Almost there

Almost there, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

It's been a fantastic last day today. We couldn't have asked for better
weather. This'll probably be my last video from aboard Aurora, so I thought
I'd film it from my favourite place - up on the forward observation deck
overlooking the bow.

I might try and get a video of our table-mates tonight so you can see some
of the fascinating people we've been eating with each night.

Cricket at sea

Cricket at sea, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

Indians love their cricket so much that they even play it at sea!

Getting close to NZ

Getting close to NZ, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

We're now closer to land (about 20km away) and small pleasure craft are
starting to come close to us.

Here's a quick view of one that came pretty close this morning.

Sunset

Sunset, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

Sunsets at sea are amazing.

Albatross

Albatross, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

I saw these birds following us yesterday. We were hundreds of kilometres
from land. They weren't flapping, just gliding behind the ship and skimming
the waves.

They almost looked like they were doing it just for fun!

Kids Club

Kids Club, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

Here's a quick peek at the kids facilities.

The staff are protective of the kids, so they asked me not to film in there until the kids were out watching a movie (Wall-E).

It looks like a lot of fun!

Oh, and Lilly, I know how disappointed you were that the dance machine on Oriana didn't work. The dance machine on Aurora works!!!

Dawn Princess passing us at sea

Dawn Princess passing us at sea, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

A video slideshow of the Dawn Princess as she passed us (going a lot quicker
than we were) at about 11am today.

Bob and I will be travelling on her in June :)

Dinner on the back deck

Dinner on the back deck, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

We had dinner at the Pennant Grill this evening as the sun was going down.

The location is perfect. The only problem is making sure you don't eat too
much.

The indoor pool and diver

The indoor pool and diver, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

Aurora has a few freshwater swimming pools, including this one which is
covered over when the weather is cool.

I think the nearby sculpture of the diver is very lifelike. It looks like
it's made out of bronze. Apart from the color, you'd think it was a real
man!

Ice Sculptures

Ice Sculptures, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

Ice sculptures at the Asian Buffet lunch today.

Curzon Theatre

Curzon Theatre, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

The Curzon Theatre is where we see most of the shows in the evening. Most
of the shows are aimed at baby boomer style visits to the 1960's.

If you can get over that hurdle, the shows are usually quite well done.

The Promenade

The Promenade, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

A quick walk around the promenade deck. It's a lovely place for a walk any
time of day.

2 laps = 1km.

3.3 laps = 1 mile.

Aurora is pretty big :)

The Crows Nest

The Crows Nest, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

Here's a quick video of the crows nest bar.

It's right at the top of the ship, at the front, so it has a great view of
the horizon, to the left, right and forward.

If you don't mind a little bit of cigarette smoke, it's quite a pleasant
place to have a pre-dinner drink in the evenings.

The view from the front

The view from the front, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

Here's the view from one of the observation decks at the front of the ship.

Although the wind makes a bit of noise in the microphone, it's a lovely
peaceful place where not many people visit - probably because it's difficult
to find, and hard to open the door :)

The Atrium

The Atrium, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

The captain has just informed us that our engine problems have caused our
speed to drop to a bit over half what it should be, which means we have to
cancel some ports.

Rather than stopping at Wellington and Napier, he has decided to sail
straight to Auckland so that we get there on time.

The cruise duration will be the same - we'll arrive in Auckland on
Saturday. We just won't stop anywhere on the way.

Here's a quick view of Aurora's atrium and its impressive water sculpture.

Nothing But Sea

Nothing But Sea, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

Here's another video of the sea this morning.

It's flat and calm.

The only problem is that our engines aren't working too well, and we're only
going a bit over half our normal speed.

I don't know how this will affect our arrival time into Wellington, but I'll
let you know.

Regardless of how fast we're going, it's still great to be here.

Formal night tonight. And I'm lookng forward to watchng a classical piano
concert before dinner.

More news later.

Anchors away!

Anchors away!, originally uploaded by MagicTyger.

How good is this?

On Board - First Impressions

Here's a video of our cabin, the view from our window, and the deck outside. Lots of Englash Flags flying everywhere, but it's nice to see a few Aussie ones on board too, even though she's an english ship.

The Tank Stream

The Tank Stream - Marker

One of the reasons the first fleet decided to set up camp in Sydney Cove was because of the fresh water.

A small stream called "The Tank Stream" flowed into the harbour near where they landed.

Today it's covered over by roads, railway lines, wharves and 200 years of other city "stuff".

But if you look closley on the pavement at the top of Pitt Street near Circular Quay, you can see this marker which shows where the stream flows.

And if you're lucky enough, you can be one of the few tourists who gets to do an underground tour of what's left of the stream.

Look up "Tank Stream" on wikipedia of you're interested.

It's amazing what history lies under our feet, waiting to be rediscovered.

Sydney Cove

A view of our ship, and Sydney Harbour from Circular Quay.

Sorry about some of the camera movement - I'll do a better job next video. Promise!

I'll try an upload a video of our room and the view from our window later on this afternoon.