| Another sea day so I had a lie in. After lunch, I went to the Diamond Club for a bit. Ann and Howard were in there and I heard Howard say, "There's Patricia" to her but neither bothered speaking to me or even a wave. Surprisingly she was drinking coffee, not wine. The daily programme was being filmed in the Centrum, as it has most days and I had a quick watch before going to the Quill & Compass, which was coming to the end of the napkin folding. The weather was foul while I was in the Diamond Club, resulting in them closing the pool. The show was meant to be all Marty Coffee, an American comedy juggler now living in Australia but apparently there had been technical problems during rehearsals so we only got half an hour after Joanna Marie Frankel, a Polish violinist. She was actually a passenger, having boarded for the previous cruise around the top of Australia, and married to an officer on the bridge. She was really good and played modern stuff too. When Micky came on, he was quite good. Dinner and with a little help from my wonderful waiters, Gokhan and Jesben, I was out early, using the excuse of an early night to meet my friends Steve and Sheena in the morning. Ann really hadn't helped matters when, after ignoring me most of the time, deigned to speak to me as I was looking to the Diamond Valley Railway details for Sue and Pete as an idea to take their grandson, and gave a huffy, "Oh, you're busy," like I was expected to jump when she said so. At least I only had to suffer these idiots just over an hour a day! |
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| Easter Sunday was Melbourne. I was up at 6.30am and off to breakfast as dawn broke, though woken by the bow thrusters fifteen minutes earlier. Spirit of Tasmania I was alongside us. It was a lovely morning but a bit cool. I headed off to meet Steve and Sheena and in the terminal our bags were checked for foodstuffs, plants and other things not allowed to be taken ashore. We had been told in the Compass at each port this would happen but it hadn't until today. We went for a drive around first then a drink as we waited for the City Circle tram, which is free. A car was in the next lane at traffic lights and the next thing, a woman jumped out, stuck her card on the window and said, "That's for you," pointing at me. We saw there had been an incident with numerous police cars once we'd got off, but had no idea what happened. It seemed to be something to do with a nightclub going by the number of young people grouped on the pavement. We walked partway along the Yarra River, went to where Steve takes ship photos, had lunch after showing me the Titanic Restaurant (though we went to an Italian) then they took me to where old steam trains are restored before going to their house to meet their kids and adorable dog, Kia. Then it was time to say goodbye and go back to the ship. Thankfully the rain showers we'd had were few and far between. |
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| We said goodbye to Australia just before 5pm until the 9th April as we set sail towards New Zealand. It was a bit cool so the winter jacket came out again but at least it wasn't raining though our Captain said it would be smooth when it was far from it. The sailaway party was very loud so I went and watched that until it finished then listened to the seventies music the DJ played for a while. Being so tired, I had a nap for a couple of hours then faced the morons at dinner. We had an Easter egg each, which was nice, and a sort of Hot Cross Bun was part of the bread selection. Ann was so sour-faced because she wasn't the centre of attention and, despite all of them being older than me, have zero manners. Each night, as soon as the food arrived, they started stuffing their faces before everyone had theirs. Classic comedy was discussed and each one mentioned, Ann said was rubbish. The Quest came up, the brilliant Royal Caribbean game which I've seen on Vision but missed on Indy since I started cruising with them in 2007. When it was described, she said it sounded awful. Does anything please that bloody woman besides wine (or should that be whine?)??? Then it was the show, which the Compass described as the Comedy and Vocal Impressions of Jonathan Clark, which I skipped having heard his Johnny Cash and Stevie Wonder during rehearsals! We received our Sydney disembarkation form, where you had to choose a time or self-disembark. I opted for 8-8.45am then dropped it in the box at Guest Services before going to bed. |
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| The clocks had gone forward an hour as we sailed south-east. As I knew I would be on my feet a lot in Fiordland, I badly needed to rest my knee so had a lazy day, just spending a little time on deck, having lunch and going to Diamond Club during the day. A waiter took my card in the Windjammer when I asked for a Coke and wasn't supposed to. After more than quarter of an hour, I mentioned it to another who said he'd find out what happened. He came back apologising, said the Coke machine was broken and he went down to deck 5, not realising there was somewhere closer and he was new. People were wrapped up but not me! It felt quite mild. It was our second of three formal nights though judging by what many were wearing, I could have gone as I was! At dinner, my lovely waiters helped me make a quick getaway. The conversation from the oneupmanship quartet had become repetitive and a bit desperate. I don't care if they think I'm being rude for eating and running when if they weren't rude by ignoring me in the first place I would stay! So I skipped O Solé Mio, which I'd heard several times. Howard said, "Oh come on. You've got to get into the spirit of things." He can say that when he's done more than Splendour and Radiance. Until then he can shut up. Ann decided she was going to slag off Americans, saying they're all stupid, though not loud enough for the next table (full of Americans) to overhear. This from someone who believes being able to load a dishwasher correctly is something to boast about! She must have such a boring life if that's all she can come up with! Though I expect even the most average American is more intelligent than she is. Howard objected to being 'at sea' when we were in Fiordland and the rest agreed. Natural beauty is clearly wasted on them, hence their sour faces, and it's not surprising none had visited Norway or the fjords. When they started repeating themselves about poxy grandchildren as they tried to outdo each other, I was glad to get away. The show was City of Dreams, performed by the Royal Caribbean Singers & Dancers. Now while it had great costumes and sets, no one knew what the hell the story was about. It was just singing through different locations around the world really with no apparent connection. So if someone can explain it to me, I'll be extremely grateful. Quill & Compass afterwards for a quick drink and then bed. |
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