Bart Bear's Blog

Cruise ships often have to pass through areas where nasty pirates operate. Mostly they depend on speed and high-pressure hoses for defense. Scruffy, Milkshake and I were very pleased to find that "Radiance of the Seas" has real cannon aboard. They are only small cannon, but they are just the right size for our small good pirate band to operate. Imagine the surprise and panic on a nasty pirate vessel when Scruff or I came zooming through the air and generating havoc when we landed among them. With Milky directing the aiming we would always land on target. As you can see, the bore of the cannons is just the right size for small bears to ride cannon balls from them. Baron Munchausen claims to have done it and anything that old braggart can do, small bears can do better. No wonder Radiance was such a happy ship during our cruise; she was very well protected.

Labels: boats, cruising

A portrait has just been found of one of my ancestors, Blackbear the Terrible (actually it's a card Mum made yesterday). Readers should remember that Santa gave me pirate gear for Christmas in 2013. I am Black Bart the Horrendous. Piracy runs in my family, maybe that's why I love cruising so much. On "Radiance of the Seas" I had a small crew with me, Scruffy and Milkshake. We were good pirates this time, tasked with ensuring the safety of Radiance and all who sailed in her. We needed to check out the lifeboat situation and were a bit worried that passengers were told to leave everything but passports behind if the ship had to be abandoned. "What about all the toy animals?" we thought and searched hard for a solution. We found it in the Schooner Bar - a small tugboat just the right size to save hundreds of sinking critters. If the worst had happened and Radiance had hit an iceberg, we would have had the tug out through the window and been busy collecting struggling small animals before the big lifeboats were fully launched. I hope future travelers on Radiance keep this salvage tug in mind, just in case there are no pirate bears and cows on board.

Labels: boats, cruising, family

The day before we sailed off to Noumea, we had lunch at one of Sydney's best ressertorraornttz (I just can't spell restaurant). It is at one of the best-known of the world's beaches - Bondi. The eatery is attached to the Bondi Icebergs Club and has spectacular views over the beach. Actually, Mum thought she was booking us into the Bistro, which is cheap club-type food, but when we got there we found that we were actually booked into the non-cheap high-class place. So the Oldies decided that a 5-star lunch would be a good thing to do.  While they were demolishing some incredible fodder, I sat quietly on the patio with a glass of the good white stuff and watched the action on the beach and in the ocean. The Icebergs are a club of people who swim every day of the year, including mid-winter, except when the sea is so rough that the pool is unsafe. The super-storm that hit Sydney early this week stopped them for a couple of days, but you can see some of them in the pool in the first image. There are usually surfers, both board and body, in the water. This day had good sets of waves coming in and you can spot surfers as well. Bondi is a good beach, but Dad says that the NSW north coast beaches are better and Mum prefers Manly. I think they may be just a wee bit biased; I like Bondi.

Labels: beach, New South Wales, Sydney

We just finished a cruise on the best ship we have been on so far. This small bear thinks "Radiance of the Seas" is just about perfect. The happy and efficient crew made for a happy trip. Not a long cruise this time, just 7 days to Noumea and Isle of Pines and return. In case you have been watching the news about cruise ships not being able to get into Sydney for the past 2 days, due to horrendous weather, we actually docked a day before the harbour had to be closed. We had good weather for the whole cruise. Radiance is not as big as Voyager or QM2, but I liked not having to walk so far to get from our cabin to where things were happening, and there was always something interesting happening. Sailing out of Sydney is always special, it is a truly beautiful harbour. At the very start of the voyage Mum took a great picture of the Opera House. We have many pictures of it, but the angle from the top deck gives a more 3D effect than you get from the ground, and the lighting makes it really pretty. Lots more pix of ship and shore posting soon.

Labels: boats, cruising, Noumea, Sydney

Yay!!!!! The time has come for us to pack our bags and head off on another cruise. This weekend we join "Radiance of the Seas" in Sydney for a cruise to New Caledonia and back. Dad is the enrichment lecturer on the cruise. He will be giving talks on astronomy every day at sea. If you ever happen to be on a cruise where Dad is lecturing, go and hear him; he is actually pretty good (but never tell him that I told you so). I love the days at sea, particularly when the sea is calm and the Sun is shining. Mum and I always try to get a "Kate and Leo" picture on every ship we sail on. Even when the weather is a bit rough I like it, you can get really moody photos then. I can't decide if I like the tropical parts of the South Pacific better than the colder bit around New Zealand. The ports of call are always pretty and interesting. The photo here is of islands in the huge lagoon at Noumea. We will be back there on Wednesday and this time I will make sure that the Oldies take sand-fly and mozzie repellant with them.

Labels: astronomy, boats, cruising, New Zealand, Noumea, South Pacific

Easter again! It doesn't seem like a year since the last one. Anyhow, this year I have joined the world-wide team of Easter Bunny Helpers. The choccy eggs and things for this house have just been delivered and I am off to hide them from the Oldies and the other critters. I like being part of this secret society, but I have to say that I am not too happy with the uniform. I mean to say, those ears are bigger than the rest of me. How am I supposed to do my hiding job with those huge things waving in the air? Anyhow, I wish you a happy Easter. Stay safe, stay happy, and remember that Bart loves you all.