February 28, 2005
Fjordlands
Well, we've had no (or little) sattelite, the last couple days, though we've had some amazing views. The sun came out just in time for scenic cruising, so when I get to a decent connection, I'll try to post some pictures. Meanwhile, we're once again on the Tasman sea, and I got some great footage out my porthole of the waves slapping us around. I'll try to get that online too. Meanwhile, life is very quiet.
February 25, 2005
Coffee Wars
I went shopping yesterday, trying to find a little cup top filter to make coffee with in my room. I know this is more or less a hopeless cause here as the trend seems to be for plunger coffee and espresso, both of which I like, but neither of which is practical for making in my cabin. I gave up my search after the first store, when the saleslady directed me to a plunger pot, and I said I really preferred filter coffee. She gave a pitying look and said "Well, that's to do with how you were raised " (in a tone that suggested I'd have been better off to have been raised by wolves, who would have had the sense , clearly, to give me a tasted for chewy plunger coffee). I decided to leave when I realized I was becoming embroiled in a filter coffee vs plunger coffee argument, and sadly went to the store and bought some coffee bags, which will be a poor substitute indeed.
February 24, 2005
moonrise
You know those days when you wake up and you have no idea where you are? They don't plague me much anymore, because pretty much one cabin is like another, so no matter how much the ship might be flipping around on the waves, I always know exactly where the bathroom is.
It's my waking life where I'm becoming disoriented. It's rare when I actually know which day of the week it is, and I'm often not certain of the hour. Today I walked out on deck and saw land, and for a moment had no idea even which hemisphere I was in. My brain said, "Oh, that looks like Greece.. oh wait, no Mexico, ..um Tahiti...?" and that was a profoundly disturbing moment.
On the other hand, there was the most amazing moonrise last night. I ran up to get pictures, but the clouds rolled in while I was waiting for the elevator. Still a little pool of moonlight spilled out from under the clouds, making a surreal puddle of light on the water. I don't think this picture does it justice really.
February 20, 2005
Starbuck's Again
Well, no pictures because I didn't bring my computer into town today, but there's some nice video of me sliding down the ice slide at the Antartic Center. Today found me having another Starbuck's breakfast, but their drip coffee machine was broken, so I had to have a latte. All I want is a decent cup of drip coffee these days, because lattes are a dime a dozen in the mess. We took the cable car up to the top of a hill in Wellington today, and walked down through the botanical gardens - only to discover we were on entirely the wrong side of town and had to walk back up the hill to catch the cable car back down again. Still, it's a gorgeous day, and that made room for our lunch at the Balti House.
February 19, 2005
Christchurch
Another internet cafe! And this time I got to plug in my laptop. It's been so long since I've had a high speed connection that my poor starved computer went crazy downloading updates and magazines the moment I plugged in. Now it's sated and happy.
Started my morning at Starbuck's with a happy cup of plain drip coffee. I think it was the best thing I've tasted in a really long time. It's Sunday in Christchurch, so most everything is closed, but this afternoon we're going to the Antarctic center. Maybe I'll even have pictures. We were crusing through the Fjordlands the other day and I dragged myself out of bed and up into the cold rainy morning to take in the experience. I haven't looked at the pictures yet, but if there are any decent ones I'll put them up tomorrow.
February 18, 2005
Dunedin
After three days on the high seas (that is, waves crashing up across the deck 5 atrium windows), I am delighted to feel dry land under my feet again. And I've found an internet cafe. They won't let me plug in my laptop, but it's so cheap it's almost free, so I've spent a glorious hour checking up on everyone's blogs, paying bills, surfing wherever my whim takes me. Incidentally, I've just discovered that I have 50 gmail invitations, so if there are any of you out there who still don't have Gmail and want it, let me know. As soon as I can get it to reliably load into my Outlook, I'm switching over.
February 15, 2005
Hobart
So, I had plans for the wildlife go feed kangaroos and wallabys park today, but they fell through, and I ended up just going ashore and having a glorious breakfast in my (now) usual place. Two hours later I was back for lunch because, well, the food's really good, and why mess with perfection? They made fun of me, and told me I'd better hurry back if I wanted to make it for dinner, since they close at 4:30, but I refrained from stuffing in a third meal. Anyway, I have no pictures of Hobart, so here are the missing ones from two Melbournes ago....
February 13, 2005
Sydney
Although we've been in Australia for a week, I have to say I really didn't believe I was here until I walked out on deck (at 4am) and saw the Sydney Opera House about 20 feet away, in all its luminous and lonely glory. And then there was the harbor bridge on the other side. I could not have asked for a better introduction. One of my friends came to pick me up at the ship and took me everywhere and then we had the most amazing sailaway. It looked like half of Sydney turned up to wave us off. Apparently we're making national news because we're the largest ship ever to cruise these waters. I have to say, I caught sight of the ship at a fair distance today, and we do look pretty absurd looming over the docks like we do. Anyway, it's been fun having so many friends on to visit the ship, it makes me appreciate what an unusual life this is.
February 09, 2005
Making the Birds Fat and Lazy
Had a most serenditpitous day out in Melbourne today. I was supposed to get together with a friend I haven't seen in some 8 years, but when I dragged myself reluctantly out of bed at the ungodly hour of 7 (after a formal night, no less) to meet her at 8:30 (and had to stand with the passengers and get sniffed by a beagle, lest I be taking contraband food ashore), it turned out she had confused the days, and wasn't expecting me until tomorrow. So, I returned to the ship and made plans with another friend who had friends in Melbourne, and we had a glorious day. They came and picked us up, took us for a lovely lunch at their house, and then they drove us up into the mountains where we got to feed exotic wild birds. There were signs up indicating that it was very bad to feed the birds, since it made them fat and lazy, but the amount of seed shells scattered on the ground suggested this was advice largely ignored. These were very canny birds though, because they ignored us and our one pound bag of bird seed for ages - there we were, standing infinitely still, scattering seed, holding out hopeful handfuls, but no dice, until the moment that the Princess Cruises Tour Bus pulled up. Suddenly the place was alive with ravening hordes of cockatoos who moments before would not give us the time of day. Anyway, here are some pictures. Or, there will be some pictures later, when the network is working better.
February 06, 2005
Hobart
Finally after years of waiting, I finally set foot in Australia... and how did I spend my day? I went shopping and saw a movie, and it was lovely. It felt just like having a real life again. There's even a Target here in Hobart (though I have to say, the selection of clothes is somewhat better here than in the American version - though it was rather lacking in housewares and the like). I think I've been too long on ships though, because there were moments sitting in the movie theater that I could have sworn I felt the ground rocking. Meanwhile, most of my friends went on tour and petted Koalas and Kangaroos. I settled for buying a stack of boomerangs for my nieces and nephews, and eating a really delightful breakfast ashore, complete with real tea.
February 03, 2005
Wellington
Once again I'm falling behind on the blogging. I blame the new wireless internet access on the ship. I'm so focused on hopping online to download my email then hopping off to preserve time that I utterly forget to blog. So here I am in New Zealand. First stop was Wellington, where we did a tour of "Lord of the Rings" movie locations. Of course, Louie insisted on coming along, being as he's been cooped up in the cabin for an entire contract. So here he is, having a pre tour Starbucks and seeing the sights.
