Day 1 - we sailed from Auckland on Celebrity Eclipse on the evening of Thursday 26 January. Although there was little recognition of Australia Day, a couple of Aussie passengers got in the swing with small flags, and the tree (fake) at the centre of the ship hosted a couple of koalas (also fake of course).
The very next day Auckland experienced its highest rainfall ever and severe flooding followed. Lives were tragically lost and the airport, where we had been just days before, was closed due to flooding. The rains had arrived.
Day 2 - our first port of call was Mount Maunganui, the port for Tauranga. Fortunately, we had been here previously when it wasn't raining, but we braved the weather in our raincoats (too windy for umbrellas) anyway and walked the length of the main street, stopping in at the odd shop or two. Jim's highlight was a cafe that serves free coffee to the 'name of the day' which just happened to be Jim, and Penny's highlight was the local Salvos store! That night we experienced some rolling waves due to the bad weather, but nothing we couldn't handle.
Day 3 - around 11am we cruised into Napier, famous for its art deco architecture. Again, we braved the weather (which was slightly worse than the day before) and spent time indoors at the National Aquarium of New Zealand.
Back at our cabin, we removed our wet shoes and socks, for the second day running - fortunately they dried overnight. After changing into our 'evening chic' gear, we headed to the Ensemble Lounge where a group of musicians from Eclipse's main orchestra was having a jazz jam session, and it was fantastic! The evening's production show was called Topper and was loosely Alice in Wonderland themed. Great costumes, singing, dancing and acrobatics - visually stunning.
Day 4 - we were up early for our picturesque sail into Picton. The weather forecast was for cloudy skies, but it had already begun to rain by the time we left the ship around 9.30am. Ah well. We caught the shuttle into town and walked along the foreshore, past rain drenched market stalls and up and down the main street before discovering the maritime museum: Edwin Fox Ship & Visitor Centre. What an absolute delight!
The Edwin Fox was built in India in 1853 and sailed across the world some 34 times carrying troop supplies for the Crimean War; transporting Chinese Coolies to Cuba, convicts to Fremantle (the last surviving ship that did so) and settlers to New Zealand; and carrying everything from beer and tea to frozen meat and coal. She is 44.1 metres long with a 9 metre beam, her mast was 48.8 metres high, and her original tonnage was 909.
The Edwin Fox beached in Shakespeare Bay in 1965 and then made her final voyage to Picton Harbour where she was purchased for a shilling by the Marlborough Heritage Trust. In great disrepair, the trust decided to preserve, rather than restore her, and what a wonderful job they've done. After watching a fascinating video about the ship, we boarded her to really get a feel for this grand old lady.
Cruising out of Picton was a real treat - spectacular 'sound' scenery for a couple of hours before we entered Cook Strait and made our way overnight to Wellington.
Day 5 - the big smoke Wellington, New Zealand's capital. And finally, the rain stopped! One of our favourite places to visit is the fabulous Te Papa Museum. We spent a couple of hours there walking through the Nature and Gallipoli: The Scale of Our War exhibits. We loved both exhibits and clearly remember how moving the Gallipoli exhibit is, from our last visit. Peter Jackson of Lord of the Rings fame has done a remarkable job of conveying the tragedy that was WW1.
Following a light lunch in one of Te Papa's cafes, we walked back to the shuttle bus via the shopping district which was buzzing with lunchtime crowds. So good to be able to walk the streets without a raincoat! And Penny managed to find something to buy...
Day 6 - we woke to scenery not unlike Tasmania's Queenstown. Timber is such a big industry here in New Zealand that perhaps the denuded hills are the result of logging? Last time we cruised around NZ, we anchored near Akaroa because Christchurch's port Lyttelton was still undergoing repairs following the earthquake. This time we cruised into Lyttelton where the surrounding green hills are covered in masses of beautiful big homes with stunning views. But Lyttelton village itself is tiny with just a few craft shops and cafes, unlike the charming Akaroa. So, after a good morning walk around the village, we headed back to the ship.
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Looking down the street at the Celebrity Eclipse |
One of the highlights of our cruise is always a night out at Qsine restaurant for Le Petit Chef. This experience is filmed directly to our table, and we watch whilst a 6cm chef shows us how to cook the perfect meal of four courses - on our plate! It is such a fun evening, and this time was no exception!
Day 7 - our first 'sea day' and the captain (who as usual is Greek, with a great sense of humour) brought the ship to a halt for several hours as we were running ahead of schedule. Aboard there were any number of activities available, and we attended a Beyond the Podium presentation called Fire and Ice, a scientific study of the Earth and how it came about, geologically. Fascinating.
Our evening entertainment was Oz Boys of Motown, three talented singers from Melbourne who thrilled us with songs and moves from the 60s, 70s and 80s. Prior to the show we played our second games of Scrabble (which Jim won...) in a lounge area adjacent to the Martini Bar. We couldn't help but avail ourselves of a dirty martini (Jim) and a lycheetini (Penny) whilst we played and watched the antics of the barmen throwing their mixers up in the air and catching each other's bottles. Every evening a crowd gathers just to watch these guys and their amazing feats.
Day 8 - cruising into Dunedin is so picturesque, and as we've been here a few times we pretty much know our way around. So, we caught a shuttle into the CBD and walked about 4kms, grabbing a coffee along the way and doing a little retail therapy. Dunedin is the Scottish 'capital' of the southern hemisphere, and the word Dunedin is Gaelic for Edinburgh, so there are many references to Scotland in the city.
Day 9 - finally the Sounds, well two sounds and one fjord to be exact. A sound is a valley that has been filled with sea water usually as a result of flooding. A fjord is a valley that has been filled with sea water, but the result of a glacier. A sound is usually less narrow and more gently sloping than a fjord, and is a 'through' journey, whereas a fjord is one-way up and then back.
In Dusky, the first of the Sounds, we were greeted by two pods of dolphins - what a wonderful welcome! Dusky Sound is an important bird area and we saw sooty shear waters floating about as well as large Pacific gulls. The weather was amazing and because of all the recent rain there were literally hundreds of waterfalls covering the steep cliffs.
By the time we reached Doubtful Sound, the bad weather was back, and low cloud obscured much of our view. Unfortunately, we didn't see any of the local seals or penguins but still enjoyed the journey.
At Milford Sound, which is actually a fjord surrounded by massive, towering cliffs, the weather slowly improved. At the tiny township at the end of the fjord we picked up a group of passengers that had travelled overland from Dunedin. Then the sun came out fully and the views were nothing short of spectacular, including the most massive waterfall.
Days 10 and 11 - and now we leave beautiful New Zealand and cruise back to Sydney. It has been a wonderful relaxing cruise and now we get ready for the next chapter!
