Day Four - 9 July 2015 - Noumea, New Caledonia

We arrived at Gare Maritime Terminal in Noumea at 8.00am. We were up just after 6.30 and saw the first coral reef as we came into the harbour,

 

We slowly made our way past the buildings on shore, then the yacht club, it took us back to the time we sailed to New Zealand when we emigrated 48 years ago.

Every time the ship came into harbour we'd all be up on deck to watch the ship berth.  

There was a brass band to welcome us and the sun was shining, couldn't ask for more than that. 

We had booked a bus tour "Noumea in a Nutshell" so that we could at least get a taste of what New Caledonia was like.  As their main language is French we enjoyed all the shop signs 'Carrefour' and 'Plat de Jour' etc, which reminded us of our trips to France with James and Rach.  

Wellington isn't the only place where flags fly the opposite way at the same time!

We had a quick breakfast and then checked ourselves off the ship and into the terminal. 

There was a native Melanesian group of singers and musicians singing on the mezzanine floor of the terminal which sounded very like our own Maori performers, so nice.  

There were several stalls with local handcrafts for sale, but time for those later.

We found our bus and our tour guide 'Michael', we had a full complement on board and off we went to discover Noumea.  

Michael was so entertaining, and gave us a good overview of Noumea's City, hills, bays, beaches and the countryside. Plus all the anecdotes he has garnered over the past 20 years he has been doing this. 

Our first stop was the little church of La Conception, built by missionaries in 1847. Michael must be deeply into spiritualism as he was genuinely in awe of the Virgin Mary and told us of the miracles she had performed over recent years, especially the healing of several tourists he took through the church who now visit on a regular basis.  

These are plaques donated to the church in acknowledgement of Mary's miracles.

We went through to the other side of the city and up to Ouen Toro Lookout

 

which gave us lovely vistas of the beaches and the islands out to sea.

It was now time for coffee so we headed back along Promenade Vernier, 

where the airport is and on to the hotel Nouvata where we had a very pleasant stop for coffee and French pastry 

and visited the local market along the beautiful beach front.  

Then up the hill to the FOL lookout, where we could see our ship towering over the city.  

I was surprised how big the city was, it didn't look much from the ship, but is quite built up and extensive. 

Shopping is not great, clothing is mostly 'labels' and quite expensive.  We wandered around Coconut Square where most of the shops and restaurants are, but didn't stay long.  We ended up buying very little and went back to the ship and were checked on again. 

It looks like we all came back at the same time.  Our cabin is situated on the other side of the ship but is the same as the third balcony from the left above the lifeboats.

We had a late lunch on deck 12, it was very warm and sunny.  I took advantage of some spare time and took myself off to Charlies again to post my blog from yesterday.  Logged on, downloaded my emails, thanks everyone for your kind comments, and was just about to upload my blog when the system went down, no wifi - don't you hate that?  

Not the most flattering of 'selfies'!

However it did mean that I could go back to my cabin and join David, we spent a lovely afternoon just sitting out on our balcony in the sun watching the small boats go by. 

Then it was time for the ship to leave Noumea and we gently pulled away from the quayside.  

A surprise announcement over the intercom from the captain meant that we had to go back alongside the dock again, there was a medical emergency and they had to disembark one of the passengers.  

The tug manoeuvring us back into dock

Fortunately we had not gone far, so it added a bit of interest while we gently manoeuvred the boat alongside again and the gangplank was lowered, a medic came on board and the passenger was taken off.

Deck 7' "Showtime"!

The show tonight in the Marquee is Murray Raine and "It's Vegas on a String", he was very clever, and also a comedian of course.  His marionettes were all Hollywood stars, and they all sang their hearts out.  It's lovely having a show to go to every night, and as for the younger passengers there's so much choice of different venues with different music styles, lots of dancing spots and of course there's always karaoke!

Our cosy cabin - so nice when someone else keeps it tidy!

Well, we are now on our way to Lifou, which is an overseas territory of France in the Loyalty Islands, apparently we don't dock as such but will disembark by means of climbing down onto a tender which will take us to the Island for our tour. 

Day three - 8 July 2015 - on board Pacific Pearl

Another good sleep last night, I think I know what babies must feel like to be pushed in a pram!

The clocks went forward an hour so waking up early wasn't an issue.  Our bathroom facilities are quite good, they all work and the shower is good. Flushing the loo is like on a plane. We have our steward, Christopher, looking after us and we don't have to lift a finger, which is just how I like my holidays.

We showed great restraint over breakfast this morning, so felt very virtuous.  I came back and finished my blog then went to the lounge area outside 'Charlies' to use my wifi account to post it on FB.   

All this High Tech stuff is still out of my comfort zone, but what it has taught me most is patience and perseverance! 

David took the easy way out and did the washing in the laundrette!

So with what was left of the morning we headed up to deck 14 (there is no deck 13) to check out the putting competition, but quoits was still on, so we decided to join the walkers and we walked the track for half an hour.  

We didn't fancy the competition so stuck with our walking!

There's always plenty to see up there, it was lovely and warm, a slight breeze, and as we walked we watched the activities in the pool, and caught yet more rugby league on the big screen. 

We returned to our cabin for a little aperitif before lunch (we had some wine left over from dinner the other night) and then wandered up to deck 12 for some lunch.

One of the best things about cruising must be the people you meet at meal times.  We've met Bill from Broken Hill, who turned out to be a farmer with a huge farm running cattle and merinos, Beck who has recently lost her husband but is determined to move on with her life, she originates from Hastings in the UK, but lives in the southern highlands in NSW, in a back country town miles from anywhere, and a lovely couple last night, she was from Finland and he was from Belgium.  They had to cut short our conversation as he got a text from the 'kids club' to say time was up and he had to pick his kids up.  

Lunch on the deck outside Plantation restaurant 

We saw a ship passing by - so exciting!

We went to listen to the TUGS ukulele band in the Marquee this afternoon. There were about 40 of them and the average age of this group would be around 60, and they were great. 

We clapped and sang along as you do with ukuleles and begged for an encore.  The theatre was packed out so the Entertainment Officer promised to bring them back next week, they are passengers on board on holiday and just love to play the old rock'n roll music. 

So back in our cabin for more R 'n R and the hardest decision we have to make is where to have dinner - cruising is all about food!  We stick to our Waterfront restaurant, Its so much nicer to have a menu and be waited on.  A buffet is fine for lunch.  

Dining at the Waterfront restaurant 

There are two 'gourmet' restaurants to choose from, however one charges $49 per person, and the other which is Asian charges $39. So unless we are desperate for a change we'll stick to what we have already paid for in the fare.

After dinner, it was back to the Marquee for the show called "Please don't stop the Music".  Again so professional, the team of 4 girls and 4 men danced and sang for over an hour, and the many costume changes were amazing, they were so quick, and totally different for each act.  We really enjoyed it. It was a totally packed house, and yet the audience didn't make much noise, surprising really because they must have enjoyed it.  

Now the whole ship seems to be glued to a TV while the State of Origin match between Queensland and NSW is being played, they are showing it in the Marquee, in the Cocktail Lounge, in the reception area, the casino, and on the big screen on deck 14.  

We decided to give Lady Luck a miss tonight!

David and I took the most comfortable choice - watch it on our own TV in our Cabin!

Well, we dock at Gare Maritime Terminal in Noumea tomorrow morning at 8.00am, so we will be up early - we might be able to watch the ship coming in from our balcony.  

Day Two - 7 July 2015 On board the Pacific Pearl

I had such a lovely sleep last night, I think I might have to fix a sort of gentle swing onto our bed at home!

The view from the balcony - so much sea

But a good place to write my blog

We were told last night at the show that if you want a good time it's all there for you, but you have to go and get it it won't come to you. So there is some form of activity all the time, from trivia in the morning, and a 'Hot Rhythm' dance class, then where to go for lunch.  

The Plantation restaurant

After lunch there is the art auction, we went to have a look, but it's very stage managed by a couple of Americans who seem to be part of a franchise.  A free glass of bubbly to soften you up, and then pressure to nominate the pictures you like, a pep talk by the Auctioneer, an art history talk and then we are into the bidding. The first one was passed in for $10k. I left soon after!  

A few of the items for auction

This afternoon there are boules, golf pitching, table tennis and deck quoits for the energetic, family arts and crafts, 'Born to Knit', and 'Taste the Grape', for those less energetic. And tons more besides. 

On the way to lunch we walked through the swimming pool area and it was so sunny and warm, I can see David and I doing a bit of sunbathing perhaps tomorrow. But for today we are relaxing in our cabin and catching up on a bit of reading and writing. 

Late afternoon and time for a bit of a stroll, what's happening on deck12.  

Well Wimbledon of course, the match between Djokovic and Anderson is on the telly, so we find two loungers and sit ourselves down to watch on the big screen. What a great match, we will have to be there tomorrow to watch the final set. 

Back to our cabin to freshen up and then off to the Waterfront Restaurant again, we have our table booked, to see what they can tempt us to eat tonight. Life can be so exhausting!

This evening there are four venues with live music and dancing, there is a sit down comedy club show, RnB dance hour and from 10.30pm on there is Karaoke power hour!  David and I will probably sign up for that!

We went to the Adam Deane show last night at the Marquee Theatre. We sat eight at the back to avoid notice!  He was hilarious- and a good magician, but his shows do run with getting people up out of the audience, and I am amazed how many people are keen to get up there!  He is slick and professional but is obviously non- scarey!  And he worked hard running up and down to find his next 'volunteer'.  The show finished at 10.30pm and they cleared the theatre for the next show which was 'Comedy Central' - no kids or people easily offended allowed, so of course David and I beat a hasty retreat.  The ships clocks go one hour forward at 2.0 am tonight.

Day One - Sydney Pacific Pearl 6 July 2015

Today we step out into the unknown. 

We need to be at Circular Quay to board our cruise ship, the Pacific Pearl, and have a check-in time of 12.30pm, we finish packing about 10.30am, after breakfasting at the Park Royal Hotel.  With a couple of hours to spare we decide to go for a walk and crossed over the bridge to Darling Harbour, the weather was awesome, blue skies forever and a chilly light breeze.  

Plenty of people strolling around to give it a bit of a holiday feeling, it was school holidays so the 'pop up' ice rinks were busy.  We had a cup of coffee and watched the world go by until it was time to get back to the hotel and pick up our luggage for the next stage of our journey.

In the taxi on the way to Circular Quay I had no idea what to expect, but I needn't have worried, it was all like clockwork.  Drop our bags off to the guy with the trolley, queue up at the booking gate, fill in a couple of forms, go through the usual security - bags through the x-Ray etc, throw our bottles of water away (yes just like taking an overseas flight).  Queue up to check-in at one of the 14 stations, show passport, fill in more forms, give your credit card in and receive an on board pass to use instead, which links up to your card. We are ushered to the other side to sit and wait to be called to go through customs, and then "Hooray" we are being welcomed on board and shown to our room.

 

Our bags are waiting for us along with 'Christopher' our steward. He explains the routine and gives us the daily newsletter and information about what to do and where.  The Plantation Restaurant was open for lunch, so we decided to nip up to deck 12 and have a bite to eat before unpacking.  The check-in times were staggered so we thought we would be one of the first to arrive - WRONG - there was a huge queue, I guess everyone thought the same.  There was an incredible choice of food and we were all served quickly.  We found a nice table outside with only a young couple sitting at it and joined them sitting in the sunshine.  There seem to be waiters at your elbow before you can turn around, but quite timely of course, and we ordered our drinks.  It was all very exciting and well organised. 

Time to unpack and then at 3.30 it was time for our life saving drill.  The captain came over the intercom to inform us about the ships alarm and we all had to grab our life jackets and walk quickly to our muster stations. Our muster station is the Marquee Theatre and there were over 700 of us and crew.  It was all very practiced and efficient, the instructions went on over the intercom for about 15 mins (where was Peter Jackson when you needed him?) and then we put on our life jackets.  We returned to our cabins and by this time the ship was ready to cast off.  We went up to deck 14 to watch as the ship slowly left the quay and made its way out of the harbour.  

It was so exciting, such a new adventure and yes, there were the waiters ready to take our orders for champagne!  Some short time later David received a text from Lu and Tom saying  "Bon voyage Pacific Pearl, God Bless her and all who sail in her!  We are the official farewell party 'South Australian Branch' at Darling Point on your starboard side, just past the naval base".  They watched the boat go past and waved goodbye. 

So now I am writing this in our cabin having had dinner in the Waterfront Restaurant, an a la carte menu, great service and food was again good, David had cream of cauliflower soup followed by grilled bluenose cod on couscous and I had baby prawn cocktail followed be slow cooked pork on Irish colcannon. After our meal we went to check out what was happening on deck 7 - the entertainment deck- and stayed in the Marquee Theatre to watch the 'Welcome Aboard ' show, giving us a taste of what is to come over the next 10 days. I must say that the acts were not at all bad, but as you can imagine, some audience participation!  So we will be spending a few nights there I am sure.

Im off to bed now and will be rocked to sleep by the gentle swell of the ship and the distant thud, thud of the engine.