May 23, 2024
Arrival in Dublin Ireland Sunday May 19th 2024
I arrived in Dublin Ireland to bright sunshine and collected my luggage - 3 large, checked bags and 2 carry-ons and cleared customs all by 7:30 a.m. I had reserved a private driver to take me and handle all the bags, up to Belfast from the Airport. The driver was a lovely Romanian immigrant, father of 5, who had been there, with his wife since 2005. He enlightened me on economy and state of immigrants in the UK & EU. We also talked at length on his observations about the Ukraine/ Russian War, from the prospective of Romanians, his family and friends, many of whom lived within Ukraine. It made the 1.5 hour drive go very quickly. I then tried to check in to my hotel, the Ibis Belfast Centre, but no rooms were ready for early check in at 9 a.m. I chilled in hotel lobby for a little over an hour and then thankfully they were able to get me into a room and I could nap for a few hours, prior to my dry dock tour of the ship at 4pm.
The Dry dock tour was limited to 10 of us for safety reasons and it was AMAZING! Such a unique perspective to see the ship from for the first time. So fortunate to be invited to participate. Last photo of me with our intrepid leader of Villa Vie Residences, Mike Petterson.
We had a beautiful sunny day to explore Wellington ! Was a very nice change from the stormy, big swells weather we have had the last two days! Wellington is the Capital city of New Zealand and the CBD is nice and big with lots of shops and museums. We didn't make it to the LOTR studios due to the time crunch but we took the cable car up to the top, for a scenic overlook of the port and then leisurley walk down through the Botantical Gardens, parks and historical cemetary.
Rotorua became a bonus city for us. Our Port stay in Tauranga got cut down to one day, due to NZ biosecurity regulations and since we really wanted to do Hobbiton, we decided to get off the ship and stay in hotels and get back on the ship, in a few days. Due to a variety of factors, the Ship ended up doing a quick pick up of us in Tauranga, three days later. The Kiwi's we encountered along the way, who helped with all our last minute details, were amazingly kind, hospitable and generous. Below is our tired, chilly group huddled at the security shed, outside the Port in the wee hours (1:30 am) Monday morning, awaiting our final hurdle of getting back on our Home. Home sweet home! What an adventure!
Rotorua, New Zealand is known for it's geothermal activity ( geysers, mud pools, hot springs) and rich Maori culture . I saw lots of that last time I was here in 2016, so this time I wanted to see their Redwoods in Whakarewarewa Forest. John and Colleen joined me in exploring. Their redwoods are smaller than the ones in Muir Woods California, but still impressive. Both are planted forest dating back to around 1908.