Feb 27: No Darwin, on to Komodo Island

  

While we were getting close to Darwin, we would not be going to Dock. We will just get close enough to have the pilot, who came on to guide us through Great Barrier Reef, to transfer to another boat

Even though it was a planned port day with less things on the event listings, the staff filled the day up with activities

Craft Class was a Scarf. The rough ride made all the cutting detail hard so Toni will finish up later.

Later in the morning, it was noticeable when we finished transferring the Reef pilot and turned toward Komono Island

They were working on the large screen (look closely at the R in Princess). And there weren't a lot of folks up on the wet top deck playing Chess (or Pickleball, or Basketball, or Shuffleboard)

Somehow the team got two of Rob's three scribble's on the way to a win

The afternoon WWII talk was on the events that led to General MacArthur returning to the Phillipines.

And while there were a lot of whining on board about the Captain's decision to skip Darwin but there was a lot of evidence that the wind and waves were real!!

Italian Night in the Dining Room

Rob got Eggplant Parmigiana and Toni as the Prosciutto for appetizer, along with Minestrone.  Was thinking for an appetizer that it would be one slice of eggplant and a little bit of Prosciutto but were we surprised!!   

Toni got the Tuscan Sirloin Steak, Rob the Veal Scallopini for their main course and split a Tiramisu for dessert. 

Went out on the mid deck to watch the waves and brave the wind

Went to a game show before they had a special event introducing the 2025 World Cruise and then listened to a band for awhile.

Another Sea Day tomorrow.

Feb 26: 2/3 to Darwin, or not

  

We are between Cairns and Darwin

The Craft Class has a long line

Dream catcher and already hanging in the room

Morning WWII in the Pacific talk was on the Island of Saipan 

Both Toni's Grandfather (Brayden's Great, Great Grandfather) and Rob's Dad both served with the Army Air Corps during WWII and was in the Pacific

While Rob was sitting in the theater, Toni was competing. A two part event that had "bean toss" to start and then coffee bean pick up (with Chopsticks)

Rob made it to watch Toni's Coffee Bean pickup. She actually challenged Assistant Cruise Director Kimee.  The most any one else did was around 30.

Toni did over 50 and with her 5 bean toss points won the whole event.

And Kimee giving her the prize

The door is ready for St Patrick's Day

Sunday Brunch and Toni had Chocolate Chip Pancakes and Rob had a Western Omelet.

The afternoon WWII in the Pacific talk was on Guadalcanal and how there were many more people behind the scenes supplying, feeding and supporting those on the front line. This included the servicemen and women overseas and everyone back in the United States supporting the efforts of the military.

Senator McCain's grandfather led the land and Sea Air Command from the island of Santo.  Adm. McCain also commissioned Naval Air Station Patuxent River (Where Braynon's Dad, Grammy, Grampy, Rob and Toni all work) on April 1, 1943 while still in DC.  He then headed to the Pacific (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_S._McCain_Sr.)

The US lost more aircraft during non combat activity than in combat. We were building them fast and training pilots fast. 

So tomorrow's port is Darwin. This is how Darwin got its name (https://darwintour.com.au/blog/how-darwin-got-its-name/).

How Darwin got its name

European settlers first reached Darwin in 1839, but the city wasn’t always named Darwin.

When European sailors reached Darwin in 1839 aboard the HMS Beagle, captain Lt. John Lort Stokes named the harbour after his previous shipmate; the naturalist, geologist and biologist, Charles Darwin. The story isn’t that simple though!

Charles Darwin

Sixty-nine years after the first European settlement in Australia, Darwin’s harbour was spotted. After reaching land, the captain and his lieutenant named the port ‘Darwin’ after their former shipmate Charles Darwin. The trio had met when Darwin took a five-year voyage around the globe, observing geology around the world.

Naming the land

Thirty years after Port Darwin was first found and named by Europeans, they sent the first settlement of people to live there. The settlement was named Palmerston after the then British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston. The first settlement was small, comprising only 135 people.

Keeping Darwin alive

In the 1870s gold was found 200km south of Darwin and saw an influx of Chinese settlers. They were mostly contracted to work in the goldfields and later worked on building railways through the Territory.

The influx was well-timed, as several devastating shipwrecks saw the population of Darwin drop significantly. At the same time, the pearling industry saw people arriving from Japan, Timor, and the Philippines. The Asian population in Darwin took a sharp downturn after the implementation of the White Australia policy in the 1890s, however, those who stayed played a key role in the commercial development of the city. Today, many prominent families in Darwin are descendants of those who came pearling in the 1800s.

In 1897 a huge cyclone tore through the settlement, destroying everything. It was the worst cyclone to hit the Northern Territory before Cyclone Tracy in 1974. 24 people died in the settlement, and it also killed those working on Darwin Harbour. Only eight buildings survived the cyclone and were used to house the entire population until the settlement could rebuild.

A new name

Originally under the control of the South Australian government, Darwin was handed over to the Commonwealth of Australia in 1911. The handover also saw its name officially change from Palmerston to Darwin.

Just 15 minutes from modern Darwin, you can find Palmerston, a planned satellite city. Darwin and Palmerston are the only recognised cities in the Northern Territory and boast a modest combined population of less than 200,000.

Since its first settlement, Darwin has had a varied history. From devastating cyclones and war bombings to a thriving tourism hub and modern city, Darwin has the historical significance and modern flare to appeal to anyone. The gateway to some of the Northern Territory’s best environments, a visit to Darwin should be on everyone’s bucket list!

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This was going to be a nice relaxing day on land for us. A short cooking/food excursion that a chef would teach us how to fix Barramundi (fish) and then we get to eat it!!  Barramundi is one of the best nutritional fishes. And then we were going to spend the rest of time just walking around the town.

But when the Captain gets on the intercomm, you know something is up.  Well the forecast was for high winds and rough seas in the area tomorrow.  It would be too dangerous to dock. So we would be skipping Darwin and heading to Komodo.

The show was Broadway songs

Feb 25: Torres Strait halfway to Darwin

  

We exited the Great Barrier Reef areas and passed through the Torres Strait between Australia and New Guinea on our way to Darwin 

In the morning we still had the great colors in the water that we have seen as we past slowly through the Great Barrier Reef.

As we moved through the morning, the Captain came on the loudspeakers to give an update on our travels and mentioned that we would see Hammond Rock as we were going through Torres Strait. So everyone was out on the decks to see this as most of us had never heard of it.  

Hammond Rock

So after we saw it, did a little search. Seems like from a maritime/mapping perspective Hammond Rock and Torres Strait are synonymous. Also from a geological view, it is very interesting (north end of the Reef and tjhe rock was described as looking like a mushroom under the water and will eventually break off)

We had a lot of clouds/rain come in and out during the day 

Toni, along with her regular craft class, tried watercolor class today as Rob continued going to the WWII in the Pacific talks.

Unfortunately we had another MedEvac today

You can see how the Captain had turned the ship north earlier that I assume was to match the wind to make it easier for the helicopter and crew. Then we were back heading west. 

Before we knew it, it was dinner time.

Toni was adventurous and had a Pea soup for her appetizer 

Toni and Rob battled over who had the bigger piece of meat. Toni with a big and thick Pork Chop and Rob with a Lamb Shank. Toni won on meat, Rob on bone

I guess since we had a light breakfast and missed lunch, we had room for dessert. Toni with cheesecake and Rob with basically ice cream on a brownie with chocolate sauce (they had a fancier name)

Afterwards, we headed to the theater for a show.  It was also our Cruise Director's, Cole, goodbye. Cole had been with us from the beginning of the cruise and on the ship for awhile before. He is from New Zealand and would be getting off in Darwin to start his vacation. When we were in Tauranga, New Zealand, his home area, his brother, mom, and Grandfather (with his fiancé). The timing of Cole's exit was so his replacement, Andi, who was on the Coral Princess could transfer over when we were in Cairns and they could have a couple days of overlap. And more importantly, Cole could get off in Darwin and be back home for his grandfather's wedding next Saturday.

Cole introduced Andi

Cole and Andi lead all of us in singing Happy Birthday for one of our fellow passengers.  It was his 94th birthday!!!

The show was Rat Pack reloaded

Another sea day tomorrow. And we have to turn our clocks back again. But this time we only turn back our clocks 1/2 hour to match Darwin's timezone. It must be a small timezone as we will turn back another half hour on the evening we leave Darwin