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Date: 27th December 2022

Arrival

Set my alarm for 5,30am to watch as we entered Sydney Harbour and make our way to the White Bay Terminal.

After we docked I went for my breakfast, no exercise walk this morning.

Disembarking

There was plenty of time after breakfast to collect my bag from the cabin before 7.30am and make my way to Deck 7 to wait for my disembarkation time. Many comfortable chairs available as people left so I just read or watched the goings on around me as I waited. The time passed relatively quickly and soon there was a call for the “Orange 4” group to make their way to the gangway.

Thank goodness getting off the ship was not the hassle that getting on had been – had to find my luggage then queue to get through immigration, this was not well organised but at least the line moved steadily. P&O definitely need to improve their embarkation and disembarkation procedures.

Once outside found my way to the queue for the bus to Central Station, there was only a short wait, I was lucky to get on a bus pretty quickly and was soon going into Central Sydney. The only downside was that my train was on Platform 25 down in the bowels of the earth, many lifts and levels down

I caught the 10.30am train to Wollongong, unfortunately, being a public holiday, it stopped at every northern suburbs station but can’t complain about that too much, it just took about 20 minutes longer than normal to reach home.

Conclusion

As on my one and only previous cruse I enjoyed it more than I thought I would but again I would be surprised if I ever went on another cruise. Yet here we are! My previous cruise was with Carnival who also own P&O but it was like a different company.

Embarkation was absolute hell, it was horrible, a complete farce that was totally disorganised and ridiculous, I hope they improve on that – they certainly would have trouble doing any worse.

The one real disappointment on this cruise was the entertainment, it was at best very ordinary, I am talking about the theatre productions, the bar bands were much the same as before, pub bands of varying abilities but good enough. The Christmas Eve and Boxing Day shows were a big improvement but frankly they were the only good shows on the whole cruise, it should have been so much better.

The rest of the “free” shows, as I say, were very ordinary, less than an hour of one performer on stage, sometimes with a recorded backing track, if you wanted a “variety show” it was an extra fee which I thought was a bit over the top and a very poor way to go. I noticed other events that required an extra fee though they were (I think) mainly aimed at the younger passengers but I think it is a bad sign that these cruise lines are going to indulge in drip pricing, where there are a number of add on fees to the original cost of the cruise.

A minor irritation (because this annoys me on land too) – the only “ordinary” beer they stocked was VB in 375ml cans for $9 each, all the other beer was in 330ml stubbies and cost at least $9.50. I think the Adventure Hotel was the only bar with draught beer (that might be incorrect). Personally I don’t like drinking from cans but they were always willing to give me a (sometimes) chilled glass to pour it into however I really object to 330ml bottles they are an absolute rip off.

Will I ever go on a cruise again? Who knows?

Boxing Day at Sea

Date: 26th December 2022

Morning

Usual breakfast and walk until 7.30am, still working up a good sweat even though the temperature is now only about 22 or 23°C

This is my last day without the Internet, many facts have had to go unverified over the last 10 days but normal service will be resumed tomorrow.

There was an event in the Marquee Theatre this morning with the cruise director explaining the procedures for disembarkation tomorrow morning. It was actually a publicity promotion for P&O because all he said of substance was that passengers will receive a letter telling them their meeting time and place, that their bags have to be outside their room by 8pm tonight and that the cabins must be vacated by 7.30am in the morning. I thought it was surprisingly poorly attended but perhaps everybody else knows what will happen tomorrow and realised that most of the content was publicity fluff.

Sure enough when I returned to my room there was the disembarkation letter waiting for me, listing my group, my meeting time and place. The arrangements were actually different to the information I had previously been given regarding my transfer to Central (train) Station so I rang the Guest Services to check but was told just go by the letter.

I spent a little while filling out the “Incoming Passenger Card” and my baggage label then sorted out and packed my clothes into the suitcase. Set the alarm on my phone for 5am tomorrow, it might be a long day tomorrow being a public holiday so I want to make sure I get some breakfast.

Soon it was about time for lunch, so it was off to the Pantry, where I had a blow out meal with a hot dog, chicken sandwich and some dessert. Well, it is the last lunch of the trip!

Afternoon

Not much planned for this arvo so just wandered about, plenty of passengers enjoying the sunshine around the swimming pools but there is definitely an end of voyage feel to things.

I brought a couple of books with me on this trip and have read them both so now only have my faithful old Sony Ereader to read. I found carrying a book (or a hat) was a handy way of reserving a table when you go to the bar to get a drink or some more food, normally not a problem if there are two of you but by myself, if you leave the table for any reason when you return it has sometimes been taken by someone else unless you leave something behind.

Sat on my balcony for a while enjoying the sunshine, not that the view changes much with the land way over the horizon but it is very nice out there.

Evening

Before going to dinner I put my bag out in the corridor to be collected for disembarkation tomorrow, I remembered to keep some clean clothes to wear in the morning.

Dinner tonight was in the Dragon Lady restaurant, as usual a decent enough meal but I felt rather full after my excessive lunch so possibly didn’t enjoy it as much as I should.

There was a show in the Marquee tonight called Musicology – it was a big improvement on the rest of their shows, I enjoyed it. Lots of singers, variety and a live band – how the shows should have been all along.

Am up early in the morning so will give the rest of the evening’s entertainment a miss.

Christmas Day at Sea

Date: 25th December 2022

Morning

The sky was cloudy but the sun occasionally shone through however it is still warm and humid – high 20s or low 30s I would guess.

Had my usual cereal for breakfast before going for my walk. I passed all the usual suspects, when I say “passed” I mean those circumnavigating the ship in the opposite direction to me, those travelling in the same direction inevitably passed me Sad smile .

This is the first Christmas for years where I haven’t been setting up the BBQ or some tables for Christmas lunch. Am realising that tomorrow is the last day of this cruise and that I will be home on Tuesday.

I took a few pictures of my cabin for posterity.

Today’s towel arrangement was even more bizarre than usual but did include a Christmas Card from the Captain. I can’t complain about the cabin or the steward, everything was kept spick and span.

Afternoon

Lunch in The Pantry was quite special today, there were prawns and seafood though I stuck to sandwiches and a burger followed by an ice cream from the Ice cream place on deck 14 then wandered around the ship watching and enjoying the Christmas activities – that was basically my afternoon.

Dinner

They did make a special effort with the evening meal with some Christmassy fare though I seemed to choose the least Christmassy of them all, a prawn and mango salad for entre followed by beef, bacon and mushroom pie with ice cream for dessert. I really enjoyed what I had, the Christmas stuff had too many green vegetables for my taste, the service was fast and efficient today.

After dinner in Angelo’s I wandered into the Blue Room for a beer while I waited for the evening show in The Marquee. It had a band and two ladies singing which was a bit of an improvement but to be frank the overall standard of the entertainment on this cruise has been pretty lacklustre.

After 9pm I returned to the Blue Room to watch the Spicy Margaritas for a while before bed. Recognised a couple of Michael Jackson songs but left when they took their break.

While I was in the Blue Room had a look at the cocktail menu, it seems to have quite a variety of cocktails if you like that sort of thing though personally I stuck with VB.

It is noticeably cooler outdoors this evening, I would guess only in the low 20s.

To be fair it was a better day than this blog would indicate, there was something happening all over the ship, I just didn’t take pictures of it.

Christmas Eve at Sea

Date: 24th December 3022

Breakfast

Because it is Christmas I treated myself to some yogurt as well as my usual cereal for breakfast Winking smile

Once again it is a cloudy morning but warm – 30°C at a guess, during my walk there was even a few spots of rain but nothing spectacular. I notice that my knee is hurting a bit so instead of the stairs at the stern of the boat I kept to the one level for the last couple of circuits. Out of interest I timed my regular morning walk – it takes five and a half minutes to do the circuit with the stairs. I usually see the same people every morning doing exactly the same thing (except they do it much faster).

The weather soon brightened up and I took a trip round the ship’s upper decks to get some photos before the rest of the passengers were fully awake.

In this photo I have marked my cabin balcony with an X. It is taken from the top of the bridge (see first photo above).

The weather has been pretty good so far apart from the wet day in Noumea. As we are at sea the whole time until we reach Sydney the weather doesn’t really matter, in fact a storm would be interesting to see.

Lunchtime

Went down to the Lobby to see the promised snow but it was packed. The weather meanwhile had gone from grey to brilliant sunshine and an almost cloudless sky. It was still a bit humid but the temperature is probably in the low 30s. Really nice on the upper ‘decks. I even lashed out on an ice cream.

All the swimming pools looked full as I walked past but the ship had picked up some interested flying visitors.

I presume, but have no idea, that they are Albatrosses , they glided around the front of the ship for hours, I tried to take some pictures of them with very limited success. We are hundreds of kilometres from any land by now, heading SSW but currently still north of about Rockhampton

Evening

At Last!!! A proper variety show, Christmas themed (well, you can’t have everything Winking smile ) three quarters of an hour of dancing and singing – about time too. They even used the snow making machine (I hadn’t missed much in the lobby) and had a singalong.

BTW: All the photos taken in the theatre were taken with my phone so mediocre quality

Luganville

Date: 23rd December 2022

Arrival

When I woke at 6am the ship was still steaming along, I decided it was a good time to do a bit more washing but when I hung it out I found that it was quite windy and the sea had white caps.

After breakfast I had my usual walk, the wind had died down but it started to spot with rain, it was never heavy, more of a drizzle. I think it is just the overnight rain marking the beginning of the wet season.

Oh yes, the ship does have a laundry service but I prefer to wash my own.

As predicted the island of Santos was soon in sight and quickly all around us as the ship made its way to the dock. It is interesting that the ship seems to be able to turn in its own length using bow thrusters and (I presume) stern propellers that can face any direction. On this occasion my cabin faced away from the dock.

After docking the weather started to clear and looked quite promising as blue sky appeared.

The WWII Relics Tour

Went to lunch at 11.30 just to leave plenty of time to get off the ship for my Relics of WWII Tour.

The tour took place in three mini buses which was ideal compared to a coach, they stopped often for passengers to get out and hear all about the site, the driver of my bus was called Henry – a mine of information. about the island and its history

In some ways it was rather like an Australian small town’s historic tour where all the sites are of places long gone because, for example the wreck of the ship President Coolage was completely under the water but despite this I really enjoyed the tour. We stopped at some beautiful places with great views, the guides gave interesting talks about the history of each place and why it was important. Finally we called in at a restaurant where we had a complimentary drink. Well, worth the money.

After the tour returned to the ship at about 4pm, tired but happy. The cabin steward had left yet another of his weird towel arrangements.

Well, that is all my shore visits done, from when we cast off this evening it is all sea days heading south back to Sydney where we should arrive Monday morning.

Evening

Tonight I dined at Dragon Lady, I chose better for this evening’s meal last time I had Laksa, I don’t know why I chose it, I am not a fan of soup at all. This evening the meal was really good, I thoroughly enjoyed all of it. The service was back to normal too.

There was a magic show on in the Marquee Theatre which I attended and enjoyed, the bloke was funny and a there was a lot of audience participation.

I had intended to go to the Sit Down Comedy later in the evening but to be honest when the time came I was just so tired that I fell asleep in my cabin.

Today was a good day.

Port Vila

Date: 22nd December 2022

Morning

It was quite a shock this morning to look at my watch and realise that it was Thursday and that the cruise was into its 5th day already and that there were only five days left.

I was up as usual at 6am and having breakfast at 6.30 after which I spent 40 minutes pounding the decks pausing only to take the occasional photo as the ship entered harbour and docked in Port Vila.

Port Vila was a stop on my previous cruise so I decided that I would not be going ashore today but would have a lazy day on the ship (ie much like most days aboard).

Spent a while in the morning washing some clothes in the cabin sink before hanging them on my make shift line on the balcony which could only enhance to reputation of P&O, I should have more than enough clean clothes to make it back to Sydney now (mind you I thought that a few days ago too).

Spent most of the morning reading with a couple of beers to help this along before taking lunch in The Pantry. I have just realised that there are two Pantrys, one on each side of the ship but only one is open at a time.

After lunch I returned to my now serviced cabin to sit on the balcony and watch the activity in the wharf below my cabin.

Evening

Dinner was at Angelo’s Restaurant, unfortunately my table was poorly located with no one nearby to talk to but he meal was fairly good though to be honest I didn’t think there was enough choice and service was glacially slow, I was there for over an hour. Perhaps port visits slow everything down?

In a way the meal taking so long meant that the wait for my next event was less. I decided to go to the Maggie Scott performance in the Marquee Theatre at 7pm. By the time the show started I would say she had an audience of 50 people, probably with good reason, there was no backing band just recorded music so it was like Karaoke with a good singer. To be honest I thought it was pretty dismal.

After 9pm visited the Blue Room to listen to the band Solid Vibe, the girl has a nice voice but the songs she sings all sound the same to me. so I gave up after a few beers and sat on my balcony listening to Captain Beefheart on my head phones.

Mystery Island

Date: 21st December 2022

Breakfast

The usual routine – cereal and coffee in The Pantry followed by half an hour walking exercise.

Today was much brighter than yesterday, no sign of rain but quite humid. The humidity shouldn’t have been a surprise, it is summer after all and we are in the tropics.

As I walked the islands came into view and the ship started to slow and by the time I had showered we were stationary and presumably anchored. Soon there was a tender floating off my side of the ship.

Ashore

After 8am I wandered down to collect a tender ticket which was being given out on deck 7 by the resident Elf. Actually I was lucky, when she asked me how many and I told her that it was just for me, she gave me a single ticket she had lying on the table for Boat 6, the tickets she had been handing out to the people before and after me were for boat 8, it must have just been an odd ticket left over.

Sat around waiting for my ticket to be called, was chatting to a lady at the table I happened to sit at, she had been on 27 cruises and went several times every year, she was telling me she had a cruise coming up that cost her $250 for 11 days, I gathered from her that regular cruisers get offered freebies or bonus cruises, she had booked this Christmas cruise two years previously.

Didn’t have to wait too long for my tender to be called and soon I was clambering ashore on the jetty at Mystery Island. It was a pretty small island offering the usual fare to passengers, hair braiding, massage, food, tours etc. I think most of the passengers just wanted to get into the sea or sun bathe on the sand. That evening at dinner I noticed a lot of the children had elaborately braided hair.

(Don’t forget if you click on a picture you can view a larger version)

I wandered about for a while, surprised to find it even had an airport and a grass airstrip but after an hour or so I think I had seen all I wanted to see so I made my way back to the jetty to catch a boat back to the ship. I suspect I was the first to return as they seemed quite surprised to see me!

Afternoon

By the time I returned to the ship the humidity had taken its toll, my T Shirt was saturated with sweat so I bit the bullet and washed a couple of T shirts to hang on my make shift line on the balcony. There is a line in the bathroom but it is about half a metre long and I reckon clothes would take a week to dry in there.

Had absolutely nothing planned for the rest of the day except I might catch the Spicy Margaritas in the Blue Room later this evening, for the rest of the time it looks like reading and drinking.

Evening

Dinner tonight was in the Waterfront Restaurant and was quite enjoyable, I had grilled barramundi which was OK. Chatted to the couple at the table next to mine, they too were complaining that before Covid all the entertainment on a cruise was free but now some of it had an extra charge and the free entertainment in the theatre was pretty ordinary.

During dinner the ship’s captain reported that the liner had been diverted to a rescue a small boat that had sent off a distress signal, turns out that it had run out of fuel. Unfortunately it needed petrol and the ship only carried fuel oil so the bloke had to abandon his craft and be taken onboard. There was an aircraft flying low circling the ship while this was all going on.

Noumea

Date: 20th December 2022

Arrival

Woke to a miserable, cloudy sky.

As usual was up about 6 am and visited The Pantry for breakfast at half past, before beginning my daily walk. As I walked the ship made its way between the reefs that protect Noumea and by the time I had finished walking it was well into the harbour preparing to dock.

After my shower the ship was along side and the ship’s PA announced that most of the shore trips had been cancelled because of bad weather. Fortunately (or unfortunately as it turned out) the tour I had booked, the Tchou Tchou Train, had not been cancelled but would be a coach only trip.

The crew were issuing debarkation tickets for visits to the town via free shuttle bus and announcements for this continued on a fairly regular basis. The dock is a working dock so it was too dangerous for people to be wandering about in the port and they had to come and go on a bus.

At 10.30 I made my way onto the dock to join my tour bus.

The Tchou Tchou Train

This tour was definitely not a highlight of the trip but a fairly dull coach ride around the bays of Noumea in the rain with a stop at a very damp lookout. The view would have been quite spectacular in decent weather but today’s rain obscured just about anything except the guns (donated by Australia but never fired in anger) and the French Military area. I think we actually passed the Tchou Tchou train tour at the top of the lookout and even though it was raining and the carriages had transparent weather protection it would still have been a more interesting trip than just being driven about in a bus.

The bus allowed passengers to depart in the town to catch the shuttle bus back to the ship. I elected to stay on the bus and go back to the ship, I have been to Noumea before in better weather.

My cabin steward had left a very odd towel arrangement.

As it was after midday made my way up to The Pantry for some lunch.

Afternoon and Evening

I spent the afternoon lazing about in a couple of the lounges, had a beer or two in the Blue Room, read my book and before I knew it it was time to think about dinner.

Tonight it was my turn at Dragon Lady again, this time I was rather stuck away in a corner but another couple at the table adjacent chatted to me, it was their first cruise which was a surprise as most of the passengers seemed to have gone cruising multiple times.

For some reason the staff at the restaurant seemed completely disorganised and the meal, while perfectly edible was actually a shambles, I was given two desserts but as I had waited ages between courses I ate them both.

At 7pm attended the The Marquee theatre to see Lisa Couch “Powerhouse Diva”, actually she wasn’t bad she sang some good songs – Tina Turner, Cher, Roy Orbison type of thing – and she was moderately funny too. However in my opinion one act with a band is not a “show” but something you expect to find in one of the bars. So far the theatre entertainment had been pretty disappointing.

When the show was over I made my way back to the Blue Room for the last set of the Leon Experience while I waited for the Spicy Margaritas to perform.

The Spicy Margaritas weren’t bad either they sang a a few older songs, some Van Morrison, even “Stand By Me” but then they moved on to modern stuff that I hadn’t heard before and after 40 minutes I decided it was time for bed.

Where is Noumea? I hear you ask…

Second Day at Sea

Date: 19th December 2022

Breakfast

I am happy with my morning routine. First a loooong walk from my room to the far end of the corridor which stretches the full length of the ship then up two flights of stairs to The Pantry for breakfast of cereal and coffee.

After breakfast it is up another flight of stairs to deck 15 for a 30/40 minute walk around the ship’s gangways on that level. Ironically it takes me past the ship’s gymnasium where there are many people doing exactly the same thing but on a treadmill. There seem to be a few regulars walking at this time of the morning – we nod and chat as we circulate.

Following this I returned to my cabin for a shower and a change of clothes. I also washed a couple of T shirts and undies so that I have enough clothes to last me the entire holiday. I set up a temporary line on the balcony to dry them.

Morning

This morning was going to be slightly different as there was a compulsory Covid test for all passengers to be carried out at 10am, all activities ceased and everyone remained in their room to self test and were not allowed to leave until the cabin staff confirms a negative test. Mine was good and I was out very promptly.

Went down to the Avalon Cafe for a chai latte and Danish Pastry to celebrate.

Sat in the lounge watching activities and reading my book until lunch time when again I went to The Pantry but this time settled for a decent sized roast beef sandwich and a coffee. I did notice that the Fish and Chips looked very good. I arrived much later than yesterday but the crowd seemed bigger if anything, I suspect arriving when they open at 11.30am might be the way to go in future.

Afternoon

Spent most of the afternoon in the Oasis Bar or on the deck above lying on a lounge chair listening to music on my headphones. No, I was not sunbathing but ensured that I was always in the shade. To be honest I didn’t think the lounge chairs were that comfortable.

Evening

This evenings meal was at Angelo’s Restaurant. It is Italian style food and the menu is in Italian. The food was decent enough and I had a pleasant meal.

Afterwards visited the Blue Room for a VB or two and some live music before attending the early concert in the Marquee Theatre. I can’t say either provided music to my taste. The singer in the Blue Room sang sort of soul and R & B but it was an enjoyable enough way to spend the evening with a couple of beers.

The concert was not to my taste either, The singer was actually quite funny and the music passed the time. The theatre was much less than half full (at a guess) possibly because it was the early 7pm performance and a lot of younger people walked out during the show but I stayed until the end.

Afterwards I had intended to go back to the Blue Room for a band called Spicy Margaritas but in the event I was quite tired so read my book and settled for an early night, this band will have to wait for another night.

First Day at Sea

Date: 18th December 2022

Breakfast

I woke up just before 6am with the sun streaming in my window – didn’t close the curtains (seems little point).

Had a shower and got dressed, found the daily newsletter in my letter holder outside the cabin door, I checked to see what time breakfast was served in the various restaurants. The Pantry seemed to be the earliest opening at 6.30am so I made my way up the stairs to the 14th deck.

My first mistake! I found myself on the 15th deck couldn’t understand it and it was only when I checked the deck plans near the lifts that I discovered that there is no 13th deck, it goes from 12 to 14. Daft!

The Pantry is a number of separate “stores” each providing things like bacon and eggs, fish and chips etc. Personally I am not a fan of a cooked breakfast preferring coffee and cereal and at first thought that was not a choice but asking one of the girls proved me wrong she showed me where to get cereal like Weet-Bix etc.

Exercise and Exploration

After breakfast went looking for a place to walk, Actually this ship doesn’t really have a long(ish) walk but on Deck 15 found a reasonable circuit for an half hour walk which brought up a bit of a sweat.

Needed another shower after that and took my book with me to look at the bars and other facilities which seem to be clustered around decks 5, 6 and 7 in the middle of the ship. I tried sitting in various areas watching the other passengers between reading, even enjoyed a Chai Latte in the Avalon Cafe before wondering if there was an adults only area on the ship.

There is indeed – the Oasis Pool a small swimming pool and bar right at the stern of the ship behind The Pantry Restaurant where there were comfortable seats and tables as well as lounge chairs.

Lunch

By now it was lunch time and because it was close I thought it was time to try The Pantry’s selection of food, I ended up selecting sausage, mashed potato, peas, onions and gravy. Actually it was too much for lunch so will try sandwiches over the coming days. It was also very crowded so perhaps later is better?

Back to the cabin for a nap afterwards.

Afternoon and Evening

The main bar (Adventure Hotel) on board seems always packed, perhaps not full but crowded, it is where a lot of events happen, Trivia and the like. Nearby is a smaller bar called the Blue Room which, so far, seems rarely packed, indeed this afternoon I was there mostly by myself or occasionally a couple would wander in for the odd drink. You don’t even have to go to the bar to get your drink, a waiter brings them to you.

Dinner this evening was in the Waterfront Restaurant, it seems to be the largest of the three complimentary restaurants and it was here that I was booked for tonight’s meal. I was actually in a bit of a rush because I wanted to get back to the Blue Room for the music at 6pm. I had an entre of duck and a main course of Scallop and Mussel Pie, the entre was OK but the pie was delicious.

The casino on board seems pretty large but personally I just go through it on my way to somewhere else.

Returned to the Blue Room after dinner to enjoy the band, a girl singer accompanied by a trio of piano, bass guitar and drums which was fine especially accompanied by Victoria Bitter. Actually the VB was in cans, I hate drinking out of cans but they gave me a chilled glass when I asked so all was well.

I attended an adults only “Sit Down Comedy” show in the main theatre (Marquee) after 10.15pm. It was moderately funny but either the PA system was badly set up or I am getting deafer because I couldn’t understand what he was saying half the time. If he was on again I wouldn’t bother.

…and so to bed.