Portland, VIC

New-to-us-Port #9 … with an overnight.

A quiet day at sea. Yes, as Captain Giulio predicted, the wind picked up in the afternoon. Whitecaps edged the tips of the swells. But the motion of the ocean seemed less. The sun broke through the overcast to make it all seem more cheery somehow.

Around 7:00p, Regatta arrived at its berth on Portland’s Lee Breakwater … about a 15-20 minute walk from town. It wasn’t until 7:30p that the six passengers waiting near the gangway — us being two of them — were cleared to go ashore. Where was everyone else? Dining at one of the venues on the ship would be my guess.

As we were leaving, we were told that there would be shuttles running into town … until 9:00p. We wanted to stretch our legs — and we were on a tight schedule — so we didn’t wait for the vans to show up.

Why a tight schedule when the ship will be here overnight? There was only one restaurant we found on the internet that was open … a pub at the Gordon Hotel … and the kitchen there closed at 8:30p! Yes, as seems to be common everywhere we’ve been in Australia thus far — with the exception of Sydney — Portland rolls up the sidewalks soon after the workday ends.

Anyway, we made it to the pub in time. Ordered fish and chips for dinner … and a Great Northern Crisp beer to wash it all down.

Then we retraced our steps back to the ship. Really, there was nowhere else to go. Might as well take advantage of the empty launderette … our last load before we disembark in Hobart on the 22nd. Can’t believe we have to start thinking about packing already!

We’ll explore Portland properly tomorrow.Leia mais