October 30 2012 At sea

Serious Dosh

This morning’s guest with Jason for Good Morning Westerdam was Noel O’Driscoll, the Staff Captain. He gave some interesting insights into the workings of the Bridge. The Westerdam is often the first of the HAL fleet to introduce new things and it is now the first ship to trial an automated man overboard warning. Currently the only way to know if someone has gone overboard is if there is a witness/bystander or search of the ship doesn’t find someone. Sensors have been placed so that any movement over the railings can be monitored and adjustments have had to be made so that birds don’t set off the alarms.

Only two trivia sessions today – travel trivia this morning and the last day of the 30 day cumulative trivia. Needless to say, we did not come first in either but we’ve had a lot of fun.

I’ve been using my netbook throughout the cruise to access the internet and post this blog and finally today I got my iPad talking to the internet service. Apparently the brightness has to be turned up to maximum so that the battery has the power to pick up the signal (or something along those lines). At home I always have the brightness turned down as it chews up battery life, hence not being able to access the internet.

This evening Jennie, Carole, Norm and John from my trivia team and I had a leisurely dinner in the Canaletto restaurant – obviously with Italian cuisine. It’s always very pleasant to have good company and swap travel tales.

Back in Papeete I mentioned we were docked between some mega yachts and here are some photos of them.

Golden Odyssey

Pacific

Most passengers were very taken, and fascinated, with the super sleek  ‘Pacific’ which was right beside us, with its two heliports and own helicopter. We found out it is 2 years old, has 17 suites, is worth about $300 million and is privately owned by a very ‘under the radar’ Russian gentleman.

The ‘Pacific’ can be chartered for about $34,000 per week which sounded a lot until I worked out that if I shared the cost with others, filling up those suites, it would actually be quite reasonable. I’m sure though, that there would be very strict criteria as to who they chartered to and as I don’t have a Black Amex I guess I wouldn’t qualify.

This is probably more in my price range – but not as appealing!

October 29, 2012 At sea

Fish of the Day

A good cabin steward is worth his weight in gold and Agus, who looks after my cabin, tapped on my door at 7.13  this morning with all my clothes, washed, pressed and hung on hangars. He had to listen to my tale of woe last evening and he came through for me! It’s amazing how a whole wardrobe of clean clothes makes the day look brighter.

We crossed the Equator today as we head back north so King Neptune had to preside over the ceremony to judge the Pollywogs (those who haven’t crossed the Equator before) to ensure our continued safe passage. With political correctness nowadays, only crew are subjected to the trial, sentence and punishment. It was a lot of fun, especially watching the crew that we have come to know after nearly 4 weeks at sea, submit to kissing the fish (a Dolphin fish or Mahi Mahi), get dragged along tables for treatment by ‘medical staff’ which included being covered in pasta and soft meringue, and finally go into the pool.

For obvious reasons the after pool was closed for the remainder of the day for cleaning.

A huge seafood buffet was on offer around the mid Lido pool with Alaskan crab legs and barbecued lobster. As someone who unfortunately is allergic to shellfish this area was off limits to me except for taking a few photos.

This afternoon I attended another public forum, this time on Astronomy and Star Gazing. The talk was mainly about celestial navigation, so although informative, wasn’t quite what I was expecting. I did learn a few interesting little tidbits which might prove helpful in star gazing in general.

As I didn’t have a big lunch today, I was a little peckish so dropped by Chocolate Seduction, the Westerdam’s chocolate bar, for a treat and came away with a small selection of enjoy back in my cabin. Why haven’t I been coming here more regularly?

This evening’s entertainment was an encore of our recent Australian acts – Maske and Darren Williams. I think this is the first cruise I have been on where the Aussie entertainers and crew outnumber the Aussie passengers.

October 28, 2012 At sea

Dire Straits

Today’s activities were pretty trivial – or rather trivia: travel trivia, the normal 30 day cumulative trivia and showstorm trivia. And I’m sorry to report that my teams didn’t fare well in any of them. The travel trivia, which I normally excel at, was based on knowledge from this cruise, requiring answers to questions such as which atoll was the County of Roxborough wrecked on, etc. I knew the name of the wreck but not the very forgettable atoll where it landed up, and the other questions were just as obscure (if you hadn’t been attending the port lectures or listening to Jason’s commentary). The showstorm trivia was a pictorial/aural based trivia on sports stars, musicals and movie stars and we didn’t do too badly, but didn’t win. We are still holding position in the cumulative trivia.

We had a farewell Cruise Critic lunch today which the Westerdam Front Desk and dining staff did a wonderful job of supporting – individual invitations delivered a few days ago, A3 vellum menus, mimosas, etc. Most of my trivia team sat together so that might be why we didn’t do so well after imbibing several mimosas.

It was nearly a case of ‘eenie meenie minee mo’ this afternoon. I had the difficult decision to attend the cupcake afternoon tea or participate in the ‘On Deck for the Cure’ 5km walk which raises money for breast cancer research through participants making a donation of at least $15 and receiving a t-shirt and pink wristband.

I chose the walk and finally got my joggers and exercise gear out of hibernation. 5km is 9 laps of the Promenade Deck and I am happy to say that I completed the 9 laps easily, even jogging the last 2 as a fellow passenger had to finish quickly in time for a pedicure appointment and I kept pace with her. I’m now feeling guilty that I haven’t been doing at least this every day.

Afterwards pink lemonade and fresh fruit was served, although I think they could have at least saved a few of the cupcakes, but maybe they were focussing on healthier alternatives.

After working up a sweat my gym clothes were no longer my last set of clean clothes so I rang to confirm what time my laundry would be returned this evening. Horror of horrors, there has been a mix-up and my laundry bag has been sitting unwashed in the bowels of the ship for the last 2 days – and with the usual turnaround, I probably won’t have it back now until the day after tomorrow. Although I have handwashed some items, they usually don’t dry completely overnight but I quickly scrambled and am hoping that at least one top will be dry by morning.

October 27, 2012 Nuka Hiva

Nuka where?

Now that we are heading back to San Diego, we had to put our clocks forward 30 minutes last night before our arrival into Nuka Hiva. It was an unusual amount but tomorrow night and over the next couple of few days we will lose an hour each day until we are back on Pacific time.

Something else which has happened with travelling back in an north-easterly direction is that my cabin now gets the morning sun instead of the sunsets I was getting on the way down. I much prefer to see sunrise and go out onto the balcony in the morning rather than having the hotter afternoon sun come onto the balcony and into the cabin.

Today Sandy, a Cruise Critic member, arranged a private tour of Nuka Hiva, part of the Marquesas Islands, for 24 of us. After tendering ashore together as a group we met Jocelyn, our local guide, and boarded a mini bus. HAL offered a similar, although shorter and most costly, tour but as there is a scarcity of public transport on the island, their tour group was divided between a number of 4WDs and went in convey around the island’s top spots, only receiving the commentary when they were all together at a site. We, on the other hand, were able to listen to Jocelyn as we travelled from one spot to the next.

For those passengers who couldn’t do a tour, they really missed out on seeing a very lush and scenic island. As mentioned, HAL’s tour was limited to just over 100 passengers and with our tour of 24, which meant that a lot of passengers were mainly restricted to staying in the small port unless they went to a nearby resort for a swim.

For the most part I enjoyed our tour, even though I was sitting near the rear of the bus, over the wheel, concertinaed in without much leg-room. This wasn’t what detracted from the tour (any bus has to be more comfortable than my African overland trip last year). What upset a few others and myself were a couple of our fellow passengers who were very rude, especially to our guide, and for the most part it was totally unwarranted.

Nevertheless, Nuka Hiva was an interesting island with horses and goats tethered along the roadsides and very high scenic vantage points. We even stopped to overlook the beach where ‘Survivor Marquesas’ was filmed. Apparently it looked very isolated when the survivors arrived by sea – little did they know that they were only about 2 miles away from stores selling wine, soft drinks and food!

Just as we arrived back in the port, the heavens opened up and it rained. Most people queued to go back to the ship by tender so there was a long wait, with many passengers having to stand in the rain.

I had 18750 CPF to spend (about US$18.75) as it wouldn’t be worth taking home so I visited the local craft stalls. By the time I walked from stall to stall and then up to the supermarket I was well and truly resembling a half drowned rat. I did, though, make a couple of purchases so that I have come away with 7 CPF (7 cents) left.

Once I got back on the ship, it was after 4.30 pm so I raced up to the Lido to grab a slice of pizza as a late lunch then hit the shower. My dilemma was that I put just about all my clothes in for laundry service this morning so left myself only two days’ worth of clean clothes to last until my laundry comes back tomorrow evening. With today’s clothes wet, I had to change into my outfit for tomorrow, hand washing today’s clothes and hoping they dry by tomorrow morning.

October 26, 2012 At sea

Wrecked

After six busy days in port, it’s a welcome relief to have a sea day, although there will be more in store soon.

This morning all around the indoor Lido pool area towel animals were sunning themselves. I’m still not quite sure why unless they were to advertise a towel folding seminar this afternoon.

We made a slight detour to an atoll where a ship, The County of Roxborough, had been wrecked back in 1906. The hull has remained well preserved all these years, even after a fire several decades ago. Most of the crew survived although there was some loss of life among the crew.

Just prior to the start of the 30 day team trivia challenge, Jason reminded everyone that no cheating using smartphones etc. was allowed. Coincidentally, one team is no longer getting those very high scores anymore and other teams are now starting to close the gap. Unfortunately for my team, we are not closing the gap but are holding onto our position in the top quarter (just) of the field.

Some things on the daily program I haven’t got around to doing, either through lack of inclination or clashing with something else. This afternoon, for only the second time I made it to afternoon tea which really is a pleasant way to meet new people over cake, scones and tea.

Tonight’s entertainment was another Aussie, Darren Williams, who gave a ‘Poperatic’ show – everything from opera to pop – and he was excellent. There really have been some great performances on this cruise and Jason mentioned in a Good Morning Westerdam session that on longer cruises they try to get top of the line acts, as compared with shorter cruises where the budget and audience are different. This probably explains why this is the best entertainment I've seen on any cruise.

October 25 2013 Papeete, Tahiti

Can’t get enough of this water

Today was my last opportunity for snorkelling on this cruise so I booked a lagoon excursion through the ship. Today’s adventure offered something a little different. On the way out to our first snorkelling stop, we came across spinner dolphins near the harbour entrance so we circled around and watched them for a while.

Our first stop for snorkelling was over two wrecks – a crashed Cessna and an old boat. Some dived down to them but I’ve found in this very salty water I’m too buoyant and I would need a weight belt to go down the 15-20 feet necessary to see the wrecks close up. There were also coral reefs nearby with lots of fish and bright blue clams.

Our final stop was relatively shallow, although it was over my head when I jumped in. There was a swim to deeper water to where the coral gardens were and I found more varieties of fish I hadn’t come across earlier in the week. At least I bought a fish identifier yesterday so for the most part I now know what I’m looking at: several different varieties of triggerfish, butterflyfish and wrasse; convict surgeonfish (I’d like to know who gave them that name), scissor-tail sergeants, lemonpeel angelfish, forceps fish, flutemouths, golden jacks and parrot fish – and some I haven’t been able to identify. Combined with what I have seen at the other snorkelling sites, I’ve seen quite a range of tropical fish this week and have enjoyed following a particular fish to watch and photograph it but the photography proved more difficult than I had thought with fish darting one way while the current pulls me in the opposite direction.

Again, I was so thankful I had my own fins as they made swimming in the current effortless. Apart from the first trip in Raiatea, none of the other companies provided fins and these just made the snorkelling so much easier. In all locations I haven’t noticed much difference between air and water temperature.

I should mention that all my underwater photos were taken while I was floating on the surface looking down, so as long as someone can stay afloat they will have great viewing.

We left Papeete mid-afternoon for the Marquesas which we will reach the day after tomorrow. If it wasn’t for the daily Explorer, the on-board daily program, I would have no idea what day it is.

This evening’s entertainment was Maske, an Australian electric string trio who played cross-over music, i.e. classical, pop, country and western etc. I went to the second show and they had a good turnout who enjoyed their performance. 

October 24 2012, Papeete, Tahiti

French flavours

I woke up to clear skies and calmer seas so Captain PJ and the pilot had no trouble in bringing the Westerdam into the pier in Papeete, where we are now docked between two mega yachts.

 

Originally we were to sail out of Papeete this afternoon at 3pm so I hadn’t planned on any excursions here except a self-guided walking tour of the town. With the change in itinerary we now depart at 3pm tomorrow so to make the most of my time in port I booked excursions for both days.

Today’s excursion was a 4WD along the coast before turning inland to view several waterfalls along the lush valley. After my experience in Bora Bora, when my group was asked if anyone wanted to sit up front with the driver I jumped at the chance – padded seat, seatbelts and air-conditioning. Plus, I could look out the front windscreen and see where we were going instead of clinging to the rear tyre to keep from sliding off the seat! We were in a convey of 3 4WDs and our driver had only joined the company two weeks ago so was being very cautious on the potholed roads with his precious cargo of tourists. He also wanted to practice his English so we chatted most of the trip.

  

  

With Tahiti’s lush interior, I found that practically all of the vegetation is not native to the island but are introduced species which have taken over from the original plant life. Likewise, years ago a species of bird was introduced to eradicate pests but unfortunately the pests came out at night when the birds weren’t active so the birds attacked native birds’ eggs for food, so virtually all of the native birdlife on Tahiti has been eradicated instead.

While the tour showed us another aspect of Tahiti away from the town, I don’t think it offered a lot in the way of scenery apart from a few waterfalls which weren’t particularly remarkable.

When we were dropped off back at the port, I had a stroll around the town. I was interested to see how much French influence there was but apart from the language, a few small clothing stores and a patisserie, there wasn’t a lot. I had a laugh though in the local markets where you could buy prepared baguettes for lunch – fish and chip baguettes and barbeque chicken and chip baguettes –with gravy! Although some locals were buying them, I’m sure there would be thousands of horrified epicureans back in France

The roads around the port were the busiest we have encountered since leaving Honolulu but I found the drivers were very courteous, stopping as soon as pedestrians approached the crossings. The only time I found this not to be the case was a young driver on a mobile phone who zoomed straight through as I was crossing, even though cars in other lanes had stopped for me.

All my excursions on this cruise I have deliberately booked for the morning, figuring that there was more chance of heavier tropical rain in the afternoon. This might be flawed reasoning on my part but it has worked out well for me. In Mo’orea I avoided the heavy afternoon rain which deterred snorkelers from going in the water and I met fellow passengers who did the 4WD tour this afternoon –and got drenched. We only had a light sprinkle for a few minutes in the valley this morning (which didn’t affect me as I was in the enclosed cab) but apparently it poured this afternoon.

This evening local musicians and dancers came on board and performed in the Vista Lounge. The group, called Hitireva, proved a hit with the passengers and the theatre was packed.

October 23 2012 Mo’orea, French Polynesia

Bali Hai

Another breakfast enjoyed on my balcony – I’m ensuring that I make the most of the balcony as I paid so much for it! And what a beautiful location - Mo'orea was used for the setting of Bali Hai in 'South Pacific'.

This morning I had booked a shore excursion through Holland America - Motu Beach Picnic and Ray Feeding. After tendering ashore (we moored in Cook Bay although James Cook never stopped there – he anchored in the neighbouring bay) we transferred to one of two flat bottomed boats. The morning was overcast and stayed that way as we made our first stop in part of the lagoon where there were a number of sting rays and black tipped reef sharks. The sting rays had to compete for the food as circling birds would swoop done and take it out of our guide’s hand before the rays moved in.

We then went on and stopped at a motu where tables and chairs had been set up on the shore. Like Tahaa, there were coral beds between two neighbouring motus. Masks and snorkels were provided if wanted but once again I had my own gear and, again, the fins have proved to be worthy every cent as I was able to effortlessly view the tropical fish for long periods. Before lunch while it was still overcast I saw a lot of fish, but after lunch when the sun came out, more varieties of fish seemed to emerge from the coral. This location offered the most variety of tropical fish I have seen in French Polynesia – and even a greater variety than I have seen anywhere before in my travels. I’m going to have to buy a book on identifying them, even though it will be after the fact.

Lunch was a simpler barbeque than with Patrick – chicken, fish, sausages and salad – but when you’ve been in the water so much, anything is welcome.

There really wasn’t much at the tender area, so I headed back to the ship for a shower. When I came out it was raining in earnest and I was so glad that I did a morning excursion. It was nice, though, listening and watching the rain for a change as we really haven’t seen much so far on this cruise.

We had just 3 hours to cruise to Papeete but the weather turned worse and after two attempts to enter near Papeete, Captain PJ and the local pilot decided not to try a third time because of strong winds, rough seas and the narrow channel entrance. Instead we will stay offshore tonight and the Westerdam will try again early tomorrow morning when it is light.

On another note, today I received my copper medallion, recognising my 100 sea days I have cruised with HAL, along with an invitation to a pre brunch reception and then the usual Mariners Society brunch.

October 22 2012 Bora Bora, French Polynesia

Another day in Paradise

As there was no early morning sail-in today, I started the day with breakfast on my balcony. How neat is that! My neighbours don’t seem to use their balconies much so I was able to enjoy the early morning in solitude.

Today I had another excursion booked through Patrick, a 4WD tour of the island. Eight of us joined Frank, our driver, as we set off around Bora Bora. All was good until we hit the offroads – narrow, steep, rocky, rutted roads with roller coaster elements at times. I soon found out that I was sharing the back of the jeep with some screamers – and I was one of them. I sat at the back of one of the side benches so that I could take photos but it was also in this position that you tended to get squashed as the jeep went uphill and everyone slid into you. Going downhill, I had to cling onto the back tyre so that I didn’t slide downwards. All up, an adventurous, fun ride but definitely not recommended for someone with back problems or suffering from motion sickness.

Our tour stopped at two vantage points, first to look at WWII cannons put in to protect the island from the Japanese, and the second with a great view of the lagoons, where we had a snack of fresh mangos and finger bananas.

Like yesterday, we circumnavigated the island, this time by land, stopping for a quick photo stop at Bloody Marys on the way back to the port.

Once back at the Vaitape, I had a look around the small town but black pearls, shell jewellery and paroes didn’t really interest me (been there, done that) so I took a few photos and then stopped in the supermarket and bought a few supplies. You’d think that with such a great supply of food on the ship you wouldn’t need anything else but sometimes it’s nice to have something savoury (i.e. Pringles) to snack on in your cabin while you’re watching a movie.

I went out onto the bow to watch the sailaway from Bora Bora, a beautiful sight.

Ship's bell out on the bow

October 21 2012 Bora Bora, French Polynesia

Swimming with the fishes

I was up on deck early this morning for our entry into Bora Bora’s lagoon where we are now ‘anchored’ in the middle of what was once the crater of the volcano. Similar to some of the islands we have visited on this cruise, only the outer rim of the volcano survives, and in the case of Bora Bora the surrounding volcanic peaks are very lush and picturesque. In the town of Vaitape roosters could be heard crowing and as it is Sunday the sound of singing in the churches carried across the water.

Today I joined a privately organised tour which Sherrie arranged through Patrick (Maohi Nui) who has the reputation of offering the best excursion in Bora Bora, and his outing certainly lived up to this. Our group was divided between three motorised ‘outriggers’, 12 people in each, and then we were off across the lagoon to our first stop, snorkelling with black tipped reef sharks.

We then moved on to a shallower part of the lagoon where we were able to stand in chest-deep water as sting rays came in to be fed by Patrick. The sting rays feel like wet velvet as they move past you or stop for you to skim your hand along their back. These adult rays are used to being handled – and kissed by Patrick – so we just shuffled around as they swam around us.

Our final snorkelling stop was near a coral reef. Once again, having my own fins was a great advantage because I could stay in longer and the slight current didn’t bother me as it did some others. I kept close to the reef where there was a greater variety of fish including lots of parrot fish, trigger fish, saddled butterfly fish and even a Moorish idol (which moved too quickly into the coral for me to take a photo of it.

All this sea air and activity helped us work up an appetite for lunch which was held on Patrick’s private motu. A pig had been pit roasted, along with a chicken dish, and there was also barbequed lobster and yellowfish tuna steaks, poi, plantain, etc., all served on banana leaf plates, and accompanied by French champagne, (or Mimosas for most of the women), beer and soft drink. If that wasn’t enough, picnic tables and chairs with shade umbrellas had been set up in the water with fabulous views over the lagoon to the Bora Bora peaks across the way.

By the end of the excursion we had circumnavigated the main part of Bora Bora, had been well fed and had seen lots of marine life.

After a shower to get all that salt out of my hair and a nap to recover from all that fresh air and activity, I went in search of dinner and discovered that tonight there was a Polynesian barbeque on the outside Lido deck (I should read the daily program more closely).

All up, a big thumb’s up for the day!

NB. All above photos were taken with the Canon Powershot D20, an underwater compact camera which I'm quite pleased with.