You went to Australia? Nope, that other Sydney in Nova Scotia

Excursions for our new port of Sydney, Nova Scotia were finally posted late afternoon the day before we arrived. Either people were checking nonstop or there wasn't much available in the first place because half of the choices were already sold out according to the medallion app. I probably could have played "the suite card" and asked April or guest services to give us excursion priority but I was perfectly fine with our original plan on keeping things easy and low key on this trip. 

With no rush to get off the ship, especially since it was just still just as wet and dreary as Boston only now colder, we decided to skip Sabatini breakfast and went down to the International Cafe to try the new breakfast items like tortillas, smoothies, and monkey bread. The Piazza was pretty packed with people waiting for their excursions so it was a bit of a wait to get our food. We found a small table on the edge of Good Spirits Bar and used the medallion app to order orange juice. A waiter brought out the orange juice within minutes even though the progress bar on my app never moved past received. Also grateful for our first tall glass of non pulp orange juice! :) I was impressed with the tortilla wraps as they were fresh, stayed contained, but weren't dried out. The monkey bread was a nice treat. I had to get a Princess egg sandwich as it is a favorite option for quick breakfast. 

We took our time after breakfast wandering around waiting for morning trivia and came across a cool activity to watch in Princess Live. What new cruisers may not realize is that when a ship is in port, the crew will often practice their safety drills. Everything is done motion wise as if a real emergency was taking place and it's a fascinating and free way to see what behind the scenes with the crew is like. It can be concerning since announcements are made over the intercom system and alarms are sounded just like a real emergency. When it's for practice, the Captain will come over the intercom first to announce that they are about to do these drills and no action is required from passengers. For experienced cruisers, sometimes hearing "For Exercise Only! For Exercise Only!" is as much of a smile inducer as hearing the Love Boat Horn. We grabbed some seats out of the way of where Niki was leading the group of crew assigned to the Princess Live muster station and watched the action. It was cool to not only see Niki stepping up as a new leader but also to hear her talk about officer feedback and changes they are working to make to improve on their actions during drills. Despite my many cruisers, I can always learn something new. Today, I learned that each muster station has a box of supplies and that each box includes a bottle of seasickness pills! Makes total sense to have that but I never would have thought of it myself.

After trivia, we bundled up and headed out in port. We walked through the warehouse of craft stands and browsed the offerings for sale. It was nice of Sydney to offer thrones for all of Princess' size ships to fit.

Then Dad stayed under cover while I waited my turn to get a clear picture of "The Big Fiddle." Everyone was kindly offering to take pictures for each other. A sweet toddler was having the time of his life dancing to the music being played from the sculpture. He protested every time his mom tried to drag him out of the way so someone could get their photo. 

I think I've perfected the "Did you take the picture yet?" face when posing for pictures. 

We were soon ready to get back inside for some warmth and opted to visit the Concierge Lounge. The place was a little busier than it used to be during the day but not as crowded as during cocktail hour. I know with the stricter COVID protocols, the regular drinks and snacks were handed to you so that only one person touched the food. Now, you can help yourself but a crew member was on hand to assist if needed. For the most part, they spent their time cleaning up and offering to get more to drink as the bulk of the passengers helped themselves. 

We had a great chat with the current gentleman on duty about what it was like in port. His excitement was like a little kid waiting for the school bell to ring for summer vacation waiting for his colleague to come relieve him so he could get some time on his break to go see the fiddle from the open deck. He was fascinated by our report of its size and loved seeing my pictures.

Next up - dinner at Sabatini and the story of a magical Alice who saved our experience!