The next day in Dubai we were able to get off quickly, not having to do the immigration processes. We were booked on a Red Bus trip, taking us generally down to the old historic area along Dubai Creek.

Slobro was eager to get onto the top deck to get a good view. Now although the Red Bus has air conditioning it struggled, it was 100 degrees F and humid to boot. Our first stop was to join a Dhow cruise up and back down the Creek for an hour.

This experience highlighted the old problem with Red Buses. We got off the bus and had to wait half an hour for the cruise to start. Shade was at a premium. Then after the cruise we had to wait another half hour for the next Red Bus to come along. So we did an hour there. But the cruise was pleasant catching all the life along the river bank. Dhows being loaded and unloaded, people rushing around and going back and forth across the Creek in small ferries.

Back in 2007 we had spent a few days here in Dubai and the old historical district and sites were somewhat familiar to us. We had stayed in a nearby hotel. Allthego had done some research on eating establishments, looking for a place offering a traditional menu and ambience. The Al Khayma Heritage Restaurant came up with good reviews. The trick was to find it, we had the address and lo and behold the Red Bus went right past it. But we had missed the stop and had to walk back from the next stop. Again luck was on our side as we walked right past a post office and Allthego was able to get his post cards away, including one from Colombo!

We were not disappointed with the food at Al Khayma. A really good beetroot salad, some chicken shawarma samosas and lamb machboos.

The lamb dish is a cultural favourite in this region. Also done with chicken. The lamb is slow cooked in water and a great swag of various herbs and spices. The broth is then used to cook the rice and absorb the fluid and spices. Served with the lamb.

A bit more complex than that but that’s the guts of it, there seems to be various recipes and methods. Tastes wonderful. A big fresh orange juice and a minted lemon tea to drink. Would go back again for sure, a memorable lunch.

Jumped on the Red Bus and headed back to the ship for dinner! Dubai is an interesting place, a cultural melting pot in a traditional society. All the ‘bigness’ and razzmatazz makes it all seem a very plastic and artificial place. Nice to visit but wouldn’t want to live here. The ship sailed away later that night at around 10 pm. City all lit up against a dark sky.

We arrived into Dubai earlier than planned having made up some time due to the aborted stop for Muscat.

Now one of the things you learn after doing a few cruises is that it takes longer to get off the ship than what is planned. Always a delay of some sort. No different here. Another thing you learn is that there is no way you can see everything. You have to pick and choose. Allthego and Homealone are teaching Slobro to see something that is iconic, have a new experience, engage with the locals or just sit and observe the world go round. But get on with it because the time goes quick!

On this our first day in Dubai, Homealone is staying onboard as she is reluctant to catch the lift up the tallest building in the world. Allthego goes off to do this half day trip on his lonesome, Slobro is just a no go!
Burj Khalifa is 830 metres up. The observation deck is on level 124, 452 metres up.

The lift to the deck is silent and takes about 40 seconds, as you rise the lift interior lights up with views of the urban landscape and skies. Quite spectacular, as are the views. At this time of the year the skies are quite heavy with dust and haze. Our guide tells us it’s not smog. Long distance views are compromised but the views down and over the city show the enormous amount of property development taking place.

Burj (Tower) Khalifa is set amidst the sprawling Dubai Mall. Most things in Dubai are big. Dubai Mall is the largest shopping mall in the world, 1300 plus outlets, Olympic size ice rink, huge aquarium, 3 story waterfall. It covers 4 floors with 12 million square feet. Simply enormous.

All sorts of people wandering around, traditional Emirati and Muslim outfits to ripped jeans and bare midriffs. Quite a contrast. It is a reflection of Dubai’s libertarian turning of the cheek to breaches of Muslim practice, except when it comes to the mosques.

On the way back to the ship we pass by the current Ruler’s Palace, security ever present but not too obvious. The famous Jumeirah Mosque is also passed. The guide passes on an interesting fact about mosques. On the minarets and domes there are gold spikes sticking up.

The ones on the Jumeirah mosque have a circle shape on top. This means the mosque is a Sunni mosque, common in Saudi Arabia and these parts. If there is a sickle shape on top it is a Shia mosque, common on the other side of the Persian Gulf in Iraq and Iran, although there are Sunnis there as well. So that might help readers in a trivia quiz! I won’t dwell on the difference between these two, Wikipedia will help the curious.

Back at the ship Allthego found that Homealone and Slobro had enjoyed the day doing the washing.

Unfortunately, our late departure from Colombo and continuing engine issues have slowed our passage northwest across the Arabian Sea. We are currently in the Gulf of Oman making for the Straits of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf. A stop had been planned for Muscat in Oman, but this has been abandoned. We will be arriving in Dubai tomorrow, 25 June for an overnight stop, a little earlier than planned. So we will have had another four days at sea.

Allthego is getting a little edgy and needs to set foot on dry land. Homealone continues with craft activities. Good progress is being made on the Physi tartan, we might be able to get a photo up soon.

The weather has remained reasonably good, although it has been mostly cloudy since leaving Colombo and the wind has picked up. Seas have been running at around 2 metres, a little rocking. Have now calmed as we are high in the Gulf. Remaining very warm but the humidity has eased as we have moved north.
Slobro has been taking the ship board life style in his stride and is wanting to share some information. Princess Cruises has a loyalty program, ‘ benefits’ accrue based on number of cruises or days cruised. Categories are Gold, Ruby, Platinum and Elite. The key ones here are Platinum (50 days) and Elite (150 days). You attain Gold after one cruise. Allthego and Homealone are Platinum. Now this cruise we are on is the first Princess world cruise from Australia since COVID, there are we believe about 1800 people aboard. The vast majority are 71 plus! It is Slobro’s first cruise ever. He is astounded that there are some 780 Elite and 420 Platinum members aboard, two thirds of all aboard. There are only 200 or so first time cruisers. Some of these Elite characters are on their third and fourth world cruises they inform us. There is one couple who will have been on the ship continuously for two years when it goes into dry dock for a refurbishment later in the year. They are transferring to another ship.

One of the benefits of being a Platinum and Elite member is we have our own little snack bar to partake of, except 1200 people can get into it! Elite people get a free laundry service, problem is there are so many that the laundry is taking 3 to 4 days to come back!

There is also a Captains Circle Party to hear a chat from the Captain. It was at this party that we were told who is on board with the most cruise days all up. The top three. Slobro can’t recall the numbers exactly but here they are in round numbers. First, 1800 sea days and 174 cruises all up. Second, 1700 sea days and 142 cruises all up. Third, 1400 sea days and 121 cruises. Something like 5-6 years cruising, apparently more or less constantly! Slobro, 17 days and counting!

So this ship is full of people who have travelled far and often, at least on ships. Slobro is going to opine on the merits of cruising in an upcoming blog, after a little more experience aboard.

One of the highlights of this leg was the win by Queensland in the second State of Origin fixture. All aboard look forward to a clean sweep at he next outing, at least the Queenslanders! The outstanding Courier Mail newspaper sums it up well.

Food and entertainment continue to be mostly excellent. One of our waiters put together a quick sketch of Homealone looking inquisitively at her plate. Certainly got the eyes!

We have had a stand up comedian who thinks he is funny. Laughs at his own jokes! Enough said.

Had an excellent hot dog today, 3 bean nacho sauce and cheddar cheese atop. Thought I was in Houston!

So we now find ourselves about to step ashore in Dubai. It is the end of Stage 1 of the cruise.

We have left Colombo and are now heading north west into the Arabian Sea.

As was predicted we arrived late into port at Colombo, around 1 pm. This screwed up our day, our tour to the tea plantation and factory had fortunately been able to be rescheduled from the morning to the afternoon. We set off around 2.00pm in our air conditioned coach, having finally got ashore.

Now this tour involved a return journey of 5 hours or so and the ship was leaving at 7.30pm. So a tight squeeze to say the least! We would miss seeing any of the town, another time perhaps.

But the main game in this port had been to get out and see life in the countryside. Which is what we did! There is a philosophy that suggests one shouldn’t get agitated about things one can’t control. Go with the flow! So a slow ship didn’t worry Slobro and neither did the bus breaking down on the way to the tea factory! Fortunately, a risk management assessment had been performed and the tour company had an empty bus following us! So we piled into that one and set off again down the Highway, a further twenty minutes had ticked by.

Turning off the dual carriage highway it was back to a narrow two lane roadway all the way to the tea factory. It seems that in the countryside the population lives largely either side of these roads. There are motor bikes, little two seater cars and small trucks everywhere. Small traditional shops among small workshops, retail stores, vehicle repair shops. An endless stream of probably subsistence level economic activity.
At one point we have a police escort, it clears oncoming traffic to allow us to speed along through the endless village. Our driver honks his horn almost continuously as he overtakes all and sundry on the narrow road.

We finally make it to the tea factory for a short refreshment break before a tour through the operation. Slobro really got into this and was engrossed in the processes.

The factory was quite heavily mechanised, but some processes remain very manual. A bare footed female workforce seemed to operate everything, even the bagging of final product. Interesting set up, we had about an hour on site.

It was then back aboard the bus for the return journey along the same route. No breakdown, but the driver wasn’t mucking around. We made it back at 7.20 pm!

The ship though seemed delayed and we didn’t leave port until nearly 11pm. The Colombo tulip flashing from red to green and blue in the night sky as we sailed away.

Leaving Singapore our ship headed up through the Straits of Malacca, between Sumatra and the Malay Peninsular. The Straits are one of the busiest shipping channels in the world. Freight is moved from Asia down around Singapore, up the Straits, across the Indian Ocean and through the Suez Canal to Europe. Ships then come back the other way.

All this shipping has in the past been a great hunting ground for modern day pirates. Particularly, against smaller cargo vessels. Piracy has been thwarted in recent years because of greater surveillance by various authorities and is a rarity today.

Nonetheless, the waters around the top of Aceh and out into the Andaman Sea still have some of these friendly folk plying their trade. For this reason the ship quickens pace to speed up the crossing on the way to Colombo. The crew do a piracy drill one morning and all the passengers are alerted to what happens in the event of action. Basically, get away from external areas, stay inside and sit down. Also, be prepared for the ship making unexpected manoeuvrings. One suspects a lot of this has to do with insurance, duty of care etc.

The weather has turned a bit and is clouding up, some showers as we motor along trying to leave them behind. The seas have developed a slight swell with white caps from time to time.

Onboard activities continue. Slobro continues to lead our team in progressive trivia. We have slipped a little in the rankings down in the middle of the pack, 35 out of around 82. Recovery will be hard from here.

We have also had a great show with a harmonica player, did a version of ‘What a Wonderful World’ followed by a long ABBA medley. All backed by the band, very energetic.

The ship has had some diesel generator issues, slowing our progress and we are going to be a few hours late into Colombo. Unfortunately, disrupting our plans ashore for the day. Slobro is resigned to this but trusting that the issues will be fixed and not affect things beyond Colombo.
We have now turned up the west coast of Sri Lanka and will pass Galle on the way to Colombo.

We arrived into the cruise terminal around 7.30am after slowly moving through the bay as the sun came up over the top of a bank of cloud. Ships everywhere waiting to unload or take on cargoes, quite a maze!

We had decided to do our own thing here in Singapore. Just wander around for the day and take in some of the local vibe. Allthego had been here twenty years or so ago on a business trip, but otherwise we have only passed through on the way in a plane going somewhere else.

After getting ashore at about 10.30 am it was into the subway for a ride up to Orchard Rd, shopping heart of the city. At least the up market end. Very busy place among the modern buildings and traffic. Some great street art along the footpaths and building forecourts.

Managed to find the local Spotlight outlet. Not necessary to do any shopping for supples as half a suitcase of wools etc had been brought along by the crafter. Still an exciting experience for Slobro both here, and with the Jelly Babies.

The weather was hot and humid and one became thirsty quite quickly. We grabbed some coke and sat down in a hawker centre, Indonesian. Quickly moved on by an austere official, eaters only area. Not unlike our Aussie food courts!

A little further along it was a surprise to glance up a side street and see some of the old shophouses leading up to Emerald Hill. Very colourful, mostly bars and the like now.

Lunch called and we jumped onto the subway for Chinatown, a couple of stops away. Found an interesting little establishment in a backstreet mall. Enjoyed some chicken stir fry, cucumber and spring onion wraps. Also a fried pork and vegetables with rice. Washed down with some Tiger Lager.

After lunch it was back onto the subway for Raffles and a wander around the old colonial area. Finally, lobbed into the entrance to the Long Bar only to find a lengthy queue. It was around 3.40 and we needed to back on board by 5.30. Got to our seats eventually and enjoyed a Singapore Sling and the free peanuts. Scattered our share of shells on the floor in accordance with tradition.

Raffles has recently undergone renovation and the Bar has been relocated from somewhere else. Allthego remembers it being a larger space and far more rustic.

Time caught up with us and it was back to the subway and the ship. Slobro had been a bit anxious about the time. The three of us were a little weary after 12 km of walking around.

On the way up to Singapore the ship crosses the equator on a line that more or less cuts Sumatra in half, we are out to sea with no land in sight. It is about 1pm when this happens and it is the signal for an old custom to commence.

The old naval tradition is to initiate those on board who have not crossed the equator, the Pollywogs. King Neptune, Roman god of the water, and his Queen lead a procession along the decks to their thrones.

Pollywogs are subject to all sorts of acts under the gaze and authority of the King.

They then become Shellbacks, loyal servants of Neptune. In the old days it was fairly rugged stuff. Today, on the Coral Princess, it is mostly cream, spaghetti and other goey slippery stuff being thrown around. Some are asked to kiss dead fish. Lots of music and cheering.

Allthego, Homealone and Slobro looked on from a safe distance as selected passengers were subjected to the initiation. They seemed pleased, the lady in red was popular with Slobro. Hopefully, we won’t have to go through this again when we cross back over the equator on the other side of the world because we are now all Shellbacks!

Once the ceremony was over we retired for lunch and then late afternoon trivia demanded our attendance and concentration.

Yesterday we made our first landfall at Komodo Island. Land of the Komodo Dragon and about 1800 people, who it is claimed live in harmony with this interesting reptile. Their houses are raised on stilts, apparently to discourage the Komodos which can grow up to 3 metres long, weigh upwards of 70 plus kgs per and live for 30 years, such is ‘harmony’. It is only in recent years that the people have been stopped from feeding the Komodos. Slobro, thought this was an interesting old trick. The people feed the Komodos and the Komodos don’t feed on the people! More about Komodos later.

We had made our way across the Arafura Sea from Cape York more or less dead west. Sea very calm with a light breeze and clear skies. On reaching Timor-Leste we cruised the southern coastline along past Indonesian Timor and then northwest to reach Komodo Island. The little map shows the spot, a full seven days sailing since leaving Brisbane.

Slobro has been out and about, observing what has been going on. Particularly observant at breakfast time, his asides quite perceptive. He enjoys a yogurt parfait.

We have also had some enjoyable entertainment on board in the evening, some good old time musical favourites from the 50-70s. Also a great show, ‘On the Bayou’ showcasing some New Orleans soul music.

We arrived at the island early in the morning as the sun was rising over the mountains dropping straight into the sea; little slivers of land along the shoreline. An eerie landscape.

The main attraction here is of course the Komodo Dragon. The island and a couple of nearby islands are the only places where they are found. It is a national park and world heritage site. We were here a few years ago and went ashore then and did not see the need to do so again.
Parties go ashore for a 45 minute walk through the bush to a muddy waterhole where some of these guys hang out. They are a formidable predator. Their technique is simple and involves stalking their prey and lying in wait beside the bush tracks. They have a venomous bite and a very acute sense of smell, blood up to 8 km away. So whilst they can run up to 30 km an hour in short bursts, they also just wander around sniffing the air to find the dead prey. They eat any meat and at a sitting can consume 80% of their body weight. Eat once a month and lie around digesting it. They consume the lot: meat, bones, skin, guts leaving nothing. The park provides a ready supply of red deer and boar to amuse them and satisfy hunger.

There are two guides for each group one at the front and one at the back, each have a long fork shaped stick to discourage the Komodo who might take a liking to a walker. Apparently, some years ago one walker who wandered off from a group didn’t return. Slobro was disappointed to not go ashore and have a look but agreed with Allthego’s view that you don’t have to be the fastest runner in these walking groups, just the second slowest. Slobro was not up for the test!

Komodos are not prehistoric critters like the dinosaurs. They are thought to be comparatively ‘modern’ relatives of Australia’s monitor lizards, like goannas, cut off from Australia when sea levels rose after the last ice age ( so I have read). Like other Australian mega fauna they became extinct, but survived on Komodo Island. There are about 4000 on the Indonesian islands in the National Park today. So much for Komodos, Slobro has said stop now!

During the day there is a never ending cross crossing of boats between the islands, some appear to be ferries going back and forth, others small local fishing boats and some small tourist boats. All against the backdrop of the brooding mountains and inky blue water. Quite spectacular wild country.

We sailed for Singapore late in the day past numerous islands and bays out into the Java Sea.

We have now passed by our first major landmark on the journey. About 9pm last night we commenced the passage through Torres Strait and around the top of Cape York. We slowly worked our way past the group of islands that were once part of the land bridge to Papua New Guinea. Thursday, Prince of Wales and Horn Island probably the best known.

Tucked into the neck of Cape York is the small island that Capt Cook landed on and where he raised the Union Jack, taking possession for England of the great land mass up the east coast of which he had sailed. He named it Possession Island. Back then, the locals had a dim view of those events. Their descendants continue to harbour them today.

As the ship has sailed north from Brisbane the weather has warmed up and become more humid. Winter has been swapped for summer! We now head across the Arafura Sea towards Timor-Leste and then Komodo Island in Indonesia.

Shipboard life has been fairly uneventful. Allthego has found the days quite relaxing, interspersed with some onboard intellectual pursuits, involving a daily lecture dealing with Australian maritime history. Coastline mapping, ship wrecks and the WWII naval defence of the country. Some interesting stuff, not sure to make it to all nine. Slobro, has not attended, a little dry for him.

Homealone, is engrossed in Kindle books and has found a daily craft group. Then there is food to fill the day out before evening entertainment and bed.
The sea has been very calm, hardly a ripple. The coastline has been shrouded in low cloud, out to sea it has been sunny with some high puffs of cloud.
Making our way up Cape York past Cooktown the ship came closer inshore. The channel is much easier seen with markers here and there, islands and reefs become more numerous. Late in the afternoon yesterday we passed by Cape Direction and Cape Weymouth on which is Chilli Beach and Restoration Island offshore.

We had camped on Chilli beach in our van back in 2020 (we had escaped in the middle of COVID) on a trip up Cape York. Looks different from the sea side! Restoration Island was named by William Bligh when he landed there in the whale boat on his way to Batavia, after being cast adrift by the Bounty mutineers. He and his crew were ‘restored’ by eating the plentiful oysters found there. Also, named for the anniversary of the Restoration of King Charles II to the English throne on the day he landed.

Further along we passed Haggerstone and Hicks Islands. Not long afterwards the sun sank in a glowing sky.

It was time for dinner and the Elvis movie on the big screen out on the deck.

‘Off to see the world’ is a song from one of the ‘My Little Pony’ movies by some Swedish chaps and has nothing to do with what we are going to do over the next 110 days. It just has a catchy name, a bit like ‘Off to see the Wizard of Oz’. We will be back in sunny Brisbane in mid September.

The Coral Princess is leaving Brisbane and will be taking us up the Queensland coast, through the Torres Strait to Komodo Island, where those big lizzards live, in that string of islands running down from Bali towards PNG. Then, Singapore and across the Indian Ocean to Dubai via Colombo in Sri Lanka.

So,things will be a little quiet on the blog for the next ten days or so until we hit Singapore. The ship is one of the smallest in the Princess fleet, accomodating up to 2,000 guests. It set off on this passage from Auckland, picked up in Sydney and today us in Brisbane. So, it seems it will be mostly New Zealanders and Aussies aboard.

We are sharing our cabin on this journey with another guest, three to the room and it could be a little squeezy. Slobro has joined us to provide special insights on where we go and who we come across. He, may slow us down a bit in some of the onboard activities and shore excursions. This cannot be helped.

The drive out to the port went smoothly and the boarding process all good. Only about 400 Brisbanites to board so it went quite smoothly and quickly. Thankfully, we had passed our RAT tests and had all the paperwork in order.

It is a pleasant afternoon, sunny with some cloud. Low cloud out to the west on the horizon, so we may get a good sunset going past the Glasshouse Mountains. All good for the sail away at 5pm.