Because of the change in schedule due to the landslide, we had only a half of a day in Sydney instead of nearly three days. We left Ayers Rock mid-morning, and today we were on two separate flights - again due to the landslide delay and last minute arrangements. We were on the Virgin Australia flight - VERY disappointinting in comparison to the Quantas flights.... the seats were much smaller/narrower, and not nearly as comfortable. And instead of a hot meal we were offered coffee or tea - for a two and half hour flight. Very disappointing indeed.
Royal Caribbean had arranged a one-hour city tour right off the plane to see the city highlights, so by the time we got to the hotel - counting the time changes - it was after 7 pm. Kim and I made reservations at the Sydney Tower which is over 800 feet tall and is the tallest building in the city. The 360 degree panoramic view - with a rotating restaurant - was breath-taking. We were back in our plush hotel by 10 pm.....great finish to a great trip.
I counted it up today - we have gone through SEVENTEEN different time zone changes in the last 26 days! It is no wonder that were are tired and ready to go home....though it will be a long, LONG day of flying tomorrow. But, we are excited with so many great events on the horizon --> Jillian's wedding and the Florida Derby this weekend to kick it off with all our best friends!
We set out at 7:45 on the 26th from Port Douglas to the Cairns airport to fly to Ayers Rock, but about an hour into the trip we had to turn the bus around and head back..........
Why? LANDSLIDE!
On the way to Port Douglas from the Rainforest our driver had talked about two things we'd heard a lot about on the ship - the torrential rains and the trouble with roads. Many times on the ship natives of Queensland (the state in which Cairns resides) and Australians in general had talked about how very bad the weather had been in Cairns. This was throughout the time frame of the cruise. Apparently it is near the end of what they call the rainy season, and the rains had been torrential. But when we landed in Cairns the weather was very nice, and the trip to Port Douglas was also very nice. The bus driver told us about how bad the weather had been the previous week and related the story of how the road we were on - a winding highway along the coast known as the Captain Cook Highway - had even been closed due to landslides. He pointed out the point about halfway through the trip. He said had we been there last week we would have had problems because the road had been closed for several days. Well, the next day it was a bit rainy on the way out to the Great Barrier Reef, but once we got there we had excellent weather. And both evenings we were in Port Douglas were very nice - though a bit muggy and warm. So now we get to the morning of the 26th. About 5 am I was awakened to the sound of pouring rain. And it rained all morning long while we prepared to leave from the beach resort. But, we were on our way. Then about 45 minutes to an hour into the trip we came to a stop as we were winding our way through the curves of the mountainside along the Pacific Coast.......there had been a landslide in the exact same spot there had been one the week before we arrived. In fact, it had happened about fifteen minutes before we reached that point.....had we left a half hour earlier we would have been home free into Cairns and made our flight. But now we were stuck.
Right away the driver and our tour guide Leslie began making calls and looking into alternatives. There is one other route from Port Douglas to Cairns, but that would require heading back to Port Douglas and then further inland and through a bit of the outer edges of the rainforest / mountain terrain. It would be a journey of about three hours from where we were, but at least we'd be in Cairns and maybe we'd catch the second flight to Ayers Rock; there are only two a day! We turned around and travelled for about 35 minutes when we stopped outside a gas station and were told this would be the only place we'd have a chance to use the restrooms and/or get something to eat. It was torrential rains and about 3/4 of the bus braved the weather to line up for the one-at-a-time facilities and/or buy snacks. I did not want to buy anything that would make me have to go to the bathroom, and I did not have to use the "toilets" as they are called here. Finally we were on the road. But within twenty minutes we got the call that the other road was now closed as well. Some feared we needed to get closer to Port Douglas so we wouldn't be stuck on the road, in the bus if another landslide occured between us and our original starting point. You have to give credit to the people at the Royal Caribbean office who were working the phones trying to arrange flights and accomodations. Within ten minutes it was announced we were going back to Port Douglas and we'd be able to have all our same reservations at Ayers Rock tomorrow, the 27th. Once we reached town, we stopped at the pier - which was a ghost town because the rains had cancelled everything, but the shops and restaurants were open. So we had some time to wander around while as the home office would make arrangements for us. Kim and I stopped in a shop and I found "my" Australia hat - everywhere I'd seen them they were anywhere from $75 to over $100, especially the fully leather hats. Here I found them for $50. Kim also found me a nice tie (with kangaroos on it :) ; she got a t-shirt and we bought ourselves a souvenir boomerang.
So about a half hour later we arrived back at the beach resort, and we even got our same room back. Our tour guide Leslie apologized and told us we had a "day of leisure." All we had to be concerned about was getting into Cairns tomorrow to make our flights. This was around 11:15 am. We went back to our room and within 20 minutes our luggage arrived and Kim went to sleep. Then at a little after noon we got a phone call in the room that we were leaving for Cairns, the secondary road had opened up! The thinking was to get to Cairns while we knew we could so that we would be certain of making our flight tomorrow. We had to bring our own luggage, up the steps and through the rain to the lobby, but no worries! When we got there MOST of the group had assembled. Within about twenty minutes we discovered we had all but one couple. They had been spotted in town having lunch, but were not at the hotel. Leslie headed into town, as did the bus driver. After an hour of fruitless searching in every store and restaurant along the main drag they were now where to be found! Sigh........Finally the two guys who had originally spotted them set out to find them and came back with them; the couple had ended up having lunch then headed to the marina where we were yesterday because of the fine shopping it offered. All of this, I might add was within ten to fifteen minutes walking distance from our resort.
Meanwhile we'd skipped lunch - first because Kim wanted to take a nap and didn't feel well; then because we were told we were "leaving immediately." As the time went on while the couple was "missing" we were told we could get sandwiches to go downstairs. It was $10 for two halves of a sandwhich or one full sandwich! I wasn't that hungry so I asked for two small bags of chips - like you'd get from a vending machine - and a can of Diet Coke......my bill was nearly $15! Finally we were all loaded and on the road at about 3 pm. About 4:30 we stopped for a break after making it through the very wet and winding roads of the rainforest. Once back on the bus we were told we'd be in Cairns about 5:30 and we had reservations at one of the top waterfront resorts. I'm telling you that the hotels/resorts that Royal Caribbean got us have been top shelf! And all of our times were confirmed - basically we'd just pushed everything a day back. The problem this posed for us, and two other couples was we had purchased Sydney Harbor Bridge Climb tickets for mid afternoon on the 28th. Now we would not arrive into Sydney until sometime after 7 pm on that day. So, after getting checked into our gorgeous and VERY large room, with a balcony that overlooked the pier, we went downstairs for our only meal of the day, so we had a nice steak. The Shangrila (our resort) staff offered everyone a 20% discount on their final bill to soften the blow of today's trials - which was nice because none of it had been their fault or issue. Then we came upstairs to get ready for an early bed time as our wake-up call is at 4:45 am to catch the early flight to Ayers Rock. We will have more time there, so we can take advantage of more of the activities, but miss time in Sydney. So I emailed the company and explained how I knew the tickets were non-refundable, but this was out of our hands. More news tomorrow I hope........
March 27-28: Ayers Rock
Tuesday March 27's wake up call came MUCH too early --> 4:45 am! We had to have our bags outside the room of the luxurious Shangrila suite no later than 5:15 am and we were leaving for the airport for a 7:15 flight to Ayers Rock. Our dinner the night before was simply wonderful. The hotel had offered everyone in our tour group a 20% discount off our total dinner bill (including drinks) as a "we're sorry for your tough day" kind of thing. So we took advantage of that and ate right on the pier - we both had steaks. It poured the entire time we were there! It was Florida summer deluge kind of rain, only it had been going on all day and night. I was glad we were getting up early instead of risking the weather keeping us here.
So we arrived at the airport and they checked us all through and all our bags as well. The hotel had packed a box breakfast - though it was a lunch with a sandwich, etc. but I passed. I knew we'd have a hot breakfast on Quantas, and we did......first class airline! Scrambled eggs, toasted half of an English muffin, slice of ham, slice of cooked tomato, yogurt with peaches, orange juice and coffee or tea. MORE than enough for a breakfast meal for me. We both slept some of the 2 1/2 hour flight. Ironically as we were boarding the plane - it was an outdoor, climb the steps thing - it started to rain! A fitting end to our stay in Queensland! But when we landed at 9:30 local time at Ayers Rock it was clear as can be and in the upper 70's. The high for the afternoon is supposed to be around 90, and by the time we do the "Sounds of Silence" dinner in the desert with the Ayers Rock in the background it shoulld be 80 or upper 70s. We were warned to bring a light jacket as it could turn cooler. So from about 10 am until 6 pm we had free to explore the area - and it was a VERY small "downtown" area - about the size of the food court at a typical mall - no kidding! But we did some shopping - we each got a shirt; Kim got a necklace and we got an Australian Christmas ornament :) Then we walked back to our resort and made a purchase. When we got to the Desert Garden resort we were told that since our original hotel for this tour was undergoing rennovations, to compensate for it - like we'd know any different! - the Desert Garden was giving us a $50 per person credit towards any purchase in any Ayers Rock store! Well, we knew immediately what we wanted ..........a jabiru didgeridoo! What the?????? See me holding the "big Australian stick" at right. When you visit us in the near future we will have it in the living room - it is extremely heavy and is native made by the aborigines. What makes it unique is that when these are made the inside is hollowed out - guess how........you'll never guess - the let termites eat out the middle of it! True story! It is being shipped to us and should arrive in three weeks or less.
After the shopping we checked in with Leslie, our tour director. I had talked to her earlier in the morning - we'd been asked to stop by and get the details of our flights back to Sydney and transportation to the airport for our flights home. Because of the landslide incident all the travel arrangements had been redone - and now the group was being split into two halves on two flights out of Ayers Rock. So I got the info and found out we'd be taken from the Sydney Sheraton at 11 am for the flight to LAX. This led me to talk with Leslie about the Bridge Climb and she had said she would call them. So after shopping she told us she'd talk with them and they were very understanding. They would offer us the "Express Climb" on the morning of the 29th when we leave. Leslie told us that would start at 9 am and is a 2 1/2 hour event. I started shaking my head as she said "that's beyond your transportation pick-up and you'd be talking about a taxi with all your luggage...." and I said, no, that just isn't going to work. I asked her if they had been sympathetic - she said yes, but no mention of a refund. But she gave me their direct number and when I got back to our room I called them. I talked with "Hugh" who was very sympathetic. He said they'd recieved my email and were about to reply........they were sorry we couldn't make it and said they'd offer a full refund within two days! HORRAY! So afterwards I went back to chat with Leslie about other options for the brief stay in Sydney and to make a very, VERY long story shorter, we made dinner reservations at the Sydney Tower restaurant which offers a 360 degree spinning view of the town and harbor. It is quite an exclusive and pricey activity, but hey, we just got all our money back from the Bridge Climb, so we felt we deserved it! A great way to top off the afternoon..........
March 27: Sunset at Ayers Rock
After spending the afternoon shopping and relaxing it was finally time to see "the Rock!" As part of our tour we had the "Sounds of Silence" dinner in the desert for this evening. We met at 5:45 and boarded the bus for the 15 minute trip to the national park and arrived with the ominous rock in the background. We made about a five minute trek up a sand dune to a viewing platform where we were served champagne (or diet coke if you were like us) and we all began taking photos of Ayers Rock as the sun set behind us. The colors on the rock were just amazing it seemed to change hues with each passing minute. The sky turned from blue to shades of pink and purple. Pretty awesome. All the while a native Australian played original aborigine music on a native insturment. Noteworthy was that while both his father and grandfather were aborigines, his mother was Irish!
After the set we made our way down the opposite of the platform to a clearing in the desert where there were many tables with white linen table cloths and all the fixings - just like dinner on formal night on the cruise. As we took our seats there was a group of three left standing and we had only one seat. So we offered, Kim voiced it, that we'd get up and let them have our seats plus the empty. Only to discover that there were no two seats together now! But we found a table with several people we'd spent time with and everyone scrunched a little to make room for us. The dinner itself was billed as a barbeque but once we got up to the buffet-style line I got to the end with little on my plate anticipating barbeque, only to find there wasn't ..... perhaps it was all fixed on an outdoor barbeque. There were salads (not real interested) and potatoes; chicken sausage, kangaroo, and lamp. Not what I would rave about, but it was good. The desserts included a bread pudding, so that was nice :)
But, besides the actual sunset the highlight was when an astronomer took us on a "tour" of the stars. He was so passionate, and so knowledgeable. And the sky was so black that it was very easy to see all the constellations. An amazing part of the activity was his flashlight.......when he pointed to a star and shone his "torch" it truly seemed to extend all the way to the planet; I've never seen anything like it before. Afterwards he had two telescopes set up, one aimed at Saturn. Though small, it was as though someone had put a photograph from a science textbook at the end of the lens. Just an amazing sight. We boarded the busses and were back at the hotel around 10:30 pm......with a wake-up call scheduled for 5:15 am to see the sunrise at Ayers Rock!
March 28: Sunrise at Ayers Rock
It was actually pretty chilly as we boarded the bus at 5:45. It took about a half hour to reach Ayers Rock and it was still pitch dark, though there was a hint of sunrise off in the distance. We walked about 15 minutes up to a multi-level viewing platform and watched the amazing changes in colors as the sun rose. The video doesn't do it justice, but is as close as you can get I think. Afterwards we boarded the bus and then drove right up to the base of the rock and walked around the base seeing some ancient caves - that served as homes to the aborigines many eons ago, and saw some cave paintings. A spectacular morning! Back to the hotel and we headed to the airport for the return flight to Sydney around 11 am.
Today was an AWESOME day! We spent the day out on one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Great Barrier Reef. The pictures below speak for themselves. Just a couple of quick notes...
We boarded the Quick Silver 5 to make the 90 minute trip to the Outer Reef. About 45 minutes into the trip an announcement came over the P.A. .... "Amy come to the engine room, IMMEDIATELY!" Now right away, that is NOT the kind of announcment you like to hear! Then crew members were literally sprinting around the ship. A couple of minutes later the announcement came that we would be stopped (and drifting aimlessly) while the engineer dealt with a "minor issue." This only lasted for ten minutes and there was apprehension among the guests. It didn't help when the crew decided this woulld be a good time to do a safety demonstration! What, we need to abandon ship?!!!! Finally we went on without further incident. We found out later that we'd lost the ability to steer the ship! Not good!!!!! We arrived at what had been termed "the pontoon" but was more like a small resort - lots of shaded area to sit, a staging area for all the diving, snorkeling, helicopter rides, and submarine rides. Just a really cool set up. Kim and I both agreed that it was so spectacular to be snorkeling on the Great Barrier Reef and even more cool that we loved the snorkeling and stayed out for over an hour! Enjoy the photos and the video :)
March 22 - 24: Open Seas Cruising & Final Port: Sydney The final two days at sea found the weather cooperating.....for the most part. It was foggy for the first half of the first day and very windy the second day. But we got two last days to enjoy our wonderful cruise experience. The things I will miss most are pictured here...... first, waking up and looking out on the open seas over our balcony; we love cruising! Second, I will miss our "dinner family" - them specifically, but generally all the great service and pampering of the staff, and the many friendly people we shared conversations with each and every day. Kim is pictured with reminders of the dinner/cruise ..... the "monkey" towel hanging on the curtain representing the best care in our room by our attendant; the "boot" made out of a napkin - our table was the ONLY one where the waiters did this....the last two nights everyone's napkin was in a different shape :) And finally, the oatmeal cookies from our three lady friends, the sisters.
The one thing I will not miss is the walking (3 - 4 miles several times a week), but the view was spectacular!
One of the coolest experiences on board came on the last day.......On Wednesday the 21st after dinner we got a phone message from Guest Services that they had received a "wonderful email" from a "Kimberly, apparently a former student of yours Mr. Love." That would be Kimmy Westmoreland, one of my all-time favorite students. Well, the Chief Engineer knows Kimmy very well and Kimmy had asked that he give us a tour of the engine room. I know, from having gone to the "Captain's Corner" that tours are not given in those areas for security purposes any longer. But because Kimmy had asked for us, we got to go below deck into the engine room and see behind the scenes. It was really awesome - and we were dealing with 113 mph winds and a listing of the ship at the time, but still he made time to show us around. Interesting also that he is from Croatia, where our daughter-in-law is from! I had to sign a "Guest Log" for documentation.....only five names on the ledger with the last being in August of 2011! We felt pretty special to say the least!
March 24: Arrival in Sydney - Cairns / Rainforest
We pulled into Sidney Harbor about 6:45 am and as I opened the door to our balcony there was the iconic Sydney Oprea House with the sun rising in the background! How cool is that? We got ready and moved to our meeting point and were the first group off the bus. Our bags were right there - so organized - and went out onto the sidewalk to meet our Tour Guide for the land tour. This was the only "snag" in the entire day - our Tour Guide was no where to be found! We all wandered around for about fifteen minutes until "Leslie" arrived. We quickly dropped off our bag to be stored at the Sydney hotel with one driver and boarded a bus with our other bag. A sidenote.....we had been told that at the airports we would have to handle our own luggage, but we were immediately informed that would not be the case - they had a "system."
We took about a half hour trip to the airport, got off and waited for ten minutes. Then our boarding passes were passed out - we had assigned seats and I'd swear they knew what kind of seats we preferred as some got aisle seats and we got the window and middle seat. Like all Quantas flights we were served a hot lunch with ice cream afterwards by flight attendants dressed in nice dresses and suites. Quality! When we arrived at Cairns Airport we waited while three guys pulled all our bags and loaded them on two carts. We were asked if we saw our luggage and then went to the bus - bags handled for us :) Interestingly, our driver only had one arm. But he quickly made light of this and told us he was the ONLY disabled person to climb Mt. Everest! WOW.....He's ok to drive the bus then I guess!
We soon arrived at the Rainforest Station Nature Park. We took a tour of the rainforest in an "Army Duck" - a World War II amphibious vehicle that could go on land or water. Saw all kinds of plants and creatures; then we walked through the nature park and saw many varieties of animals, including crocodiles, koalas, and kangaroos. We were there about two hours then reboarded the bus for the trip to Port Douglas. We knew we had a hotel, but on the bus one of the ladies on the tour was telling us it was a N-I-C-E resort. And truly, it was first class - be sure to see the video!
Today's experience actually began the moment we set foot on the ship at the conclusion of our Tranz Alpine Adventure yesterday. As we climbed from Deck 4 to 5 to join our "dinner family" (we were about a half hour late for dinner!) Captain Klauss began announcement over the P.A. He described how the weather in Wellington was so bad that authorities had advised us to delay our arrival in the morning to allow the weather to at least be suitable for our docking. He detailed the weather by telling us that the forecast for the day's stay in Wellington would be morning temperatures in the upper 40s and a high of 65. Further, it forecasted to rain most of the day - especially upon our arrival. And to add insult to injury, the winds were to be gusting up to 40 mph and the rain was actually being blown horizontally! The weather system causing this greeted us as we moved out into the open waters in the early evening and the ship began it's rocking routine. Because of our postponed arrival all of the tours and tour departure times had to be adjusted. At first glance you'd think that's no big deal. But you were dealing with over 600 passengers on about fifteen different excursions for an early morning departure off the Radiance of the Seas; and with bus companies for transportation to the excursion; and as in our case the excursion had to return in time to pick up a second wave of groups taking an afternoon version of our tour. The forecast was very accurate as when we were about ready to exit the ship, the Cruise Director, Bobby, was greeting everyone with the advice to hold on to your hat as the wind was stiff and the rain was coming down. And to be honest, the wettest and windiest part of the day was simply walking down the gangplank into the pier facility. But it wasn't more than a couple of minutes walking time. We were pointed to our small SUV-like vehicle which was to be our 4-wheel drive of choice!
There was room for one up front with the driver and the seven others of us all sat on parallel bench seats along the sides. We found out later that normally only six go per vehicle but one of them had broken down that morning. The start was "rocky" at best as the windows were fogged up and particularly the ladies on board were unhappy that they couldn't see out the windows. Our driver, Chris, was very patient and accomodating; so much so that he stopped at a local store and bought towels to perhaps help with wiping down the windows. But, as he probably knew, by the time we got to the beach and the actual excursion part of the trip, we could all see as well as could be expected in the dismal weather. In spite of the suggestion of some of the "bah-humbugs" on board who thought the entire tour should have been cancelled when we were told that the scenic overlook part of the tour was pointless, the day turned out to be a fabulous adventure. It took about 20 minutes to get outside the city and onto the beach.
And when I tell you we drove along the beach, it was N-O-T like anything you'd imagine a drive along the beach would be. The beach for the most part was largely black rock and gravel filled with pot holes and looming huge rocks from start to finish. If you watch the video it hardly does justice to the constant jostling we "enjoyed" as we brave adveturers went in search of seals. The first "sight" we encountered were the "Red Rocks of Wellington" (see photo at left). Chris told us if you told any locals we had been to the "Red Rocks" they would all know exactly where we meant. An informational centre at the start had offered several legends and myths as to why they were red, but even the scientific explanation had some "holes" in the theory. Next up was our first seal sighting.........
Bruce the seal was just lazily sitting right alongside the road as we drew up. He posed politely for photos and we had accomplished our first goal of sighting a seal! Next we came up on what is known as "Devil's Gate." You can tell from photo at right that it is a narrow passage up a sharp incline. What you cannot see, even in the video I recorded as we went through it, is how very uneven and deep the hole was in the crest between the two "gate walls." The camera hardly simulates the jostling of the vehicle - and the passengers - as we went through the gate. It was amazing that a "car" could make it......and when Chris explained several people drive to and from town this way every day, well....it was just an astounding revelation that people would lead such remote lives!
Next stop was a series of jagged rocks and boulders where the sea was crashing in. Chris had asked if the group wanted to stop at this point or move on a little further. It was my wife Kim who spoke first for the group and offered that since it was not raining at the moment, this would be a good spot to stop. I should also mention at this point that we were the lead vehicle in the caravan, and we later found out that Chris was the veteran and widely accepted best driver of these 4-wheel adventures! Lucky us! We had no longer exited the vehicle when someone spotted another seal just ahead on the rocks - see him in the photo below. He was not nearly as close and did not seem interested in moving closer. But then again, he never made any move to get away. He stared at us as we took photos and if you watch in the video he even slapped his tail around and shook his upper body in a shimmy style of dance briefly :) We had muffins (which were delicious) and coffee, tea or water at this break point. Then we took off, leaving the other four vehicles behind. Chris took us over narrow winding gravel and sand paths; past protected sand dunes; and got us to a bend in the beach where we could see up ahead a distant lighthouse in the mist. That was the usual goal of the trip, but he didn't think the weather would permit it today. Within ten minutes we arrived at a creek in the beach and Chris said he could try it, but the fact that we'd probably get stuck and all of us would have to push made him decide not to risk it.
At this point we turned around. With no other vehicles in site Kim asked where they all were. Chris replied that they usually did not travel as a pack because it slowed the trip down, and that he thought most would not venture out this far. Sure enough, about ten minutes into the return trip we came upon another vehicle........and when he asked Chris how far we'd reached, his eyes widened and he repeated the creek and asked in doubt that we could get that far. I was very happy we had the best, and the first vehicle, as I'm not sure many of the others would venture that far like we did. By the time we'd made the return trip it was generally agreed that the excursion had been a huge success and everyone was very thankful and grateful to Chris for taking us on this adventure. Kim and I were particularly happy with the adventure because, while it's nice to do city tours and find out about how far-away people live, today was a true glimpse into "real New Zealand in the rough." We wouldn't be able to experience many things like this back in the US, especially on Florida beaches! And the weather just made it all the more "eventful!"
The last item of interest came as we approached the pier. Chris pointed out what appeared to be just another cruise ship. He asked if we'd heard of "The World" ship, and we had not. He explained that it was a "personalized" cruise ship only for the very wealthy. A cabin (and you could tell they were GINORMOUS in size) sells for $20,000 A MONTH! Only the rich and famous own them / rent them.....obviously. But here's the kicker. The ship only goes where the passengers WANT to go! There is no set schedule or ports. When you find out it is somewhere and going somewhere else you fly out and join the ship for however long you want. Chris told the story - he never indicated if it was truly factual or just a story - that the President of the United States was on board and made the comment to the captain, "do you know that I'm the President of America?" to which the captain replied in a one-upmanship manner, "yes, but I am the captain of THE WORLD!" :)
Today marked the final stop and excursion of the cruise part of our trip, but luckily for us we still have eight days of our adventure to go! We have two days at sea before we reach Sydney, Australia. There we will be greeted by our Land Tour Director early in the morning to be escorted off the ship. We then begin the final five days by enjoying these four stops and adventures before departing on the fifth day, our last day of the trip, March 29.........
