Darwin

We had decided not to take any tours in Darwin.  We have been here several times over the past few years and have visited most of the scenic attractions.  What we really wanted to do is simply walk around the waterfront area where the ship had docked.  Last time we were here they were just putting the finishing touches to the area so we wanted to see what the finished article looks like, and we were not disappointed.

Lots of restaurants, bars, and several retail shops surround the large treed and lushly grassed parkland where they have built a wave pool and a giant water castle for the kids to climb over.  Along one entire side of the area is the Darwin Convention Centre that is thoughtfully landscaped to fit in with the natural beauty of the area.

I have picked up a cold from our drenching on Komodo Island and I was disappointed in myself that I couldn't fully enjoy this lovely area.  But having said that we sat back and enjoyed a quiet beverage before heading back to the ship.  It was a very hot and humid day that is to be expected from Darwin at this time of the year and all around us we could see storms brewing.

Back on board the ship, and in the air-conditioning, we had a light meal before heading to the pool area for a swim and nap.  It is the best place to be on board the ship!
We said goodbye to Darwin as we sailed out of the harbour and promised to return again another day.

We now have two days at sea to look forward to before we arrive into Cooktown on New Years Day.

Komodo Island

Komodo Island is a very dry barren island and is the perfect habitat for the Komodo Dragon that loves these conditions.

The Komodo Dragon, that looks like a giant lizard, is a very dangerous and deadly animal.  One bite from this creature means almost certain death.  They are flesh eating animals and their main diet on the island is the deer and wild pigs that roam freely on the island.  They are carnivore's that will readily eat their young.  When the female lays her eggs - 20 or more - in the mounds, that they inherit from the guinea fowls, they stay with the eggs until they hatch and then feed them for a short period of time before the young are left to fend for themselves.  The way that the young do this is to climb trees and stay up there until there are no predators around and then come down for a quick feed before quickly ascending the tree once again.  Not surprisingly there are only 300 Komodo Dragons left in the wild and their population is stable.

We tendered in to the jetty today.  This has been our first tender in a long time and we enjoy it very much.

Once on shore we were introduced to our guide and two other protection guides.  All the guides carry pronged sticks with them in the event that we meet an Komodo Dragon who is intent on attack.  Fortunately we didn't meet any of them today.

We had a 2.5km hike into an area that the locals have watered to entice the dragons.  Today we were lucky enough to see six dragons and a baby high up in a tree. They are enormous, particularly the male.  We were told not to wear red clothing as this would attract the attention of the dragon.  I wore a rust colour and I swear to god one of those dragons was watching my every move!

Can you spot the baby dragon in the tree?

The tour was very interesting and we know a lot more about the Komodo Dragon than we did before the day started.  The tour was two hours but we had a long wait on the pier for our tender to arrive to transport us back to the ship, and as luck would have it, on the driest island we have ever been on, the sky opened up and we were completely drenched by a downpour or rain.  Ah well.  Adds to the fun and certainly cooled us down!

Just had to add this photo.  Do you think this little boat is overloaded!

Day 2 in Bali

We had to be down on the pier at 6.45am this morning to begin our tour.  There were lots of complaints but actually it was the perfect time of the day to tour in hot humid conditions.  Our tour was to Ubud that is the craft hub of Bali.  We had been to this area before and loved it.  It has such a great feel.
The first place that we stopped was at a Balinese Family Compound (or homes).  I had always wondered what was behind those gates and now I now.  It is one of the most tranquil places I have ever been to.  The noise from the busy streets is hushed the minute you walk through those gates.  The compound we visited housed six people.  The Grandmother, Son, Daughter-in-law and their children.  Everything is communal, eating, cooking, sleeping, and worship.  Bali is a majority Hindu population who are gentle kind people and that kindness and happiness is felt wherever you go in Bali.

The next place we visited was a wood carving factory.  We watched as the tradesman carved beautiful art from a simple piece of wood, either mahogany, sandalwood or crocodile wood.

After the factory it was on to lovely Laka-Leki Restaurant in Ubud for dancing and craft displays followed by one of the best meals we have ever eaten off the ship while on tour.  The dancers of all ages performed the Pendet Dance (the traditional welcome dance), the Rabbit Dance and the Butterfly  Dance.

We were back on board the ship for our departure time of 2.00 pm from Bali.  Tonight on board the ship at 6.00 pm was the Block Party where everybody comes out of their suites and congregates in the hallway to meet your neighbours.  Wine and canapés are served by the staff and the Captain and Cruise Director go from floor to floor to meet every single person on board.  That's quite a feat! It's a great tradition that Regent have created and a terrific way to meet your fellow passengers.
We had a lovely dinner tonight in Compass Rose.  I chose the Roast Vegetable Samosa with grilled Tofu followed by Grilled Scallops on a bed of pureed artichoke with a rich tomato sauce.  It was so light and delicious and I didn't go to bed with a stomach ready to burst!

Tomorrow we will be on Komodo Island to hopefully catch a glimpse of the fearsome Komodo Dragons.

Christmas Day in Bali

We docked at the Port of Benoa on Christmas morning. It was a glorious day without, surprisingly, any rain.  This is their monsoon season that is predicted to be later this year as it is also back home in Australia.

We had a beautifully leisurely day with a Christmas Lunch in one of the restaurants onboard and later in the evening we had a tour booked to a local village for dinner and show. The Christmas lunch was disappointing as they tend to put all the effort into the dinner that we were not onboard to enjoy.  However we did enjoy roast ham and vegetables followed by rum and raisin ice-cream with chocolate coated bananas so it wasn't all bad....

The show we went to was held at the Bali Bird Park. It was a truly lovely place with some birds caged but many more roaming around free to come and go.  Most stay.

The buffet dinner was a typical Indonesian affair with the usual spicy food that we are enjoying more and more.  Dessert was fresh fruit and sticky rice that I absolutely adore, so I was well sated.
The half hour show was a tribal dance about a young princess abducted by the evil socceror and her eventual saving by the handsome prince.

After the show we then watched a fire dance where a large fire is built and then one of the men, dressed in costume, dances, sits, plays with and even eats the fire. He must be in some sort of trance because to end the dance two men tackle him to the ground to get him away from the fire.  It was quite awesome and at the same time terrifying to watch.

We have two days in Bali and we are looking forward to another tour tomorrow to Ubud.

Oh, this was our Christmas present from Regent.....

Semarang, Java

The ship didn't dock until midday in Semarang that meant we could sleep in and have a late breakfast.  Compass Rose Restaurant had advertised in the ships daily newsletter that they were going to be open for brunch from 9 am to 1 pm.  That was going to be perfect for us as our tour was to depart at 12.15pm.
We arrived at the restaurant around 10.00am only to be told that there was a typo in the newsletter and the restaurant was closed.  What!!!!  Dozens of us had our plans thwarted.  We managed to get a table in La Veranda Restaurant just as it was closing but many more passengers \went without breakfast. It could have been handled a lot better and the question has to be asked as to just how difficult is it to keep a restaurant, that was already open for breakfast, open a couple more hours! The service on Voyager  has been nowhere near as good as we had onboard Navigator earlier this year.  It was THAT service that made us choose this particular cruise.

Our chosen tour today was all about the trains  as we chose the "Steam Train and Plantation tour". We boarded our very comfortable and clean bus at the allocated time and with a police escort, the three buses started to make there way through the busy streets of Semarang to take us to Ambarawa, approximately 40 kilometres from the pier.  Ambarawa is situated in the cool highlands and is lush and green with its many rice paddy fields and so many tropical fruit trees that are very familiar to us.

The steam train was ready for us as we arrived at the railway station and after a comfort stop, we were all loaded quite quickly for our short journey that took us through the paddy fields and past villages with homes built right against the railway track.  The villagers were intrigued by us and all came out of their homes to greet us with smiling faces and big waves.  I asked our tour guide if they had never seen the train before and he replied that the train wasn't the intrigue, we were!  Apparently, they don't get to see many white people in this part of Indonesia.

After our train trip and tour of the railway museum we once again boarded the bus to be taken to the Coffee Plantation and Rubber Plant.  It was very interesting, particularly the harvesting and processing of rubber.  Dinner was included in this tour so we walked the short distance to a large hall where the tables were laden with a smorgasbord of Indonesian dishes. While we ate our dinner we were entertained by two ladies performing the Flower Dance.  It was quite beautiful.

The drive back to the pier seemed to take ages and the police escort was useless when the roads were so very congested, particularly around the area where we were docked.

When we finally arrived back on board the ship we quickly showered and changed and made our way to the Constellation Theatre for tonights dance performance by Voyagers Production Company.  It was called Dance to the Beat and it was a toe tapping performance that we enjoyed very much.

Tomorrow is a day at sea that we always look forward to and will be very relaxing. Oh yes, and it will be Christmas Eve!