Sydney

So here we are!  The ship came into Sydney harbor at 5:45 AM -- We had just come through a rain storm, but everything cleared up just as we came into the harbor!  I ran up to the top deck, but then realized that the best picture was from our stateroom veranda!  So here is a series of photos of the Opera House! We thought about just spending the whole day on our deck soaking it up, but we really didn't!   Below is a picture of Ann standing on the stateroom veranda later in the day -- when the light was just right to show off the white ceramic tiles. 

We took a harbor tour and got a picture showing how close the boat was docked to both the city and the Opera House.  Then we took a tour of the Opera House -- really fantastic -- and got this picture of us on the terrace outside of the Opera House with both the boat and the city in the background!  You can't see it but the Sydney Harbor Bridge is just off picture to the right.

Sydney was great -- One day is not enough, we definitely need to come back to explore more!

melbourne

We really enjoyed our 2 days in Melbourne.  What a fantastic city built along the Yarra riverfront!  Magnificent buildings such as the Flinders Street Station were built during Australia's gold rush. We didn't really get to explore as much as we wanted, but it was easy to get around to the various sites with the various trams and tourist buses -- and visit places like the Botanic Gardens!  We'll have to come back!

We can't conclude our trip to Melbourne without more wildlife pictures -- Here is George feeding an Eastern Rosella!  What a beautiful parrot!  Wherever we went there were also flocks of white cockatoo.  Noisy birds, but magnificent to watch!

Emus and Kangas and Koalas -- Oh My!

Good'ay Mate!  

We have had such a good time here in Melbourne.  On our first day we went out to the Serendip Wildlife Sanctuary,  and were treated to a wonderful afternoon and evening.  We were led through the sanctuary by our good guide Roger, who was careful to keep us from frightening off any of these wild creatures.  It was hard to pick out a favorite -- but it was interesting to watch Mary, the koala, come out of hiding in the You Yangs Mountain Range.

Hobart

Out first port of call in Australia -- Hobart, Tasmania!  We loved this lovely town with wonderful shops and buildings -- very easy to explore!  We had a great trip out to the Barilla Oyster Farm -- over 30 acres of oysters producing 3 million oysters a year, most of which are sent over to Melbourne.  George and I managed to have a couple of dozen upon our return to the ship -- wonderful!

Fjords of New Zealand

After our somewhat rocky trip around the southern most point of New Zealand (not to worry -- the rough seas didn't disturb our routine of bridge, exercise, drinking and enjoying the wonderful gourmet food), we found ourselves spending two delightful days in the beautiful fjords of New Zealand.  First we sailed into the beautiful waters of Doubtful Sound and met up with the former Crystal Harmony.  It was quite fun seeing the first Crystal ship, now sailing as the Asuko II and the two captains made quite a show of having the 2 ships sail quite close together in this beautiful site.  (Did you know that if you click on the pictures, you can get the full screen view of the pictures -- It does help especially with these beautiful scenic photos.)


On the second day, we entered Milford Sound, with its snowcapped peaks and magnificent waterfalls.   We spent the entire day just lazily enjoying the scenery and the wonderful views, as the sun moved through the sky.  Then, for our entertainment, the captain nosed the ship into the base of Sterling Falls -- We understand that the various Norwegian captains have a competition on how close to the falls the ship can get.  The official recording for this cruise is 3 meters!

Wellington, New Zealand

In Wellington, New Zealand for just one day -- we walked about the town on a tasting tour.  But first, on the waterfront, we passed by this beautiful boathouse for the Wellington rowers.  It was built in the 19th century as the lookout tower at the edge of this wonderful harbor.

Our first stop on our tasting tour was this wonderful coffee roastery, Mojo Coffee.  George was in heaven!  (www.mojcoffee.com)

Next we were in a marketplace where we could find only the best groceries in Wellington.  We didn't buy anything (who needs any food when you have the chefs of the Crystal Serenity at your beck and call), but we did do some tasting of the wonderful jams and chutneys of New Zealand's best -- Ruth Pretty.  She also does a wonderful fruitcake for Christmas!

We also stopped at a wonderful chocolate shop, Schoc chocolates (www.chocolatetherapy.com) -- and tasted many different flavors of chocolate.  

After our tasting tour, we had a great lunch at a restaurant on the waterfront -- Shed 5.  We tasted some great New Zealand wines here with our lunch -- Stoneleigh Pinot Gris  and Red Rock Gravel Pit Merlot Malbec.

We ended our day in Wellington with a trip to the Te Papa Museum which was celebrating its tenth anniversary.  The museum was crowded with people participating in all of the special events, but we were still able to wander through and view the exhibits which highlight the culture and history of the New Zealand heritage.  This is a beautiful Maori temple - the fine carving in and on the temple is a hallmark of the Maori people.

Christchurch

From Christchurch, we took the Tranzalpine Express up into the mountains. We were very lucky to be on this wonderful railroad adventure as it was raining in Christchurch when we docked.  After traveling up into the mountains to Arthur's Pass, we had lunch at the Wilderness Lodge, which is in the middle of a working sheep station.  So we were up close and personal with the sheep on the ranch.

We enjoyed a great lunch at the ranch with some great wine --George managed to stow a bottle back to the boat -- 2004 Stonewall Marlborough Merlot!  We slept most of the way back to Christchurch -- but George managed to get a few great pictures when we stopped for photos.

Back in Christchurch, we stopped at the Arts Center for a few brief moments of shopping.  Ann managed to buy a few skeins of beautifully hand dyed New Zealand wool.  So it was a very successful day!