Live on Edge Down Under - Mar 24 & Apr 5 - NZ and S Australia 🛳️🇦🇺🦘🇳🇿🥝🛳️

[81Zoomie]

There is no shortage of activities.  You can be as active or laid back as you like!

 

[81Zoomie]

Apparently, NZ is very strict about bringing any food products into the country.  There are signs, big and little, throughout the eating venues.  We will purge all our pockets, backpacks, and my purse of anything edible.  I normally carry a protein bar and ginger chews, but the signage is pretty clear; no food.
 

[toucan49]

1 hour ago, 81Zoomie said:

Apparently, NZ is very strict about bringing any food products into the country.  There are signs, big and little, throughout the eating venues.  We will purge all our pockets, backpacks, and my purse of anything edible.  I normally carry a protein bar and ginger chews, but the signage is pretty clear; no food.
 

 I was there about 5 years ago. As we were lined up to get off the ship security men came through with a dog. The dog stopped at a lady in line. She had a banana in her purse!!!!

they took it away from her.

 

[81Zoomie]

DH gets credit for spotting a teeny tiny baby blue duck!  We relocated it so someone else can discover it.  Thanks to whoever brought it on board ❤️.

 

 

Just a little fun with shapes and colors!

 

Edited March 26 by 81Zoomie

[mahdnc]

2 hours ago, toucan49 said:

 I was there about 5 years ago. As we were lined up to get off the ship security men came through with a dog. The dog stopped at a lady in line. She had a banana in her purse!!!!

they took it away from her.

 

Their dogs are so cute though!

 

[TrixieBel]

On 3/23/2024 at 5:46 PM, 81Zoomie said:

great wine store at Martin Station,

As a Sydneysider, it’s so cute to see you get the names of places just slightly wrong… 😊 Loving it. And totally hooked on seeing how it all goes! 

[Mikelynn]

You are lucky with the weather so far on the crossing. We were on the January 13th cruise. Very windy for the first few days. Only a few hardy souls, mainly bits, trying to sunbathe. 

[Mikelynn]

It's "Brits" not bits.

[Lena11033]

16 minutes ago, Mikelynn said:

You are lucky with the weather so far on the crossing. We were on the January 13th cruise. Very windy for the first few days. Only a few hardy souls, mainly bits, trying to sunbathe. 

 

 last year when in Northern Europe I was on deck and cold - but Brits were out sunbathing lol

[FeebeeH]

13 hours ago, 81Zoomie said:

Apparently, NZ is very strict about bringing any food products into the country.  There are signs, big and little, throughout the eating venues.  We will purge all our pockets, backpacks, and my purse of anything edible.  I normally carry a protein bar and ginger chews, but the signage is pretty clear; no food.
 

You can take some food off the ship into NZ - things like commercially packaged water, commercially packed chocolate or lollies.  In February this year I was able to take off sealed bottles of water & chocolate bars (from Australia) off the ship with no problem.  But it's a definite no-no for fresh fruit, honey and water bottles filled with ship's water as well as other things mentioned on the sign.  I also had to leave behind my crystallised ginger & ginger teas.

[Ciaranaman]

All caught up and joining the rest of this wonderful cruise!  We did it back in 2017 🛳️ and made so many memories!  Loved Sydney, and did an extended visit in NZ afterwards with family.  We will never forget that trip!  Enjoy every minute!

~Bernadette

[Norwaylady]

Seems like your up to a good start❤️

 

We are not suffering in any ways on EQ⚓️😎

What I miss is the walking track on Edge💪🏻

Enjoy NZ❤️🤩 

[81Zoomie]

4 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

Seems like your up to a good start❤️

 

We are not suffering in any ways on EQ⚓️😎

What I miss is the walking track on Edge💪🏻

Enjoy NZ❤️🤩 

Enjoy those tropical breezes 😎🌴🏝️🌞.
 

I walked the inside hallways yesterday.  It’s a bit of a challenge on the track and stairs.  Aussies and Americans zig zag on opposite sides of traffic flow 😂🚶🏼🚶🏾‍♂️💥

[81Zoomie]

Dinner last night was in Eden, and it did not disappoint!  It was simply delicious and the ambiance was excellent. Nice service, a violin playing upstairs, and great food!  It did not appear very crowded.

 

 

 

 

We elected not to do the 7 course tasting menu because it would have been too much food.  DH had the soup and ceviche followed by the lobster.  I had the shrimp followed by the filet.  Everything was delicious!  Dinner was led off by a small but tasty amuse bouche BLT tomato.

 

 

 

 

 

And then came the chocolates and desserts! 😋😋😁. We had butterscotch crème brûlée and the strawberry tart.  They were delicious ❤️👍❤️

 

 

 

After dinner we wandered a bit and ended up at the Yes/No game show.  It was very entertaining and everyone had some good laughs!

 

We also caught a glimpse of a Martini Bartender warming up.🤹🤹‍♀️🤹‍♂️

Edited March 26 by 81Zoomie

[81Zoomie]

So thankful to the chefs for a fantastic meal.  And thanks to Mother Nature for a beautiful sunset 🌅❤️👍😁

 

 

[81Zoomie]

Day 4 - Good morning from New Zealand!  We have reached our parking spot in the bay and will be tendering this morning.

 

 

We watched the Magic Carpet slide by our verandah this morning.  It was very quiet.  No one is on the MC when it moves.  We expect that today is the only day it will move down then up because this is the only tender port.

 

 

We have another picture perfect day!  It is supposed to be in the upper 70s today.  We have an independent boat excursion early this afternoon, so we are in no rush to get off the ship.

 

 

Our chariots await!

 

[81Zoomie]

Todays activities:

 

 

We had a very light breakfast after our dinner in Eden last night.  The Captains Club breakfast was quick and easy.  I found the cafe mocha ☕️ to be a good option for me!  DH had a berry smoothie.

 

 

A pleasant surprise, the croissant with the flakes on top had Nutella in the center!  Of note, there are no bagels, butter, or cream cheese.

 

The cabin on one side of us is an IV.  We can hear the electric roller shade go up and down. Just thinking if we can hear it next door, it would be a bit hard to sleep through in the IV cabin. 

 

Since people are fleeing the ship, it’s easy to get some pictures of the popular areas.  It’s very rare to not see a line at Cafe Al Bachio!  The crew members were happy to pose in the pics 😎👍😁

 

 

 

[screwsmcernst]

Loving your review so far.  

 

We really enjoy Duckhorn wine, so when we tried Decoy, we were hoping it would be enjoyable... we don't care for it either.

 

You mentioned you had a food allergy.  I have celiac disease, and I was wondering how careful they are in Luminae?  

[hcat]

3 hours ago, 81Zoomie said:

So thankful to the chefs for a fantastic meal.  And thanks to Mother Nature for a beautiful sunset 🌅❤️👍😁

 

 

How beautiful...and a wonderful meal at EDEN!

[Jim_Iain]

On 3/23/2024 at 5:11 PM, 81Zoomie said:

One of the lead baggage handlers told us to avoid the rush at 10:30.  He said noonish would be much calmer.  That sounded like the voice of experience and we will heed his advice.

 

Did you happen to find out what Time the earliest Baggage Drop off opens?  Some have Suggested 9:30.  

[81Zoomie]

8 hours ago, screwsmcernst said:

Loving your review so far.  

 

We really enjoy Duckhorn wine, so when we tried Decoy, we were hoping it would be enjoyable... we don't care for it either.

 

You mentioned you had a food allergy.  I have celiac disease, and I was wondering how careful they are in Luminae?  

I spoke to the shoreside concierge before sailing.  When we got to Luminae  my name was tagged.  I preorder dinner either early in the day or the night before.  We have the same waiter each night.  He checks with the chef if there is a question.  So far so good for me.

 

Funny you should mention celiacs.  Our daughter is gluten free as well.  We noticed the Luminae menu does not annotate gluten free.  The Oceanview Cafe marks almost all their offerings with contents.

 

 

 

[81Zoomie]

7 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

Did you happen to find out what Time the earliest Baggage Drop off opens?  Some have Suggested 9:30.  

We walked around the pier before about 7:20 am to see the ship and take some pictures from the pier.  When we asked someone in a yellow vest what time baggage drop opens he said you can drop it now.  We dropped our bags a little after 9.  I will caveat this because I think Edge may have docked a little earlier than expected.

[Lena11033]

5 minutes ago, 81Zoomie said:

I spoke to the shoreside concierge before sailing.  When we got to Luminae  my name was tagged.  I preorder dinner either early in the day or the night before.  We have the same waiter each night.  He checks with the chef if there is a question.  So far so good for me.

 

Funny you should mention celiacs.  Our daughter is gluten free as well.  We noticed the Luminae menu does not annotate gluten free.  The Oceanview Cafe marks almost all their offerings with contents.

 

 

 

 

I noticed this as well as I'm lactose intolerant, even MDR before was listing what did or did not have dairy in it. You'd think Luminae would

[81Zoomie]

 My must have cruise hot dog!  Quick lunch before our excursion.

 

 

 

[81Zoomie]

 I’m am not certain what was going on with the tenders today.  🍻🤷‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️.  Tendering started at 10ish.  At 12:30 they were still calling #s.  Then we heard an announcement, which we were expecting to say open tendering was no the operation.  Nope, it said we are operating as quickly and safely as we can.  Weather and wind were not a factor. 🌞 We also noticed that bridge officers were driving the tenders.  We have never seen this before.  

Upon our return the line snaked around in circles.  It looked a bit like Disney World!!! 3 tenders ⛴️⛴️⛴️, nearly 400 passengers left the pier ahead of us.  It took 45 min to get back on board.  Fortunately, today is our only tender port and the weather was nice.

 

Well, we arrived on a ship, took a tender to shore, and then jumped on another boat. Boats are us 🚢⛴️🛥️.  We took a boat tour to see the hole in the rock and visit some beaches.  It was a beautiful day in the mid 70s.  The waters around Bay of Islands resemble the colors around Turks and Caicos.  Simply beautiful.

 

Our boat ride was a bit rougher, wetter 🌊, and more windy than expected.  It reminded me of pounding in our Baja years ago.  It was all worth it to take in the sights.  I was very happy I had a waterproof jacket with me 😎.  We hiked to Capt. Cooks lookout, watched a sea urchin get dissected, saw  two seals, and thoroughly enjoyed to scenic views 🌴🐟🦆