Day 50 – Last Day at Sea

Saturday, April 27, 2013.

Happy Birthday, Aunt Susan!

Today was sunny with a high of 68 degrees Fahrenheit.  It was windy on deck.  Last night was very bumpy sailing northeast on the Tasman Sea from Hobart toward Sydney.  The sun rose at 6:44 am and set at 5:16 pm.  Tomorrow we dock in Sydney at 7:00 am.  Granby and Henry have transfers to the Sydney international airport with Princess Cruises and our time to leave the ship is 9:00 am.  Breakfast on Sunday morning on the Dawn Princess is from 6:30 am to 8:30 am in the Venetian Dining Room on Deck 6 Midship.

Today was a packing day.  Granby and Henry had the majority of their luggage packed before lunch.  They ate in the Horizon Court because they wanted a salad.  After lunch they had a short nap before getting ready for dinner.

Tonight the menu theme was Landfall Dinner.  Granby had a flaky puff pastry case filled with chicken, mushrooms, and sauce supreme.  She had a Caesar salad followed by a grilled New York cut sirloin steak with green peppercorn sauce.  The Junior Waiters had a Baked Alaska parade.  Granby ordered the sorbet, but the Baked Alaska looked delicious.

Granby and Henry wished everyone at their table a safe journey home.

United Airlines has a flight tracker.  Granby and Henry will be on Flight 870 from Sydney to San Francisco.  http://flightaware.com/live/flight/UAL870
Granby and Henry are due to arrive in San Francisco at 10:30 am on Sunday, April 28th or 1:30 pm Carolina time.

Granby and Henry will be spending the night in Millbrae, California before continuing their journey to the Carolinas.  On Monday, Granby and Henry will be on a USAir Flight from San Francisco, California to Phoenix, Arizona, and a second Flight from Phoenix to Charlotte.  Thank you Aunt Susan for meeting us at the airport!

Day 49 – Hobart (Tasmania), Australia

Friday, April 26, 2013.

Today the sun rose at 6:55 am and set at 5:21 pm.  It was a beautiful fall day in Hobart.  The high was 61 degrees Fahrenheit.  It was overcast, but the sun came out several times during the middle of the day.  Short sleeves were comfortable, but Granby took her jacket of many colors just in case..

After staying in Hobart overnight, the Dawn Princess has an All Aboard for passengers at 3:30 pm today with Sailaway scheduled for 4 pm.  This is our last port of call before returning to Sydney and disembarking for our flights back home.

Since Granby and Henry spent yesterday afternoon seeing some of the sights in the city of Hobart  on the HOHO, today we wanted to go a little further afield.  We had a shore excursion booked through Princess Cruises to Richmond and Bonorong Wildlife Park that left at 9 am and returned to the ship at 1 pm.  Bonorong is pronounced “Bon-a-rong” and the Aboriginal meaning is “Native Companion.”  We wanted to visit the park as our last visit to see some of Australia’s unique animals (koalas, Tasmanian devils, wombats, and kangaroos) roaming in the open and being held and fed by park rangers who we were told allow the animals to be photographed and touched (but not held).  Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary was established in 1981 as a sanctuary for injured and orphaned wildlife.  It is Tasmania’s most popular wildlife park and only 25 minutes from Hobart’s CBD.

Our tour guide was Judy.  She was very informative and kept our group on schedule.

Here is the entrance to Bonorong Wildlife Park.

 

It was a “Lions, Tigers, and Bears, Oh, My!” kind of morning except it was “Kangaroos, Koalas, Tasmanian Devils, and Wombats, Oh, My!”  Granby has lots of video to share with you.

We first met a wombat named Ben.  He is 10 months old.  We also met Lucy who is only 6 weeks old.  Lucy’s mother was killed by a truck and she was thrown from her mother’s pouch.  She was rescued, and is still being bottle fed.  Both Lucy and Ben had fabric pouches and run to the park ranger who is their surrogate mom.  Wombat fur is wiry and thick.  When they burrow their fur repels dirt.  They are quite chunky.  Adult wombats grow to 3 meters in length and are heavy.

 
Ben in his pouch being held by his surrogate mom.

Ben on the ground.

       
Lucy in her pouch.                                      Lucy between her surrogate mom’s feet.

The Tasmanian Devils were like small dogs.  When they are aggravated, they make a lot of noise.  They have very strong jaws and can easily chew bones.  We were not able to touch or pet the Tasmanian Devils because they bite and can be quite dangerous.

The kangaroos like to be scratched on their chests between their two front legs.

             

The koala on view was a full grown female who was two years old.  She was busy eating eucalyptus leaves.

         

Roo and Ester found another friend.

After visiting with the animals at the Bonorong Wildlife Park, the bus took us to Richmond. Richmond is a historic village noted for its Georgian buildings.  The Richmond Bridge was built by convict labor in 1834, and is Australia’s oldest bridge still in use. The old Gaol (jail) built in 1825 is the oldest intact gaol in Australia.

Granby and Henry had a pint of Cascade, a Tasmanian beer, at the Richmond Arms Hotel.  This is where Prince Charles had a pint of Cascade when he and Camilla visited Richmond in November 2012.

 

Richmond was in its autumn glory.

Our bus tour took us to Rosny Point Lookout for panoramic views of Hobart and Mount Wellington.

On our way back to the ship, we saw a Kangaroo crossing road sign.

Friday was the last Formal Night.  There was a Captain’s Farewell party in the Atrium on Decks 5, 6, and 7 from 7:00 pm to 7:45 pm.

The menu theme was a Gala Dinner.  Granby and Henry ordered Jumbo Prawns with Creamy Brandied Cocktail Sauce.  Jason brought American cocktail sauce on the side.  Following a salad, Henry had Lobster and Prawns and Granby had Beef Wellington with truffle Madeira sauce.

Alex made Bananas Flambé (Bananas Foster) for dessert.

          

Here is a picture of our tablemates who joined us in Melbourne for a 5-day cruise around Tasmania.

Day 48 – Hobart (Tasmania), Australia

Thursday, April 25, 2013.

The Dawn Princess docked in Hobart at 12 noon today.  The ship remained in port overnight.  On Friday, April 26th, all aboard wias at 3:30 pm with sailaway at 4:00 pm.  Since it is getting later in autumn, our days are getting shorter. Today the sun rose at 6:54 am and set tonight at 5:23 pm. Our weather today was much cooler.  The high was forecast for 59 degrees Fahrenheit.  It was overcast and we had a light drizzle every once in a while. Henry wore slacks and a long sleeve shirt.  Granby took her jacket of many colors with her on shore.

Hobart is situated at latitude 42°50’S and longitude 147°20’E, and is known for being in what is called the Roaring Forties.   The Roaring Forties is the name given to strong west to east winds found in the Southern Hemisphere, generally between the latitudes of 40 and 50 degrees.  These winds helped sailing ships traveling from Europe to the East Indies prior to the 20th century when ships were powered by wind.

ANZAC Day.  April 25th is ANZAC (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) Day and is Australia’s most important national occasion and public holiday as it marks the anniversary of the first major military action fought by Australian and New Zealand forces during the First World War in which 60,000 Australian died.  Today ANZAC Day is a national day of commemoration for all Australians killed in all the military operations.  ANZAC Day is traditionally marked beginning with services held at dawn with marches held in major cities and many smaller towns as well as with ceremonies held at war memorials around the country.  It was a national holiday and Granby and Henry saw many men dressed in suits with their medals pinned on their civilian clothes.

Hobart is the capital city of the Australian state of Tasmania and an important trading port for Australia.  It is Australia’s second oldest city after Sydney.  Geographically, Hobart is situated between Mt. Wellington and the banks of the Derwent River.  Cruise ships dock at Hobart Docks in the center of the historic area of Salamanca that features waterfront pubs, fish punts, and restaurants.  It is about a 10-minute walk into the main shopping area and CBD.  ANZAC stands for the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.  Of particular importance is remembrance for the Australian and New Zealand soldier who were killed in the historic Battle of Gallipoli.

When Henry and Granby left the ship, sniffer dogs were sniffing bags to make sure that cruise ship passengers were not bringing on shore any prohibited items.  Roo and Ester were in the bag that Henry carried off the ship.  They passed inspection.

There was a free shuttle bus into the CBD from the cruise ship terminal.  The shuttle stopped at the Tasmanian Travel/Information Centre.  This is the starting point for the Hop On Hop Off (HOHO)bus with 20 stops.  Cruise ship specials were $20 per person.  We bought our tickets on the street outside the HOHO because the line (queue) inside the information center was long and slow.  http://www.reddecker.com.au/

          

Granby and Henry were able to purchase tickets for the 1:00 pm HOHO.  They sat on the top level which was enclosed which was good since there was a drizzle of rain periodically.  Roo and Ester liked their seats on the top level of the HOHO. After a 90-minute circle, Granby and Henry got back off the HOHO at the Visitor’s Center.  They walk a few blocks to the Customs House Hotel pub.  They had a pint of Pure Blonde beer.  They met up with Chris and George who are also on the Dawn Princess.  They live in Sydney.

          

Granby and Henry took one of the last shuttles back to the Dawn Princess.

Granby and Henry had a pre-dinner cocktail at the La Patisserie bar.

For dinner, Henry and Granby had shrimp cocktail with American sauce, a salad, and double cut pork chops with cider and shallot sauce.

After dinner, the Tasmania Police Pipe Band performed in the Visa Lounge on Deck 7 aft at 9:45 pm.  Granby has video to show you.    The band wears the Fletcher of Dunans tartan in honor of the Commissioner of Police in 1969 when the band was formed.  In addition, there were dancers.  The Tasmania Police Pipe Band has performed at the Edinburgh Military Tatoo on four previous occasions in addition to other national and international performances.  Granby and Henry enjoyed this performance very much.

Day 47 – Burnie (Tasmania), Australia

Wednesday, April 24, 2013.

We arrived in Bernie at 8:00 am.  All aboard was at 3:30 pm and sailaway was scheduled for 4:00 pm.  The average temperature in Bernie for April is 65 degrees Fahrenheit with a nighttime average of 47 degrees.  The sun rose at 6:56 am, but set early at 5:31 pm.  Our weather today was a cool 61 degrees with partly cloudy skies and some sunshine.  As we disembarked the ship, it started to drizzle, but rain did not last long.  The skies were clear by the time we arrived at the Don River Railway.  Granby wore slacks and a long sleeve shirt, but Henry stayed with his shorts and short sleeve shirt.

Tasmania is an island state of Australia located south east of the Australian mainland.  Bernie is Tasmania’s most westerly city, located on the North West Coast about 40 minutes from Devonport.  It was first settled in 1827 as Emu Bay.  The town was renamed for William Burnie— a director of the Van Diemen’s Land Company— in the early 1840s.

Burnie has a working port, and the small city makes cruise ship passengers feel welcome by providing free shuttle buses all day between the dock and the city center.  Since the port is so busy, passengers can not walk off the ship and out the port gates.  They must exit on shuttle buses or other transportation.  While the Bernie paper mill closed in 2010, Bernie exports wood and wood chips and is the fifth largest container port in Australia.

Granby and Henry booked a tour through Princess Cruises.  The tour name was Devonport & Don River Railway Trip.  We left the Dawn Princess at 9:00 am and returned at 3:45 pm.  Our guide was Allan and our bus driver was Robert.  After traveling through fruit orchards and vegetable fields, our bus came to the Don River Railway in Don Village on Forth Road in Devonport.  We boarded the Don River Railway for a ride on vintage train along the old Melrose Line to Coles Beach and back.

We traveled by bus to the Don River Railway established in 1973.  It is operated totally by volunteers who are members of the Van Diemen Light Railway Society.

We next traveled to a maritime museum named Bass Strait. The signal station welcomed us with flags that said Welcome Dawn Princess.

The maritime museum has an excellent collect of model ships.

We next traveled by bus to Devonport, a port city where the Spirit of Tasmania ferry arrives from Melbourne.

Devonport is located on the banks of the Mersey River in Tasmania’s fertile Mersey/Forth Valley, known as Australia’s market garden.  This region is responsible for nearly half of Tasmania’s agriculture yield.  Henry and Granby found a pub with character named Molly Malone.  We each had a Cascade Premium Light beer.  Granby had a stubby (a bottle of beer) and Henry had a pint.

          

Following our visit to Devonport, we went to the House of Anvers (http://www.anvers-chocolate.com.au/) in the city of Latrobe to watch artisans make chocolates.  We had a chocolate cake and hot chocolate to drink. It was delicious.

On our way back to the ship, we drove through the village of Penguin.

When we got back to the port, there was unusual security.  Mirrors were used to check under the buses.

The menu theme was Chef’s Dinner.

           

Granby had shrimp with American sauce, a salad, and breaded supreme of Chicken Kiev.  For dessert, she ordered vodka-lime sorbet.

Day 46 — Melbourne

Tuesday, April 23, 2013.

The sun rose at 6:54 am and set at 5:43 pm.  The weather was sunny with a forecast of a high of 63 degrees Fahrenheit.  It was warm enough that Granby wore a short sleeve shirt and Henry wore shorts and a short sleeve shirt.

As Granby and Henry were going to early breakfast in the Venetian Dining Room on Deck 6 Midship, they met Lucy and Terry who decided to have breakfast in the dining room with us rather than go to the Horizon Court on Deck 14.  We enjoyed a nice breakfast together.  Lucy and Terry were scheduled to leave the ship at 10:00 am.

After breakfast, Granby and Henry walked through the cruise ship terminal with Roo and Ester.

We walked to the end of the pier and across the street to Tram 109 where we used our Myki cards to ride into Melbourne’s CBD.

We got off at the Town Hall on Collins Street and walked down Swanston Street to Federation Square and the Flinders Street Train Station.  We did a little shopping along the way.  Across from the train station on the corner of Swanston and Flinders Streets is the oldest pub in Melbourne.  Young and Jackson was established in 1861.

          

 

Older pubs usually have a lot of character and Young and Jackson did not disappoint.  They had some unusual beer, ale, and cider on tap with interesting pulls.  Here are a few.

                
Growler, American Brown Ale      Mountain Goat beer              Gypsy, pear cider

Draft ales from L to R: Monkey’s Fist, Boa’s Bind, and Lark’s Foot

Granby and Henry decided to try a pint of Pure Blonde.

           

Roo and Ester found friends.  Can you identify them?

We walked back to Collins Street and got on the 109 tram heading east toward the cruise ship terminal.  

The Spirit of Tasmania, a ferry service that runs between Melbourne and Devonport, Tasmania, was docked next to the Dawn Princess.  Our next port of call will be Burnie, Tasmania and we will be on a tour that goes to Devonport.

Back on board the Dawn Princess, Granby and Henry got ready for dinner and had a pre-dinner cocktail at the La Patisserie bar.

We have four new people at our dinner table who are sailing on the Dawn Princess for five nights from Melbourne to Sydney.  They live in Sydney and planned their cruise together.  One is a high school teacher who teaches a sociology class, another works in a school office,  the third and fourth are a mom and her eighth grade son.  They are all taking advantage of a school holiday.  None of them work or go to the same school.  We now have a table for eight.  The table is set for ten, but no one else showed up for dinner.

There was no theme for the dinner menu tonight.  Granby and Henry had shrimp cocktail with American sauce, a salad with curly endive and hearts of iceberg lettuce with ranch dressing, and a rib eye steak.

For dessert, Alex, our assistant head waiter, made cherries jubilee.

After dinner, there was a show in the Princess Theater on Deck 7 forward.  Trevor Knight played a guitar and sang songs as a tribute to John Denver.

 

Day 45 – Melbourne in the Afternoon

Monday, April 22, 2013.

Sunrise today was at 7:15 am and sunset was at 5:51 pm.  The Forecast for today was sunny, but the weather turned out to be rainy and overcast.

The Dawn Princess continued sailing on an eastward course toward Melbourne.  As the ship went through the heads at Port Phillip, the skies became more overcast and it started to rain.  It takes almost two hours to navigate through “The Rip” and  Port Phillip to the ship’s berth at Station Pier.  We finally docked at the cruise ship terminal at Melbourne around 3:30 pm.  Since the weather was a bit iffy, Granby and Henry decided to stay on board the Dawn Princess and use their myki cards to go into Melbourne’s CBD the next day.

Granby and Henry did not go to the pre-dinner encore variety showtime in the Princess Theater at 6:15 pm featuring singer Tony Pantano, violinist Patrick Roberts, singer Elizabeth Lord, and guitarist Leigh James.  Instead they went to the La Patisserie for a pre-dinner cocktail.

The menu theme was for an Oriental Dinner.  Granby ordered for an appetizer spring rool & potsticker combo with oriental mustard dip.  The salad was described as tossed greens with daikon sprouts and Mandarin segments.  Roasted pork with vegetables was on the menu for the main course.  For dessert, Henry ordered white chocolate mocha pie with chocolate ice cream.  Granby had a caffe latte.

          

This was Lucy and Terry’s last evening on board ship.  They will disembark in Melbourne tomorrow on Tuesday, April 23rd.

Day 44 – At Sea – Port Adelaide Cancelled

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Sunrise today was at 6:44 am and the sun set at 5:44 pm. This time of year, the average temperature is 63 degrees Fahrenheit.  Our weather today was 63 degrees with a low of 57, overcast, rainy, and “blowie.”  The waves around the ship had white caps.

Granby and Henry had booked an all day tour to the Barossa Valley for wine tasting.  Our tour was to meet in the Princess Theater at 8:10 am after the Dawn Princess docked at Port Adelaide on the Outer Harbour at the Gulf of Vincent at 8:00 am.

Granby and Henry packed their day bag with Roo and Ester, rain coats, and an umbrella.  They went to breakfast at 7:00 am.  As they were leaving the Venetian Dining Room on Deck 6 Midship at 7:45 am, Captain Pickford announced on the public address system that he had made the decision in consultation with the Adelaide pilot to cancel going into port Adelaide.  Not only was the weather “yucky, ” it seems that a more severe storm was blowing in from the west with gale force winds.  Captain Pickford said that we would have a sea day and continue sailing toward Melbourne where we would arrive the next day in the afternoon around 3:00 or 3:30 pm on Monday, April 22nd.  This would give passengers an extra afternoon and evening in Melbourne.

Since this was planned as a day ashore, there was not much on the Princess Patter for the day’s activities.  Mark Turner, the cruise director, announced that a revised Princess Patter would be arriving in everyone’s mailbox as soon as it could be printed and delivered.  Granby and Henry spent the day being lazy.  We read and napped.  We had a snack of mini pretzels and dip in the stateroom.  Parker’s Pretzels made in Australia by The Original Pretzel Company came in different shapes.

Granby and Henry went to the La Patisserie bar on Deck 5 for a pre-dinner cocktail.  Sheila, one of the bartenders, took this picture.

Granby is wearing the necklace that you, Mom, and Dad gave her for Christmas.

            

We did not have a theme for the dinner menu.  Henry ordered rum marinated fresh fruits and green lemon sorbet for his appetizer.  Granby ordered a puff pastry filled with wild mushrooms and chervil.

After a salad medley of tender greens with shredded cheese and walnuts, Granby had for a main course the slow roast tom turkey with giblet gravy accompanied with sweet potatoes, corn pudding, fruit stuffing, and cranberry sauce.  Henry ordered the braised beef short ribs with roasted vegetables and whipped horseradish mash.

For dessert, Henry ordered three flavors of ice cream – fudge brownie ice cream, dulce de leche ice cream, and chocolate sorbet.  Granby had the chocolate sorbet and it was delicious.

After dinner, Granby and Henry went to the Princess Theater on Deck 7 forward for the 9:45 show.  Vocalist Tony Pantano was back on stage.  He is an excellent Las Vegas style singer and entertainer.  It was good to see him a second time in a different show.  He commands the stage and is very engaging.  He encourages audience participation and gets it.

Granby did some research about the city of Adelaide before traveling to Australia.  Founded in 1836, Adelaide is the capital of the state of South Australia (SA) and has a population around 1.23 million.  Adelaide is the fifth largest city in Australia.  Sydney is first, Melbourne is second, Brisbane is third, and Perth is fourth.  Residents are known as Adelaideans.  Adelaide is 13.5 hours ahead of the time on the East Coast of the United States now that the U.S. is on daylight savings time.  Adelaide is a planned city with a one mile square grid that was the vision of Colonel William Light, the first Surveyor General of South Australia.  It has tree-lined boulevards, Victorian and Edwardian architecture, public parks, and more restaurants per capita of any city in Australia.  Click to see an overview of Adelaide (6:22):  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tv3KWkLqxSY
Here is another video taken on a  Princess Cruises tour of the city (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3_gPcEFclQ)

There was a notice in the Princess Patter that Rundle Mall would be operating a free shuttle service from the pier to downtown Adelaide with a drop-off point on King Williams Street in front of Haigh’s Chocolate shop near Rundle Mall with an approximate journey time of one hour each way.  There is also a train near the pier for transportation to and from the city.  From where the ship docks at Outer Harbour Berth Number 2, it is 12 miles to the city center.

South Australia exports 70% of the country’s wine.  Barossa Valley (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQeU0u75cU4) is approximately 1.5 hours away from the pier and is home to more than 60 wineries.  Granby and Henry had booked a 8-hour shore excursion through Princess Cruises to the Barossa Valley.  We were suppose to leave the ship at 8:30 am and return at 4:30 pm.  We were to visit three wineries:  Seppeltsfield, Yaldara, and Jacobs Creek and have lunch at the Yaldara Estate.  We also were scheduled to visit the town of Tanunda founded by German settlers in the 1850s.  Tanunda is an Aboriginal word meaning “watering hole” or “many birds on a creek.”  On the way back to the ship, we were scheduled to stop at Mengler’s Hill Lookout which provides an excellent view of the Barossa Valley’s vineyards.

The Barossa Valley  and the Barossa Ranges primarily running along the eastern side of the valley were named by Colonel Light in 1837 for a region in Spain known as Barrosa (the Hill of Roses) where Colonel Light fought against the French during the Spanish Peninsula War in 1811.  Due to a clerical error, the spelling became Barossa instead of Barrosa.  The Barossa Valley became a popular destination for German immigrants  during the 1840s who suffered religious persecution, forcing them to escape to the newly founded colony of South Australia. Today, the Barossa Valley still has a strong German heritage.

Seppeltsfield (http://www.seppeltsfield.com.au/) is one of the Barossa’s oldest wineries with unique landscaping that includes an avenue of palm trees planted in the 1920s.  It was founded in 1851 by Joseph Seppelt, an immigrant from Silesia in what is now Poland.  Seppeltsfield is listed as a National Trust property.

Tanunda is a well preserved town of 3,500 residents situated in the center of the Barossa Valley and South Australia’s prime wine producing district.  The main street is Murray Street.  The Old Post Office is now a museum that has displays of the German heritage in relation to the history of Barossa Valley.  The town is completely surrounded by eight wineries.  The town also has several old Luthern churches and Goat Square, also known as Die Zeigenhart, once used as a meeting place and a bartering market.  There are a number of cooperages around the town that are open to the public so that you can see skilled coopers practicing the art of barrel making. Barrels are used to store wine.  These can vary in size from small barrels to huge vats.

Yaldara Estate is located in Lyndoch in the Barossa Valley.  The estate has a magnificent Château.  Yaldara was established by German winemaker Hermann Thumm in 1947 at the junction of two streams where a flour mill once operated dating back to 1867.  The estate has beautiful gum trees.  In 1999, Thumm sold the winery to McGuigan Wines.

Yaldara is an Aboriginal word meaning “sparkling” and is recognized as one of the most picturesque and attractive wineries in the country.  One of its flagship wines is the Yaldara Farms Shiraz.

The Jacobs Creek winery (http://www.jacobscreek.us/about/history) was established in 1847 when Johann Gramp planted his first wineyard on the banks of Jacob’s Creek.  Today, Jacob’s Creek wine is shipped worldwide and is readily available in grocery stores in the United States selling for less than $10 a bottle for an everyday wine such as Jacob’s Creek Shiraz Cabernet.  It is a medium-bodied blend of Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon with flavors of blackberry and plum and hints of pepper and subtle oak.  It is recommended to be paired with grilled steak, pizza, or tomato based pasta dishes.  Those are some of Granby’s favorite foods!

Here are some tips we about drinking and storing wine from the Jacob’s Creek website.  While red wine is suppose to be served at room temperature, that is only true if the temperature is between 59°F and 68°F.  White wine should be served at a temperature between 46°F and 54°F.  The shape of the glass affects the taste of the wine.  A wine glass should be more narrow at the top than at the bottom and wine should only be poured halfway to allow the released aromas to become concentrated in the narrower part of the wine glass.  Wine glasses should be only washed in warm water without detergent and the glasses should be allowed to drip-dry.  They should never be washed in the dishwasher with plates and utensils and they should always be removed from the dishwasher after the rinse cycle so that steam does not deposit residue during the drying cycle.  Screw top wine bottles can be stored upright, but bottles of wine sealed with corks should always be stored on their side at an angle that allows the cork to remain wet.  All wine should be stored at a constant temperature between 54°F to 59°F and a relative humidity of 65% to 75%.  Jacob’s Creek recommends screw cap closures as the best seal for wine bottles, reducing the chance of spoiled wine or corks giving the wine a off flavor.

Granby has already told Henry that they will need to plan another trip to Australia to see places that they missed seeing on their first trip!

Day 43 – At Sea

Saturday, April 20, 2013.

The Dawn Princess is continuing its eastward course along the southern coast of Australia in the Great Australian Bight.  Sunrise was at 6:47 am and sunset was at 5:29 pm.  It was mostly cloudy today with a high of 70 degrees Fahrenheit and a low of 61.  It is still “blowie” out on the open decks.  We set our watches and clocks forward 30 minutes to be on the same time at Adelaide.  We are now 13 1/2 hours ahead of the time in the Carolinas.

Granby and Henry had a relaxing day at sea.  They made a date for lunch at 1:00 pm in the Venetian Dining Room on Deck 6 with a couple from New Mexico. Arlene and Steve sat with Granby and Henry in the Wheelhouse Bar and had a chance to talk before being called for the Oyster Harbour & Kalgan River Cruise tour.

We enjoyed a nice lunch together and saw them after dinner on Deck 7 Midship at piano entertainer Larry Dunsmore’s Music, Martinis & Fun show.

Internet access was a little better today, so Granby was able to publish some of the blogs she had previously written.

The evening was smart casual.

          

The menu theme was Hangi Dinner.  Granby and Henry had a shrimp cocktail with American sauce, a salad, and pot roast of top sirloin beef with red wine gravy, glazed carrots, baby onions, and forked potatoes.  Henry also had a chilled blueberry soup served in a wine glass.  It tasted like a fruity and creamy smoothie.  For dessert, Granby had orange Grand Marnier soufflé with vanilla bean Anglaise.  Henry had the cappuccino chocolate fudge cake.

Day 42 – The Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary

Yesterday, when we visited Albany, Australia, we learned that Albany was home to the last operating whaling station in the Southern Hemisphere before it closed in 1978.  Today, the whaling station has been converted into Whale World, a museum that explains the history of whaling in Albany as well as information about the different species of whales found in the waters around Albany.  http://www.whaleworld.org/

    In 1994, the International Whaling Commission established the Southern Ocean as a whale sanctuary that provides long-term protection to the feeding grounds of almost three quarters of the world’s remaining whales who migrate between the warmer northern waters and the cooler waters surrounding Antarctica.

During early winter and spring, the bays around Albany become nurseries for whales such as the Southern Right whale.   The waters are also feeding grounds for whales that are migrating such as the Southern Right, Humpback, Sperm, and Minke.

For pictures and more interesting information about these Southern Ocean whales, click on these links:
Humpback Whale – a baleen whale that filters food through baleen plates rather than having teeth.
Minke Whale – smallest of the baleen whales.
Southern Right Whale – a baleen whale that is the rarest of all large whales since it was hunted almost to extinction.
Sperm Whale – a whale with teeth that eats about a ton of fish and squid each day.

To listen to the “songs” of Humpback whales that were recorded off the east coast of Australia, click on this link (2:44):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPPjS4uMwtw

Day 42 – At Sea

Friday, April 19, 2013.

The Dawn Princess left Albany and entered a body of water between Albany and Adelaide known as the Great Australian Bight (pronounced bite).  This is suppose to be a stretch of rough water, but so far, the seas have been moderate.  The temperature has dropped now that we are cruising eastward along the southern coast of Australia.  The high today was only 72 degrees Fahrenheit with a low of 61.  Sunrise was at 7:20 am and sunset was at 6:04 pm.  It was windy out on the outside decks.  Several Australians used the term “blowie.”  We set our watches and clocks ahead one hour last night so we are now 13 hours ahead of the time in the Carolinas.

Granby and Henry had a nice relaxing day at sea.  Henry is reading a new book that he checked out of the ship’s library, The Innocent by David Baldacci.

Friday night was Formal Night.  Henry ordered chocolate covered strawberries as our Elite treat while we were dressing for the evening.  They are always tasty.

Granby and Henry went to the La Patisserie bar for a pre-dinner drink.  Sheila, one of the bartenders, took this picture.

Henry looks good in his tux.

 

Our table on formal night.

The menu theme was International Dinner.  Granby and Henry ordered a Canadian appetizer, a crabmeat and cantaloupe cocktail with citrus pink mayonnaise.  We had a Greek salad with marinated Feta cheese and Kalamata olives.  The main course came from the U.S.A, surf & turf of grilled fillet mignon and gulf prawns accompanied by vegetable batons and browned new potatoes.  For dessert, Granby ordered pineapple sorbet and Henry ordered Macadamia nut ice cream with chocolate syrup.

After dinner, the production show in the Princess Theater on Deck 7 forward was “British Invasion” by the Dawn Princess singers and dancers.  The show featured music and songs from Great Britain, spanning several decades.  This was the second time Granby and Henry have seen the show and it was just as much fun to be in the audience the second time.