Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Sunday May 30, 2010

Day 10 Bali Indonesia

Today we anchored at Benoa on the Island of Bali, and took the tender to land. The waves were quite rough, so the catamaran could not take the 300 people to land that it was supposed to because the waves prevented it from lining up alongside the Dawn Princess. We were on a tour so got put onto one of the earlier tenders, but some people who were doing their own thing did not get off the ship until lunch time. We went on the elephant safari. The park where these elephants are kept is lush with banana trees and ferns with the biggest fronds I have ever seen. We saw baby elephants, and fed the elephants, and saw a show where the elephants put garlands around children’s necks, kicked a soccer ball into the net and shot a goal through a basketball hoop. We had a 40 minute ride on a 29 year old elephant called Daiwy. Coming home we had a long wait for the tender, so watched a Balinese music group and dancers perform on the foreshore. The trip home in the tender was very bumpy as we careered through high waves which you just do not notice in a large ship. Because of the tender difficulties, we were two hours late leaving Bali. Bill and I watched as the crew raised the last three tenders from the water to their positions at about deck 7 on the ship. It was a difficult operation as the two crew members had to attach pulleys to the front and back of the tenders as they were tossed about in reasonably rough seas. Tonight Bill and I participated in a music trivial quiz and won fourth place. (Barbara)

Photos from Bali and the Elephant Safari Park

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Saturday May 29, 2010

Day 9 West Timor to Indonesia

Today I went to the marzipan and cake decorating demonstration, and was amazed with the speed with which the chefs can decorate a cake. After this I listened to the historian, Andrew Stuart, speak on Stamford Raffles. He was from the lower middle class in England and had very little formal education but he taught himself the Malay language during his two-month voyage from England to Malaya. When he arrived he knew the language so well that he was made the chief interpreter for the governor. He is the only person to have created a country, but the powers that be in England did not appreciate what he had done in naming this strategic island with the best harbour in the world for England, so they taxed his widow 20,000 pounds for the money he used in establishing this country. In three years Singapore grew from 200 people to 20,000 people, with well established roads.
The dance that we learnt today was the foxtrot. We should be ready for dancing with the stars by the time we finish. This afternoon, I watched the old movie of Mutiny on the Bounty, with Charles Laughton and Clark Gable. What a classic! Tonight Bill and I went to a show to see Elizabeth Lord who is a singer who sang the songs of Patsy Kline, Dusty Springfield and Karen Carpenter. She had a great voice and was a talented performer. (Barbara) I spent time this morning sending my part of Mum’s eulogy to Rosemary, John and Tim. I received from Tim the order of service for Monday morning. Great to see so many people participating in this send off to Mum. Had a very active afternoon with dancing, basketball, gym and swimming. The blues and greys of the Indonesian sunset reminded me of Mum’s poem about Renoir. (Bill)

Some views inside the Dawn Princess.

The Atrium

The Wheelhouse Bar

Chefs in Horizons Restaurant

Marzipan Decoration

Cake with Sails in Horizons

Quartet playing in the Atrium

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Friday May 28, 2010

Day 8 Darwin to West Timor

Today I went to a floral demonstration by the onboard horticulturalists who created delightful works of floral artistry. One of their arrangements looked just like the tail of a peacock. I also attended a lecture on Bali, where I learnt that Indonesia is comprised of 17,000 islands and that the average age of its citizens is 28 years. Bill and I persisted with our ballroom dancing and learnt the Parma waltz which we seemed to do O.K. with. Tonight we watched Pavarotti in concert on the big screen under the stars, lying back on our deck chairs. All day today we sailed through very flat seas that just went on and on with no sight of land. I thought of the boat people who come this way in little tin boats with very primitive compasses, trying to reach Australia. They must be desperate to attempt it. We are both keeping up our exercise programmes and are meeting many new people. (Barbara) I was mainly occupied this morning writing part of the eulogy to be used at my mother’s funeral on Monday. My cousin Rosemary has kindly agreed to read this contribution on my behalf. It is unfortunate that I cannot be there but we will be praying for Mum at that time. (Bill)

From the floral arrangement demonstration today.

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Thursday May 27, 2010

Day 7 Lingi Point to Darwin (8 am to 6 pm)

Today we had our first port stop at Darwin. Bill and I decided not to do any of theorganized tours but to do our own thing. We left the ship shortly after it docked and to our surprise we found there were no queues and that we could just walk off. We walked into the centre of Darwin where we found an optometrist who could fix Bill’s glasses. Next, we took the local bus, which is free for seniors, and went to the museum and art gallery. The museum had fossils from a nearby creek that we were allowed to handle. The shell collection contained giant molluscs, about 20 cm in diameter, and the bird collection had finches of every imaginable colour. The highlight of the museum was the Cyclone Tracey exhibition. Here we saw the effects of the cyclone and heard in a soundproof room the actual sounds heard during the cyclone as recorded on the night by the local priest. We were given a graphic lecture on this cyclone by a scientist who experienced it with his 5 month pregnant wife. This museum is situated on Fannie Bay, and has a most beautiful outlook. I asked our waitress when we had a drink in the café at the museum if there were any crocodiles in the water we could see in front of us. She replied that crocodiles are everywhere in the territory. After doing some shopping at Casuarina and depositing our goodies in our room on the ship, we returned to the foreshore to swim in a crocodile free pool and wave pool set amongst tropical trees and the greenest lawns, not far from where
our ship was berthed. Tonight we watched a theatre production, Rock this Town, with the Dawn Princess singers and dancers. They sang songs from the 50’s 60’s and 70’s. Their costumes were colourful, glittery and extravagant, the singing was good and the dancing was quite acrobatic. (Barbara) Our cruise director is a jolly little Englishman who does his best to encourage the passengers to participate in all the night’s activities after the show. But the number of eighty and ninety year olds going to the night club at 11 pm is quite limited. (Bill)

Docking in Darwin

Fannie Bay Darwin

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Wednesday May 26, 2010

Day 6 Gulf of Carpentaria to Lingi Point

At present we are sailing through the Arafura sea towards Darwin. Tonight there was a full moon and the Southern Cross and Venus were both prominent. Today, I ventured into the laundry to perform some mundane tasks. I must say “ventured in” because there are many stories doing the rounds of the ship which several of the passengers believe as gospel. According to these believers, two women had a fight in the laundry and one woman attacked the other with an iron. Consequently, both women were removed from the ship at the next port on some previous cruise. Another has the two women taking to each other with their walking sticks in the laundry. The other laundry story has a woman losing her evening dress, when she put it in the wash. At the next formal she saw another woman wearing her dress. When she accused the woman of taking her dress, the retort was “Prove it”. Today we had our first swim in one of the four pools on the ship and really enjoyed the experience as it has been very hot on deck, although inside is quite cool with the air conditioning turned up high. I hope this is not a recipe for the flu and colds. We have just returned to our cabins after watching the movie, “Sherlock Holmes” which was quite enjoyable but not all that original. (Barbara) Clocks go back 30 minutes tonight. Caught the last 20 minutes of the first State of Origin match on the big screen on Deck 12. Just like going to the Drive-In all those years ago without the car but with full stereo sound. Reinforced the Modern Waltz, the Samba and the Rumba at Ballroom Dancing today. I might get to know my left foot from my right before long! 45 minute gym workout followed by a swim completed a good afternoon’s activity. (Bill)

Albany Rock Lighthouse

Cape York Marker














Game on!

Free throw specialist!

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Tuesday May 25, 2010

Day 5 Lizard Island to Gulf of Carpentaria

Joan Jane Boundy (9/7/1917 – 25/5/2010) Requiescat in Pace

I am very sad to report that at 2 pm today, May 25, 2010, my mother, Joan Jane Boundy (Hamilton / Healy) died at Salisbury House Upper Beaconsfield at the age of92. Joan had a long and fulfilled life as a wife to two loving husbands Gerald Paul Healy d 1953 and Harold James Boundy d 2007 , a mother to 4 boys, Bill, Geoff, John, Tim and as a painter and writer. Her family and friends will miss her greatly. As a woman of great faith in God, she has gone to her eternal reward.

I have added a line or two to one of Mum’s recent pieces of writing:

When Harry Met Paul (a Heavenly Encounter)
Paul “Welcome Harry”
Harry “I feel I know you – your sons are very like you”
Paul “Thank you for taking care of Joan for so long and giving her the love she badly
needed”
Harry “It was predestined”
Paul “God moves in mysterious ways”
Harry “You can say that again”
Paul “It’s too hard to repeat”
Paul and Harry “Joan is taking a long time to join us”
Harry “The McCalmans are well-known for their longevity”
Paul “I wonder if she will finish her life at Salisbury”
Both “God knows”
Joan “You can say that again”
Joan “Here at last Paul and Harry!” (Bill)

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Monday May 24, 2010

Day 4 Townsville to Lizard Island
Today we passed Cairns and Port Douglas where we could see the long beaches, and many smaller islands, so we were in sight of land for quite a good part of the day. Bill and I learnt to do the Samba today, and we went to a lecture by Richard Detrich on Navigating the World. The main focus of the talk was Magellan. The talk was well prepared and well delivered, and revised much of my semi forgotten grade five history. Tonight we listened to the ship’s big band for a while, and then watched the movie, Old Dogs, with John Travolta and a rather rapidly aging Robin Williams. It had some funny parts to it. Sadly, we heard from John today that Joan is not at all good. We now have two messages on the phone but are unable to access them because we are out of range. (Barbara) Currently, I am writing this with a monocle on my left eye. My glasses fell out of my pocket and a waiter stepped on them while serving dinner at our table. Hopefully all will be fixed in Darwin. Dropped into the Karaoke Bar tonight for a beer and listened to some truly awful renditions for some old favourites. (Bill)

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Sunday May 23, 2010

Day 3 Gladstone to Townsville

 Our Stateroom E305 on the ship.


Today was another day at sea. As I walked 10 times round the deck, we passed small islands off the Australian coast, and enjoyed the real warmth of the sun for the first time. I went to a lecture by the tour director, Dave. He obviously enjoys his job and is quite an expert amateur photographer. His slides of various sites we will see on this cruise made me keen to participate in many of the over 400 shore excursions available. Bill and I went to part 2 of the modern waltz lesson where we attempted to master the turn. Tonight was formal night with a superb meal, and the champagne waterfall, and all the obligatory photos. On the top level of the ship there is a large screen for movies under the stars. Blankets are provided on the deck chairs if there is an evening chill in the air. We caught the last 20 minutes of the movie tonight but will definitely go again one night for this unique experience.

Before the first formal night.

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Saturday May 22, 2010

Day 2 Sydney to Gladstone
Today I exercised by walking around the Promenade deck ten times One lap is 400metres. As I walked I noted such Australian landmarks as Mount Warning, and later, the Gold Coast and Stradbroke Island. Bill and I went to a dance class to learn the modern waltz. We had an excellent teacher so will go back for part 2 tomorrow. Tonight, we danced to the Derringer band. They are really great and they managed to get a large number of passengers with an average age of about 70 up dancing. These people are good dancers and one can imagine them dancing to these tunes in the 50s and 60s, the only difference being that most of them cannot keep up the tempo for a full bracket any more. Besides jiving and rock and rolling, Bill and I managed to practise some of the waltz steps we had learned earlier in the day. I tried out a bridge class, but decided that it was not for me as the teacher took the whole thing far too seriously for my social attitude to this game. Tonight we had another show by Trevor Knight, where he sang and played the banjo, the guitar and the ukulele. He recites fantastic poems about going to the town of Morrow today but not tomorrow. (Barbara) I decided to try out the gym rather do running on the deck given the number of walking aids to be avoided on such a run. Fabulous new gym with superb equipment and a incomparable view looking out beyond the stern of the ship at its receding wake. Helped a few people with their internet connections. Still working on the photos for this blog. Will get there. (Bill)

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Day 2

Passing the NSW/QLD border. Sorry no photos yet. Working on the problem.

Bill

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Friday May 21, 2010

Day 1 Sydney
We boarded the Dawn Princess about 2 pm and found a much appreciated lunch waiting for us. After lots of mundane tasks such as unpacking and safety drill, we left Sydney Harbour at 4.30 pm. We stood on deck and watched the ship go under the Bridge and past the Opera House. Our Captain, Todd McBain, from Alberta, tooted the ship's whistle as we passed these landmarks. There were designated seating arrangements for dinner. Ours was Table 91 where we met with other people who are also on the full 104 day cruise - one couple from Perth, another from Bowral, one from Magnetic Island and the others from Brisbane. After dinner we attended the Musical Showtime by the 2 time Golden Guitar winner, Trevor Knight. He played the ukulele and the guitar, sang, recited poetry told stories relating to the songs he sang. He claims to have worked with John Denver and Gordon Lightfoot. Later we danced to a group called Derringer who played Mexican/ Spanish type music.

Leaving Sydney

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Day 1

Day 1 Leaving Sydney (will be posted tomorrow). Our room is very comfortable and the ship is magical with glass lifts, palm trees and little lamps

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Full itinerary

Download the full itinerary of the cruise here.

Excuse the stupid date format (month, day, year)

http://drop.io/healy_world_cruise

Dawn Princess World Cruise 2010 - Two days to go

Preparations almost complete. Taxi booked. Pity I'm missing the Cats- Collingwood game on Friday night but will catch the result on board as we sail out of Sydney Harbour. Then it's a few days at sea getting used to the ship until we get to Darwin.