Down Under, Finally

Down Under!

Whew! 7 full days at sea. Strange, though, that about halfway through the crossing that the thought of getting into port became less an issue. By day 4 it was relaxing and we were content to sit out on the balcony in the sun and listen to the quiet. Port seemed far less important and maybe an intrusion.

It’s a long way across the Indian Ocean. We missed a cyclone which abruptly headed south, and we stayed on route to Australia. When we finally arrived in Fremantle/Perth we were met by beautiful weather. Everything was clean, brilliant blue skies overhead, and the beaches amazing!

We took a tour here that covered both cities and a cruise down the river from Perth to Fremantle. Both cities are walkable, full of restaurants and coffee shops. Everything looks organized and prosperous. Time for a little lunch (always nice to have something other than ship food) and coffee. A flat white is just a plain coffee with cream in Australian lingo. Makes sense.

We also had a huge passenger changeover on the ship. 800 people got off the ship and 800 new people got on. We had had a big influx of Australians in Capetown, as well. As a rule they are much more outgoing, boisterous and friendly than the passengers who left, who were mostly Brits but some Germans, as well. The Australians were also younger and the ship felt energized with new attitudes and physically fit people. The batch who got off ship in Capetown were not terribly mobile and spent a lot of time sleeping during the day on the sofas in the Corinthia Lounge. Made it feel a bit retirement home like. New blood was definitely welcomed.