Pago Pago and Noumea

On Monday 21^st we entered the magnificent harbour of Pago Pago in American Samoa and were alongside and cleared to go ashore by 0900hrs. The harbour is spectacular as it is the crater of an extinct volcano with one side missing to create the entrance. The slopes are covered in lush jungle. Pago Pago is on the largest of seven islands and it is called Tutuila with a population of approx.60,000 and is only one third of the size of the Isle of Wight. The adjacent independent nation of Western Samoa has nine islands and Aurora is visiting Apia on the way home.

  We have visited this place before 3 years ago and done an organized tour so this time we just wandered around as the town is very small and quite close to the ship. Many stalls had been set up on the quay selling sarongs, flowery shirts, carvings, straw hats and baskets and wonderful floral arrangements using exotic flowers. We even got a fridge magnet which had not been available on our last visit.

  Walking to the left from the ship we passed the magnificent colonial Governors House and reached a beach where we found many of the crew relaxing in the water and playing volleyball with the locals. It was great to watch as they need to relax because they work so hard to make our trip so wonderful. The temperature was only about 28C but humidity was very high with passing showers so by the time we had walked the 20mins or so back into the town our tee shirts were soaked with perspiration. The town is not pretty so we made for a watering hole called Sadie Thompsons that we know from last time. Somerset Maugham wrote about Sadie Thompson and Pago Pago in his novel entitled Rain. We bumped into Mike and Stella our table companions and then John and Mary so after 4 local beers and in that heat we retreated back to the ship for a rest!

  Sailaway at 1600 was spoilt by a tropical shower or two but after passing Flower Pot Rock and much blowing of sirens from the pilot boat we left the volcano astern and set course through the islands of Fiji towards New Caledonia and our next port Noumea on Friday..

  Incidentally we advance the clocks 24 hours tonight which is confusing some people. Instead of being 11hours behind GMT we will be 13hours ahead and Tuesday will not exist! Eleven people on board will have no birthday this year!

  Today we received the terrible news about another earthquake in Christchurch New Zealand which this ship is due to visit in a couple of weeks time. Our thoughts are with those people.

  On Thursday night it was Maureen and Colin´s (one of our table companions who leave in Brisbane) 43^rd wedding anniversary so we all decided to eat under the stars in the Pennant Grill. Unfortunately it was our first wet night for ages so we had to eat indoors but we still had a great time.

  Noumea is the capital of New Caledonia and has a population of nearly 100,000. Captain Cook is believed to have named the islands because the mountainous terrain reminded him of the Scottish highlands. It is a French overseas territory and derives its wealth from its nickel mining. It is on the same latitude as Rio de Janeiro and has been likened to the French Riviera.

  We woke on Friday to find ourselves berthing on another container terminal and some passengers who obviously could not sleep were off ashore soon after 0800. We had a leisurely breakfast and got the shuttle bus into town after 0930. There we found a 1 hour city tour which would leave us at the beach later for only $15 and took that. We drove through the rather uninspiring town but visited 2 highpoints for the view and then were dropped at Lemon Bay Beach where we had a great swim and an expensive coffee. Most of the people on the beach were from the ship! On the way back to the ship we passed the Marina and an elegant promenade which really did look like the French Riviera.

  Back on board after a little shopping it was not long before Aurora was giving 3 short blasts and was off again steaming into the sunset and our next port Brisbane. We are told we will be on our normal upriver berth near the city so it will be interesting to see how the city has recovered from the devastating floods earlier this year.

Tahiti and Bora Bora

I wondered what I could put in this blog to describe what we have been doing during all these long sea days. Basically our mornings comprise firstly a quick snack in the cabin from Room Service then 45 minutes of Pilates in the gym courtesy of either John, Ben or Cullum. Then to Carmens at 1000hrs for 45 minutes of Line Dancing which is coming along and we enjoy immensely. Pity that as it is so popular and over 60 people attend every day, we really need a bigger venue.  Alex our  teacher is very patient. Then to Raffles to buy a Costa coffee and we have been joined regularly by some of our table companions for a chat. Thanks to Arnel for giving us extra biscuits! Then its 16 circuits of the Promenade Deck-a total of 5 miles taking 1.25 hours. Then its lunchtime and we try to relax in the afternoon, sometimes on deck in the lovely sunshine.

 Evenings have been very enjoyable because our table companions in the Alexandria Restaurant are great and the food is wonderful. We did try Café Bordeaux on a music night with Mike and Mavis early on in the voyage but were a little disappointed at the food and the service and it was difficult to hold a conversation over the music! The Pennant Grill under the stars was a different matter and we went with Mary and John and were very impressed with everything. We will be going again but with our table companions.

  On Thursday morning we woke early to find Aurora already alongside in Papeete the main town on Tahiti. We had not booked a tour so were unsure what to do but had noted that the next island of Moorea was supposed to have better beaches than on Tahiti. So what did we do? Bearing in mind we had just had 8 days at sea we decided to get back on another boat!! Must be mad! We just had time to catch the 0930 ferry and after only 30 minutes or so we arrived on Moorea. It was mayhem when we disembarked as everyone tried to get on the 2 local buses (one goes clockwise and the other anti clockwise) or get a taxi to the Sofitel or the Hilton or do an island tour. We finally decided to take a reasonable offer of a ride to a traditional Tahitian village with a beach and a show plus guaranteed return to the 1445 ferry. It was a great choice as the village was quiet, we were not forced to shop and the only sound on the beach was the roar of the surf on the reef half a mile away. The show was terrific with grass skirts and sarongs and fantastic music with an audience of no more than 15 people! And we made it back to the ferry which gave us time to wander round Papeete before going back on board. It has a few lovely shops but is pretty scruffy and the traffic is horrendous. We found a bar to sit and watch and it confirmed the view that Papeete is expensive! Back on board we enjoyed the sailaway as Aurora left behind those majestic mountains and negotiated that narrow gap in the reef.

  On the way back on the ferry we had our third disaster! My camera packed up-it must be worn out! Luckily we have our small backup camera to use while I see if it can be repaired. The first disaster was when we unpacked one suitcase on the first night aboard and the top of a small pot of tooth powder had come off and everything was covered! It seems funny now but was not at the time. The second occurred when we were driving along Copacabana beach and Brian sat on his prescription sunglasses and broke the frame. Amazing what superglue will stick but they are not very satisfactory.

  After yet another wonderful dinner and a show we woke on Friday morning to find Aurora in another paradise, anchored inside the reef in Bora Bora. Here we had decided to do an organized P&O tour which proved to be amazing. On shore before 0900 we boarded our motorized catamaran for 6.5 hours of amazing fun. We spent the day on the lagoon in seas bluer than you can imagine and totally circumnavigated the island. We saw the most amazing hotel bungalows standing in this lagoon ($500-2000 per night) and swam and snorkeled in the tropical sea. We swam with stingrays and yellow sharks in one location and with all sorts of colourful fishes in another. Then we had a tropical rainstorm for 30mins but the sun soon came out again. For lunch we stopped at a motu which is an island attached to the reef and ate chicken and tuna off handmade leaf plates while sitting at tables with our feet in the warm water and while fish swam around us, sometimes nibbling our legs. It was magical! Then we swam again in a netted off part of the lagoon with more stingrays, sharks, turtles and all kinds of fish. There were four crew members on this boat and they were tremendous fun and made the day even greater. Three of them played instruments like ukelelees and they all sang songs for the whole day-and we never tired of it! Unfortunately the day had to end and we were deposited back on the quayside at 1530 ready for our tender to the ship but we had had more than enough sun and many people were showing sore bits!

  By 1700 Aurora had weighed anchor, said goodbye to Royal Princess (soon to be renamed Adonia) and made its way through the narrow entrance in the reef, leaving this stunning island behind but also leaving us with wonderful memories. In another 2 days we will be in Pago Pago another tropical paradise!

Valparaiso to Tahiti

As I write this we are in our fourth sea day and rolling and pitching our way westward in a long southerly swell. The temperature is up to 25C so the decks are covered in prostrate bodies taking the sun. Our routine continues and we have now walked over 90 miles round the promenade deck and not used a single lift!

  On these sea days the passengers need entertaining and there is an amazing array of organized activities from lectures, dancing, quizzes, gym classes, interactive games, port talks, deck games, craft and art classes, sport on the TV and many types of  organized card games. In the evenings we are treated to a different high quality show every night for the whole 95day world cruise. On our 3 sectors the highlights have been the classical pianists who I have mentioned before plus Eva Maria Doroszkowska on sector 1 and Jonathan Ainsworth on board now plus the following. Pam Ayres, The Merseybeats, Don Reid (comedian)plus You-Chiung Lin (a fantastic classical pianist), Bonnie Langford, Joe Longthorne (a fantastic show from a sick man), Peter Piper (the best comedian so far), Richard Digence and Roy Walker (to come). Plus many more!

  This afternoon we actually saw land and spent 1.5 hours passing 2 sides of Easter Island, the most remote inhabited island in the world. It is only 63 square miles, is technically speaking a massive volcano rising 10,000ft from the ocean floor and has about 3,000 inhabitants. The first European to visit the island was Dutch sea captain Jacob Roggeveen on Easter Sunday April 5, 1722 hence the name. The island was populated by Polynesians from the Marquesas or Society Islands and this culture´s most famous features are the enormous stone statues called moai some of which we could see from the ship. The average statue is 14.5 feet high and weighs 14 tons. It took about 90mins to travel the length of the island and to view the small settlement, then we carried on westward towards the setting sun.

  On Monday 14^th (Valentines Day of course), about 1530 Aurora became the first P&O cruise ship to call at Pitcairn Island. We anchored close to Bounty Bay in the north east of this small volcanic island in very deep water and 45 of the settlers (which is almost the whole population) came on board from a small boat and set up stalls to sell souvenirs on Deck 8 aft. It was always going to be a difficult time i.e.1800 passengers all trying to shop from 20 or so stalls but after the initial difficulties it settled down and they did good business. Stamps were in great demand as were wood carvings, T- shirts and caps. The latter were unfortunately not made by the islanders. There was also a wedding on board in the afternoon so their wedding photos will be pretty unique!

  The Pitcairn Islands are 4 islands but only Pitcairn in inhabited and it is only 2 miles across. It was first sighted on 3 July 1767 by Midshipman Robert Pitcairn on  HMS Swallow. In 1790 nine of the mutineers from the Bounty plus Tahitian companions settled on the island and it is their direct descendants that still live there. Their surnames are Christian, Warren, Young and Brown and most souvenirs have one of those names on them.

  Soon after 1830 the islanders were gone and Aurora continued on her westward course towards Tahiti where we arrive after another 2 days at sea, on Thursday. Now that we have hot days and balmy moonlight nights, most people seem to be enjoying the many sea days and the longer nights as we put the clocks back an hour almost every night!

Puerto Montt and Valparaiso

After a bumpy night in the Pacific Ocean we reached the shelter of the fjords again after lunch and enjoyed the views from our sun bed on the Promenade deck although the air temperature was still only 12C. Come Sunday morning we woke to find Aurora anchored off the town of Puerto Montt and ready to take us all ashore by tender. It was a cold overcast morning but we were ashore soon after 1000hrs. The town is the capital of the Tenth Region of Chile and the centre of the Lake District but we had decided that we did not want to spend the day on the road so just opted to walk around town. With hindsight this was probably the wrong decision as it was Sunday and only the supermarkets and a large shopping mall were open.

  The city which now has a population of 175,000 was first settled by German immigrants in 1852 and there is a bronze memorial to the first 200 on the seafront. The city is named after Don Manuel Montt, President of Chile from 1851-61. It is a modern but untidy city, largely rebuilt after a catastrophic earthquake and tsunami in May 1960 which destroyed much of it. It lies on the same latitude as Wellington, New Zealand.

  After walking around the city centre and visiting the Cathedral while a service was in progress we replenished our supplies and ended up returning to the ship just as the sun was breaking through. Later that afternoon we were resting on a sun bed on Aurora´s classic stern area when the last of the cloud evaporated to reveal the most fantastic view of the two nearby volcanoes, Calbuco the largest and nearest and also Asorno, likened to Japan´s Mount Fuji and completely snow covered. These volcanoes made a wonderful backdrop as we sailed away later that afternoon on our way north towards Valparaiso where we will spend the day on Tuesday.

  On that morning we were up before sunrise to find Aurora already alongside a container berth in a port surrounded on 3 sides by high hills that were heavily populated. It is known as the city of 42 hills and has a population of over 300,000. We had taken the advice of a friend to explore the Chilean capital Santiago rather than Valparaiso (Vale of Paradise) so had soon boarded our tour bus for the 2 hour journey inland. Santiago is a sprawling city, the largest in Chile and has one third of the country´s 20 million population. The morning had started grey and cold so we had taken warm gear with us but we need not have worried as no sooner had we climbed over the port hills than the cloud evaporated and the sun shone. It was a fascinating drive, initially over the port hills and down into a fertile valley where many major vineyards produce wonderful white wine. There were 2 major tunnels, one over 3km long and more hills which resembled those in southern Spain until we entered the outskirts of Santiago.

  As we were `on your own` our guide drove us around the centre, showed us where to meet at 1500 and then took us to the base of the mountain where the statue of the Virgin Mary stands in Metropolitan Park. We rode a funicular railway up the steep track to the top and enjoyed the wonderful views and restful music playing there. As time was limited we made our way down by 1300 and walked through Barrio Bellavista,(the two ls are pronounced as js here!) the lively and Bohemian Paris Quarter of the city. We would have loved to be able to visit at night! On across the river (not impressive) to Plaza Italia

and along wonderful parks with so many statues and back to Plaza de Armas at the city centre. Here was the cathedral, many museums and government buildings. Interestingly the parliament is meeting in Valparaiso at present due to earthquake damage to the building in Santiago. We explored for a bit and enjoyed the feel of the city but by then it was 30C so refreshments and a snack was called for and we found a pavement café in the square to watch the world go by. 1500hrs came so quickly and it was time to reboard the bus to the ship.

  Back in Valparaiso at the terminal at 1730 we decided to walk the short distance into the local centre but found it dirty and did not possess the grandeur of Santiago. Later we were told we missed the best bit which was the old town but as this was such a long walk from the terminal (and no shuttle buses) we did not find it. (The port guide was pretty poor!

  We returned to the ship for dinner, as we found nowhere suitable in the city and enjoyed a wonderful sailaway after 2300hrs as all of the lights of the city slowly disappeared into the distance. Goodbye South America - we have thoroughly enjoyed our visit and hope to return someday! We have ahead of us 8.5 days on board until we touch dry land again in Tahiti. Back into our sea routine and good weather we hope!

  P.S. Thanks to everyone who has commented on this blog.

Ushuaia,Punta Arenas and the Chilean Fjords and Glaciers

  After leaving Ushuaia and admiring its situation nestling among the snow capped mountains, we headed south again and soon joined the Beagle Channel, named after HMS Beagle with Captain Robert Fitzroy in command. He led a surveying expedition to Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego in the 1830´s accompanied by a young Charles Darwin.

Heading west along this narrow channel the weather worsened to a force 8 headwind with rain so we withdrew to our cabin to watch the passing landscape from our sheltered balcony. In between the mountains we passed 3 notable glaciers, the first we had ever seen. These apparently were nothing special but we thought they were awesome and commented how blue the ice was.

  Next morning early Aurora dropped anchor off Punta Arenas (Sandy Point) our first port in Chile and the southernmost city on the South American mainland. It used to be one of the busiest ports in the world when operating as a coaling station for ships going around the Horn but this stopped abruptly in 1914 when the Panama Canal opened. Capital of Magellan´s Province the city of 120,000 people has a relatively dry climate but suffers incessant winds in the summer months. 18C is apparently a high temperature and not often achieved. We had about 12C with a considerable windchill.

  We were ashore soon after 0900 on our tour, and were taken inland and up the mountain in our coach. The roads were unsealed as soon as we left the city and as we climbed higher the views across the Straits of Magellan became magnificent. At the Ski Centre (no snow!) we all transferred to the chairlift to go higher and it was so cold! The wind blew right up our trouserlegs! From the top we started our trek down the mountain and through the forest-very steep in places and quite muddy on occasions. It was slow going because of the back stragglers but we made it back to the Ski Centre in one and a quarter hours. We were then rewarded with hot chocolate and cake. Great!

  We were then taken back into the city and dropped in Plaza de Armas, the main square to roam around on our own. This square has a wonderful central bronze statue of  Magellan and at one corner of the Plaza is the impressive Hotel Jose Nogueira, once the home of one of the city´s wealthy matrons, Sarah Braun. Apart from the Town Hall and some museums, the rest of the centre was architecturally disappointing so we shopped for our fridge magnet and for some local wine in the supermarket and returned to the ship for lunch. At 1700 the tenders were recovered, the anchor was weighed and we set off north towards Puerto Montt . We don´t reach it until Sunday when we hope it will be warmer! On the way we will be viewing at least 2 major glaciers.

  The next morning we were still surrounded by mountains but returned to our normal sea routine, even our walk-only 3 miles today because of the cold! Later on in the afternoon we slowed as we approached the Amalia Glacier and entered floating ice before stopping less than a mile from this amazing wall of ice. This glacier is retreating slowly and talking to someone who saw it 4 years ago it has indeed moved back significantly. Aurora turned round completely and sat there for about an hour as we admired this wonderful natural phenomena. The sun appeared occasionally to light up the ice and would then disappear as the rain passed over again. We noted that the sea temperature was only 6C!

  Later that evening we entered another arm of the fjords, saw a number of seals and viewed another glacier, the Bruho Glacier, not quite as impressive as Amalia, just somewhat smaller but here the sun did not shine for us.

  After another night navigating between the mountains we were awoken by the Captain at 0800 saying we were approaching the Pio XI Glacier, the largest one outside Antarctica. Well wrapped up we ventured outside into the driving rain to see this magnificent sight ahead of us. This glacier´s ice face was at least 30 metres high and 2.4 miles across the side of the fjord. We were told it also extends over 40 miles back from the sea. Awesome! There was hardly any sea ice here so the rescue boat was lowered to take a ship´s photographer away to take photos of the ship with the glacier. Apparently this glacier is still growing every year-I wonder how the global warming lobby explain this!

  After an hour here Aurora turned round and headed back down one magnificent fjord after another for the rest of the day. Despite the rain it was so wonderful. As a respite from all these great sights we spent 45 minutes at 1400 listening to a popular classical concert in the theatre given by our resident pianist for this leg, Julian Jacobson.

Cruising does give you so much impressive choices!

  Late afternoon saw us reaching the Pacific Ocean again and a 4m swell and turning north towards the warmer weather. Saturday  morning we regain the shelter of the fjords that the Chileans call canals, ready for our next port on Sunday, Puerto Montt.

 

The Falklands, Cape Horn and Ushuaia

On Sunday 30^th we awoke early to find that we had already anchored in a calm and peaceful Port William which was a 20minute tender ride away from Port Stanley town.

The weather was cold and drizzly but that was what we expected!

   The first explorer known to have landed on the Falklands was Captain John Strong in 1690 and he named the stretch of water between the two main islands Falkland Sound after Viscount Falkland a British naval official. The Falklands comprises an additional 700 smaller island too and are situated 300miles from Argentina and 8000miles from the UK. Port Stanley is on the same latitude south of the equator as Watford is to the north. The British first claimed sovereignty in 1776 and then Argentina did in 1820. Argentina did not try to take possession until 1982 and we all know what happened then.

  We chose a morning tour to see the penguins so were tendered ashore where we boarded mini buses for a 20 minute journey along rough un-sealed roads to a rendezvous point with several 4x4´s (Landrovers of course). We noted on the way that large swathes of land are still fenced off with signs warning of mines! Also that much of the land is peaty and rocky and quite unsuitable for cultivation. Our Landrovers took us on another 20 minute journey off road (but mine free!) across the very uneven terrain at slow speed thankfully. It was very very rough going but we eventually made it to Bluff Cove Farm and a large colony of penguins sitting close to the shore. There the sun came out and it was glorious! There were some King Penguins but mostly Gentoo Penguins and most were youngsters as the parents go searching for food during the day. It was fascinating just seeing them in their normal habitat-some were playing in the sea too.

  Having taken too many photos we retreated to the Sea Cabbage Café where we had coffee and some lovely homemade cakes and listened to a girl playing the concertina, all included in our fare. Then next door to the museum, recently opened where there was more live music, a guitarist this time and the opportunity to buy our fridge magnet. The white sandy beach and blue sea looked quite Caribbean like in the sunshine.

  Our 1 hour there was soon over and we reboarded our transport for the hairy journey back to the main road and to Port Stanley. Everyone was very satisfied with a terrific trip.

  Dropped off in Port Stanley we walked about in the sunshine and visited several of the shops, Christ Church Cathedral, Victory Green where the original mizzenmast of the Great Britain is to be seen, the 1982 Liberation monument, the 1914 Battle memorial and we walked past Government House. We wrote a card here and posted it to Mars (see photo)-I wonder how long it will take to get to Estepona!  Then it was time to relax so we visited two of the local pubs, the Victory and the Globe but no draught beer only bottled as there is no brewery on the islands now! It was fun but the pubs reminded us of the scruffiest pubs in Gibraltar!

  It was soon time to join the long queues for the tenders back to the ship after an amazing day in the Falklands. Sailing out of Port William around 1830 was magical as there was no wind and small Magellanic Penguins could be seen swimming away from the ship and avoiding our massive bulk. Clear of the islands we headed South West ready to round Cape Horn on the following day.

  On Monday afternoon, with the weather so predictably correct, in other words bitterly cold at 7C with a biting gale force westerly wind and passing rain showers, we approached Cabo de Hornos and passed it around 1700hrs.Our most southerly point was exactly 56 degrees south latitude. The massive cliffs and rugged rocks were so impressive and brought home to us how dangerous this part of the world must have seemed to those intrepid sailors of yesteryear in their small sailing ships. The lighthouse there is so remote and actually manned by four people! We got so cold admiring the view from our cabin balcony but it was so worth it. A friend who was watching it with us (she has an inside cabin) only had flipflops on her feet and was almost frostbitten! Later that evening we had our predinner drinks in the Crows Nest Lounge (another dress night!) as we proceeded north with mountains on either side towards our next port of call Ushuaia in Argentina, It was an amazing sight.

  In the early hours of the morning we berthed alongside in Ushuaia, the capital of the province of Tierra del Fuego, a city with a population of only 45,000. It is on the same south latitude as Sunderland is in the north and claims to be the most southerly city in the world. The city and port is well used as a stopping off point for Antarctica and derives most of its income from lumber, fishing and tourism. The surrounding mountains still had a considerable amount of snow on them and looked gorgeous when the sun occasionally broke through. We had not organized any trips so explored the town, visiting many of the souvenir shops with ´end of the world´ merchandise, bought our fridge magnet, had our coffee fix (no Macdonalds here just like the Falklands!), climbed as high as we could to get the views and ended up in an Irish Bar that had no Guinness!!

  We enjoyed our stroll around but this was a short visit as at 1500 we were on board and on our way again. Tomorrow we visit our first port in Chile, Punta Arenas and we will be tendering in the cold! We are told we will be passing some glaciers this evening and we are going to be well wrapped up for that!