Wednesday 28th May 2014
To describe today's weather I am going to quote Richie Benauard, "typical stinking hot day here in Hong Kong". Expected maximum temperature is 32 with very high humidity.
This is our last day in Hong Kong which his going to be a chill out day packing bags. Fortunately we have a late checkout and as we are right at the airport we don't have to rush.
With breakfast over we started on the task of packing and very quickly found that all the purchases made yesterday at Disneyland would not fit so it was off to the shop to get another bag.
Finally with the bags packed we got changed had a light afternoon tea in the Hotel, checked out and walked through the air bridge to the airport terminal about 5:00pm.
As I had done the on line checking and seat allocation last night all we had to do was drop the bags (which weighed 12 kilos more than when we left) off and go to the boarding gate. Fortunately only a short walk not a train trip this time.
As I write this last report for this trip from overseas we are looking out over Hong Kong harbour. It is  just past 7:00pm and the sun set in beautiful.
Our flight is due to depart at 8:30pm and arrive in Melbourne tomorrow morning at 8:00am.

Tuesday 27^th May 2014.

Todays weather report; very hazy, some blue sky, maximum temperature expected to be 30°.

After breakfast we booked tickets for the 10:30am hotel shuttle bus to Disneyland. 

Bruce at Disneyland

The trip took about 15 minutes and when we got off the bus the heat hit us. It may have only been 30° but the humidity must have been 80% or more.

The Fantasy Land Castle

First stop was Fantasy Land, saw the flying Dumbo ride but queue was about 20 minutes and standing in the sun that long was not a good idea. We did go on the revolving teacup ride, which is one of the iconic Disney ride.

Lynne on the Teacup ride

Next was a walk through Adventure Land where we saw Tarzan’s tree house and went on the jungle riverboat ride. The animation was fantastic with elephants & hippos rising up out of the water and giant cobras along the banks.

African elephant on river bank in Adventure Land

It was now time cool of in one of the many air-conditioned restaurants and rehydrate with a cool drink and an ice-cream.

Tomorrow Land was next. Again the Queues were long so we did not go on any rides.

Retail therapy was next and fortunately this was air conditioned so we managed to cool off as well as spend money.

Walked up the main street and back into Fantasy Land where we sat in the cool and had lunch.

The Disney Flights of Fantasy Parade with Dumbo, Whiney the Poo, Mickey Mouse, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and the Loin King was on at 3:30 so we found a reasonably shady spot to stand and what it. Managed to get some photos, however, it was difficult as a lot of locals had umbrellas up for shade, which got in the way.

Time to cool of again with more souvenir shopping and a cuppa them back across to Fantasy Land to see Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. 

Snow White & the Seven Dwarves

We were booked on the 6:10pm shuttle bus back to the hotel so it was now time to say goodbye to Disney Land and head to the bus stop with our two large bags of souvenirs.

Despite the heat we had a great day.

Monday 26^th May 2014

After a 10 & ¾ hour flight from Heathrow we landed at Hong Kong at about 12:45pm.

Whilst the plane was a new A380, which we were looking forward to, flying in it was very disappointing.  It was very cramped and seems as though additional rows of seats have been added at the expense of legroom. We were less than impressed with British Airways and it will be good to be on a Qantas flight on the leg back to Aussie.

After a quick passage though immigration we had a short walk through the concourse to check into the Regal Airport Hotel. 

Our room at Regal Airport Hotel Honk Kong

It is really lovely and very convenient so there was no need to get a taxi. Temperature outside was a humid 30°.

After 11 hours on a plane the first order of business was a nice shower and change of clothes, then off to the Executive Club Lounge for a bit to eat and a cuppa. During check-in we arranged a late checkout so we do not vacate our room until 7:00pm on Wednesday evening.

Dinner tonight was in the Dragon Inn, (one of many in the hotel) which serves Shangainese Cuisine meals. We had braised beef with spring onions, braised chicken with back black mushroom & bamboo shoots and Chinese noodles, all of which was lovely and a good end to a rather long day.

Early night tonight as we are going to spend tomorrow at Disneyland, which will be great. No doubt more retail therapy, with Lynne already saying she will need the spare bag out for the trip home.

Sunday 25^th May 2014

Weather report for today is for cloudy sky, possible light showers and 18°.

After a light breakfast we ventured out about 9:00am armed with cameras and umbrellas for a last walk around London, as we will be saying goodbye UK this evening flying to Hong Kong.

The weather was better than expected and whilst it was cool in the shade due to a light breeze blowing it was warm in the sun.

Southbank  Lion on Westminster Bridge

Bruce sitting in middle of Westminster Bridge

There were a lot of road closures round the city until 1:30PM including Westminster Bridge, Whitehall, Birdcage and Pall Mall due to the London 10,000 metre fun run being held today.

It was great to be able to walk up the middle of the road across Westminster Bridge.

We continued our walk through St James Park. Lots of ducks on the banks of the pond, as well as plenty of squirrels out foraging on the grass for whatever they could find.  They are very tame and one came very close to Lynne but realizing she did not have anything they scampered off.

We headed back to the hotel about 11:00am to pack our bags as we had to checkout by midday.

With checkout complete we left our luggage with the concierge and walked back up Whitehall and had lunch in the Clarendon pub before walking back across Westminster Bridge, collecting our bags and getting a taxi to Heathrow at 2:00pm.

The taxi ride was interesting with the taxi driver giving us a running commentary of the suburbs we were driving through.

Arrived at the airport about 3:15pm checked our luggage in, had a cuppa and made our way to boarding gate 64, via the airport underground rail system ready to board our flight to Hong Kong. The flight departed at 6:35pm as scheduled.

Saturday 24^th May 2014

Overnight we completed crossing the Bay of Biscay and headed northwest up the English Channel. According to the Navigators update this morning the ship entered the Solent around 4:40am and when we woke we were sailing into Southampton Harbour and getting ready to dock.

An early start this morning as we have to vacate our Stateroom by 8:00AM.

The weather this morning is not looking good, very foggy with overcast sky and rain. Temperature is expected to a maximum of 15°

After a quick breakfast of cereal and a cuppa we collected bags and made our way to deck 5 to disembark at 8:10am. We got to the meeting point a little early and were directed straight off the ship. It only took about 10 minutes from collecting our bags to actually walking off the ship and getting into a cab and heading for the railway station. We had pre-purchased our rail tickets so we boarded the 8:30am train to London. Arrived in London Waterloo at 9:45am and after a short cab ride we checked into the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge.

Big Ben from our Hotel looking across Westminster Bridge

He weather in London is just as bad as it was in Southampton, overcast sky, light breeze and a very strong possibility of heavy rain showers and a maximum temperature of 14°. Hopefully it will clear a bit later this afternoon so we can go for a wander around.

Friday 23^rd May 2014

Our last day on at sea as well as our last day on board the Emerald Princess.

Weather this morning overcast skies, strong winds and light rain and the prediction for the remainder of the day was not good.

As we sailed further into the Bay of Biscay the Captains midday update announced that he had closed the promenade deck as well as the swimming pools due to 35-knot winds and heavy seas with swells between 4-5 metres.

All in all not looking good for our last day. Even the outdoor movie was cancelled. Lynne was not sorry, as it was Top Gun.

As there was no ability to go out on deck the inside of the ship became very crowded.

Our day consisted of doing a last load of washing and then endeavouring to repack our bags which we finally managed to do following some rearranging to fit in the souvenirs and photos that had been purchased.

With all this completed we had a last look round the ship and sat in the piazza for a cuppa before getting changed for dinner.

The theme in the dining room was “American” and all the waiters were dressed in “stars & stripes” outfits.

After a great dinner, which included the parade of the bomb alaska, (dessert this evening), we said goodbye to Joanne and Glen and made our way back to our Stateroom to complete the final packing. As we are doing the express walk off  (we will be taking our own luggage off the ship) in the morning we don’t have to leave our luggage out to be collected.