Tour Day 45, Cruise Day 45 – Napier, a coastal city on New Zealand's North Island, is set amid the renowned wine-producing region of Hawke's Bay and is sometimes referred to as the "Nice of the Pacific." The town was virtually flattened by the 1931 earthquake, was rebuilt in the art deco style and, therefore, is more commonly referred to as “The Art Deco Capital of the World.” Given that wineries and art deco architecture haven’t made it to my A-list, there were no shore excursions I found appealing. Given the weather was uncooperative, I stayed on the ship. Tour Day 46, Cruise Day 46 – The Living Village Experience (5.5 hours) - An authentic, living Maori village steeped in history awaits you, along with the best of Rotorua's geothermal activity. Enjoy a panoramic drive from ... read more

Tour Day 43, Cruise Day 43 – Christchurch by Double-Decker Bus (3.5 hours) - Cross the port hills to the village of Sumner and head into the city center of Christchurch. Here you'll board an open-air kiwi double-decker bus (weather permitting) for a fun and informative 45-minute tour of Christchurch. You'll discover why Christchurch is known as 'the Garden City' and is considered one of the most English cities outside of England. Learn about Christchurch's fascinating history from pioneering days through modern times. View some of the areas affected by the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes and learn how Christchurch is now preserving some of its iconic heritage buildings. Your guide will share aspects of the exciting vision and plan to rebuild and restore the inner city, and will interweave the experience with stories and up-to-date information ... read more

Tour Day 38, Cruise Day 38 – Day at Sea Tour Day 39, Cruise Day 39 – Day at Sea Tour Day 40, Cruise Day 40 – Milford Sound (Fiordland Natl Park), New Zealand The Captain made a comment in his daily report about the beautiful weather at sunrise time, long before I found my way to a window, but this was what I found. For me, Milford Sound was merely cloudtacular! Tour Day 41, Cruise Day 41 – Port Chalmers (Dunedin), New Zealand The Taieri Gorge Train Tour (4.5 hours) – An iconic rail journey through the remote mountain scenery of the world-famous Taieri Gorge. Inspired by the famous Central Otago gold rush of the 1860’s, plans were drawn up for an Otago Central railway line to Cromwell from Dunedin - the largest and richest ... read more

Tour Day 35, Cruise Day 35 – Day at Sea Tour Day 36, Cruise Day 36 – Melbourne, Australia – Melbourne was a total bust this time around. First, my roommate from the 22-day tour of Europe last summer had some craziness in his life, and he begged off until I return in January. No problem, I’ll do the hop-on, hop-off bus tour. Second, I awoke to a case of the blahs – not really sick but just not feeling well. Third, it was raining – not a good day for the hop-on, hop-off bus tour anyway! So, there will be more about Melbourne in January. Tour Day 37, Cruise Day 37 – Burnie, Tasmania, Australia – Best of the Northwest: A Taste of Tasmania (8 hours) - Taste Tasmania's diverse northern specialties and meet some ... read more

Tour Day 32, Cruise Day 32 – Day at Sea Tour Day 33, Cruise Day 33 – Day at Sea Tour Day 34, Cruise Day 34 –Sydney, Australia – I had kept in touch with a couple I had met while on the tour of France in Summer 2022. It worked out that we were able to hook up for the morning of ms Noordam’s stop in Sydney. We had breakfast and walked around the harbor area, including the Sydney Opera House.... read more

Tour Day 25, Cruise Day 25 – Day At Sea Tour Day 26, Cruise Day 26 – Day At Sea Tour Day 27, Cruise Day 27 – Cascade, Norfolk Island, Australia Norfolk Island is an external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, about almost 1000 miles northeast of Sydney. Together with the neighboring Phillip Island and Nepean Island, the three islands collectively form the Territory of Norfolk Island. At the 2021 census, it had 2,188 inhabitants living on a total area of about 14 square miles. Norfolk Island is one of Australia's most isolated communities and one of its oldest territories, having been settled six weeks after Australia's founding settlement at Sydney. The first known settlers in Norfolk Island were East Polynesians but they had already departed when ... read more