day 40 – scenic cruising, new zealand fjordlands (milford, dusky and doubtful sounds)

day breaking as we approach fjordlands

happy valentine’s day from the future, tho i always post the next day, so i guess i am on time… missing my valentines!  big hugs to you guys!  big birthday shout out, too, to my best pal brett and my surrogate little sis, kristen! 

tho i am going to work today on continuing a conscious effort at restoring positive outlook and health, i did have to wake up early today to not miss the scenic beauty of the new zealand fjordlands… this is with the firm resolve in mind to get a very early nap today with an unplugged phone and do not disturb sign out… the last thing i need is to get sick, and as i am in a slightly vulnerable and tired state, i am putting my stress and blues down and putting my shields up for a few days – this will involve headphones, sunglasses, walking, resting, writing, lots of water and eating healthy, being silent except for work time and focusing on just being and feeling well so i can do a good job and feel like a balanced person… focusing on myself for a few days will actually help me put a better focus on my guests and sharpen the saw for the next leg of our journey, australia and asia with a fresh outlook… i am excited, too, that everything after australia will be new and a place i haven’t been… so far, the panama canal, central america, the south pacific, new zealand and australia are places i have already traveled to… tho yesterday’s stewart island stop was new as we didn’t go there last time, and it was my favorite place… i once asked my nana out of all her travels where she had enjoyed the most, and she said new zealand without hesitating, then egypt… let’s cross our fingers that things settle down over there before our scheduled arrival! 

moody skies

i am so relieved that bob is on the way soon and it is now only 20 days!  that’s less than 3 weeks, thus falling under my mental category of soon!  i know i will feel much more centered when he is here and it will be great to be sharing this experience instead of just wishing he was here… i wish i could teleport nino and gimli here, too… i would hate for nino to have to make up all that school tho, and he would be crazy with no kids his age out here… anyway, good times ahead and then home for more good times!  and despite my recent emotional barfing, i am doing pretty well already, and i know i am doing a good job, so yay for me… (you always feel better after you puke, right?)

beautiful scenery, and i can’t believe how many folks are so blasé, like “oh, i’ve been here before…” and they go back to playing bridge while the scenery rolls by… i’d think it would be cheaper to stay home and play bridge… go figure – i guess if i had more than one chance to see cool stuff, i’d rather see it more than once, but maybe that’s just me…

waterfalls and amazing mountains

no port song today since we didn’t actually anchor or get off the ship, plus i needed to skip writing class and just go take a nap… my theme tonight, being valentine’s day and all, was ‘favorite love songs.’  it was jam packed from 7-8, and even tho there was a formal ball tonight, i had a great crowd from 9 til 10:30 and it tapered from there… i actually took very few requests because the list of love songs is so vast I just kept playing without a lot of pause…

i was pleased that the music director put up a sign on the glass behind me to ask people to please approach from the side or front and not to startle or touch me from behind… let’s hope that is the end of all that!

gorgeous place

missing everybody, and tho it is harder some days than others, i still feel that this is a great opportunity, if challenging in moments, and all in all i know how lucky i am to have this gig…  it’s a long way from slinging coffee (tho i miss my pals there and the free coffee!), and it’s good to be what you wanted to be when you grew up… i’d still like to write a brilliant screenplay, take some classes at the cordon bleu, teach a college music theory class, but i think i’ll stick with music (playing and writing) full time for the next several years… i want to get bean through college, go back and finish my own college degree after him, continue to play and travel with bob through all that, and try and weave all that other stuff in down the road a ways.  guess i’ll never be bored!  xoxo

day 39 – oban, stewart island, new zealand

our ship from the tender dock on stewart island

sorry it's blurry, but it is a kiwi crossing sign

beautiful and rugged coastal beaches

wow!  just what the doctor ordered… i ended yesterday’s difficult day on a good note, and slept like a rock… i did wake up early, because i got a crew escort position for a tour of oban and had to meet, ready to go at 8 am… i told myself before i got out of bed that today would be different, better, and that it was up to me to make it so… i got to take one of the first tenders over, met our guide, john, and waited for our guests to arrive… there were only 16, a much nicer size tour than 40!  it was cool and cloudy (a little cold, but I thought it felt good) and I can’t believe how many folks missed this jewel because they didn’t want to tender over or because it wasn’t sunny… they missed the best part in my opinion… we were on a small bus and headed out to see the sights… the driver had a good sense of humor and was very knowledgeable about the history here, so everyone was mercifully quiet and listened… more than 85% of the island is a nature conserve and the lands and animals are protected… there are miles and miles of predator fences on the perimeter of the parks so that nesting pairs of endangered birds are now thriving here… we saw beautiful coastal rainforest, beaches, bays, boats, and the small settlement of oban.  here and there we would stop for short trail walks and photos.  slightly more than 10% of the lands are maori and only 3-4% are settled or open to development by westerners.  the township of oban has one hotel, a coffee shop (run by an american expat), a small grocer, a couple of shops and churches, a volunteer fire department, a clinic with two paramedic nurses, (if you are seriously ill or having a baby, they will fly you for free to mainland hospital 10-15 minutes by air) some vacation rentals and a population of about 300 year round residents. 

deserted beaches everywhere... but the water is cold!

the natural beauty was like something i’d never seen – in moments it reminded me of alaska, but completely different vegetation… it is a bird enthusiast’s paradise with thriving populations of many species ncluding the elusive kiwi and many species of sea birds, and you can hear them everywhere… the park service here maintains miles and miles of beautiful trails of varying difficulty for hiking (‘tramping’ they call it here) and the beaches and everywhere are so clean and well kept… there are places to rent sea kayaks or small boats… lots of fishing, and some of the best seafood is found here… it would be a fun place to come for a month or two and write songs and get away from it all…  oban is known to have stunning sunsets, and the flaming skies over the mountains are said to have been caused by the embarassed blush of a maori chief of long ago from the south island who came to stewart island, proposed to one and then another of the local chief’s daughters, was turned down by both and asked to leave and not return…

the ubiquitous fern spiral is a national symbol of life in new zealand

the tour was great, the people were mercifully cool today, and the beauty of the nature was like medicine after yesterday’s blues… it did me good and was worth the early wake up.  i came back, still missed nap time because a friend needed to chat about her blues (see, it’s the moon!) and i went to work and had a busy night… i was surprised that after this many port days in a row, late night was one of my busiest ever with many folks hanging til i was done… my buddies statler and waldorf seemed shocked that they not only had to share the lounge after eleven, but someone was even in their seats when they arrived… my theme tonight was “moon and stars” and i sang “old devil moon” and meant it… my regular piano bar gal pal who was under threat of forced d’bark showed up on a scooter last nite, and because she will not tax her heart/lungs with extra walking by procuring the scooter, she may get an extension… she wants to stay really badly, so i hope it works out for her…

my plan is to use the next few sea days to secure my recent emotional rescue by deliberately getting a bit more rest and some good sea air deck walking with headphones on so i can maintain some silence and minimize conversation for a few days and just listen to some good stuff and watch the waves… i am already feeling more myself today, i think it helped to get some out of my system and to talk with fam on the phone… it’s also less than 3 weeks now til bob comes, so that is getting more real as the days go by… the pictures here don’t do it justice… it was amazing…

view from overlook rock

port song for oban, stewart island, new zealand

(to the tune of “cheek to cheek”)

oban, i’m in oban, it’s so lovely here that i can hardly speak

it has a certain untamed wilderness mystique
it’s the prettiest place i’ve seen by far this week 

oh, man, i’m in oban, we took a bus around to take a little peek

and if i may offer my humble critique

the stunning beauty made my knees a little weak

and we drove up a small mountain to an observation peak

you could see the bay so picturesque and hear the sea birds shriek

the island’s home to many creatures, most of whom all have a beak

and there’s legends here of a maori chief who had some blushing cheeks

can’t you see, me and bob playing music out here,

a couple months a year

maybe at the coffee house here

in oban, i’m in oban, where the maori language to me sounds so greek

but i have to say my willingness to learn peaked

when i learned rentals are only a couple bills a week

land and sea, unspoiled with great ocean views

and fishing boats too

could prob’ly use some music, too

in oban, yes here in oban, where the kiwi birds play nighttime hide and seek

and developers cannot their havoc wreak

i’m so glad we hit stewart island, all the morning i was just smiling

i wanna come back here and stay for several weeks

day 38 – dunedin, new zealand

well, it was bound to happen sooner or later… i had my inevitable 1^st half emotional meltdown… i usually have one or two per contract, those days where everything seems to stack up and feel utterly overwhelming – for me it usually involves being homesick, especially missing nino, the fellas, my folks, and even thinking about the dog on this day will put a serious lump in my throat… i also have missed having a nap the last few days because we’ve had busy times and back to back port days for a week, and i hate to miss anything… that usually means i push time off the ship 'til i absolutely have to go back, then i write my song and then it’s time to get ready for work… if i have my self-discipline cued up, i will make myself leave shoreside fun an hour before i actually want to, so i can write the song and still have an hour or hour and a half to sleep… my sleep at night is usually short (4-6 hours), so the nap becomes fairly critical at some point because i have to put a good product out seven nights a week for many weeks in a row… i am also due in another few days to get a shot that i have to take every 10-12 weeks ever since a few years ago, and things get a little dicey for me towards the end of that window… guess i shoulda seen it coming!

anyway, on with the meltdown… i was a bit surprised because i had heard from bob that my parents had decided to go to victoria for the weekend – don’t get me wrong, i am truly happy for them, because it is absolutely one of my favorite spots ever (bob and i were engaged there and spent many weekends of our courtship there when bob was playing with a trio up there!) and they really deserve a nice valentine getaway… it was, however, a bit wistful for me, because i had wanted bob and i to introduce them to “our” victoria, and had planned to go at the winter holidays with them to celebrate their big 50^th, and i felt like they had kind of scooped our plans right down to high tea at the empress (where we were engaged) where i wanted to take my mom… so there was that, plus, it made me miss bob horribly to even think of the empress and being there with him… i know my folks will have a fabulous time and fall in love with it, too, and i’m sure we’ll still go there with them some other time, and, tho lovely, it wouldn’t be something brand new and special i can “give” them at this point, so, all in all, i was feeling really quite emotional about that… it also hadn’t helped that i started the morning with people asking me (in a frowny-faced way) about my son and “what does he do while you are away?” before i even had my coffee, and, no offense, nino, and i never would actually say this, but sometimes i want to tell them you are doing time for holding up liquor stores and running a meth lab because i am such a terrible mother and see if that shuts them up; i can't believe people being so intrusive at an emotional level and also on my time while i was trying to just have some cereal... also a full moon is looming in the next couple of days (we are a day ahead here), and i am a bit of a natural lunatic (as everyone in my family can attest to), AND i was stuck on the ship for ipm, AND there are valentine decorations being put up everywhere and this is yet another valentine’s day away from my sweethearts… 3-2-1, meltdown...

long story short, i had to go to my room, call my mom and dad and weep a bit over the phone until they could talk me down a little, then cry a little more to get it out of my system, call them back again, watch part of a crappy movie to distract myself for awhile (ah, blessed tv, the plug-in drug…), talk myself out of having a liquid lunch at the officer’s bar, take a few deep breaths, remember dear camp director nancy's voice in my head ("how do you want to feel about this?") take a shower and visualize my angst going down the drain and go to work and really try hard to put something good out there… i found it interesting that during all this, my toilet became stopped up, as feng shui tells us that blocked plumbing is a clear sign of real emotional turmoil and blocked feelings… i left a note for my room steward to please call the plumber and crossed my fingers it would happen.

i had a very good gig, actually, came home, the toilet was fixed and i slept, mercifully, quickly and quite heavily… thanks bob and nino and mom 'n pop (and cabin steward!)!  there’s no one out here with whom i really can discuss these things… and i am already onto a different, and, i think, very cool idea for celebrating your big anniversary when bob and i get back (and this time, i don’t think i will tell you much about it except for picking out the days with you on the calendar that you can get away!) – i promise it will be lovely and very special and something you haven’t done before, will be relaxing, and you will like it a lot!  i just think 50 years is worth celebrating with something unique!

last night’s theme was fun ‘n games, episode 3, and when i realized nobody in the lounge really wanted to do a music trivia game, we chucked the idea and just did some music… i had a fairly full lounge, too… i saved the trivia and the prizes for my hard core late-nighters, who are also very knowledgeable about musical minutiae (sp?) and they enjoyed it… on a happy note, my ill late-nighter who had medically d-bark’d, was back!  so at least she’s alive!  she is, tho, in peril of being booted off the ship, which they apparently already told her she was, and she was basically like, “i don’t think so!” and hasn’t left… yet… i have a feeling they may have the authority to send her off, which is sad, but at least she is doing better than she was, so thanks for the well wishes many of you sent!  i will be sure to share those with her!   no pictures of me weeping or my blocked toilet today... (i am sure this is ok, right?)

i hope you do have fun, mom n pop!  victoria is beautiful, and i know you will have a great valentine's day there, so relax and enjoy it!  besides tea, there is a great museum, glass bottom boats, enclosed butterfly garden, butchart gardens, oldest china town on west coast, beautiful shops, cafes and restaurants and more... or you can just look out at the boat harbor, order room service and chill!  cheers, diwan

port song for dunedin

(to the tune of ‘raindrops are fallin’ on my head’)

raindrops are fallin on my head

this morning i rose early but i stayed a while in bed

and then i put some wash in

i knew i had ipm so i stayed here for breakfast

and then i had an exciting liferaft drill

we all got to practice in a real raft, what a thrill

it lasted ‘til 11-ish

and then it was time to go and switch out my laundry

cause there’s one thing i know

if you don’t grab a dryer when your wash is done, you won’t get one

cause someone else will pull your clothes out

(you snooze, you lose)

and then it was time to do my blog

i try to keep up daily as a journal and travelogue

miss my family and my dog so

gotta keep em up to date with what i am doin’

so they will know   ---     where on earth i do go   (instrumental interlude)

it wasn’t long before i saw those raindrops falling

(raindrops, they’re tops)

no, me i never mind the rain

in fact i prefer the clouds and gloom to sunburn pain

some think i’m insane but

the negative ions you get when rain starts to falling

re-charge my mind, for me dunedin was fine

day 37 - christchurch, new zealand

entrance to christchurch cathedral, festival of flowers

floral "carpet" down cathedral aisle 

detail of section of carpet

scaffolding on cathedral wall to repair damage from earthquake

what a day!  slept in a little, caught the bus into christchurch to do my blog at the starbucks only to learn that they don’t do internet at that particular one… oh well, it was the opening day of the festival of flowers, and i made my way across the square to the cathedral and got a ticket to view the stunning floral creations there… pretty amazing!  they had a fellow playing piano and it was very beautiful – you could see one wall where there was scaffolding set up to do some repair after the recent earthquake… 

closeup of more detail

my friend emma (pronounced ‘imma’ in kiwi) who lives here picked me up at noon and we went for a “wee lunch” as she would say, at her new house… i know emma from the summers at camp aloha as counselors there together, and last time i saw her was nearly two years ago on the grand oz voyage… she made us a beautiful lunch, all fresh greens and tomatoes from her garden and a lovely pasta dish and ginger beer… yum!  we caught up on each other’s latest and looked at some camp albums…  i really wish we could have spent a longer visit, but i had to make my way back to the ship after a pleasant afternoon… thanks, imma!  i am including a couple of her “quakey pics.”

my kiwi pal emma (imma) in her kitchen

many chimneys toppled off in quake

home of emma' family friends, totalled... no one hurt, tho!

my theme tonight was ‘ornithology’ and featured songs with birds in the title or lyrics (and, no, I didn’t do ‘free bird’… it was stuff like ‘blackbird,’ ‘3 little birds,’ ‘yellow bird.’ etc.).  pretty good happy hour!  Sad that the jolly kiwi company reps disembarked, but, lo, my two recent on-in-auckland piano man fans came in and gave me a chance last night and we all made friends!  they even stayed til the very end!  yay!  feedback on the recent being touched (scared the crap out of) while playing issue, by the way, is that i have the right to call security if i feel it is necessary (drunk or disorderly guest), and i can certainly verbally be quite clear in the moment about setting my boundaries (other situations) at my comfort level.  i have also politely let my audience know that if they want to greet me or request a song, the front or either side of the bandstand is absolutely open to them so that i can address their wishes… let us hope we have had the last of that!

i now have to work on gently yet firmly drawing my boundaries regarding discussing my personal life – i am happy to share some, what i choose to volunteer about bob for instance who is coming here, but it is difficult to be grilled with the “don’t you miss your son?” question from some less than sensitive types… i have to struggle to not ask them “what the hell do you think?” and refrain from weeping openly in moments… i would never work on the road if it weren’t that i need to be able to contribute to maintaining a home for my son in an area that is good for him with good schools and friends and family, and that i am passionately interested in being able to get him to/through college in the not too distant future so he can have a good life and be what he wants to be someday… i am grateful daily that he is such a kind, good-hearted, good humoured, smart, sensitive, centered and thoughtful young man who i am so proud of in every moment, because i could not take this gig if he weren’t… and i know he knows (you know, right, bean?) i would be there more if there was work there that would provide what we need, and i miss him like mad every day… it’s a sacrifice all of our family makes together for the greater good, and being mature as he has been through it makes me incredibly proud… i hope these times when i am on the road help him to know that he is, indeed, very capable and grown up for his age, and he can do a lot of things for himself now that he is older, and that when he goes off to college in the not too distant future, he will probably be a little more self-sufficient than some of his peers and able to handle the independence more responsibly than some people (hmm… like who?) did when they were younger… i love you, bean, and it won’t be long before i am back and we will have some cool times!  my late spring and summer are yours for some adventures and fun… (road trip??? !!!)  xoxo, mama

baby heffalump topiary (makes me think of gimli!)

port song for christchurch, new Zealand

(to the tune of gershwin’s “our love is here to stay”)

it’s very clear, christchurch is here to stay,

tho it was unclear one last september day

the earth it started to shake, they had an earth quake and the people here i know

woke up and didn’t know whether to stay or go

they said oh dear, not sure if it’s safe to stay

and since then last year, there’s been rumblings near every day

and though many chimneys did crumble and some buildings did tumble

and there was one heart attack they say, oh! `christchurch is here to stay

i went into town, about 10 o’clock today

to get some coffee down to start out this lovely day

i wanted to do internet, and post my blog, but sadly had no luck

they offered no connection at good old starbucks

so i changed my plan, and went to see some flowers

was gonna meet a friend of mine from christchurch in about an hour

went to the church café so humble, had a raspberry crumble

and free wifi from the hotel down the way, and posted my blog for yesterday

my friend met me by the cathedral square,

it’s been near two years since the last time i met her there!

her name is emma, but in new zealand it’s ‘imma’ cause e’s here they sound like i’s

gotta love that kiwi accent, everything sounds so nice

went to her new house, and she made lunch for us there

fresh salad from her garden and pasta and ginger beer

it’s nice that she has a spare room, i’d like to come back here soon

and have a bit longer stay, oh! what a lovely christchurch day

thank you to imma!  what a lovely christchurch day!

day 36, wellington, new zealand

view from top of cable car hill of wellington and harbor

great day today!  after two days of grey skies and lumpy seas (both of which i like, by the way), we ended up in wellington on a clear day.  not too hot either; it must’ve been in the upper 60’s or lower 70’s… felt good!  we had a general drill for all crew at 10 and then the captain let us go at 10:30.. there was a shuttle into town and i walked for a long time up and down the downtown area streets window shopping… got nino a spiffy tie and went for coffee… after that, i took the cable car up the hill for the panoramic view of wellington… beautiful grounds and gardens!  walked around the upper part of the botanical gardens and found the observatory – i thought it might be interesting to learn about the southern hemisphere skies, so i went to the presentation and learned a lot, actually… you can find cool info at weareastronomers.com… after going back down, i walked some more, got a sandwich and headed back to the ship.  had to write a song, get a quick nap and go to work.  my theme tonight, coincidentally, was ‘in the garden’ (songs with references to flowers, trees, etc.) and went pretty well.  on a bit of a bummer note, one of my late nighters (the gal who sits behind me at the bar each night) was medically disembarked – she is hopeful about trying to catch back up with us, but I’m not sure if she will be able to; keep a good thought for her – i know she’d rather be back on the ship!

carter observatory and planetarium

sundial requiring human interaction -
stand on date with sun at your back, hands in the air - it works!

interesting sculptures abound

port song for wellington, new zealand

(to the tune of ‘honeysuckle rose’ by fats waller)

what a place to be, how lucky are we

we made through the stormy seas

to a lovely day for having fun, here in wellington

i took a cable car, it wasn’t very far

went to the observatory and saw southern stars

and some gardens in the sun, here in wellington

stopped for coffee, cause i had to have a cup

got my caffeine fix, now things are really looking up

wish we were overnight, there’s way too many sights

one day here just doesn’t seem right

but if that’s all we get, then i’ll take one, day in wellington

walked around til i thought i’d better get back to the ship

i’m so glad that this port of wellington i didn’t have to skip

i’d stay in ‘wellywood’, longer if i could

the energy i feel here is quite good

their feng shui is second to none, here in wellington

day 35 - napier, new zealand

classic cars near the art deco styled town of napier

we made it!  luckily, the captain decided the weather was ok enough to proceed to napier today, though it was a short port, just the afternoon from noon to four for crew (five for guests)… some friends from the show band and trio went with me to my favorite thai place from last time i was here – still there and still very good!  i had been invited by the cruise specialist group to do another all day tour, which was tempting, but since i had already planned outing with pals and had to get some work done (and wouldn’t make the 4 o’clock crew on board time), i declined, wistfully… had a good time, tho, with my friends, and after lunch i went to the new zealand starbucks equivalent, called esquire’s.  they have a couple of drinks even this seattle coffee expert never had, one called a flat white (our equivalent would be called a no foam latte) and a long dark, which is like a weak americano; instead of espresso and hot water, it is strong drip coffee cut with hot water… nice to learn something new!

i did some internet to prepare for tonight’s set, “music from the art deco period.”  i had already picked out a set of 30’s stuff, and someone pointed out to me that art deco was really at it’s peak in the twenties, so i had to grab a different set of stuff from that decade instead (lke toot toot tootsie, bye bye blackbird, sweet georgia brown, etc.)…

sculpture at visitor's center

napier is known for it’s art deco arcitechture – apparently the town was mostly destroyed by an horrendous earthquake in the early 1930’s and subsequent fires and more than 500 aftershocks in a two week period.  the town decided on clean and simple art deco designs and styling to rebuild, and it is a big tourist attraction now… people in great gatsby style clothing in classic cars greet you at the tourist center, and they have a yearly art deco festival here.  it is also, as part of the hawkes bay region, growing into quite a winemaking hub.

swanky mini golf course by napier seaside

getting on the shuttle back to the port, i ran into tony, one of our guest entertainers who again gave big props to the piano bar last nite, and i told him to tell my boss (i say that to everyone who compliments the show, hee hee…)!  i miss you all, especially nino and gimli (my ‘babies')!  xoxo, mama

port song for napier, new zealand

(to the tune of “i wanna be loved by you”)

i wanna go have thai food with some of my friends, those musician dudes

cause we miss a good thai place away from home – boop boop be doo!

some pad thai would go down well with a scrumpy hard cider, hey what the hell!

i know a place right here in napier from two years ago-

we leave the ship in a hurry, descend on the thai place in a flurry

and the smell of the coconut curry makes us so glad we’ve come,

be boop be doo biddly bum!

after lunch i do internet and research for a 1920’s set

and drink some coffee, yeah, you bet, just like home!

the hours are flying, i find myself sighing,

but to napier i’m goodbye-ing; back to the ship i must go –

on no don’t go, no no no

it may be another two years, but i’ll make my way again back here

the lovely art deco town of napier, so long! boop boop be doo!

day 34 – tauranga, new zealand

mt. maunganui and sailboats from the lower promenade deck

i was on in-port manning today… what was meant to be a bang trim at the salon turned into a new cut and all over highlight… whee!  i did my writing, had lunch with one of our new guest artist’s, sally, an electronic harpist from england (now lives in sydney)… nice gal – looking forward to her show – everything from vivaldi to bohemian rhapsody… eclectic! 

had a great night in the piano bar – we boarded 50 new folks in auckland, and they are fairly easy for me to spot since i see everyone walk by pretty much every day – when they do come by, i treat it like whale watching… “look!  there’s two of ‘em!”  then everyone in the lounge says “hi, new people!”  anyway, i met 2 new piano man fans who said “you’re not piano man…”  sigh… i invited them to come by for a song and hope they will… we had several kiwi’s (new zealanders), and 4 of them hung out for awhile – it wasn’t til the end of the night that two of them told me they work for our company and they were going to tell the home office what a great piano bar i have…. yay!  Two other new guys sat in the hall awhile, and then moved into the lounge – they had a great time time, bought me a drink, and it turns out they are two of the other new guest entertainers on in auckland… so we are off to a good new zealand stint with some new piano bar friends… tonight’s theme was “how sweet it is…” and featured songs with references to sweet things (like ‘candy man,’ ‘sweet caroline,’ etc.)… I had a full house for my busy times and it tapered off at about 11:30. 

the captain came on the PA tonite to let us know we would be running into the tail end of a tropical storm as it was dissipating and to expect moderate to larger swells (4-5 meters), so he advised everyone to secure their belongings in their cabins... usually i catch the first part of the 8 o’clock show on my break, but tonite i went to my cabin and put all my stuff away in drawers and cupboards so it wouldn’t go flying off my desk or sink… it was pretty swoopy, but i kind of like that, and i’m guessing it was more like 3 meters… no major listing… i slept like a baby, tho!  the captain said conditions will dictate whether it is safe to dock at napier tomorrow or not, and we will find out then… crossing my fingers!  ciao for now, df

port song for tauranga, new zealand

(to the tune of the verse and chorus without bridge of tom lehrer’s “masochism tango”)

today i did not go ashore dear, it was my turn today to stay on board here

and so here am i, if something should go awry,

i’ll be here on duty in tauranga

wikipedia is my only resource to engage in any thoughtful port discourse

it’s the largest export port,  in the land, long and short,

an economic hub it is, tauranga

some fruit they grow, like kiwi, don’t you know

and the humble avocado and vineyards boutique

and there’s the lovely hybrid tangelo,

a cross of tangerine and grapefruit, how unique

it’s population is overflowing, no one knows why everyone here is going

maybe it’s water sports or that you can wear shorts

pretty much the whole year round in tauranga

it’s a main new zealand centre of fashion; their jazz festival in spring is simply smashing

i’d like to party here when they ring in new year

at mount maunganui in tauranga

white island and mauao are dormant volcanoes

but others here could blow and that could ruin your day

if you are rich and live in papamoa

then in your great big yacht you could prob’ly get away

surfers can surf all seasons four here, and marine enthusiasts like to explore here

of course the cruise ships bring us travellers on trips

so we’ll spend our tourist dollars in tauranga

on a faultline the town is situated, the seismic activity here is slightly inflated

it must make life more exciting, the thought of igniting

from volcanic eruptions in tauranga

i won’t miss many, new zealand ports are plenty

if i don’t see tauranga i guess i’ll be ok

and i will save all my new zealand pennies

to go and get some great thai food in napier the next day

in cannibal days of their history, they would eat us here if they were at all pissed you see

but then europeans came and introduced guilt and shame

which changed the diet of people in tauranga

perhaps they could still sacrifice strangers, down live volcanoes to avert nature’s dangers

that would be a blast, indeed our very last

what a hot time it could be in tauranga!