Day 31 - 11/02/22 - At Sea to Cairns, Australia

 It was really good to have a sea day after 2 days at the Conflict Islands. I don't know if my skin could take any more of the sun and heat.  We got up at our usual time and prepared for a full day of lectures.  


Dr. Jack Hardy became Captain Cook and gave his last Captain Cook first person presentation.  He was followed by Morag Hocknull who spoke about her time in Papua New Guinea.   Her presentation was fast paced and packed with all sorts of details and pictures.  Ian Gowrie-Smith, owner of the Conflict Islands and a very wealthy Australian businessman presented a talk on Owning and Preserving Paradise in the Pacific.  He laced the presentation with high quality underwater videos.  

In his lunch PA announcement, the Captain announced our Covid cases were down 2 persons to 50.  There are 47 passengers and 3 crew members in isolation.

After lunch, Rachael gave a port talk on Cairns and Airlie Beach.  Dr. Hardy then wrapped up the lecture day with a colorful Reef presentation.  The rest of the afternoon I relaxed by washing my snorkeling gear, filling out the Australian Incoming Passenger Cards, and walking a mile on the deck.   I was also able to provide another passenger a copy of the video of him diving at the abyss on day one.  


After dinner with Erik & Marilyn in the breezy Lido Pool area, we attended the BBC Earth presentation on 7 Continents.  Afterwards we watched the Helen Reddy bioptic.  


Tomorrow we have to clear the passenger inspection and then we have an all day excursion to do something really fun.


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