24thFebruary Tauranga, New Zealand Our first view of New Zealand is the approach to the city of Tauranga past Mount Maunganui on our port side and berthing in the port of Tauranga. Tauranga is the largest city in the Bay of Plenty and is a fast growing metropolis; its port is the largest in terms of gross export tonnage. The city is known for its export of avocados and kiwifruit. In Maori, Tauranga means ‘an anchorage’ or ‘resting place’ and it is believed that the Maoris settled here in the late 12th Century having made the sea crossing from Polynesia. Captain Cook (1879) was so impressed by the agricultural riches when he arrived on the Endeavour he named the area Bay of Plenty. Settlers took land that belonged to the Maoris which led to the ‘Land ... read more

18th February Pago Pago, American Samoa Today we docked in Pago Pago, (pronounced Pango Pango) on the island of Tutuila, the largest of seven islands that make up American Samoa. It has a natural deep harbour which was shelled (only once during WWII) and is home to the Tuna cannery which employs up a third of population of the island. You knew about the cannery when the wind shifted every now and again!! It was a warm and humid morning when we docked. The islands lie in the tropics with heat & humidity highest between December and April when you have the highest rainfall, which inspired Somerset Maugham’s story of Sadie Thompson entitled ‘Rain’. There is a hotel called Sadie’s on the Beach close to the berth. There are few historic sites on the ... read more

11th February Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii Honolulu is the state capital of Hawaii and is situated on the island of Oahu. It is known worldwide as a major tourist destination and is a major hub for business and has a huge military presence. Hawaii was forged by volcanoes and is part of the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’, so the approach to the harbour produces a dramatic backdrop to the city of Honolulu. We berthed at Pier 10/11, the Cunard berth which is on the edge of the business and shopping areas. Another beautiful South Pacific day. Another cruise ship (same one as San Francisco) had berthed before us but on the industrial side of the docks. Our trip today was to take us to Pearl Harbour and then on a tour of some highlights of ... read more

5th & 6thFebruary San Francisco Arrived San Francisco early morning, and passed under Golden Gate Bridge just after 5.15 am. Before disembarkation for our trips we had to pass through immigration (AGAIN). Our allotted time was 07.45 am. An hour and a half later we passed through the immigration channel. You can imagine the frustration in the queue which literally stretched the length of the ship at one stage. No one was leaving the ship until everyone had been seen!! And there’s always one (or in this case three) that held up proceedings!! This stop is also a changeover port and some 1400 passengers will disembark over the next two days. There will also be some changes in the crew including the captain. It will be interesting to see how the dynamics change with new passengers ... read more

27thJanuary 2014 Transit of the Panama Canal This to me is one of the highlights of the World Cruise. The sheer size of everything is something to try and take in, they are currently undertaking expansion work and at the first lock, on the banks were the new lock gates (picture). The Queen Elizabeth is known as a Panamax ship, i.e. it is the biggest ship in width that can fit .through the locks. There was 2ft each side when entering the locks, a tight squeeze!! It costs Cunard in the region of 300,000 US dollars to use the canal (one way). We arrived at the entrance to the first lock at 8 am with the temperatures already in the high 70’s. The transit of the canal takes about 8-10 hrs depending on canal traffic. Some ... read more