more time with “the boys”, Marshall and Don, playing cards and dice and sharing meals.  After dinner, it is my habit to go and listen to Jamm, the piano bar guy, for a half hour or so before it’s time for the late show at 10pm.  

Joyce usually has other plans, so I meet up with Marshall and Don and then I go sit up front and center in the showroom near Candie and Kathy.  No one sits up front, but I love it, because isn’t that where you sit if you can afford the tickets for any play or music venue?  And you can take photos with no heads in the way.  And everyone says that the entertainer will call on you is you sit there, to get involved in the show.  Not true.  They think that is why you sit there so they never call on you.  

I got called one time on this 113 day cruise and I was sitting in the third row.  It was a local show in one of the cities we visited and they had a bunch of us get up and dance.  Love the front row.  Kathy sat behind me in the second row and Candie had her place just off center.  Sometimes I sat with one or the other of them...it was fun. All those people sitting up in the balcony, so they can sneak out if they don’t like the show, don’t know what they’re missing.  The astronomer is very interesting and suggested a movie called “The Dish” which is about the satellite dish he was in charge of in Tasmania and wound up being “The Dish” that was used for communication with the astronauts for the moon landing.  Haven’t done so yet but it’s on the list. Sip and Savor is becoming better and better as we get to know one another and have additional people show up from time to time.  We’re enjoying specialty dinners and I know I’m gaining weight! Who wouldn’t on a four month cruise? 

 More soon, Gayle