Today is our 2nd and final sea day before arriving in Noumea tomorrow for an overnight stay. The Galley and Entertainment Team, really put on a great show today with the galley providing 3 special meals and the Entertainment Team presenting an afternoon concert.

Temperature: 28C/82F

Wind/Weather: Partly cloudy, with SSE’ly winds freshening throughout the day

Sunrise/Sunset: 06:02/18:56

Clox: 1 hr Ahead (Z+11)

Navigation

Since Noon yesterday we have maintained ESE’ly courses at a speed of 14.3 kts. Since departure Brisbane we steamed 509 miles, at an average speed of 15.1 kts. We have 287 miles to the Pilot Station, where we will board the local pilot at 05:00 tomorrow.

Weather

The swell has eased, being of longer duration and not so steep. At Noon it was about 6 to 8 feet in height. The ESE’ly winds were < 10 kts when I started walking before 06:00, but started to freshen gradually. By 07:30 it was 10 to 12 kts, by Noon about 20 kts and mid afternoon it was 20 to 25 kts.

Meals

Today’s special meals:

• Aquavit Terrace (07:00 to 10:00) – Organic Muesli Bar
• Aquavit Terrace (12:00 to 14:00) – Australian Blue Swimmer Crab Salad
• Aquavit Terrace (18:00 to 21:00) – Grilled Steak au Poivre, which Judi translated to Pepper Steak

Being a sea day, we started with breakfast in the MDR, with me having the lamp chop, only 1 this time. OMG!! they are amazing. At lunch, we were back in the MDR and I had a bowl of Salmon Chowder, which was amazing. Loaded with big chunks of salmon. During lunch, the wine steward mentioned that since the IPA is almost gone again, he has saved a small stash, so I can have one with dinner.

For dinner we sat at table # 153, with a couple from the US, that boarded in Sydney. Sure enough, Valentine brought over 3 cans of the Norwegian IPA, then Atul the Head Waiter called Room Service and requested they deliver some cans to the cabin. The crew on this ship are simply amazing, as by the end of dinner, when we returned to the cabin, cans of IPA were sitting on the desk.

Activities

Started at 05:45, walking Dk # 8 for over an hour, then getting my stretching completed. After breakfast, Judi headed to her usual spot in the Living Room Dk 1, while I went to the Star Theatre for the 10:00 lecture – “Keeping our Oceans Blue, A Struggle for Humankind” presented by Geoffrey Gray. Lecture was OK, but he certainly doesn’t have the presentation ability of the Colonel or resident Historian.

I stayed for the 11:00 lecture, which was brilliant. Colonel Anthony Coutts-Britton’s subject today was, “The Viking Golden Age.” He discussed how the Vikings explored, both East & West, and how they impacted the language and customs of the places they settled.

We did attend Daily Trivia, but with a measly 8/15, we would rather forget this one.

After lunch we headed down to the spa for almost 3 hrs, trying the hot tub, pool and steam room. Once finished in the water we lay of one of the super comfy loungers reading Kindles.

At 16:00 in the Atrium on Dk # 1, we had another new initiative from Bevan and the singers – the Atrium Concert Series. We have experienced a significant itinerary change, but Bevan is really thinking outside the box and creating some exceptional new entertainment options.

 

This was a really casual performance, with Bevan playing the piano and each of the singers performing individually, then in pairs or as a group. Great show, with the audience encouraged to sing along.

On completion of the Atrium concert, Judi headed for a haircut, while I went to the Theatre for the Noumea port talk. This is Viking’s first ever visit to Noumea, so not much information was available.

Bevan started with his usual brief description of the port, followed by the Shore-ex Manager describing each of the tours. Although I have been to Noumea a few times before, I can’t remember anything about the port and Bevan’s photos didn’t bring back any memories. So tomorrow, it will be similar to a new port for me.

We didn’t really enjoy the violin playing guest entertainer’s last show, so we skipped tonight’s show in favour of an early night.

As another day closes, we bid you farewell, till tomorrow and hope for fair skies and following seas.