Not many photos today so here’s a sunrise:

Noon Report:

• Position: S 33° 44.23′, W 179° 11.22′
• Speed: 13.1 knots
• Course: 236º

The seas are rough and choppy. The wind is blowing. But the good news is that the swells and the wind are behind us so our ride, as we surf along, is fairly smooth.

That’s the good news. In the “It is what it is.” category, the noon ‘Captain’s Announcement’ today included the report that we won’t be visiting our next scheduled port. Waitangi, New Zealand is a ‘tender port’ meaning that we would anchor in the bay and use tenders to get to shore. However the weather in the bay is too rough for safe tender operation. So we have changed direction and will arrive in Auckland about 5:00 PM tomorrow evening.

Meanwhile…We started the day by throwing in a load of laundry to run while we exercised. I complained that we had just done laundry a few days ago. Cheryl responded that based on the news out of New Zealand she is anticipating that dryer space will be at a premium over the next few days so we took the opportunity to get ahead of the game.

Anyway we burned a few calories, hit the cafe to replenish our calorie supply, and were in the theatre at 9:30 for the lecture on the Albatross. I took a nap for a good bit of it so Cheryl filled me in over lunch.

During the break I was chatting with a friend and fellow blogger who mentioned that we had changed course yesterday evening. So I whipped out my phone and checked it out. Come to find out we turned south and filed a new destination plan (Auckland) yesterday evening. So we were not surprised when the Captain’s noon broadcast was piped directly to all staterooms (a rare event, only used for special announcements) and he announced the itinerary change.

In the 11:00 lecture Russell Lee explained “…how wool started two wars, destroyed a culture and sparked a revolution.”

He made a compelling case for his thesis and even enlisted the aid of his wife (an expert on wool) to demonstrate properties and processes involved in the production of yarn.

Following lunch we relaxed in the warmth of the pool deck and read until time to head to the choir rehearsal.

Following the rehearsal we headed up to the Explorer’s lounge on 8 for a Stargazers Get Together. You may remember that earlier in this voyage one of our lecturers arranged with the captain to douse the exterior lights so we could meet on Deck 9 (open deck) to view some stars – only to be largely defeated by the nearly full moon. This group is a result of that effort. There were about 25 people who signed up to be participants (and to lend their support to conversations with management) in future stargazing efforts.

Sadly, when we got to the meeting the big screen TV had another group enthralled.

So we moved downstairs to Deck 7 and had the meeting. It looks like we’ll have multiple opportunities to view stars without light interference. This could be really cool.

Following that we ducked down to the Theatre for the Port Talk on Auckland. We’re scheduled to arrive in Auckland by 7:00 tomorrow evening so this talk covered excursion opportunities for Feb 1-3.

Then it was back to the stateroom for a bit before the 6:30 lecture on the 2 earthquakes that devastated Christchurch in 2010-2011. While the devastation was massive and the cost, both property and human lives, was horrendous the faulting behind the ‘quakes is fascinating. The east edge of New Zealand’s North Island is riding on top of the pacific plate that’s diving underneath it. The west edge of the southern part of the South Island is doing the same thing – the ocean plate is diving under the island. The result is that the middle of the south island (where these earthquakes were centered) is being pulled in opposite directions in a scissor-like fashion.

After that lecture it was back upstairs to the cafe for dinner – tonight it was Kung Pao Salmon. I’m sorry I didn’t get a photo but a picture wouldn’t do justice to the flavor. YUM!

BBB was as you’d expect – just under 50%

So it was time to call it a day, back to the stateroom, look over the Viking Daily for tomorrow, highlight our plan for the day, read, blog, sleep…and make note of the times we made the trek around the ship today:

• 4 aft – 7 aft: for breakfast
• 7 aft – 2 for: for lectures
• 2 for – 7 aft: for lunch
• 7 aft – 4 aft: to stateroom
• 4 aft – 7 mid: to pool deck
• 7 mid – 4 aft: to stateroom
• 4 aft – 2 mid: for rehearsal
• 2 mid – 8,7 for: for gathering
• 7 for – 2 for: for port talk
• 2 for – 4 aft: to stateroom
• 4 aft – 2 for: for lecture
• 2 for – 7 aft: for dinner
• 7 aft – 7 for: for BBB
• 7 for – 4 aft: to stateroom

And we don’t use the elevators. No wonder we’re tired. Cheryl’s comment, “It’s a good thing we’re not on one of those mega ships.” My comment, “We need a port day so we can rest.”

Till tomorrow…Nite all, R