Bay of Islands - November 4

Bay of Islands - Nov 3

Our last port of call before Sydney! We opted to wait until here to visit the glow worms.

Of course, Bob was on the veranda at the crack of dawn as we pulled into this fascinating bay filled with hundreds of islands

It was very chilly so the Maori greeting us were bundled up!

For a change, we booked a ship's shore excursion to a glow worm cave - something Peggy really wanted to see!

We boarded our bus with the assurance that if for some reason we were delayed in returning to the ship, Holland America would either hold the ship or see that we got back to Sydney. The bus driver navigated a one lane bridge to the mainland

We'd seen this ship coming in on the tender and wondered if it was operational - doubtful since we could see no sails - sure enough, it is up on blocks and is a restaurant

Along the way, we passed a Maori settlement

And some nice beaches

The third oldest Anglican church - moved twice and rebuilt the third time in stone

We arrive at the glow worm cave

Theresa and Peggy near the entrance

Bill, Theresa, and Peggy in the cave before they turned off the lights

Bob tried to sneak in a photo or two but got busted and warned that they would eject him if he persisted, so we got these images from the web

After exiting the cave, the tough part began - we had to climb up and over the hill containing the cave!

On the way back we made a stop at one of the most visited & photographed toilets in New Zealand -

You heard me correctly - it is all in art deco

Surrounded by similar art and buildings

The interior is just as outlandish!

The driver took us through a nice area where people have settled on 10+ acre plots

On the way to one of the oldest missions in the area

We were told this is the oldest oak tree in New Zealand

Some of the grave stones are quite ornate

Special commemoration of the early missionaries

The house nearby . . .

. . . is plain but comfortable

No, this is not a spinning wheel - it's a lathe - with a hand cranked flywheel!

The house is two story

Bob & Bill were surprised to find this Bakelite panel which apparently comprised the main power "breaker box" for the facility - in the men's room outside!

The church (which was in session when we arrived) is beautiful in its simplicity

As we arrived back at "Fleet Landing"

To board our tender - i.e. "Liberty Launch"

The seas had come up and the tender was gathering some serious foam - which bubbled past the gasket on Bill & Peggy's side, soaking their feet!

Bob felt bad since he'd suggested the front seats! Fortunately for us, our window only leaked a little

The tricky part is coming aboard the ship - especially if the seas are up.

The key is to put the platform in the lee of the ship. The boat handling on Oosterdam was very good indeed!

Once on board, Bob roamed the top deck looking for photo ops - here you can see two of the ship's small boats bringing folks out from shore

We actually got underway as the last boats had just been attached to the falls!

The situation was critical since the tide was going out - note the brown mud being churned by the screws!

Back aboard, we attended a feast of chocolate in the culinary arts center! No demonstrations, just plate after plate of delectable chocolate goodies!

On the TV, we could see the ship's progress in sequential screens which zoomed in one by one.

The entertainment that evening was Patrick MacMahon, a very energetic young man from western Australia who had a raspy voice like Neil Diamond.  We became great fans!

Tomorrow: Sydney and Flight to Honolulu