Celebrating Australia Day

At the conclusion of our 13 Day Sydney Australia to New Zealand Cruise, we extended our trip in Sydney staying an additional two nights.  This allowed us to spend more time seeing the sights of Sydney and surrounding area.  The highlight of our stay was participation in the Australia Day festivities which were being held at Sydney Harbour.  

Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port Jackson in New South Wales. In present-day Australia, celebrations aim to reflect the diverse society and landscape of the nation and are marked by community and family events, reflections on Australian history, official community awards and citizenship ceremonies welcoming new members of the Australian community.

In contemporary Australia, the holiday is marked by the presentation of the Australian of the Year Awards on Australia Day Eve, announcement of the Australia Day Honors list and addresses from the governor-general and prime minister. It is an official public holiday in every state and territory. With community festivals, concerts and citizenship ceremonies, the day is celebrated in large and small communities and cities around the nation. Australia Day has become the biggest annual civic event in Australia.

Indigenous Australian events are now included. However, since at least 1938, the date of Australia Day has also been marked by Indigenous Australians and supporters mourning what is seen as the invasion of the land by the British and the start of colonization, protesting its celebration as a national holiday. 26 January is referred to as Invasion Day, Survival Day, or Day of Mourning. Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage to groups that lived in Australia before British colonization. They include the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia.

Australia Day festivities in Sydney lasted the entire day.  They started with Lord Mayor's Citizenship Ceremony followed by various acts on the Tallawoladah Stage, Ferrython, Salute to Australia, Tug & Yacht Ballet, In the Sky, Harbour Parade, Tall Ships Race, Australia Day Regatta, and concluded with Australia Day Live including various entertainers, concluding with an amazing  fireworks display.

We'll post some more information and videos.  Meanwhile, see our Australia Day photo album.

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A Man and His Donkey

Mykonos Town

Along the Harbour

It's a beautiful Sunday afternoon as we stroll along the harbour front of Mykonos Town.   This is our final installment, at least for now, in our series about our visit here during our Star Princess 12 Night Greek Isles and Mediterranean Cruise.

Mykonos is one of the most popular islands in Greece, and it is also one of the most famous islands. Many people think that the pictures from Mykonos Town are the symbol of Greece: tiny narrow alleyways lined by whitewashed houses with blue doors and windows. 

The Greek Tourist Office often use photos from Mykonos when they promote Greece. Many of the photos we've shown you thus far could entice you to visit Mykonos.

 

In reality, Mykonos needs little sales promotion. People from all over the world come here to swim and sunbathe at the fabulous beaches, shop in the boutiques, eat in the tavernas and cafes along the waterfront, or enjoy the high-energy night-life.

A Man and His Donkey

But for us, this Greek man riding upon his donkey, dressed in his Sunday best, is one of the images we want to remember.  We've told you about Petros the Pelican and the tradition surrounding him.  Here is another tradition that is still alive today in Mykonos.  We might have seen this same gentleman, with his donkey, selling vegetables in the alleyways early in the morning.   Now he is enjoying the fruits of his labors, along with his donkey, by the harbour.   He is happy to stop for tourists that want to take a photograph.   

This is the true Greece - a land rich in history and tradition, still carried out by its inhabitants and shared with the people from all over the world that explore its shores.   Come explore the shores of Mykonos yourself and spend some time learning about this beautiful country and its people.  We are glad that we had the chance to visit.

Our adventure continues in the ancient city of Athens, Greece.   Continue your virtual cruise through the Greek Isles via our blog and Facebook Fan Page photo albums.   We truly hope you are enjoying the journey thus far and perhaps will be able to visit yourself some day in the future.

Additional photos can be found on our Facebook Albums.




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Mykonos Windmills and Little Venice

Mykonos Town (Chora)

Main Attractions

Chora of Mykonos is the capital of the most cosmopolitan island of Cyclades. In our last post, we boarded our motorcoach for the ride from Panagia Tourliani Monastery to the charming main town of Mykonos. Our journey continues in Mykonos town (Chora).

Our partially guided walking tour began in the parking lot just a few minutes away from the pier where our ship, Star Princess, was docked, awaiting our return after the conclusion of our Mykonos visit.

Two of the Main Attractions

The guided walk took us along the main coastal street of Mykonos past a lot of shops with jewels, clothes, popular art and many other items.   There are several cafes and tavernas along the waterfront street similar to the one in the picture above.  From every location along our walk, we had amazing views of the harbour where our ship was anchored along with a Pullmantur and Wind Star ship amongst the many private boats and yachts.

See more images in our album: Mykonos Walking Tour

Little Venice


Walking to the farthest point of the Chora, we passed a charming district known as Little Venice. Continuing beyond the buildings, we looked back at the picturesque two and three story houses, with colorful balconies, windows and doors. From this vantage point, the buildings appeared to be emerging from the sea begging to be captured on the canvas of our digital film. We would be remiss if we didn't oblige.

Windmills of Mykonos

The Windmills of Mykonos, iconic features of this main Greek Island, can be seen from every point of the village of Mykonos.  When entering the harbour, the windmills will be the first thing you see since they stand atop a hill overlooking the sea.

We have now made our journey to the top of that hill, a walk that was well worth it. If the windmills had eyes, this is the view they would see. The whole village of Chora and the harbour are visible from this point. In the distance, you can see our ship anchored at the Port of Mykonos.

Dating back to the 16th Century, these windmills had primarily been used to mill wheat.   Now, they remain quiet, no longer functioning as mills, but instead attracting visitors who want to get a closeup look at the structures that had once been an important source of income to the inhabitants.

In another post we will tell you more about our visit to Mykonos Town. Be sure to visit our Facebook Fan Page and sign up so that you can view more of our photo albums and useful information about our Mediterranean cruise. These two attractions were among our most enjoyable during our Mykonos visit.

Additional photos can be found on our Facebook Albums.




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An Epic 4th of July Event

Norwegian Cruise Line's new ship, Norwegian EPIC, arrived in New York City in time for this year's 4th of July celebration from New York Harbour.   The largest ship in Norwegian Cruise Line's fleet was christened by Reba McEntire on July 2nd. 

Macy's 34th Annual Fireworks

Broadcasting Live from EPIC

The largest fireworks display in America will light up the New York skyline tonight starting at 9 PM Eastern.   The skies over the Hudson River will be ablaze with 40,000 dazzling displays of color as the nation's largest fireworks show marks the July Fourth holiday in New York.  Some of the effects will shoot 1,000 feet into the air so that they can be seen above Manhattan's skyscrapers.

Tonight's show will be broadcast live from the Norwegian Epic cruise ship and will feature performances by teen sensation Justin Bieber and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  As always, a special musical score,this year's entitled "American Harmony", will help set the stage for this moving pyrotechnic display. 

For more information about the event, see Macy's website.  For more information about Norwegian Epic, see Norwegian Epic Delivered to NCL.

Silva - Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Canadian Tall Ship - Silva

Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

This was our second visit to Halifax, Nova Scotia. During our last visit, we visited Peggy's Cove Lighthouse. If this is your first visit to Halifax, I would highly recommend you tour the lighthouse. You can get a special cancellation from the post office there. Peggy's Cove Lighthouse is a bit weathered, but it will get a new paint job in 2009.

We decided to do something different this visit. Carnival offerred the Canadian Tall Ship Sailing Experience tour. We were able to experience the historic seaport from a unique perspective aboard the tall ship Silva for an approximate 1½ - hour sail. We were entertained by the Captain and crew as they shared some interesting anecdotes of Halifax Harbour. It was even possible for some hands on sailing experience.

The weather was overcast with some rain as we pulled out into the harbour. The Silva has a canopy that covers a large portion of the deck, so the rain didn't bother us. As we left the dock we were able to get pictures of our ship and also the Royal Caribbean ship that was docked in Halifax. We passed by the Canadian Naval yard where there were several ships docked. It is actually a NATO port, so you never know what ships might be in the harbour. The captain pointed out several sights along the boardwalk including Casino Nova Scotia.

There are other options to see Halifax from the Harbour. I know it sound strange going from one ship to another, but Halifax is best seen from the water. Following your harbour tour, you can then move inland to visit the various popular attractions. The boardwalk was our destination of choice as the rainy weather kept us from venturing too far from the ship. I'll talk about that more in another post.

Bay of Fundy Coastal Photography Tour

Bay of Fundy Coastal Photography Tour

Saint John, NB, Canada

We decided to tour this area with the aide of a local photographer. Carnival offered the Bay of Fundy Coastal Photography tour. We boarded a mini-coach accompanied by our professional photographer guide, Lance Timmons, and headed out to photograph some of the iconic images of New Brunswick, including a Bay of Fundy beach, working fishing wharf, waterfalls, and more.

This excursion took us off the beaten path and along the coast of the Bay of Fundy giving us the opportunity to photograph the breathtaking scenic beauty of this area. We had done a similar tour when in St. Thomas, USVI and enjoyed it very much. That's why we selected this tour.

Our first photo stop was at the Reversing Falls. It was still high tide when we got there, so the water was flowing away from the bridge and towards the two islands across from the power plant.

As you can see from the photos above, the weather was overcast, with some light rain. That didn't put a damper on our photography tour. In fact with these conditions, photography is actually better as colors pop in the softer light. We visited the Bay of Fundy twice, first at high tide and then again at low tide just before returning to our ship. The water was flowing in opposite directions on these visits.

Another stop was at the Lepreau Falls (photo above). While the Rerversing Falls are the most widely known and popular, we enjoyed our visit to Lepreau Falls the most. We have seen many waterfalls in our years of cruising, each with their own character and personality. These falls have unique color due to the tannins in the water. This was an excellent location to try different photography techniques.

At Dipper Harbour we had the opportunity to see an active fishing village. There were boats coming in with their lobster catches which can be purchased locally. We made another photo stop at a very unique beach. This isn't your typically white sand beach. Instead, the terrain is very rocky.

Our tour ended with another stop at our original location - Reversing Falls. We were now at low tide which means the water flow had reversed from our previous visit. The best way to capture this on camera is to take a video from the same vantage point on both visits.

For more pictures from the photography tour, see our Saint John - Coastal Photography album. Also visit our Cruise Vacation site for this cruise (still a work in progress).

NCL Dawn Bermuda - Fort Hamilton

Step back in time to the 1870s where atop a hillside overlooking Hamilton Harbour, a pentagonal fort was built to protect against a possible attack by American forces. Fort Hamilton is about three or four blocks from the BUEI so it didn't take long for us to walk there.

Entering through a narrow driveway, the first thing we saw was a well maintained garden. Along the perimeter of the garden are ramparts and cannons. When you walk to the highest point, you can see why this location was an excellent choice for guarding the harbour. There are spectacular views of the cathedral and the ships in Hamilton Harbour from this vantage point.

As we arrived at the fort, it began to drizzle a little, but it didn't last long. We weren't the only people that had come from our ship. We met two other couples that were enjoying the beautiful gardens. After taking pictures of each other, we proceeded to tour the garden moat, which is the best kept secret of the fort.

The 30 ft wide dry moat which surrounds the fort has been transformed into a woodland garden. Along the winding path you'll see many species of vegetation including soaring bamboos, palms, palmettos and allspice trees.


There are plenty of passage ways for you to explore along the way. Dimly lit corridors and stairways lead to walkways inside the fort. Ammunition was stored deep inside the fort and the shells were hoisted to the surface by ropes.

We spent about an hour at the fort and that was plenty of time to explore at a leisurely pace. There are benches in several locations where you can rest and enjoy the peacefulness of the beautiful gardens. We were truly glad that we made the walk up the steep hill to the fort. For those that don't want to walk to the fort, I'd suggest taking a taxi there. There is no admission charge to Fort Hamilton. It is one of the best bargains in Bermuda.

From the fort we walked down Front Street, the main street in Hamilton. There you'll find all the shops. View my Fort Hamilton Album and then come back to read about shopping in Bermuda.