In January 2014, Judy (my mother) and I walked into our local Flight Centre to book my dream cruise, and our maiden voyage to the South Pacific with Princess Cruises. I say, “dream cruise” because I’ve been wanting to do the cruise since I was sixteen years of age, and now my dream has finally come true.
Prior to our cruise Raelene (my sister) and Tim (her husband) went on the same cruise and on the same ship for their honey moon. The first time I saw the Dawn Princess Cruise Ship was when mum drove Raelene and Tim to the International Ship Wharf in Pyrmont to meet the ship. I think I must have spoken it out into the universe because when we walked into the passenger area I turned to mum and said, "This is going to be us one day!" Raelene and Tim’s honey moon cruise was delayed by a few hours due to problems with the propeller. When the ship finally departed Raelene sent mum an SMS (or text) message that red, "OMG... we’re moving!" I immediately felt sad when mum shared the SMS with me because ‘my sister was doing what I’ve wanted to do for years.’ The day after Raelene and Tim arrived home from their trip, we visited them in the motel room they were staying in for the night. As well as telling us about their trip; during the visit, Raelene also gave me one of her receipts from the cruise. Being paper, I naturally threw it in the recycling bin because I didn’t know what to do with it. Little did I know at that stage ‘Raelene was actually passing the baton onto me’ because three years later... it was our turn! The following is the travel blog about that cruise.
DEPARTING FROM SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA:
The AFL (football) pre-final was on that night so I decided to use it as a diversion and it worked because not only did my team (the Sydney Swans) win, I also slept well that night because of it. The day of my dream cruise finally arrived. Shortly after waking up I got out of bed and asked myself, "So can I get excited now?" After a short purse I said, "Yep" and spent the rest of the morning wanting one thing... to get onto the ship! After 1pm, Wendy (our friend who looked after the house while we were away) drove mum and me to White Bay Wharf to meet the ship. As previously rehearsed; when I saw the ship I went, "now then... there it is, there it is, there it is!" When we arrived at the wharf, Wendy got our luggage out of her car with a little help from us. A man who works for Princess Cruises then came and loaded our things onto a trolley for us. He then walked away. This was when a funny thing happened: ‘thinking he had left us mum (being mum) 'picked up the handles of the trolley containing all our bags and started pushing it' because she thought we had to take our bags on board ourselves.' But little did she know, the man left to help someone else to get their luggage inside the terminal. Once done; he came back to help us.’ Watching her do that was so funny and it was defiantly ‘a classic Judy moment!'
The Dawn Princess cruise ship was late leaving Sydney, and I think it was because there were other ships in the Harbour, and the departure boat had to lead those ships out to sea before it came for us. The ship finally left Sydney at 5:50pm after doing a life boat drill. The drill was really interesting and loud. This has to happen before the departure to teach the passengers what to do in the event of an emergency. When the life boat drill ended, we all went to deck twelve and fourteen for the ships departure and celebration party. As the ship was pulling away from the wharf, the captain (Ivan Jerman) blew the ships horn six times to say, "Good bye to Sydney" and to all those who came down to see the departure. I was filming and taking photos of parts of the departure when the first horn was sounded. It was so loud and I wasn’t expecting it so I jumped because it scared me. This was followed closely by five more horns. The Dawn Princess passed under the Harbour Bridge on it’s way out to sea. Although it was a fantastic experience; the scary thing is ‘the top of the ships hump misses the edge of the Sydney Harbour Bridge by about ‘three meters! This was where I came up with the saying, "Like the Dawn Princess going under the Harbour Bridge; that was a tight squeeze!"
Unlike everyone else on board I stayed at the front of the ship until the Dawn Princess was at sea. Once through the heads, it was fun watching the small boat that lead the ship through the heads ‘pull away from the ship, and do a quick turn before returning to the harbour. It was like the boat was saying, "Ok Dawn Princess you’re on your own... I’m outta here!" The sun had just gone down and it was so cold outside on the deck so I raced back inside to warm up. It was my first cruise so I got a bit lost on my way down our room (C703 on deck nine), but I made it back in time to get ready for dinner. On our way to the Venetian Dining room for the 7:45pm seating at 'table 129;’ mum and I took the lift down to deck five to pick up our coffee card, our unlimited drinks sticker for our passenger card, and a princess cruises cord for our passes. Unlike my sisters cruise; mum and I didn’t have to wait very long for our luggage to arrive because our bags were sitting outside our door when we returned to the cabin.
After dinner, mum and I went to the Princess Theatre for the first show time performance for the cruise. The show not only were we entertained by a dance number; we were also entertained by a comedian who reminded me a lot of ‘the old fella’ from the television show 'Australia's got talent' because he was so funny! Before the show ended; Marahscalh Stanton (our cruise director) came on stage and gave us some news. During the talk he said, "Now tomorrow is a sea day so if you get off the ship or you'll get your feet wet!" When he said that I laughed because I thought it was funny and true! When the show ended, mum and I left the theatre and returned to our cabin for the night. Prior to the cruise; I had never been on a cruise ship or out of Australia and I wasn't use to it so naturally I was a bit sea sick. But thanks to a good night sleep; I found my sea legs and I was fine for the rest of the cruise.
NOUMEA, NEW CALEDONIA:
The day arrived for the for the ship to dock at our first port in Noumea so mum and I woke up at 7am for an early breakfast which was delivered to room. After breakfast we got ready and made our way to the dining room on deck six where we got our disembarkation number, and waited for our number to be called out to leave the ship for the day. The ship arrived in Noumea during their wet season, and I made the mistake of 'getting off the ship without a jumper so I was a bit cold but I survived thanks to a 'long sleaved top I purchased from one of the local shops. Originally, mum and I had an on shore excursion planed but we decided to cancel it because a friend of ours back home who did a similar cruise told us, "the tourist train is open to the general public" so we got off the bus which parked outside the information centre and booked our own excursion with the green tourist train.
At 10:30am mum and I boarded the green tourist train with everyone else for the tour of Noumea. The train took us to two stops. The first one was a look out at the top of a hill which gave us a great view of Noumea, and the second one was at a military gun which had a sun dial close by and gave us a view of Noumea from another angle. Both stops lasted for ten minutes.
When the three hour tour finished, the train returned to the information centre. Mum and I got off the train and went shopping at a place called 'Casmo;' (where all the shops were located). Because of security reasons we were unable to take our bags inside the store with us so mum went in first and I stayed outside with the trolleys and waited for her to return. When mum returned to where I was standing, she handed me the two bottles of water, and I put them into my bag. Pretty much as soon as I did the zipper up someone (who I think was from our cruise) yelled out, "don't drink the water." That person’s influence caused mum to go back into the store, to return the two bottles of water, and yes she got her money back. Looking back on this, I honestly recon there was nothing wrong with the water because 'we were given bottled water to drink in Fiji.'
Mum and I then returned to the information centre where we went shopping in the stores inside the building, and had lunch at the Le 'Fare Du Quai Ferry' - a cafĂ© in Noumea located next to the information center. We both ordered the smooth burger and a macchiato coffee (simular to mocha). Although the burger was a bit messy; the burger and the coffee was really tasty. After lunch mum and I went for a walk through a park. We then returned to the information centre where we court the bus back to the ship. As I said before 'it was so cold and went that day' so mum and I watched the departure from The Horizon (food) Court. We then returned to the cabin and got ready for our 7:45pm dinner seating with our group in the Venetian Dinning Room. After dinner, our group went to the Princess theatre for ‘Show Time with Fern Belling.’ When the show ended, mum and I went to the ‘Jammers (the ships night club) for the 80’s party before returning to the cabin for the night.
DRAVUNI ISLAND, FIJI:
We woke up at 7pm and got ready for the day in Fiji. The ship was still moving so we turned the television on, watched that day’s episode of 'the wake show,' and waited for room service to deliver breakfast to our cabin. The ship was delayed so we didn't arrive until 9:30am. So after breakfast, I went to the top deck and took photos of the surrounding islands. When I was there I found a round swimming pool at the back of the ship (on deck twelve) so I went swimming while the ship docked. Once docked, I returned to the cabin and got ready for the day. At 10:30am we disembarked from the ship through deck four and court the tender boat to the Island as there was no place for the ship to dock at the wharf.
It was a small Island and there was no on shore excursion planed so mum and I went for a walk to check the Island out. When we arrived we were welcomed by the locals who sang to us in their native language. Mum and I then walked over to a shelter where another group of Fijians sang to us. After a short walk along a path mum and I found, we returned to the ship for lunch in the Horizon (food) Court. After lunch we returned to the Island. Shortly after arrival, we enjoyed a drink from a coconut. Mum and I then visited one of the schools where we saw some kids from the ship playing football with some kids from the village in the school yard, took photos of the surroundings, and I finally fulfilled a dream of mine... I went snorkeling in Fiji before returning to the ship. As you can imagine; when mum and I got back to the ship we I were so tired that we rested in the cabin before going to dinner in the Venetian Dining room. A funny thing happened when I turned the television on. I found the show 'the love boat' playing on one of the channels. It was a bit weird watching another ship on television from the Dawn Princess Cruise ship but I enjoyed it!
After dinner, mum and I returned to the cabin to get ready for 'the Ultimate deck party and Islander night' which took place that night on deck twelve of the ship. Once ready mum and I left the cabin and joined everyone else on deck twelve for the party. Shortly I arrived, the cruise director said, "We're currently in the South Pacific, and in the Princess contract you signed before you boarded the ship you agreed to join the Congo line. I'm sorry, it's the law!" This was where I joined into the party. Mum didn't as it wasn't her thing so she returned to the cabin. Everyone who was there joined in, the Congo line did a lap of deck twelve before returning to the stage area. The man who was leading our group took things into his own hands. He took his Congo line around three polls before returning our group to the dance area. When it ended, the cruise director returned to the stage and said, "This is also meant to be a dance party so I want to see you dance 'till you drop" so I (a night person) stayed behind and partied on a ship named ‘Dawn’ until 11:30pm before returning to the cabin for the night. From the words of the cruise director during one of the songs, "That's how you do it on the ship!"
SUVA, FIJI:
We woke up at 7am and the ship was still moving. As well as a day in Suva; it was also the day of the AFL Grand Final back home in Australia, and the game was between the Hawks and the Sydney Swans... GO THE SWANS!!! Although the Swans lost to the Hawks (sad face) the good news is 'it was shown on deck twelve (the pool deck) on the ship. I was a bit late for it because our shore excursion didn't finish until 4:30pm; the time the game was played on the big screen... with delays! As encouraged by my sister who did the same cruise; the first thing we did everyday when we woke up was ‘watch the Wake Show’ on television to get updates of what was happening on the ship. During the show, the cruise director said, "'Nathan Foley (from Hi5)’ will be performing for the final time on the ship before getting off to fly home to Sydney. I glad to hear that he was performing again because I missed his first performance due to attending ‘the Ultimate Deck Party.’
When the ship docked in Suva, mum and I got off the ship early to look around before going on our shore excursion. My first impression of Suva was 'it's like China Town and Central Station in Australia' because everyone wanted your business.
The first time mum and I got off the ship we walked around, took photos of the area, and did some shopping. I bought 'a tortes shell pendant, and a bracelet from one of the stores in a street market. Because the pendant is an 'animal product;' when I got home I was prepared to let go if I wasn't able to take it past customs. Like the 'shelled lay' I got when I arrived at the venue for our shore excursion; I was glad when the customs officer said, "that's fine" because I wear the pendant all the time, and now I can do so in Sydney. Shortly after this, we returned to the ship for lunch for a drink and to get ready for our shore excursion.
Mum and I left the ship at 11:30pm to meet the bus that took us to the 'Island drive, arts village, and fire walking excursion.' The forty five minute bus ride took us through the Island to the village where the excursion took place. When we got off the bus we were greeted with, "Bula (Fijian for 'hello')," and given a shelled lay. Everyone was then free to go shopping and to have a quick look around before the drum was sound by a Fijian man to announce the start of the fire walking excursion. Some of the natives sang to us as they walked us to the demonstration area where the 'fire walking, the ladies dancing, and a hunting demonstration' took place. As part of the presentation, one of the Fijian ladies who danced chose a man in the audience to flirt with, and the way it happened was really funny. When the shore excursion finished, we got back on the bus and returned to the ship in time for the AFL Grand Final. I’m a huge ‘AFL Swans fan’ so as soon as I got back on board the ship, I went straight to the cabin to got into my swans gear before going up to deck twelve for the game. Unlike some of the other Islands; I didn't really like Suva, and I was glad to be back on the ship.
As soon as I returned to cabin to change into my Swans gear. I then went to deck twelve for the game. Shortly after I found a seat for the game; I heard a noise coming from the wharf so I naturally went over to the side of the ship to see what was going on. Two Fijian military bands gathered at the wharf where the ship was docked and played music to see us off. A funny thing happened as the ship was leaving. During the departure; the ship blew its horn three times at the musicians. When this happened a trumpet player blew his instrument back at the ship. This sent a few laughs around the ship.
Towards the end of the game, I returned to the cabin and got ready for our 7:45pm dinner seating in the Venetian Dining Room. When mum and I finished eating; we left the restaurant and went to the Princess Theatre to see 'Show time with ‘Nathan Farley (from Hi5).’ During the performance, Nathan told us ‘it was his birthday’ so being a nice bunch of people we sang happy birthday to him, and he really appreciated it. When the show ended, mum and I walked along the outside deck on our way to the cabin for the night.
SAVU SAVU, FIJI:
For that day only, our shore excursion was changed from the afternoon to the morning so mum and I woke up at 7am, got dressed, watched the wake show on television (as we did everyday), and waited for room service to deliver our breakfast to our cabin. After breakfast, mum and I left our cabin at 8:15am. We went to the Princess theatre where we got our green dismemberment sticker, and waited for our number to be red out. Once announced, our group of ten people left the meeting area and went to deck four where we got the tender boat that took us ashore. The trip went well that is until it 'ran aground' half way between the ship and the Island so we were all stuck in the boat for quite some time on a hot day, and I'm glad the weather was cooler at the plantation (at the back the Island) where our shore excursion was held.
When we (finally) arrived on land we got out of the tender boat and walked along the wharf to the bus that took us to the coconut (or cobra) plantation. The bus we were on had 'no microphones' so those who were seated at the back of the bus had troubles hearing everything that was being said. The bus also had no air-conditioning but the widow was always open and the staff looked after us by giving us free water bottles.
On our way to the venue our tour guide pointed out a 'mountain that looks like a human thumb.' Naturally, I wanted to take a photo of it but wasn't able to do so because I was seated on the wrong side of the bus.
Approximately one hour and thirty minutes later the bus we were on arrived at the venue for the excursion. We all got off the bus, entered the grounds, and heard a talk from a man about the plantation. Those who were there also saw how the Fijian people cooked the coconuts after picking. I started off by standing next to a coconut tree. I suddenly heard a snap. Thinking it was a coconut I ran because 'if a coconut hits you on the head you're dead!' When the talk ended, we had a look around before crossing over a (shaky) bridge and walking over to the beach side of the plantation where we heard another talk. Mum and I then enjoyed another round of coconut milk that came straight from the nut. We also had a yummy lunch, the area itself, and a free concert that was given to us by some locals. Some of the things I learnt at the plantation include: 'If you're on a deserted Island all you need is a single 'coconut tree' because it has everything you need to survive. You get food from the nut itself, you can drink its juice (known as coconut milk), and the leaves of a coconut tree are strong enough that you build a house or make a basket or even clothing. If you're standing next to a coconut tree and you hear a 'snap' run because one knock on the head from a coconut can kill you. Also, once fallen if you leave a coconut on the ground for five months or more it'll sprout and produce a new tree, and this will happen all year round.'
Although the talk was finished, the Fijian people invited us to stay if we wanted to so mum and I did, and I'm glad because I honestly didn't want to leave. I think mum and I were meant to stay longer because the first time I attempted to leave the area I got on the bus and soon released 'I had left the lens cap of my camera behind and mum and I had to get off the bus to look for it. Thankfully, mum found the cap near the ladies toilets so I didn’t have to attempt to buy a new cap (or even a new camera) when I got on board. Mum and I had to wait in the area for two and a half hours for the next bus to arrive because it contained people who came for the afternoon session. During the wait I went for a walk, took photos, and met a few of the locals. The bus finally came at 3:30pm, and it was the last bus back to the ship. During the trip, the driver took a quick 'D-tour.' He drove the bus to one of the hot (volcanic) springs that women used to cook meals. I didn't go out as I stayed on the bus but I saw people sweating from the heat as they got back on the bus.
Pretty much, as soon as mum and I got back on board the ship mum and I went to The Horizon (food) Court for a snack before dinner. Mum then returned to the cabin, and I stayed behind and went to deck twelve for a swim because it was so hot. When I got out of the pool, I went to the top deck to watch the departure. The ship turned and got into position for departure. This was when I thought the ship wasn't moving until I looked at the back of the ship and saw the white water. Once departed, I returned to the cabin and got ready for the night. After dinner in the Venetian dining room mum joined the others who sat with us at our table at the Princess Theatre for Show Time with ‘Fern Belling,’ while I went to the Vista Lounge to see the movie ‘Non Stop.’ When the movie ended, I went to 'Jammers (the ships night club)' before returning to the cabin for the night.
OOO LALA ISLAND (PORT DENARU), FIJI:
We I woke up at 7am with breakfast that was delivered to our cabin by room service. After breakfast, we got ready and went to the Princess Theatre were mum and I waited for our number to be called to catch the tender boat to the Island. When we arrived at the main land, mum and I walked along the wharf to the Oolala ferry that took us to the small Island where our excursion took place that day. Mum and I were on the ferry for an hour and a half. During the trip, the Fijians who were on the boat with us told us about the area, entertained us with their personality, serenaded us with songs, and handed out snorkel gear to those who came empty handed. I had my own with me so I didn’t need to get a set. Like at most of the other ports; our ferry went past the ship on its way to the Island so I had another opportunity to take photos of the outside of the ship.
The Island we went to for the shore excursion was a small (protected) Island; surrounded by coral. The ferry we were on lowered anchor at sea and we rode the rest of the way in a small boat that was provided for us. When we got off the boat we were led to a large hut where we put our things down, and got ready to go coral snorkeling. Those who wanted to go snorkeling had to hurry because we only had one and a half hours left to enjoy the coral before the tide came in, etc.
It was then time for lunch so with a little help we all got out of the water and returned to the hut for lunch and a complimentary drink. During the meal one of the locals who was there with us told us something interesting about the baby sharks who lived in the area. He said, "Sword fish sharks come to the island every year to give birth. Once hatched, they head back out to sea and leave their young to fend for themselves. Every day, the people who own the island come by to feed them so after lunch we gathered by the shore, and watched people feeding the sharks. When this finished, mum went for a ride in the glass bottom boat to see the coral in the deep sea. When she got back on the island she told me, "I didn’t really see anything!" It was then my turn to go as the boat could only fit ten people at a time. The boat must have taken us to a different spot because our group had a great view, and we saw a lot of coral.
It was almost time to return to ferry so when I got off the boat, I went to the hut to get my things. I then made the mistake by catching the hover craft back to the main land while mum court the ferry back. It was a mistake because I had no choice but to sit in the sun and no one offered me a seat in the shade so I came back to the ship burnt and scratch because my skin got a reaction from the sun. It was so hot that day, and I definitely had enough sun so instead of swimming in the ships lap pool I went straight to the cabin and rested. Although I was inside, my skin felt hot so I had a long shower to cool off. During the shower, mum walked into the cabin to rest before getting ready for dinner because I (also) wasn’t feeling very well. After dinner with our group in the Venetian room, mum and I went to the Princess Theatre for Show time with ‘Trevor Knight’ before returning to the cabin for the night. Although mum enjoyed the show; I didn’t because he did more talking than he did singing so that was the first and only time I saw him perform.
PORT VILA, VANUATU:
Mum and I woke up at 7:30am for our day in Vila, Vanuatu, and to our breakfast that was delivered to our cabin at 8:30am. We originally had two shore excursions booked but we cancelled them both for some apparent reason.
Looking back now I wish we didn’t cancel the excursions because when mum and I got off the water taxi we were surrounded by people who wanted our business. Like the seagulls in the movie ‘Finding Nemo’ every business owner was there going ‘mine, mine, mine!’ I couldn’t even stand and take a photo with my back towards the road without a local saying, "Excuse me mam... do you want a taxi?" After spending five hours on land, mum and I took the sea taxi back to the wharf where the ship was docked. When we arrived, we continued our shopping before returning to the ship. Once on board, I returned to the cabin where I found a bird and a birds nest (made out of hand towels) sitting on my bed. This has been happening all through the cruise so my response was, "Oh, that’s so cute!" My original plan when I got back on board was to ‘went swimming, and walked around the decks before ship departed for Lifou’ so I did and I left the cabin as was to surprise mum when she walked in.
That night mum and I didn’t have dinner with our group in the Venitian Dining Room. Instead, we enjoyed our meal in the Horizon (food) Court. After dinner, we went to the Vista Lounge for the early show before going up to deck twelve to see the movie ‘Draft Day’ under the stars, but we didn’t stay for very long, and the movie started late. In addition to this, mum fell asleep, and I had troubles keeping my eyes open so I woke her up, and we returned to the cabin for the night. As I slept I had a dream. I dreamed ‘the Dawn Princess Cruise Ship capsized at one of the ports. The ship was upright when everyone got off the ship but when we got back to board after our on shore excursion we found the ship tipped over and its side like the Costa Concordia a few years ago.’ As you can imagine; I was glad when I woke up and saw the cabin was up right.
LIFOU, NEW CALEDONIA:
Lifou was our final port for the cruise (sad face) so mum and I woke up for us was at 6:30am to get ready for our excursion and for breakfast in The Horizon (food) Court. After breakfast, mum and I went straight to deck four where we court the tender boat to the Island. Our boat arrived at the island at 8:30am, and we were welcomed by some of the locals who (once again) stood at the end of the wharf and sang to us. We were then entertained by another group of islanders who sang and danced for us. Although this was entertaining; we were only allowed to stay for four and a half hours. It was a short stay because the ship had to depart at 1:30pm for its two day trip back to Sydney. Because of this mum and I decided to take advantage of our final snorkeling opportunity in international waters. As I snorkeled I saw several things including: ‘a baby sword fish that swam out in front of me. When I saw it my immediate response was ‘where’s mum?’ I didn’t want to get into trouble so I swam away. I also saw a large colour fish that had (what looked like) a thin gold ring around its neck, and of course I saw a lot of coral including a giant block of coral which although it was colourful, it scared the crap out of me because of its size. Because of the tide; as I snorkeled I encountered that block of coral several times and it scared me every time. I quickly swam away and tried to avoid it. I think it was because I was swimming in deep waters and the coral got bigger the further I went out.
The time eventually came for us to get out of the water and head back to the ship. Mum had to come and get me because I was snorkeling out in deep water and I couldn’t hear her calling me from the shore. When mum and I got out of the water, we picked up our things, and headed to the wharf where we met the tender boat that took us back to the ship. As we walked along the wharf we saw several ship passengers still snorkeling in the water when they should’ve been out, and lining up. We also saw children entertaining us by jumping off the side of the wharf and even doing back flips into the water before getting out of the water to do it again. Because of the time; mum and I were on the second last boat as the last boat docked at the wharf as our boat was leaving. When we got back on the ship, mum went back to the cabin while I went up to the Duty Free Shopping area and bought the things I had my eyes on. I then went to the cabin to rest for a while before getting ready for dinner. During our dinner seating; when the time came for us to order desert Raj (our waiter) went around the table and asked each of us what we wanted to have.
Originally I had my eye on another desert but as he was going around the table I overheard everyone for the cheese cake... everyone except for Kathy and her husband. When Raj asked me for my order I placed my hand on the desert menu to stop him from taking it.
I then asked Kathy, "What are you having?" She responded saying, "I’m having the apple crumble!" And, I then said to Raj, "Well then I’ll have the cheese cake!" Because the ball was in my court; when I said that those at our table our two waiters broke out in laughter. After dinner, mum and I went our separate ways. I started off in the Vista Lounge for ‘Country Jam’ but I started to feel a bit sea sick, so I left that room and went to deck twelve for the movie ‘Saving Mr Banks;’ that nights movie under the stars and I felt a difference straight away. When Raelene (my sister) went on her first cruise for her honey moon she told me, "the lower down you go... the less you feel the rolling." I was the opposite because the higher I went.. the less I felt it!" When the movie finished I court the lift down to deck nine. The only thing is I got off at the wrong end of the ship so I had the fun of walking from one end of the ship to the other to get to the cabin. Thank goodness the cabin hall ways has ‘arm railings’ because the ship was really rolling that night due to going through a sea swell.
SAILING BACK INTO SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA:
On the day of our arrival back in Sydney, I woke up at 5:30am and quickly got dressed to race up to the top deck to take photos of the ships arrival. I was up there for quite a while as I wanted to see the ship squeeze under the harbour bridge once again. Like at other ports; it was really interesting watching the ship dock when it stopped near the wharf in Rozelle. I originally thought the ship was going to turn in woods but it didn’t instead it reversed into the dock. My immediate reaction when this happened was, "Wow... It’s amazing what ships can do!" Once docked, I returned to the cabin to finish packing to get ready for our final breakfast on the ship.
Like the other passengers; mum and I had some of our things with us so we took turns with getting our meal so I went in first. When I got my plate, I looked over and saw two people from ‘customs’ getting breakfast in The Horizon (food) Court. My instant response when I saw them was, "You can tell if you’re back in Sydney when... ‘You see customs offers on the ship getting breakfast!’" After breakfast, mum and I walked out onto the deck to get some more sun, and I went for my final lap and look around before leaving the ship before returning to my deck chair. The time then came for us to disembark. So we court the lift down to deck five, and got our final coffee before leaving the ship. We got off the ship and had our passenger card for the final time. We then court the lift down and walked over our bags. We were then on our own to ‘fend for ourselves’ but thank thankfully a lady who works for Princess Cruises had a heard and bought two luggage trolley’s over to us to help us to get our bags outside. Mum and I were able to get our (declared) alcohol, and shelled jewellery past customs, and we didn’t have to wait long for Wendy (our friend who looked after our house) to pick us up from the wharf.
Now that I’ve finally done my dream cruise; if you were to ask me what my favourite port was, and what was your main high light of the cruise? My answer to the first question would be this: ‘I didn’t really like Suva (Fiji), or Vila (Vanuatu) but I did like Dravuni Island (Fiji), Port Denaru (Fiji) and Lifou (New Caledonia) because I was able to go snorkeling.’ And, my answer to the second question would be this; Out everything that happened on the ship itself my favourite events was: ‘the departure, the Islander night, the two formal nights, the Champagne waterfall which happened at the first formal night, the fun of walking while the ships rolling, movies under the stars, the live shows (especially the one done by the ships staff on the final night), swimming in the lap pool, drinking their Mock tails (the non alcoholic Cocktails), meeting those people who were at our table for the 7:45pm seating in the Venetian Dining Room, and the balloon drop.’ As a new Captain Circle member I would personally recommend cruising to everyone because it’s the best way to see the world without the stress. You don’t have to travel very far because once on board... you’ve reached your destination. The ship just takes you for a ride. Also, the shore excursions at each port are all organised, and you’re in a safe place because everything is done for you. I absolutely loved the cruise, and I became attached to the ship.
It was maiden voyage and my first time out of Australia. Because of this; ever since the cruise I now ‘see the world differently, I like TV travel shows like ‘Get Away,’ and I love cruise ships more now than I did before. During the cruise mum and I put a (refundable) deposit down for the next cruise which expires in two years, and I’m really looking forward to the next one.
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