Around the World Again

Napier, New Zealand – February 4, 2018

I skipped water aerobics to get an extra hour of sleep. Morning trivia was at 10:30 before we were docked and cleared. Only Bonnie (who often plays with us at afternoon trivia) was there from the “Beach Team”, so we played with another team that was missing members. We had 11 correct and tied with another team for top score (since there are no prizes there are no tie-breakers). Hamish did have Australia/New Zealand pins which he passed out to everyone since we don’t get vouchers on port days.

1)The Golden Buddha in Bangkok is made of 5 tons of ___.

2)How long was Robinson Crusoe shipwrecked?

3)What are you doing when you nictate?

4)June Allyson is Godmother of which HAL ship?

5)Which movie gave Julie Andrews the chance to play a man?

After trivia I went to the Lido for an early lunch and sat by the pool until it was time to meet for my excursion. I chose the “Hawke’s Bay Express” tour which was on a “road train”. We were picked up by Will and Krysia who, along with Will’s family built the train. Napier experienced a catastrophic earthquake, which along with the ensuing fires) on February 3, 1931 destroyed the city. We learned that the size of Napier grew larger after the earthquake because it raised some land above sea level.

When Napier rebuilt, art deco was the current style and many of the buildings from the 30s remain. Napier calls itself the “Art Deco Capital of the World”. Many people lovingly drive vehicles from the period and dress appropriately for the 30s.

We could take the train back to the ship or be left off in the centre of town. The downtown area is fairly compact and it was a beautiful sunny day with a temperatures of about 70, so I decided to walk around.

I had gotten more New Zealand dollars than I really needed and had spent very little cash in Auckland or Tauranga and I was beginning to think I might have to exchange it on the ship for Australian dollars. However, I managed to spend a good deal of it today. I purchased wool/possum fur gloves for my cruise next year as well as a few souvenirs. I was also able to find the odds and ends I looked for in Auckland but couldn’t find.

Everyone has been talking about “Hokey Pokey” candy and ice cream although nobody I asked on the ship could agree what is in it. So, when I saw a homemade gelato shop, I decided to try it. It was delicious so I bought a bag of the candy but haven’t tried it yet.

Returned on the free shuttle bus (not allowed to walk in the port area because of safety and security) in time to work on my pictures and play 5:00 trivia. Once again nobody else from the team was present so I joined another team. We had 15 and the winning team had a perfect 17.

1)What is the third largest Mediterranean island?

2)What is the official sport of Alaska?

3)What does the word “sushi” refer to?

4)In what city was Michelangelo raised?

5)On what island was Napoleon when he died?

Read a little before getting ready for dinner. All eight were present. I had cream of broccoli soup, Caesar salad, New Zealand pork schnitzel, and watermelon sorbet for dessert.

There was no show tonight (just a movie) so I worked on the blog until it was sail-away time (about 10:30) when I went out on my deck to watch. It was a beautiful clear evening with a sky full of stars.

Sea day tomorrow as we head to Port Chalmers (Dunedin).