LIVE from the Sapphire Princess - Sydney to Los Angeles

[Pia1913]

Welcome to LIVE #2 and the continuation of the Sapphire from Sydney to Los Angeles.

 

 

We left the ship at 9:00; very easy. They used a separate area for those in transit; 4 forward. The day was beautiful; sunny and warm. We started walking to Paddy’s Market and got half way when we discovered there was a Saturday market at the Rocks. So we turned around and walked back to that area. Fun to wander; bought nothing. We stopped into Starbucks for an early lunch; 11:30, coffee and shared a bagel. Then we meandered slowly to the Opera House and picked up our 1:00 PM tix to Figaro. I ordered these on line back in January; 3rd row center. Fantastic seats! There was a huge thunderstorm when we were leaving, but managed to walk underground until almost back to the ship. Stopped to buy wine and rain had dwindled to a sprinkle. Back on board in seconds; hardly anyone around and we had intransit cards anyway.

 

 

Fortunately we are in the same cabin, but got a new steward. Same name. We had Jose from Mexico and now Jose from the Philippines. It Is now almost 5:00 PM; muster is happening and we don’t have to do it. Hooray! :) We sail at 8:00 PM.

 

 

On tap this evening is the welcome aboard show at 10:00 featuring the singers and dancers and a comic named Mike Harris. At 9:00 there’s a movie in Explorer’s - “The Back-up Plan” with Jennifer Lopez. Clocks go forward tonight, so here comes the first of many lost hours of sleep. Then again, we are going to have two Wednesdays, but that’s a bit down the road.

 

 

Time to get some food. Half a bagel just didn’t do it for me. ;)

[fairstars]

Hi Pia,

Hope you have a wonderfull trip back and are able to make the Fjords this time:)

Sorry we did not get a chance to say goodbye to you and Mike, but we are still not real well after that dreaded cold hit.

 

Take care and happy cruising

Chris

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Hi Pia,

Nice to hear you had a great day in Sydney.

How was the Opera, at the Opera house?

 

For folks following, heres a map and itinerary of the cruise back home.

I've put it on page 1 , so you can refer back and see where Pia is.

 

Note Wed 3 Nov...they get to have that all over again, due to the date line.

 

Trust the seas are kind and you get to cruise Fiordland this time .

Sun Princess was in there today and they had brilliant cruising.

 

 

 

 

Itinerary

 

Sat 23/10/10 Sydney / Australia 20:00

Sun 24/10/10 At Sea

Mon 25/10/10 At Sea

Tue 26/10/10 Fjordland National Park (Scenic Cruising) / New Zealand 08:00 18:00

Wed 27/10/10 Port Chalmers / New Zealand 08:00 18:00

Thu 28/10/10 Akaroa / New Zealand 08:00 18:00

Fri 29/10/10 Wellington / New Zealand 08:00 18:00

Sat 30/10/10 At Sea

Sun 31/10/10 Auckland / New Zealand 07:00 19:00

Mon 01/11/10 At Sea

Tue 02/11/10 At Sea

Wed 03/11/10 Suva (Fiji) / South Seas 09:00 17:00

Wed 03/11/10 Date Line 18:00 19:00

Thu 04/11/10 Pago Pago / South Seas 07:00 16:00

Fri 05/11/10 At Sea

Sat 06/11/10 At Sea

Sun 07/11/10 Moorea / French Polynesia 08:00 17:00

Sun 07/11/10 Papeete (Tahiti) / French Polynesia 20:00

Mon 08/11/10 Papeete (Tahiti) / French Polynesia 17:00

Tue 09/11/10 Bora Bora / French Polynesia 07:00 16:00

Wed 10/11/10 At Sea

Thu 11/11/10 At Sea

Fri 12/11/10 At Sea

Sat 13/11/10 At Sea

Sun 14/11/10 Honolulu (Oahu, Hawaii) / USA 07:00 23:00

Mon 15/11/10 Lahaina (Maui, Hawaii) / USA 07:00 17:00

Tue 16/11/10 At Sea

Wed 17/11/10 At Sea

Thu 18/11/10 At Sea

Fri 19/11/10 At Sea

Sat 20/11/10 Los Angeles / USA 07:00

 

Distance: 18,588.55 km/10,037.01 nm

[dchip]

Hi Pia,

 

Enjoyed your trip to Sydney. Looking forward to the return :D We have friends that joined you in Sydney. Wish we were there too.

 

Have fun and hope you are both feeling better!

 

Cheers, Denise

[wishful thinking]

Here we go again! Looking forward to your return trip and wishing you both well.

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

Bring it on Pia! :D

[coo359a2]

Looking forward to cruising/reading with ya'll back to LA.

[mississauga]

Pia, looking forward to cruising vicariously back to LA with you. Hope you have better weather as you cruise back to NZ.

 

David, you are so amazing with your maps and web shots. You have really enchanced Pia's Lives with your postings. Thank you!:)

[Toto2Kansas]

Pia, So glad to hear the weather is warmer for you. Thanks for the memories of Paddy's Market (hadn't thought about that place in years) and the maket at the Rocks that we found also. Paddy's is where we always have to go for DH to stock up on his Aussie hats. He bought one the first time and loved it so much it was an excuse to return for more. Second trip he bought several and still has one in the closet. Not sure, but maybe when he runs out of hats he might want to return :)............and he has never found anything like it here in the states, so there is hope.

 

Sydney is such a lovely place. So much to do and so many places to visit. We found a great excursion agent on George Street there, and spent the day in the Blue Mountians..........Ahhhhhhhhh the memories!

 

Can't wait for the next installment!

[regnig]

Pia I look forwards to sailing back to the states with you.

 

David many thanks for the map and schedule as it is always helpful for those of us who are a bit geographically challenged. :o

 

Barb

[Rockymountainsparky]

Pia, we're all aboardfor this leg of the trip. Hope the weather holds up for the Fjords this time.

[silkismom]

When we were in Sydney several years ago, I bought little koala bears & kangaroos for our kitty sitter, who was a 3rd grade teacher, to give her students & a book about Aussie animals. She really enjoyed having an unusual topic to teach. We got them at Paddy's market, I had forgotten about that until it was mentioned. We also got nice embroidered T-shirts for ourselves. It was the start of our Aussie trip, so DH wouldn't let me buy much. Unfortuanately, by the time we got to Melbourne, I was too sick to finish shopping at their market.

[Alessandrina]

Enjoy your second voyage!

Make sure to pick up some yummy Cadbury chocolates in NZ - they are the best!

Cheers.

[Colo Cruiser]

Smooth sailing Pia!!

 

[Woobstr112G]

Pia;

 

Thanks for the 2nd round. I am looking forward to reading your reports.....:):):)

 

Bob

[RickEk]

Have a great return trip! And thanks for taking us along... :)

[mississauga]

We started walking to Paddy’s Market and got half way when we discovered there was a Saturday market at the Rocks. So we turned around and walked back to that area.

 

What is the difference between these markets? Is the Saturday one at the Rocks more like a farmer's market?

[caribill]

What is the difference between these markets? Is the Saturday one at the Rocks more like a farmer's market?

 

Some pictures from the Rocks market

[mississauga]

caribill, thanks

[Pia1913]

Sunday, the first of three days at sea. Good Morning. We left Sydney last night at 8:00, though Mike and I were already in our cabin for the night. We had gotten up at 6:00 and were sort of wiped out after a full day in Sydney. A good night’s sleep (even if we did lose an hour) and early to the gym is what makes for a good start of our day.

 

 

While the seas are basically mild, the temp has dropped considerably. It’s starting to be brrrrrrrrrrrrrr our there as I sit here in Horizon Ct. in workout skivvies. Capt. Carlton has informed us that we should have smooth sailing across the Tasman on our way to Milford Sound. Hope we make the fjords on this trip. Remains to be seen.

 

 

On board today will be a port talk on Dunedin and Akaroa and two lectures. Both in the afternoon, the first one is “Forensics use of DNA” and the other is “Cruising the Ring of Fire: The awesome forces under the sea floor.” Afternoon movie is Killers with Ashton Kutcher and will also be shown again at 10;00 pm. Our Cruise Critic M & G is scheduled for 2:00 PM in Skywalkers.

 

 

Tonight’s offerings are a singer Jennifer Green in the theater and a magician, Phil Cass in Explorer’s. Looks like we’ll be watching a movie and/or reading in our cabin.

 

 

Breakfast time.

[K-Roo-Zers]

Good Morning Pia,

 

Thougt of you last night at 8.00pm, hoping the last two souls who boarded are happy!

 

I feel bad every time I look at Eileen's "care" package for you and Mike, but on the positive side, I think of all the calories I have saved you both.

 

We will definitely be with you in "spirit" and may try and take this cruise some other time. I am really glad we won't have to ensure the cold NZ weather - beautiful country though and Dave has made things so interesting.

 

Looking forward to sharing the journey with you.

 

Keep well and warm.

 

Nicki

[Druke I]

Have a great trip back to The States.

[bananavan]

Oh the withdrawal from the Sapphire!!!!!!!!!

Watched your sailaway from my brother's appartment in the Rocks last night with more than a twinge of sadness. You all looked glorious.

Sydney gave you a firework sailaway which was lovely to see.

Enjoy the trip home. I really hope that your sailing gets the Fiordland views.

We had a wonderful time with everyone on the crossing. It was ia pleasure getting to know you and Mike.

Evana

[Grove family]

What is the difference between these markets? Is the Saturday one at the Rocks more like a farmer's market?

 

 

Paddys markets are a permanent market setup located in Haymarket area ,not far from central railway station.They sell all sorts of things from fresh foods to t-shirts.The Rocks markets are a temporary setup using a section of blocked off road selling mainly arts and crafts-better quality than Paddys,

 

Peter

 

PS:Paddys is a long walk from Circular Quay,much better to catch a train , bus or cab.

[LRDR01]

Pia-

Very much enjoyed your first half (month long) cruise and looking forward to the second part of the sailing. We are following along (very envious) on your daily adventures. Hope you are both feeling better.