A brief jaunt ashore yesterday, no ‘roving reporter’ this time, camera in hand I spent 30 minutes wandering around.  It is difficult to take photos in the heart of the city, after all, it is similar to most, towering skyscrapers and bustling streets and these don’t make for anything interesting.

I concentrated instead on the locale of our berth, ‘Circular Quay’ as it is known, a transport centre for Sydney tourists and commuters alike; it consists of a train and ferry station, while a short walk away is the iconic Opera House.  The area is full of tourists, cameras to the fore and many seize the opportunity to pose near the bow of our lovely “Amsterdam” and have the Opera House in the background.  It was sunny and warm, everyone walking around in summer dresses or shorts.

I stayed on board most of the day, dealing with various items of ship’s business and then, in the evening, entertained guests in our Pinnacle Grill restaurant before going to our aft deck, where our pianist, Debbie Bacon, was playing under starlight skies and a warm wind.

Yesterday, one could clearly see groups, (some of them ours), on the Sydney Harbour Bridge climb.  Starting from one of the buttresses, they walk to the top of the bridge,  They have guides and wear safety clothing and lines.  Brave souls, although the view must be spectacular.

Today (11th), we have a Port State Control examination.  Similar to the any such exams throughout the world, it involves an inspection of our capabilities in an emergency, that we adhere to requirements for our safe manning and that, in general terms, the vessel and its crew are fit for its intended purpose; the safe carriage of guests and crew.  The inspections can take place at any time; in this case, it was announced beforehand, however there is no precedent for this, they can occur at any time, in any port, unannounced.

This will take most of the morning and into the early afternoon, so my schedule is already set for the day.  We intend to sail for Melbourne at 6:30 p.m.,  30 minutes later than scheduled; this because this particular berth has a ‘curfew’ for arrival and departure times.  No vessel can dock after 6:45 a.m. nor leave before 6:30 p.m. because of the commuter ferry traffic, we could delay Sydney’s citizens getting to work, or them getting back home  after their busy day.

We will spend the 12th at sea and arrive in Melbourne on the 13th, slowly making our way, clockwise, around the coast of Australia.

Here are the remainder of yesterday’s photos. (Don’t forget, one can double-click to open a larger version)