Starting our 72 day Odyssey.

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Just before Christmas I noticed an ad on Facebook for a cruise deal which seemed unbelievable. It offered flight to Perth, 3 nights there in a 5 star hotel then boarding a ship in Freo followed by a 63 day cruise which covered 5 continents eventually ending in London. Then 3 nights there and a flight home all for $8999. I showed it to Fletcher and after a couple of days thought we grabbed the opportunity. The firm is Cruise 1st and this was the second half of a round the world cruise by a UKshipping line called Ambassador. When I rang to book I found I could upgrade to an Ocean View room for an extra thousand, still making it very affordable.
So here we are in Perth on the first leg of the journey. It hasn't always been plain sailing as everything has had to be done on line but we have fulfilled all the requirements. Unfortunately, they have not told us exact boarding time , even on our boarding passes, but we will play that by ear on Sunday.
We flew into Perth via Virgin on Thursday. Our hotel is the 5 star, Duxton at 1 St Georges Tce where we have a very comfortable room. Thursday night, after watching the cricket replay and a drink in the bar we went across the road to the Public House Bar and Kitchen for a pleasant dinner.
Today we woke early due to the time change and watched the second morning of the Test match from 6am here. About 9-30 we went to a chain, the Dome, across the road, for a croissant and coffee breakfast. We then walked up to Hay St where we passed some of the lovely old buildings that have been preserved from colonial times, including the Town Hall and the Court buildings. We also explored London Court, a lovely side street with iconic buildings. I bought a pair of sandals there!!
It was a warm day so we stopped for a cold beer about 11am and watched some more cricket. Lovely to see the Kiwis being thrashed!!!. We explored Dymocks and then a great 2nd hand bookshop, Elizabeth's. Then it was back to St Georges Tce and a slow meander back to the hotel. We passed Government House and the Supreme Court on the way.
After watching the last hour of the cricket we went back to the Public House for lunch and lingered over our wine and a G and T. We returned to the hotel and got our luggage tags and boarding passes printed by the Concierge so we are all set for Sunday.
Tomorrow we have booked a lunch cruise along the Swan River to Freo and back. Should be a pleasant trip

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