CeePee1952

Didn't realise that Richardsons had moorings near Acle bridge? Chris

Looks good on first impression - will you be adding a Print function to the website so that we can print off a hard copy? Chris

I agree. I've just compared the Aweigh app prediction for Gorleston today and tomorrow with the Broads authority tide predictions for the same area and they are not that different - and the broads authority do say that their predictions have been adjusted for BST. Chris

Spotted a couple of forum members boats at the beginning of this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4EhsO2_CTY I remembered to do the "link" this time Chris

Grace - fortunately not but Brenda had a good laugh at my expense at the time Chris

Been there, done that when using ours on Supreme Light last year! Ended up with a face full of water that was discharged out the cooling vents at the back of the machine! It does the same if you go past the fill mark on the tank as well. It's also great for sucking up the morning moisture from the rear back rests on the upper helm if you've got a dual helm boat and forget to take them off at night! Chris

Thank you, never crossed my mind about the other incidents - will remember in future! Chris

Broad Ambition approaching Ludham Bridge at 2 mins 42 secs https://youtu.be/KEXWQzKGQic Chris

Friday 9th Feb 24 Early morning arrival at Port Chalmers! Port Chalmers is a town serving as the main port for Dunedin city which is approx 15 kms NE of the town by road but only a couple of kms across the water from the port! It's one of two of NZ's deepest container ports and serves as the primary export port for the South Island. As well as other commodoties, one of the biggest exports is logs, we were told that most of the logs go to China where they are processed and a fair amount of them then come back to NZ as furniture, building material etc!! Once the ship was berthed we then went through the routine of being assigned coaches for our excursion and then disembarked ready to board our coach for the trip through Dunedin and out to Larnach Castle. Details of that visit will be in the next post. Chris and Brenda 0600 hrs - just about to enter Port Chalmers One of many container ships that use the port We are about to "reverse" onto the berth on the left hand side of the pic (the containers are so placed to stop cruise ship passengers from wandering into the working area of the log depot!) A view of the log stacks in the log depot prior to the ship berthing, pic taken from our cabin (which is on the starboard side), ship is slowly going astern prior to turning into the berth

Thursday 8th Feb 24 Today we arrived at the Fiordland National Park and the day was spent cruising through the various fiords and admiring the beautiful landscape. The ship entered Milford Sound and at a steady 7 knots, we slowly navigated the fiord before doing a 180 degree turn before it got too narrow and we exited and made our way down to the next fiord – Thompson Sound. Having passed along this Sound we continued on until we met up with Doubtful Sound where we followed its route back out to the open sea. Then it was on to Breaksea Sound where we followed the fiord around the edge of Resolution Island to finally emerge back on to the open sea via Dusky Sound. The whole experience was stunning and luckily the weather behaved itself so we managed to spend the entire day up on the top deck and get a good view of the surrounding scenery. The red/black blankets were available free of charge for those who were feeling a bit chilly but the temperature wasn’t that bad so we didn’t bother with them! Normal evening routine followed and after the obligatory “nightcap” at Bellinis Bar we retired for the night. The next morning would see us berthed at Port Chalmers where we had booked an excursion to Larnach Castle and Olveston Historic home in Dunedin. Chris and Brenda The Fiordland National Park Info sheet This is the second page but for some unknown reason (and I've tried everything to get it to insert the right way up), it won't!! (not sure if a mod can correct it for me please?) The Blanket Brigade! One of the many waterfalls we saw during the day

Crikey Malcolm!! That's a bit early for this year! Careful , Gracie will be having heart palpitations when she reads that Chris

Likewise! Back in the day it was a good reliable pint of "falling over water" (if you drank enough!). There used to be a pub in Rugby called The Wine Barrel". Strangely it sold more Watney's Red Barrel than wine! Chris

Day 6 and 7 Not a lot to post about these two days at sea. The cruise down across the Tasman Sea towards the South Island was uneventful and compared to the two days crossing to Sydney, the sea was like a duck pond! We spent the two days just lounging around on the aft decks, making use of the sun beds and relaxing in the glorious sunshine. The second night at sea was going to be the formal night for dining so late in the afternoon we started to get our formal attire sorted ready for the evening. Unfortunately, I can no longer get into my military Mess dress (no prizes as to guessing why! ) so I decided to wear my Tux outfit together with my miniature medals. I'd had tiny loops stitched on to the jacket above the pocket so that the pin from the medals clasp wouldn't damage the jacket. We had made friends with two australian couples and we all met up in the restaurant before attending a show in the theatre. After dinner we stopped at the Piazza in the atrium (centre of the ship) and watched the Captains Champagne Waterfall event unfold. Passengers were invited to climb the steps next to the tower of glasses and pour a bottle of "champagne" over the tower - we didn't participate as the queue was far too long! Next it was on to the theatre where we were treated to a live production show "Sweet Soul Music". The show was outstanding and the various artists were brilliant - treating us all to a variety of soul music from the 60's, 70's and 80's. Once the show had ended we made our way to what had become our "local" bar - Bellinis Bar, where Brenda indulged in her favourite cocktail - Mojito and I got my lips around a few bottles of Corona . Eventually it was time to retire and we went to our cabin, watched a movie on the large flat screen TV and then fell asleep. The next morning would find us slowly cruising up the Fiordland admiring the incredible scenery around us. Chris and Brenda Formal attire for the evening Champagne tower Our "local" onboard being served by Michelle who was an exceptionally talented lady!

Day 5 Ok, so Days 3 and 4 were spent at sea as we made our way from the Bay of Islands across the Tasman Sea towards Sydney. It got a bit "lumpy" during the crossing and although Brenda and myself were ok, there were a few passengers who didn't quite enjoy that crossing and looked a bit green around the gills We arrived in Sydney early in the morning on Day 5 and after breakfast we made our way to the Princess theatre on board where we would get our orange sticker which denoted what excursion we were doing and at what time we could disembark. We had opted for the "Hop on Hop off" bus tour as this was the best way to see quite a bit of Sydney in the time we had ashore. Once off the ship, we made our way to the area where we would get our tickets for the bus. Then it was a case of waiting for the next bus to turn up which arrived within ten minutes. We managed to get seats up top on the open top double decker and had a good view as we journeyed through and around the city. A good commentary was provided (through headphones that were free) and we passed many of the main sights that Sydney had to offer. I was impressed how clean the city was but amazed at how many traffic lights there were!! At one point we were driven through Sydney's Red Light area (unfortunately it was midday so there wasn't a lot happening ). The tour lasted about two and a half hours and was well worth the price we paid. Once we had finished, we decided to go and get a bite to eat and looked for a suitable pub/cafe. Most of the pubs were very busy but we found a small cafe on a street corner and we both ordered a sandwich and a drink. The sandwiches were massive and we were so glad that we didn't order anything else to go with them! We got back to the ship suitably stuffed and had a few hours in the cabin before going on deck to watch the departure out of Sydney and the start of another two day crossing down to the Fiordland National Park on the west coast of New Zealands South Island. Chris and Brenda In the berth with Sydney harbour bridge in the background No description neeeded If you look carefully - there are people walking over the top of the bridge! somewhere in the city! another view of the bridge waiting for THE sandwich!! it's arrived!! waiting to depart Sydney

Day 2 continued/.... The glow worm cave was fascinating, we have never seen so many glow worms in one place!

Part of the unusual public toilets! The unique floor design in the male toilets! No mistaking the entrance to the ladies loo! These were various glass bottles/jars etc that were inlaid into concrete in front of the loos IMG_1728.HEIC

Day 2 Our first stop after leaving Auckland was the Bay of Islands. We had booked an excursion to see part of the Manginangina Reserve followed by a visit to the glow worm caves. There is no harbour as such for the cruise liner to dock so access to the mainland was by water shuttle provided by the cruise ship. Once on land we boarded our tour coach and set off for the Reserve. Our coach driver was an ex Dutch airline pilot who had emigrated to New Zealand some 20 years ago and proved to have a great sense of humour! On the way to the Reserve he explained about the continuing problem with possums (introduced from Australia!) and how they are slowly destroying both the habitat and certain wildlife! They are mainly active at night time and he said that if you are driving along a road at night and see a pair of twinkling eyes in front of you - don't stop! If you can still see the eyes in your rear view mirror - then reverse back at high speed!! Hmmm When we arrived at the Reserve - we were led by a tour guide through part of it and shown the different types of habitat that flourish in the area. There were also numerous possum traps around to try and stop the possums destroying everything - they really are a problem there! Next stop was a lunch break in a local village before travelling onto the glow worm caves. This village had a unique public toilet establishment. After about 30 mins we set off for the caves. This was another guided tour and proved to be very interesting. Unfortunately no photography was allowed inside the caves so as to protect the environment and the glow worms (plus the camera flash would obliterate the glow worms "glow" anyway!). At the end of the tour we were taken back to where the water shuttles were waiting for us and after passing through a security check to make sure we were'nt bringing any prohibited items back on board, we flopped in our cabin before getting ready for dinner that evening. The next two days would be spent at sea as our next port of call would be Sydney! I'll insert a couple of pics here and put the rest in a separate post. Chris and Brenda

I attended a 6 month photography course there at the Joint School of Photography (JSOP) back in 1973 prior to a posting to NI. Compared to our army barracks in Germany at the time, the accommodation at Cosford was palatial!! Never forget waking up to piped radio in the mornings and the Mess was way above army standards! We've also been back to the museum a couple of times. Chris

Outside Starbucks in Auckland enjoying the local scenery!View of the "back end" of the ship View over the port side of the ship while berthed in AucklandSomeone is happy! G&T time in the atrium of the ship while waiting for the cases to be delivered to our cabin!

Yep, up until now because we live close to either Birmingham or East Midlands airport, we have always flown abroad from either of those airports except for when we went to Cuba many years ago and that was from Manchester airport! We have booked another Princess cruise holiday - we were very very pleased with the New Zealand cruise so this time we have booked a Caribbean cruise with them (aboard Island Princess) sailing from Fort Lauderdale on 22nd Dec 24 and returning on 5th Jan 25. Flying from Heathrow again (will not be using that Plaza lounge though!) and it's only a 10 hour flight this time into Miami and then a short "hop" to Fort Lauderdale the next day to meet up with the ship. Chris and Brenda

Ok, so I think I've managed to sort out a few pics etc so here is the first instalment Day 1 This would be a day of new experiences. Firstly – our first time for using the M25 and secondly our first time at Heathrow airport! Not to mention travelling to the other side of the world for the very first time as well. We set off about 1030 on Tue 30 Jan and decided to join the M40 at Banbury. The journey was better than we expected and soon we were on the M25 heading for the Heathrow turnoff. Our fears of getting stuck on the M25 were soon to be dismissed and to our surprise we arrived at the terminal 5 short stay car park just after midday, which was good as I had booked us into the car park any time after 12! Brenda took a photo of where we were parked for future reference on our return (been there – done that and forgotten which level/bay we have left the car on after a previous holiday!). Check in for baggage wasn’t due until about 3 ish so we hung around for a bit and surprisingly we were able to check our baggage in at 2. Then it was a case of getting through security and finding the Plaza Premium Lounge in Terminal 5 which we had booked. We weren’t overly impressed with the lounge and felt that it wasn’t value for money but at least it was somewhere to sit and relax until our flight was ready. We boarded the aircraft on time and took off at 1745 hrs for what would be a 13 hour flight to Hong Kong! The flight was uneventful, food was ok and on board choice of movies etc was also good. We landed at Hong Kong airport and local time was about 3pm on 31st Jan! We had about 3 hours to kill before our connecting flight (Air New Zealand) to Auckland so after having spent what seemed like ages getting across to our next departure terminal (Isn’t Hong Kong airport huge!!), we settled down near a McDonalds outlet and had a quick snack. We boarded our aircraft and took off for Auckland at 1740 for what would be another 10 hours or so flight. We landed at Auckland airport at 0930 hrs on 1st Feb and was duly met by our own private taxi driver on exiting the baggage reclaim area. We arrived at the ship (Royal Princess) about 11 ish and handed our suitcases to the ship’s staff who would eventually place our cases in our cabin but we couldn’t board the ship until after 1 p.m. so off we toddled for a quick looksee around the harbour area. Not surprisingly we found a Starbucks so ordered a couple of hot drinks and sat outside in the hot sunshine and watched the comings and goings of the local population (and tourists!). The time came to return to the ship and we got ourselves checked in and boarded the cruise liner and after getting our bearings we headed off to our cabin. The rest of the day was spent getting used to the layout of the ship and later unpacking our cases after they had arrived at our cabin. We were due to set sail about 6 ish so went up on to the top deck to experience the casting off and sailing away into the sunset. (having a few probs with the photos so will upload them later ) Chris and Brenda

We met a very nice couple on the cruise who live in Kialla in West Victoria and they have invited us to go and stay with them for a couple of weeks (most probably in 2026) and we will deffo split the journey up with an overnight stop this time! Chris and Brenda (still sorting through pics and vids )

Phew! Finally returned to a very wet and windy UK (Heathrow) at 0600 hrs on Thursday 15th Feb!! It's taken until today to sort of get back into "normal" mode again, including picking up pooch from the kennels on the Friday and getting her back into a "home" routine!. I will post some brief accounts and photos of our cruise around New Zealand etc once I have sorted out the hundreds of photos that we took both on our phones and my camera. I'll try and keep the posts in a chronological order as well . Jean (SwanR) has already posted a very good account of what Sydney is like so I won't dwell too much on that visit we did there after a bumpy two days at sea crossing over from New Zealand! One thing is for sure though - both Brenda and me can confirm that enduring a combined flight time of 25 hours on the way back - 10 1/2 hours Auckland to Hong Kong with Cathay Pacific, then followed by a 14 1/2 hour flight from Hong Kong to Heathrow with BA is not for the faint hearted!! Righto, time to get delving and sorting into the two weeks worth of pics etc and somehow producing a condensed tale of a cruise - but not on the Broads! Chris and Brenda

Ha ha 😂 it uses the River Deben which is just a few thousand miles from here!! Chris and Brenda

The Aweigh app works down under as well 😂 0854 hrs Sat morning and moored up at Lyttelton near Christchurch! Chris and Brenda