2023 Alaska, Asia, Australia, Arabian Peninsula Trip
Day 79/105 - Newcastle, Australia
Our sail into Newcastle was very nice this morning. Calm waters, blue skies, and temps in the low 70s made for a wonderful morning to enjoy the veranda and watch the sights.
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| Our pilot, arriving to take us in |
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| The military came to check us out - I think they're jealous of our staterooms |
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| One of the two tugs that came out to tie up and escort us in |
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| We passed a smack of jellies (yes, a smack) - the tan blobs are all jellies |
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| Lots of folks were out to welcome us |
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| One of the tugs tied up to us |
We heard a large BOOM and saw a puff of smoke (see the lead image above). I zoomed in and could see folks standing at attention.
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| Another BOOM - we receive three cannon blasts to welcome us - we returned with a horn blast |
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| Nobby's Lighthouse |
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| Christ Church Cathedral |
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| A paraglider flying behind the cathedral |
I caught this Australian pied cormorant zipping past our balcony.
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| An Australian pied cormorant zipped past our veranda |
After lunch and docking, we hopped the shuttle into Newcastle and walked around.
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| This is the Destiny sculpture |
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| She is designed like a ship masthead and is said to protect ships that sail in and out of this harbor |
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| The best license plate award goes to... |
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| The best warning sign award goes to... |
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| Do you know what this little patch of grass needs? A camel! |
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| It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas |
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| War Memorial |
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| City Hall clock tower |
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| Captain James Cook Memorial Fountain |
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| Arlona found water |
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| War Memorial Cultural Centre |
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| Nailed it |
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| Australian Magpie |
We returned to the ship and hung out for an hour at the Viking Bar in the atrium before heading out to our 4 p.m. optional excursion, Newcastle’s Coastline by RIB.
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| RIB stands for rigid inflatable boat and this was our RIB |
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| We got the bouncier front seats |
As we started, a couple Australian pelicans, members of the Newcastle precision pelican flight team, passed by on maneuvers.
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| Destiny wished us a good trip |
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| This whale sculpture is near the cannon that greeted us into the harbor this morning |
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| Nobby's lighthouse |
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| A shipwreck - they built the break wall around it |
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| The coastline was very pretty |
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| This pedestrian bridge looked like it would provide stunning views |
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| An ANZAC memorial is located on the bridge |
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| Check out the lines in the stone |
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| Take a good look at the dark horizontal lines |
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| That is coal - this area is a huge coal production area |
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| A WWII bunker was constructed on the side of the hill - the ship was moving so this is a little blurry |
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| We returned to the harbor and sailed past our ship - we had never seen them make the ship before - there were also buoys in the water |
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| Our guide, Dominic, and his RIB, Atmos |
It was a nice excursion. The bus driver, on the way to the excursion, mentioned a local gin distillery that produces great gin. Folks asked him about it on the way back, so he took us there. Unfortunately, they had closed about a half-hour earlier, so we missed out.
Back at the ship, we got nicer clothes on and headed to our last dinner on the ship. Tonight, we opted for Manfredi's.
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| Arlona had the ribs |
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| Deboning my dinner |
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| I had the fish special today - Dover sole |
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| We had the warm chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream for dessert. |
After dinner, we went back to the room to finish packing the suitcases so we could put them out.
No sooner than I had them out, our cabin steward, Aiko, was hauling them away to get them ready to take off the ship in the morning.
There was nothing left to do but go the the Explorers' Bar for one last visit and to listen to guitarist, Indra. He learned three new songs at our request and nailed each one. It was a pleasure listening to him every night before dinner. Listening to him one last time tonight, and dancing to "You Are My Sunshine" was a fitting end to this cruise.
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| Indra started off this evening's set with Classical Gas and absolutely killed it after just learning it |
Tomorrow morning, we are doing a scenic sail into Sydney Harbor, starting at, ugh, 5 a.m. If I am motivated, I will get up, especially since it is mostly port side and that's our side of the ship. Tomorrow's blog will tell the story.
We disembark around 8 a.m. and make our way to our home for the next week the Grace Hotel in Sydney.
We are doing the Sydney to Bangkok leg this March. Your blog has made is much easier to plan excursions. You will love Dubai. Make sure to check out the indoor ski hill. The cleanest toilets are in the subway stations. Incredible.
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