Some fun things going on in the ship
One of the enrichment class today is a talk by a Former Butler to King Charles III…. Heard he is also going to do classes on etiquettes…. Someone asks him what is a day like in the royal palace and he said it’s kind of like on the ship.. Preparations for breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner and midnight supper π…. We really felt treated like royalties on Princess Cruises
Another sea day… Nothing much to share, only the spectacular show put up by the horizon.. So here’s more pics of sun and moon and clouds
“I’ve looked at clouds from both sides now
From up and down and still somehow
It’s cloud illusions I recall
I really don’t know clouds at ALL”
… Joni Mitchell
Meanwhile someone is having a little fun with deck towels
There’s a new enrichment talk by a Captain Chris Rigby and he had 10 sessions prepared to talk about the history of Aviation…. Great presentations!! Today’s topic is his analysis on what he thinks happened to flight MH370…. Cant wait…
Almost full moon again…
Below are two shots from today at the same time
Moon rise on the right of the balcony
This leg of the trip is super tough and it’s all because of the reroute from red sea to south Africa (we blame it on the Houthis).. 7 sea days to Mauritius and then 5 sea days to Cape Town…. We are crossing the Indian ocean now after crossing the Pacific ocean…. The crews are all working very hard to throw in as many activities as possible and here’s today’s platter just to show what they are…
TookΒ a 40 min train from Fremantle to downtown Perth,, the students on the train were probably wondering why there are so many foreigner’s on the train this morning π€….. There are many super tall and lean people in Australia, and Perth is more obvious…. Also city of Perth is much more lay back than Sydney or Melbourne
P got a nice haircut while I enjoyed a wonder coffee at downtown Perth… Win win!!
Back to Fremantle and found this seaside town absolutely charming with beautiful architecture and small seaside town vibe…packed with small cafes, pubs, thrift shops (called opportunity shops in Australia) novelty stores… Many Asian themed restaurants as well
Enjoyed Happy hour by the Bathers beach while P took a dip
After Fremantle /Perth, it will be 7 sea days before we reached Mauritius…. Last night after we return from the nightly show, we had a surprise guest…..
Yesterday evening they did an Australian party and the band is playing music by all Australian singers….. Includes Those we are familiar with : Olivia Newton John, Kylie Minogue, Bee gees… And some only familiar to P : AC/DC, INXS, man at work…whenever there’s a chance for party dancing we will always try to join since no one knows us here and we can go all out and crazy π€ͺ
We can see that the weather is getting nicer and nicer as we are getting closer to Perth…
Today we decided to have Instant ramen plus room service for lunch just to give ourselves a break from the buffet lunch π
The little folding chair that P brought is very useful!!
There’s a new activity today on the ship for flash mob dancing…. That should be fun.. Those that join will be trained during sea days (which we will have many all the way to the Mediterranean) and “flash mob” the audiences at the theater during one of the nightly performance
A cruise voyage is kind of like a life in condense, New people get on board on Sydney while some left…” Sunrise, sunset… Sunrise, sunset…. Swiftly flows the days”
Named the world’s 3rd most livable city by Time out last year….the same year it’s city’s population surpassed Sydney’s and became Australia’s largest city… Lets check it out!!
Melbourne is indeed very charming…. A Metropolitan city with a harmonious mix of: old and new buildings, diverse cultures, a big melting pot of people from all over the world… A city that feels young, vibrant and full of energy
We always find the cities we have been to with a river flows through it especially luring ( Florence, Paris, Chicago, Amsterdam, Rome, new York, London, Budapest, Moscow … Etc) and Melbourne proves our point again..Yarra river runs through it and divide the city into north and south bank
We really like the way NGV ( National Gallery of Victoria) displays their art works, just like their city, they mix things up beautifully, classic with modern art intermingle thoughtfully anf gives a refreshing perspective
One of the exhibit at the museum is for people to write a love note to their mom and paste it on the walls, all 4 walls are fully covered….. we contributed as well βοΈ
The block arcade is a time capsule that brought us back to Victorian era with its intricate mosaic floors, boutique shops, tea rooms and cake shops that make customers swoon
We had lunch at one of Melbourne’s famous Laneways, Degraves St Laneway … Laneways are narrow alleys packed with boutique coffee shops, chic restaurants, and bars…the food is ok, but great place for people watching and great vibe
And then we went shopping along Swanston st…. Its Friday afternoon and the whole area is packed and buzzling… Also crawling with Swifties!! Taylor swift is doing her concert in Melbourne starting today!! We can feel that energy and excitement in the air
Their tram system contributed greatly to the charm of Melbourne… Super convenient and it’s free within a downtown area zone
We were given almost 11 hours to conquer Melbourne but by the 7th hour R already used up all her energy after logging in est. 18000 steps…. And P kept going (apparently he has a bigger battery powerπ, he ended up logging 28000 steps) this city is huge…. We only covered the CBD (Central business District, Australian for downtown) area, hopefully next time, we will do the suburbs…
