Leg 4: Australia and homeward bound
We experienced some rough seas for the first of two sea days as we made our way west to Sydney, Australia. Fortunately for passengers, the worst of it was overnight while everyone was in their bunks asleep. Improved weather filled in by daybreak of day two.
Sydney, Australia – At dawn on March 7, the Amsterdam rounds The Heads, the imposing rock cliffs that guard the entrance from sea to harbor. As we continue up the channel, we pass the spectacular Sydney Opera House on our port side, and then beneath the iconic Harbor Bridge, with scant clearance above us. Morning walkers on the bridge wave and cheer our arrival as they look straight down the few feet onto our decks. A thrilling experience from either perspective! The rising sun peeks through the broken morning clouds, sending a ray of light upward seemingly from the bridge’s massive pylons. Quite a glorious ‘Down Under’ welcome. Continue reading “Leg 4: Australia and Homeward”
This past winter, Tom and I found ourselves back aboard the m.s. Amsterdam, a 780-ft ship operated by Holland America, for our second Grand Voyage circumnavigation cruise. This years intended itinerary was to be 128 days, following a route around the southern capes of South America and Africa. And while we were to have a few repeat ports of call, we would visit many new places, including Antarctica. What we did not expect, was a pandemic that would bring the entire world to a halt. Including our voyage after 80 days. I hope you’ll enjoy my travel journal for our ‘Half-World’ cruise of 2020… 
Life in Nautical Miles 