Gorgeous, Ken, simply gorgeous shots.

Memories of LAMB - but with sun. Absolutely gorgeous. Maybe I do need to go back to those islands. :)

I agree, Betty...a LAMB II during the sunny months - would definitely be a winner.

Well going down to immigration in a few minutes. We can stay on the ship until it is time to leave for the airport. June, Brian and some other family members coming on today.

The weather on this trip has been truly magnificent. Mostly very calms seas and sun. Not able to get ashore at a couple of spots but mostly swells that did not really affect us on the Mariner just hard on the tenders. One day of "choppy seas" but not much movement on the ship. Amazing for a cruise this long.

We had a lovely final dinner last night in Prime 7 which is an outstanding restaurant. I have enjoyed the companionship of this group very much and also relished all these sea days far more than I would have ever anticipated. Easter Island was such a highlight and the main reason I chose this itinerary. We were so lucky to have a perfect day.

It looks like a nice day in Auckland. certainly no wind. Did not even know we had docked it was so smooth coming into port. May be a bit overcast but it is still a little too early to see as it is still dark.

I will be so sad to leave today but know that Julie and the girls are very excited I am coming back. So much going on I also really need to get back right now.

Still a lot of invoices to redo and they are doing these primarily by date so the later your cruise the longer it is taking to get to your date. A couple of the escorted trips were done a little earlier as RSSC focused on the groups first.

Shot of Mariner in Auckland this morning.
Well, you can just see her on the other side of, and above the Hilton from this cam.
Hard to tell which are the apartments and which is the ship.
Welcome to Auckland everyone.

For Ngaire and others who left Koala early, in the "Mariner Has Talent" contest first place for $1000 was Prime Rib; second place for $700 was the Ethnic Dancers and third for $200 was Elizabeth. 4th, 5th & 6th also got $200.
Jim

Wonder if anyone put it on YouTube as they did when lct's Valerie won!

Morning Everyone!

We arrived home late on March 17th. We actually disembarked the ship in Bora Bora two days after Carolyn and Don disembarked in Papeete so we were able to enjoy Papeete, Moorea and Bora Bora. Regent also let us stay on the ship too for as long as we wanted last day in Bora Bora so we tendered over to Vaitape first thing in the morning and rented a car and toured around. Finally found the perfect pearl bracelet to match my previous necklace purchase from a PG trip at Tahia Collins near the dock so I was happy. Tendered back to the ship had lunch and then finished packing and tendered back to Vaitape around 1:30 p.m. as we had to catch the Four Seasons shuttle boat at 2:15. We stayed 2 nights there in an overwater bungalow on their motu just off of Bora Bora. What a surprise when we checked in. I had been in contact earlier with the manager of the resort when we encountered a problem with our reservation and he said he would make it up to us but I was not expecting this lovely upgrade. We had booked the least expensive category and they upgraded us to the most expensive OWB they have. It was the furthest out on the pontoons, with a plunge pool and faced the mountain and I swear had to be at least 1400 sq. ft. It literally was like a small house. Simply beautiful property and 6 star service with amazing food. We didn't miss the ship at all. We only wished that we had booked in here for a couple more days to really enjoy the entire property. Trip home was good and even though we happened to be first in the airport lineup, biz class seats were already full. Just as well we didn't upgrade and saved the money as once the plane was in the air I moved in front of our seats and that then gave both hubby and I two seats to ourselves to stretch out in and we did manage to get some sleep. At Lax, the immigration lines were not the usual long ones so we breezed through and ran down to terminal 2 to Air Canada ticketing to try and get on the earlier flight home leaving at 12:00 noon rather then the 3:30 flight we were booked on. Luck was with us again as there were 2 seats left and they just happened to be in the exit row so that was a good flight home too. I found the ship to be as lovely as ever. Some of the crew I recognized but there seemed to be more new faces. They all seemed to be very happy and gave excellent service. Our butler Prashant was the best. I never would advocate paying for a butler but if they come with the cabin you covet then he had to be the best there can be. He was so easy to have around and he didn't give me the creeps like the last butler we had on the Navigator. He was very personable and made our trip that much more enjoyable. Our steward Gerry always made up the cabin early and kept us well stocked in bathroom toiletries. He was a gem too. I found the food to be excellent and being a vegetarian I was pleased to see more tofu dishes on the menu this trip. I have to say it was one of our better cruises. I'd book the Mariner again in a heartbeat without hesitation. I can't believe that they are not having the finals for the crew talent until after the end of this segment. We saw the second round and we thought that Pablo the pianist is a shoe-in. He's phenominal! Those of you still on for the next segment please post the winner after the show.
Pat

Thanks for that report Pat. We drove around the island and saw the Four Seasons resort, thought about coming over to day hi to you both. Sounds like you scored really well with that room. All things were working in your favor on this trip it seems.

So glad Prime Rib won. Those top three were so good as was Pablo. They all deserved to win really.

If they do a video PLEASE someone buy me one and I will repay you. I know the proceeds go to the crew fund so that makes me happy as well.

I heard from Franck they gave the crew a big party afterwards that made me smile. They sure deserved it. Best entertainment I have ever seen.

Continue to keep the Mariner fires burning Jim and we look foward to future posts so I can continue to sail along with your through your blog and posts. I have not read your blog since I got on the ship need to go back to that again.

I wish Ken and Sheila a nice trip home to Noosa and the Jim and Pam have a wonderful time in Tasmania.

Miss you all

Welcome home, Pat. You will be happy to know that you missed lots of lousy weather! Your stay in Bora Bora sounds delicious.

Ngaire,
The crew party after the talent contest was held in the Mariner Lounge so it was quite a treat for the crew.

Last night we had dinner in Signatures with Ken & Sheila and Jim & Pam and said farewell to the KOALA segment. We sailed stealthily into Sydney under the cover of darkness, docked at Circular Quay before sunrise and are now awaiting immigration clearance. It's a beautiful sunny day and we're looking forward exploring this fascinating city.
Jim

Welcome Home Ngaire and Pat.

Jim, it sure sounds like a fun cruise! Will you please tell Franck hello from me. He did sooooooooooo much to make our private dinner parties in LaVeranda really special. I bet he's glad we're not on having all of these anymore! He's GREAT!

Sydney was a wonderful visit with 2 days of gorgeous weather. We ran into Jim & Pam in Watson's Bay yesterday and we all had lunch at Doyle's. Lindsay & Luke are on board and Luke loves the elevators. We'll catch them sometime for a photo to post.

There are only 270 guests on board and they've made some changes. Deck 6 in the theater is closed so it will look more full with everyone on deck 5, only one side of La Veranda is open for breakfast & lunch, there are a lot fewer crew members, either Prime 7 or Signatures will be closed each night and we don't know what other surprises are in store. They are no longer giving out gifts on each segment or lapel pins of the cruise (full cruisers got a golf hat, flimsy jacket and a door plaque.) Stories from the Voyager & Navigator keep everyone abuzz but I won't post the speculations unless they become fact. We'll post more as we find things out.
Jim

"You WILL buy my mangoes" - priceless!


Great photos as usual.

Jim, thanks for the WC & segment...you are doing a terrific job on your blog btw...geez with the Mariner only at 38% capacity, sounds like Regent
is working hard to make the sailing best for pax and crew...r/wes

Regent is doing a great job here. We continue to have predinner shows as well as the late shows. Tonight BLACK TIE is giving a predinner show. They come with very high recommendations from guests who have seen them before.

As far as gifts go, we have not received lapel pins for about three years. This year our original gifts were in a very heavy useable tote bag. But with the jacket, I must disagree. Three years ago we received a very heavy cold weather jacket that is wonderful. Last year it was a grotesque slicker that most people just disposed of. This year is a dark blue windbreaker type that is very useful and attractive. I also realize that different people like different things.

We continue to receive information from some on Voyager and can feel for them as Stan and I were on the Song of Flower when it gave up off Muscat. We felt so sorry for those who had flown in from as far as Australia to join the ship only having to turn around and go back home. I hope that Regent is thoughtful enough to contact each passenger expecting to join in Dubai and give them enough information that they can make their own choice as to what to do.

Sandra Bowden is now on board and will give her first lecture today. We are looking forward to that.

Ardis

love "Black Tie"....such a talented family group. They've been on WC's before and always very popular.

A Photo of Lindsay & Luke Barron from the Mariner, compliments of Jim Bittle:


John must be so happy to have his family aboard!!

What a cutie! I bet every momma on the staff is signing up for babysitting duty!

Caught Mariner at last in Cairns today.
http://www.cairnsinfo.com/webcam.php

I wonder if Frank and Wendy were there to greet her?

You got some great pictures David!