Monday 15 March 2011

Awake with the alarm at 0600 but snoozed until 0610. Up and dressed for a quick walk and then three turns around the deck. Back, showered and dressed. Up and had breakfast (Fran still in bed) and chatted with a woman from Sydney and two ladies from Murwillumbah. Mostly chatted about computers and learning about them. Then down to get the computer and up to the Wheelhouse, onto the Internet and checked my email, uploaded the photos and sent some emails. Also tried to help a lady (Fay) with her mobile, but no luck. I took the number and tried it during the morning with no luck. Took the computer back to the cabin and then found Fran having breakfast.
After, we left the ship at 0915 and walked down the dock and found Mures, then found Louise and Peter arriving about 0935. We met, then walked over to Salamanca Place. We had coffee, they had brunch, at the Laundromat café. After, I got the Melbourne papers and a Hobart paper, and we all walked slowly back to the ship. I went back and got a copy of my book to give to Peter, Louise and Andrew. I signed it and passed it over. We continued to walk, and along the way we had to stop for a swing bridge, but it didn’t swing after five minutes. We walked around, but they opened the gate for pedestrians just as we rounded the pool. We said goodbye and parted at the dock entrance, next to the Bob Barker (Sea Shepherd). There was a line so it took a few minutes to board. Once on board we went to the Promenade Deck (7 - the one I walk around) and watched the ship ease out and into the Derwent. We stood near Fay, who explained that the person she was trying to contact had been waiting for her at the dock since 0630. She also explained that the number was wrong, only the cat would have answered, but that her mobile was still operating incorrectly. Once out, we met up with Pat and had lunch out on the open top deck, but it was quite windy and cool out of the sun. After lunch Pat and I went inside and chatted, but he soon had to go off to ease the pain in his back. Fran went up to have a cup of tea and then went to read in the Wheelhouse (bar). I walked the deck for a mile or so, gently, then went to the Wheelhouse bar and caught up with Fran, Cliff from yesterday and his friend Alan. We chatted and then Pat came along. After 1800 Velma was able to finish and we went up to have tea. Tea was fairly quick (the serving assistant at the ice cream twisted my arm again so I had to take more ice cream) but after we chatted about our family history. It was amazing there were so many parallels even though we lived on different continents and there were so many gaps we each had missed out on and it didn’t look like we would ever find out correctly. Then we looked at the show briefly (II didn’t think I looked like the accordionist that the Chinese from Sydney thought I was) and then Velma and Pat headed off and so did we. Fran settled into bed to read while I did a quick mile around the deck (I’ve managed to reduce it from 19 to 18 and now to 17 minutes when I walk briskly). Back to the cabin, write up this blog, copy and shrink the photos and then I was off to bed.