Read, Write, Ramble

Sunday, our final day of the voyage, dawned with a sparkle. Grey skies and oceans had turned blue. We had obviously cleared Bass Strait and were motoring parallel to, although not within sight of, the NSW east coast. The topic of conversation today was crime writing, kicked off with a panel discussion featuring Fiona McIntosh and Paul Cleave, hosted by gritty journalist, Nick McKenzie. We found ourselves a table in the Golden Lion, having learnt that unless we wanted to get to the Royal Court Theatre at dawn, we were never going to get a seat in there!  The pub was perfectly comfortable with multiple screens and there was a barista to keep us caffeinated. The discussion was lively and interesting, both Fiona and Paul having a great sense of humour as well as being skilled writers. Following this session, Graeme Simsion and his wife and co-author Anne Buist took us through their writing process, how they work together and remain married!  They shared many amusing anecdotes a...

Beginning the day slowly and gently, with breakfast delivered to our cabin has been a feature of this voyage that I have definitely enjoyed. The food in general, has been great – a selection of delicious dishes which includes a choice of appetisers, soups and salads at each meal,  in addition to the entrée (main)  and dessert. Portion sizes are sensible and taking the stairs is always an option, so we hope we are not coming home heavier than when we left. Dietary requirements are dealt with efficiently through  pre-ordering each evening so that anything on the menu is available with consideration to individual allergies/intolerances.   This time we have had an open dining option which means we can turn up for our meals at the time of our choice, within the range of times lunch and dinner are available,  and a table will be found for us - sometimes with others and sometimes a table for two. That has worked pretty well for us, although I think Wallsy prefers mee...

  Friday brought with it many onshore activity options. I had woken at 5am and watched as we passed the rugged coastline of the Three Capes my girls and I had walked last year. I recognised the shape of Tasman Island as we rounded it and began to turn towards Hobart. A pilot came alongside and then, finally, a tugboat, guiding us into our berth at Macquarie Wharf and the International Passenger terminal. Wallsy and I disembarked, raincoats at the ready and crossed Franklin Wharf in the direction of Salamanca Place, as we had a rendezvous to keep. We were only slightly distracted by some remarkable photo-worthy statues in the water,  depicting seals and cormorants and another on the dock in recognition of the early Antarctic explorers. Arriving slightly early, we were lured inside Kathmandu where I immediately found a couple of items I had been needing for future hiking trips. My selection made, we remembered that we had an extensive amount of credit available to us, due to Wal...

The panel comprised of Alexander McCall Smith, Fiona McIntosh, Paul Cleave, Dr Anita Heiss and Graeme Simsion, again hosted by Nick McKenzie. The subsequent lively discussion left the audience in no doubt of the importance of books, even if they are supplemented by current technology and social media. A visit to the book shop after this, with a queue that stretched out the door, further confirmed the importance of books. We opted to visit the bookshop later and retreated to the well-stocked library instead. After time spent in the library (Wallsy) and a rest in the cabin (yours truly) it was time to dress for the gala evening. The theme was black and white, for which I donned a black evening dress and white jacket. It took much longer to get Wallsy dressed in his Mess Dress complete with dinner shirt, bow tie, braces, cummerbund and jacket, than it did me!  Quite the reversal of roles. Dinner was again delicious and I am grateful for the care they take in ensuring I have the next d...

Wednesday presented itself to us with a block of free time before our allocated boarding slot  of 3:15 pm. What better opportunity to catch up with Wallsy’s daughter Felicity, currently working in Sydney in her operations  role within the Australian Ballet. We located a conveniently located café for brunch, called Bennies, which was in close proximity to her workplace at the Opera House and there we met for a lively chat and tasty brunch. Following brunch our local guide, Felicity, offered us a backstage tour of the Dame Joan Sutherland Theatre at the Opera House – home of the ballet for their NSW season. We felt very privileged to be given yet another behind the scenes tour. We saw the huge lift which transports scenery to the stage, and the costumes, ready for the day’s matinee of the Nutcracker. We had a sneak view of the dancers working and rehearsing on stage, saw the wig room and  various workstations with the best views of the bay. As for Hamilton, this tour provid...

 What better way for Wallsy to ease into retirement than a Literature Festival at Sea on board Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth. Sounds like a great idea, except the trip wasn’t purchased as a retirement celebration, it was booked as my 2024 Christmas present. It just happens to coincide with his retirement and I am more than happy to share the celebration.   We left home yesterday morning (Tuesday December 10), slightly later than planned, and just outside my comfort zone in terms of airport arrival times go, for our 10am flight to Sydney. It was of course fine, but Wallsy did feel vindicated for having purchased Value Express parking, which meant that, on arrival at the Value Carpark, we simply had to hand over the car keys and walk away from the car without spending time driving up and down each row to find a park ourselves.  Being my Christmas present, was also justification for seats in the pointy end of the plane apparently, a space we soon discovered we were sharing with l...