ausjackaroo sailing

Carnival Splendor South Pacific from Sydney

Tuesday 13th June 2023 8 nights

I can't believe it! Finally our cruise booked way back in May 2019 to depart April 2020 is actually about to happen. What with the Covid-19 pandemic where cruising had been placed in a hiatus for over 2 years, this cruise was an uncertainty. Carnival had offered us either a full payout of the cost of our cruise or a Future Cruise Credit and a $900 On Board Credit per cabin to rebook at a later date. For me I was unsure of what the future would be, really, I might not be alive if and when cruising resumed, but my cruising buddies were positive in the prospective outlook and the $900 had a great bearing on taking up the F.C.C. Virgin Airlines were great too, giving us a credit for our future flights. The original cabins we had booked together were ocean view, however I was happy to agree with everyone that a balcony cabin with the fresh air would be preferable if we were confined to our cabin in the event any of us tested positive to Covid-19.  

We flew into Sydney the day before sailing and stayed in the Rendezvous Hotel in the heart of Sydney's The Rocks, only a short walk with our suitcases to board the ship. We could actually see part of the ship from our balcony!. AND, how fortunate were we, Sydney's Vivid light show was showing on the night we were there.

So once we settled our rooms, we ventured out to explore part of the Rocks, have a light lunch then wander around the waterfront of Circular Quay, walking past the Overseas Passenger terminal to view the Harbour Bridge, stopping off for tea at what I thought was a great find, Bar Mille.

Sitting in the open air section of the restaurant with the coloured lights showing on the walls behind.

Bar Mille during the day, with the first floor balcony seating area. 

The night was perfect to wander around the waterfront area. The temperature and still night was ideal. Being a public holiday in Sydney attracted many locals and tourists alike, strolling around the pop-up food vans and displays. Across the Quay buildings were projecting strobe beams into the skies. Buildings all around were lit in bright colours. 

Opera House lit with various themes.

Opera House lit with Aboriginal designs, strobe beams pointing across. 

Different lights travelling across the Bridge.

Note the crowds milling around.

Old warehouse lit by different light designs. 

We decided to head back to our hotel, winding our way through the small narrow streets of the Rocks. My  room mate and I were fortunate to have a balcony which overlooked the roof tops of the buildings close to the Quay. So when the Drone Show started, we were in a position to glimpse some of the displays over the roof tops. 

Strobe Beams seen over roof tops from our hotel balcony.

                      Drone show seen from our hotel balcony. 

Next day, Kay, my room and cabin mate and I decided to head out early to grab a coffee before meeting Faye and Gayle at a later time for breakfast. We had such an adventurous discovery of seeing the alleyways and narrow streets of The Rocks. Sometimes we could see the outline of the Harbour Bridge in the background as we wandered around. We would see notice boards giving the history of various buildings, wells or unusual structures. 

When we set out for breakfast, we found a café which served an ideal menu of breakfast courses and the view down the street increased the excitement for our pending cruise.

How about that view down the street from where we had our breakfast? Carnival Splendor!

We wandered around to discover the interesting shops around The Rocks before heading back to our hotel to collect our luggage.  One particular shop made Rock Candy. $450 for 6 kilos of specialized wording. The Candy which was made when we were there was Isabel 18th in red and white. 

Not very clear in the photo, but it reads ISABEL 18TH