Day 175
FEBRUARY 21, 2020
CAIRNS, AUSTRALIA
The daily news about Coronavirus has the planet astir. Fear is rampant and borders are closing. I reported to you previously the changes that were made to Viking Sun's current itinerary. Now, more changes have come down from head office.
We are losing Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Penang, Phuket, and Chennai, India. As replacements (unless further alterations are made) we will stop at Bali, Lonbok Indonesia, Semarang Java, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Mangalore, India. So much for the Far East!
Arriving at Cairns (or "Cans" as Austrylyuns call it) Karen and I disembarked into 32 degree heat and 95% humidity, no breeze. It rained last night. Just walking along the boardwalk, the sweat pours down our backs (and fronts too). Tried soaking our feet in The Lagoon Pool (photo) but the water was about 30.
Fortunately it was still overcast so the posted "extreme" UV reading was not in full effect. We survived.
We had lunch at a restaurant named simply The Chambers - the best value for money I ever spent while dining. I ordered breaded chicken schnitzel, fries, mushroom sauce and a salad. We waited quite a while until it was served. It was massive, more than I could possibly eat. The combination of chicken and fries were too large for a plate, it came on a wooden platter. The schnitzel was the size of half a chicken. I wondered why the waiter had exchanged my ordinary table knife for a hefty steak knife, now I knew. The breading on the chicken was golden and crisp, so beautiful to the eye that I hesitated to deface this lovely work of art. And it wasn't just delicious, it was an experience to remember. And the fries! What can I say - they were the best fries I have ever tasted in my whole life. There were far too many fries for me, so Karen had to help out. The mixed salad and the mushroom sauce (full of mushroom chunks) were in separate bowls - no room on the wood platter for them. The chicken schnitzel was beyond my capacity and could not be finished - my salad was untouched. The price was so attractive that I doubt they made a profit on my meal. I said to Karen, "Let's go back there tomorrow".
In the afternoon we went to Cairns Botanic Garden. Our expectations were low, as we had seen many botanical gardens previously. But wait! This place is terrific, beyond all expectations. See for yourself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adcFeWyNCQs
While at the Botanic Garden we encountered several Australian bush turkeys wandering about:
Later, at Palm Cove we saw moon jellyfish floating in the water but we were unable to take definitive pictures. They are not dangerous to humans. The ones definitely to avoid in Australian waters are the box jellyfish, sea wasp, irukandji, and fire jellyfish. Just so you know - scientists say to NEVER pee on a jellyfish sting, use vinegar!
Driving back to Cairns we saw a field full of wallabys - they are smaller than kangaroos :
As the sky darkened, thousands of fruit bats flew past our patio. Where they were going - who knows?
With all the changes to our scheduled stops that we have had lately, it seems as though this Viking World Cruise is turning into a "Magical Mystery Tour".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8WMGBuNaus
CAIRNS, AUSTRALIA
The daily news about Coronavirus has the planet astir. Fear is rampant and borders are closing. I reported to you previously the changes that were made to Viking Sun's current itinerary. Now, more changes have come down from head office.
We are losing Singapore, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Penang, Phuket, and Chennai, India. As replacements (unless further alterations are made) we will stop at Bali, Lonbok Indonesia, Semarang Java, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Mangalore, India. So much for the Far East!
Arriving at Cairns (or "Cans" as Austrylyuns call it) Karen and I disembarked into 32 degree heat and 95% humidity, no breeze. It rained last night. Just walking along the boardwalk, the sweat pours down our backs (and fronts too). Tried soaking our feet in The Lagoon Pool (photo) but the water was about 30.
Fortunately it was still overcast so the posted "extreme" UV reading was not in full effect. We survived.
We had lunch at a restaurant named simply The Chambers - the best value for money I ever spent while dining. I ordered breaded chicken schnitzel, fries, mushroom sauce and a salad. We waited quite a while until it was served. It was massive, more than I could possibly eat. The combination of chicken and fries were too large for a plate, it came on a wooden platter. The schnitzel was the size of half a chicken. I wondered why the waiter had exchanged my ordinary table knife for a hefty steak knife, now I knew. The breading on the chicken was golden and crisp, so beautiful to the eye that I hesitated to deface this lovely work of art. And it wasn't just delicious, it was an experience to remember. And the fries! What can I say - they were the best fries I have ever tasted in my whole life. There were far too many fries for me, so Karen had to help out. The mixed salad and the mushroom sauce (full of mushroom chunks) were in separate bowls - no room on the wood platter for them. The chicken schnitzel was beyond my capacity and could not be finished - my salad was untouched. The price was so attractive that I doubt they made a profit on my meal. I said to Karen, "Let's go back there tomorrow".
In the afternoon we went to Cairns Botanic Garden. Our expectations were low, as we had seen many botanical gardens previously. But wait! This place is terrific, beyond all expectations. See for yourself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adcFeWyNCQs
While at the Botanic Garden we encountered several Australian bush turkeys wandering about:
Later, at Palm Cove we saw moon jellyfish floating in the water but we were unable to take definitive pictures. They are not dangerous to humans. The ones definitely to avoid in Australian waters are the box jellyfish, sea wasp, irukandji, and fire jellyfish. Just so you know - scientists say to NEVER pee on a jellyfish sting, use vinegar!
Driving back to Cairns we saw a field full of wallabys - they are smaller than kangaroos :
As the sky darkened, thousands of fruit bats flew past our patio. Where they were going - who knows?
With all the changes to our scheduled stops that we have had lately, it seems as though this Viking World Cruise is turning into a "Magical Mystery Tour".
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8WMGBuNaus
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