Aussie-New Zealand 2017 - Alotau, Papua New Guinea

We took a short trip to Alotau,Papua New Guinea.  We arrived just in time to attend a local festival..Our arrival was also on Halloween.

Aussie-New Zealand 2017 - Cairns Australia (The Great Barrier Reef)

We purchased a ticket on a ferry type speed boat to Green Island which consisted of 4 hours of snorkel time along The Great Barrier Reef.

It was a 10 minute walk along the wharf to where the boat was docked.  The boat left within 45 minutes of our arrival in Cairns and it was a lovely boat ride along the beautiful blue waters of the Coral Sea.  Our tickets included snorkel gear and lunch, we skipped the lunch due to the horrible long lines.

When we first made our way into the water I was very skeptical that we would see anything but I was pleasant surprised to see so much! We saw so many colorful fish, big and small, gorgeous coral, starfish and even a huge stingray.  Later we even spotted some turtles.  

After we were exhausted from snorkeling, we wandered around to other parts of the island before heading back to Cairns.  It was beautiful weather and we truly enjoyed our day.

Aussie-New Zealand 2017 - Darwin Australia

Darwin was fairly unremarkable as compared to the other Australian cities we visited.  There seemed to be a large amount of uneducated, homeless Aboriginals roaming about.   While none of them really approached us, they did remind us to be aware of our surroundings.

The first thing we noticed when we arrived was the beautiful turquoise waters.  The first thing we did was walk through a lovely park that followed the coastline into town.  We marveled at the fact that the city of Darwin offered free wifi throughout the central shopping areas.  Very convenient.  We paused a moment to FaceTime with family using the wifi then shopped for some gifts.  Darwin is very near Indonesia so their prices were lower than some of the other cities.

After downtown we continued through the park along the coastline admiring beautiful views of the coastline before heading back to our ship..

One of the most interesting and sad discoveries we made during our visit was the horrible bombings this city suffered from Japanese.  Such a senseless tragedy.

Aussie-New Zealand 2017 - Kimberly Coast of Australia

Aussie-New Zealand 2017 - Broome Australia

One word comes immediately to mind when thinking back to our time in Broome....HOT!  It was the hottest city we have visited since our arrival to Australia.  It’s a dry heat like Vegas.  The landscape is made of beautiful cliffs and beaches, red from the deep iron content of the soil.  The town itself is made up of only 2 main streets which had many pearl shops.  Pearls were their main source of revenue before plastics caused their value to drop.

Broome’s crown jewel is Cable Beach.  A beautiful beach of red sand which treats beach goers to  beautiful sunsets each evening.  Crocodiles are advertised to attract tourists.  Their were farms, boat tours and aquarium exhibits all centered around the local Crocs.  They also offer Camel rides along Cable Beach.  I had no idea that Northwestern Australia has home to so many Camels but after experiencing the dry hot climate I now understand why.

We booked a Sunset eco cruise with a local fishing charter company along the Coastline and Cable Beach.  We were delighted by all the snub nosed dolphins we saw.  They put on quite a show for us!

Before our visit to Australia, this is what I pictured the country to look like 

Aussie-New Zealand 2017 - Perth (Fremantle) Australia

In the morning we took a train from Fremantle into Perth.  The train system is very modern and extremely reliable.  It cost us $9.20AU for two one way tickets.  In general we do not like larger cities and when we do visit them, we prefer to spend our time at the parks or recreation areas.  

After arriving on the train, we walked to the Elizabeth Quay area along Swam River.  It was a lovely area with a cool breeze blowing from the river.  We took some photos then headed to Kings Park which was high upon a hill.  It was just hilly with many old stone stairs leading the way.  We took a bus back to the train station and returned to Fremantle.

The afternoon and evening was spent exploring Fremantle.  We took two different bus tours around the small coastal town and found it easy to like.  They have a lovely beach area.

Aussie-New Zealand 2017 - Albany Australia

Our ship’s arrival into the port of Albany was magical...we were greeted by beautiful blue waters, lush green landscapes and even a colorful rainbow.

Albany is a small town which could have just as easily been mistaken for a seaside coastal town in Cape Cod.  The Main Street has a huge clock tower and lovely gardens and parks.  When we arrived we hired a taxi to take us to Middleton Beach.  It was a lovely small beach with wonderful path’s around its edge for walking, biking & jogging.  We met a lovely couple who pointed out a whale with her new baby.  Then we  proceeded to walk along side the shore and they pointed out other interesting sights along the way.

After spending a enjoyable morning at the beach we took a taxi back the town to browse shops and visit craft booths set up along the street for visitors.  I would love to visit Albany again for an extended stay

Aussie-New Zealand 2017 - Adelaide Australia

Adelaide was one of our top favortie cities in all of Australia.  Prior to our arrival we booked a tour online through enjoyadelaide.com.au especially designed for cruise ship passengers.

The tour code was CS23 from 9am until 5pm .  Markus picked us up from the dock and dropped us back there.  He only takes 20 passengers and we received commentated tour of Adelaide City's major attractions.

Next, we headed up to Mt. Lofty for a wide open view of Adelaide city.  It was gorgeous!

We visited the German village of Hahndorf which had lovely little shops and ate an authentic German meal.