My views do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer.
March 7 & 8, 2026
We only had 24 hours docked in Port Chalmers, but unlike the other times I’d visited this port, we would be staying overnight. Rina and I wanted to go see glowworms!
The local bus only ran once an hour. When we got to the bus stop, it looked like half the ship was there! Luckily we’d arrived early enough to get a spot on the bus.
I’d wandered around Dunedin on my own when I was on the Golden Princess (it was a rainy day) and I had an incredible lunch with Andi when I was here on the Diamond Princess.
This time, Miguel came along with us. He mostly spoke Spanish, so Rina, who is Spanish-Australian, made sure we all understood the conversation.
Rina had taught Miguel how to use AI, and the first thing he asked it was how he could get Rina to marry him. AI suggested that he try doing things she wanted to do rather than only the things he liked doing.
The relationship had not yet progressed as he hoped.
We walked around town, and everywhere we went, we’d run into someone else from the ship who had apparently made a list of the same highlights.
We had pizza while we waited for the sun to set. The pizza was awesome, but the apple cobbler pizza for dessert was incredible.
Once it was getting dark, we caught a local bus and followed Google Maps toward Nicol’s Creek. We knew we’d have to walk a bit to get there, but the map seemed to be directing us up a very steep hill.
Rina and I were game.
Miguel was not.
He announced that he would be calling an Uber.
The walk was supposed to be less than 20 minutes, but we unknowingly missed a turn and ended up unnecessarily climbing that hill. We traversed a road that was under construction and closed to cars.
I was loving the adventure.
Soon, Miguel was calling Rina. He’d taken an Uber to the trailhead.
Where were we?
Apparently the Uber had taken the long way around.
By now, it was getting dark. By the light of the flashlights on our phones, we climbed the muddy trail while Miguel complained dramatically the whole way.
If this was what Rina was interested in, he was reconsidering pursuing her in marriage.
We weren’t alone. Other people coming back down the trail reported on what they’d seen as we crossed paths.
Then we turned off our lights.
And we saw them.
It was so cool.
It was like having a night sky full of stars so close I could reach out and touch them.
I surrendered to the fact that this was an experience my camera simply couldn’t capture and soaked it all in.
Rina, however, had a better camera.
I absolutely loved it.
Rina pointed out that there were plenty of places to see glowworms on our itinerary (I regretting missing the ones in Puerto Princesa), but, unlike the others, this one was free!
The walk back to the bus stop was steep, but so much shorter when we didn’t make a wrong turn. The bus back into the city was coming soon, and we certainly didn’t want to miss the last bus back to Port Chalmers.
That’s when we ran into Memo, who had just arrived.
Rina and Miguel (mostly Miguel) convinced Memo that the climb up the mountain wasn’t worth seeing the glow worms.
I disagreed, but I didn’t speak up.
I thought they were awesome, but not necessarily worth missing the last bus all the way back to the ship.
The next morning I took a wonderful solitary walk over the hill in Port Chalmers and stopped for a lovely coffee and breakfast.
When my order was ready, a man offered me his seat. He said it was the best seat in the cafe – right by the cracked open window – and that he came here every week to enjoy it.
Tickled, I accepted.
Then it was back to the ship for another bunch of sea days…
A group of residents had spent the previous six months planning a ship-wide murder mystery. Anyone who wanted to participate had a role to play, and there were related activities for those who didn’t want to be officially involved. The craft room had been making costumes for weeks.
I was absolutely delighted to see so many people dress up and play along.
They even coordinated a Greek menu with the Food and Beverage Department. Everyone was most excited about the spanakopita.
There was a scavenger hunt, a trial, and a variety of other activities around the ship.
I found the story – and the mystery itself- completely confusing, but it was such a treat to sit back and enjoy the show without having to be in charge of making any of it happen.
