Nothing like a summer cruise across the Tasman, when the weather thinks that it any other season but summer. Pleasant enough though but a little lumpy. By Wednesday evening it was decidedly bumpy but we were fortunate in having a following wind. Still warm enough for Richard and I to sit on the balcony when we had drinks before the Captain's Cocktail party. Yes, Formal Night again - the last one for this cruise.
Overnight there was some relatively strong winds but surprisingly when we got up, the weather was much improved. It was quite strange reading on line about all the devastation going on, particularly in Wellington, when we were sailing through Cook Strait in beautiful sunshine and very calm seas. We had excellent views of the top of the South Island from starboard side. Actually got in our walk before the final of Vivian's line dancing. As we head down the South Island, we are keeping relatively close to avoid the squally conditions. Very changeable indeed.
At the Captain's Cocktail party last night, he mentioned that the top 4 nations on board (in ascending order) UK, US, NZ & AU. Not surprising, but from observation I would have thought that there were more Chinese, but as they can only do their demographics from the passport type, many presumably come from one of the above countries. The thing is that the Asians (& this also applies to a number of other European nationalities) tend to keep together as family or bigger groups, rather than integrating. So between the larger groups hogging facilities, there is clearly a lack of understanding the normal "rules" for queuing etc. Say no more.
Friday:
I certainly spoke too soon, as the sea conditions changed drastically mid-afternoon. The swell has risen to almost 6 metres and the wind has certainly got up. We are of course heading southwards and therefore are plowing into it. We were not so gently rocked to sleep overnight, with plenty of banging, plunging and shuddering! However we woke just after 7.00 just as we were entering the heads of the Otago Harbour. Sun was out and obviously little in the way of waves, but boy, is it cold! The high is expected to be 11, so I think it must have been 8 or 9 at that time. Yesterday the on board shop was Selling puffer jackets flat out as most passengers thought they were on a summer cruise, not a winter one.
The family have taken the Taieri Gorge train excursion, so they had to be up early. We had nothing planned, so took our time over breakfast and then took the shuttle into Dunedin ($15 each return). A lot of other passengers decided to do the same thing at the same time, so a bit of a wait for buses to come out to Port Chalmers. Once in the city, where it was just as cold & breezy, we walked out to the botanical gardens. It was roughly 45 minutes each way. Worth the walk and it was interesting to see how much of the city is occupied by the University. We had morning coffee in the botanical gardens but still can't work out why it was called Croc O Dile, with crocodile theme. Anyway very pleased not to see any, plus coffee and muffins were lovely.
We braved the upper deck for sail-away and it was just as cold if not more so. Great views on the way out of the harbour, including passing the Taiaroa Heads and seeing all the Albatross nesting there. As soon as we passed that, we headed inside to warm up. Fortunately the sea conditions had improved and this time we were going with the wind and the seas.
As part of our booking we have a "free" dinner at the Steak House. This is of course just a part of the Horizon Court screened off from the rest, although I must agree that the atmosphere was quite pleasant. It was quite incredible watching us sail up the east coast (we were on Port side) in absolutely calm conditions, barely a ripple and the sun setting (OK couldn't see the actual sun, but was that time of the evening) over the hills.
The food was good, possibly very good, but honestly we are no longer into large steaks and although I ordered a small cut, it was still too much for me. Certainly they were perfectly cooked and the whole meal was great. Would I actually pay for such a meal again - probably no, mainly as we can not do justice to it. Perhaps however another specialty restaurant, just not steak. That is my call anyway.
Saturday:
Next morning sees us anchored in Akaroa, so the joys of tendering. Dare I say it, but black does have it's privileges. We rocked up to the dining room to get tender tickets - #1010 and they called for tickets up to #730 plus Elite to board. Well, that saved us a good half an hour or so. We walked to the far end of town. Despite passing a couple of cafes on the way (with specials $8.50 for coffee & croissant) etc., we made our way back to the middle of Akaroa, to the cafe we'd visited 2 cruises ago. Yuck - food looked revolting and no ambiance etc. So back to the far end of town a drink a delightful coffee and cake for $9.50. Anyway the walk was good to work off the calories.
Just as we were finishing about 12.00, Fiona txted and we arranged to meet them sort of half way back towards the pier to go to the Giants House. OK, up the hill we all went, but it was certainly worth the effort. Magnificent garden and artistry, a little like Parc Guell in Barcelona, but all in mosaics. We had a great time and at least the walk back was downhill. As luck would have it, we arrived at the end of the pier and a tender was just about to leave - but not us! However was only 10 minutes until the next one.
I checked with the Captain's Circle guy and established that we were actually 4th (typically NZ) on the first sector, so missed out by 7 days! I think that we are a bit further down the list this time as there are lots of Americans on board flashing their black cards. I am far more discrete keeping it under my shirt. Good news however, we are on the guest list for the 40th most travelled passengers after Napier - more later.
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