"Following our departure from Port Douglas, we set various north-westerly courses though the Great Barrier of Reef towards Torres Strait. The Torres Strait is a body of water, which lies between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is approximately 150km wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost continental extremity of Queensland, and to the north is the Western Province of Papua New Guinea. The strait is named after Luis Vaez de Torres, a Spanish sailor on the expedition led by Pedro Fernandez de Quiros who sailed the South Pacific in 1605. "
I have been surprised how long we have been sailing north following the Cape York Peninsula for hours. We could see islands, sand banks and very smooth deep blue waters. We turned into the Gulf of Carpentaria around 4pm. We have been told many stories from Captains Cook and Bligh who sailed in the area, and passing the little Booby Island, were explained it was the second post office created in Australia... a sort of remote post office box!
After enjoying my breakfast in the sun, I was glad to catch up with our Staff Captain, Salvatore Caccioppoli, with whom I went across the pacific and the Panama Canal two years ago. I then went to the mazipan demonstration followed by Lindsay's lecture about Darwin in the Princess Theatre.
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| Princess Theatre |
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| Vista Lounge |
I have been asked to add more pictures of the food we have on board, you will therefore follow me through my greedy gastronomic adventures. I was really looking forward to today's Filipino Lunch Buffet. I have been very impressed with the ice sculpture, the swordfish watermelon and the profusion of cakes, but I could not resist asking Ferdie for a second "Lumpia" (Fresh roll with prawns, chicken, green beans, carrots, soy beans, onions and a well balanced garlic and peanut sauce). I enjoyed my lunch above the Riviera pool with a concert of Pavarotti on the big outdoor screen.
After my team won the Scattergories Challenge, I imagined losing a few calories during the Cha Cha dance class, before going back to the 24h buffet for afternoon tea, seeking a chocolate brownie. What a mistake, I got harpooned by our chefs and left with scone, cherry crumble, cream and a waffle covered with cooked bananas in toffee sauce. Oops! Delicious though!
With Barry and Reg, we deserted Table 51 tonight and tried La Scala Pizzeria for a change. Nice atmosphere with the live music from the Grand Plaza or the Atrium reaching us on deck 8. We then went to the Jammers nightclub where around a hundred passengers came for the "Open Mic - Jokers Wild night" and had the chance to tell their own jokes on stage. A few good ones, lots of laugh!
