Spirit of Tasmania

After lining up for the Spirit of Tasmania twice, we eventually boarded early on Sunday morning. After looking at the bay, all white capped and wavy, and heeding the captain's dire weather warning, we took two Travelcalms  and prepared for the worst.

It never occurred.

We ate. Read. Journaled, listened to music and chatted with very little inconvenience apart from the occasional jolt and shudder, and a vague bored sense of being stuck for nine hours in one place.

We were supposed to have cabins but because we stuffed up our bookings, we had to sit on deck. We chose a spot on level ten near the bar.  (yes, I have discovered Emoji).

There was nothing particularly noteworthy about our location except, I think it used to be a swimming pool. 

I know, it sounds ridiculous. Imagine people cavorting on deck ten of the Spirit Tasmania, as if they were on a Pacific pleasure cruise.

But you see, there were tiles.

And a round railed area that looked suspiciously like it might have been a spa.

And a suspiciously rectangular area at the centre of deck ten. No one actual ventured into this space (probably because they weren't wearing bathers) and besides, the air-conditioning was far too cold. But, one by one, throughout he day, people took turns sleeping poolside (myself included).

This is one of the best things about traveling in Australia. I see it all the time in caravan parks. People can leave cameras, phones and money, and equipment unguarded, without the security of lock or key, and nine times out of ten nothing gets pinched.

The only other remarkable feature of our day on the pool deck was an absence of power sockets.

People had to take turns charging their digital appliances. I tried to charge my iPhone but the power cord wasn't long enough. I had to balance it, cord twisted about the handrail, hoping it didn't lurch skittering onto the floor.

In the end a man took pity on me and plugged my phone into the USB port of his laptop. 

Andrew says I am a little obsessed with my new iphone (actually he left the word little out). He says I have issues. Clearly, this is not the case. But, if I do have a digital dependence problem, I am not alone.

On the Spirit of Tasmania, the power sockets were in use all day.