FOODIES AND PHOTOS

Something I have just learned about our travel companions, Debbie and Dave is that they are total foodies.  In all the years I have known them I did not know the extent of their appreciation for all the aspects of a well prepared meal.  They are into the whole experience!  As I write this, they are at the last dinner of our cruise at the Chef’s Table.  So although I may not get pictures of the “Big Dinner”, I do have many pictures of the other meals they have enjoyed. I hope those of you reading this that classify yourselves as foodies will enjoy! 🙂

In addition to their quest for the perfect meal, Debbie and Dave are super friendly and social with everyone and willing to share all their experiences.  But they made a minor mistake when talking to the manager of a restaurant they were dining at by telling him they did not care for the food at the sushi restaurant.  He happened to be the manager at that restaurant also.  So he arranged for them to dine at the sushi restaurant again and the sushi chef prepared a meal just for them.  

So they felt they had to eat it all!  And they did!

They were so uncomfortable and miserable for hours.  

So …….

Do we think the chef was trying to win their approval back?

Or did he punish them?

Hmmmm.  I’m not sure 🙂

PORT OF CALLS

Today is our last day of cruising aboard the “Ovation of the Seas” and although we have enjoyed ourselves, I know I am ready to get back on dry land.  We have hit a little weather and our boat is rocking and rolling.  We literally roll back and forth in bed and walking around the boat is quite hilarious at times.  Our captain did make the decision to skip our last port of call in favor of taking the ship around the storm, which I for one am very grateful.  One of our dining companions was sea sick the first couple of days and I wouldn’t want to experience any of that!

We did have three port of call days and I have only shared one with you from the day in Dunedin where we visited Baldwin Street, the steepest street in the world and we also visited the Larnach Castle.

And by the way, I did start the book and it is very interesting!

Our second port of call was at Christchurch where we rode up a gondola for some breathtaking views. 

We chose to cut our time at port short that day to go back to the ship for some relaxation, drinks and to play some cards.  We enjoyed playing cards so much together that we played them every day after.

Day 7 of our cruise took us to Wellington on the southern coast of the north island.  Wellington is exactly what you would expect when visiting New Zealand.  Mountains, ocean beaches both sandy and rocky and crazy drivers on the wrong side of the road.  Our bus driver for this excursion was an excellent driver but crazy on those windy roads up the mountains.  I didn’t know whether to be car sick, claustrophobic or just scared for my life!

But it was the best excursion!!  

We loved Wellington!

We started this excursion with a stop at St. Paul’s Church.  It didn’t look like much from the outside, but the inside was really something to see.  But best of all was how our American Marines were involved with this church.  

During WW2, our Marines went over to New Zealand to protect the country and also to use it as a strategic base.  While there, the Marines helped to build roads and many found peace, calm and community at St. Paul’s Church.  Inside the church is an American flag as well as a U.S. Marines flag.

Very cool!  It made me proud!

Our next stop was at the Museum of The Lord of the Rings. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy was filmed entirely in New Zealand spanning more than 150 locations on both the north and south islands. James Cameron lived here while filming and claims he loves it here so much he plans to become a New Zealand citizen.

Our last stop for the day was at Lady Norwood Rose Garden which was a large garden full of all different kinds of roses.  It’s a little late in the year for them right now but we were able to enjoy them.  Kevin and I went around and smelled all of them and each had a different scent from the other.

When we got back on the bus, Kevin said to everyone

“Well, today we actually stopped and smelled the roses”. 🙂