St John’s again
Back in Saint Johns the coach joined a stream of traffic as we completed the final part of our tour which was a look at the two cathedrals and to pass by more of the salt box houses.
The field where Alcock and Brown had left for their historic flight over the Atlantic was now an office building complex.
The houses had been part of the rebuilding by the British Army after the great fire. Later as the residents moved out of the city the houses had become empty. The City Fathers hired a British city planner for advice. Rather than suggest demolishing the houses he suggested renovations and then painting their outsides in bright colours. His suggestions worked and the houses were soon all occupied again.
The Basilica has the honour of being one of the largest in North America. When completed it was the largest. The local priest had petitioned Queen Victoria for permission to build and eventually this had been granted. The only proviso was that the land to be taken was outside the then city limits and was no larger than that what could be fenced in one day.
We were told that all religious people from the city had turned out to help with the fencing. The enclosed land was large enough for not only a cathedral but for a school and other buildings. The Basilica is the most prominent building when entering the harbour.
We left the coach on the street by where Sapphire was docked and walked into the city to look in the shops.
Lunch in Jungle Jims
Our guide had told us that George Street was reputed to have more bars than any other street in North America. It was there that we went into Jungle Jims for lunch.
I had Belgian beer which turned out to be Blue Moon. The toasted cheese sandwich and French onion soup was excellent value and tasted good too.
More exploration of St John’s
Back on Water Street we strolled in the sun stopping to look at some street art hidden up an alley before we had a large ice cream.
Back onboard
Across the harbour from the ship we could see three Canadian Coast Guard vessels. In front of Sapphire was the National Geographic exploration ship that had arrived while we were on our tour and behind us the oil supply ships.
After 5 pm the Captain explained that the ship had been asked by the Port Authority to take part in a piece of music using ships horns. The other ships in port would all join in at 5:30 pm.
Out on deck we listened to Sapphire’s horn blasting along with others all around the harbour.
Leaving St John’s
The tour guide had explained that the Narrows were about 200 meters wide and had a 35 metre deep channel. This meant that in high winds or foggy conditions this would almost always stop cruise ships from entering the harbour.
As Sapphire approached the Narrows I could see where anti-submarine nets had been placed in WW2.
Above us we could see crowds on signal Hill as we passed through the narrows.
Just like at Spear Point we watched the Atlantic rollers crash on to the cliffs after passing through the Narrows.
We stopped at the Crooners Bar for a drink before going down to the restaurant. We were placed on a table for two at the side of the restaurant in an alcove. There were just three tables in the alcove and just one other was occupied. I started with prawn cocktail, then the beef stroganoff with noodles and finished with ice cream. We chatted with the couple next to us and heard about their experiences on Cunard.
In the theatre we watched Jonathan Johnson who played the flute and entertained us with a wide selection of music.
From the Cruise Log
Thursday l9th September 2019
At 2 am, Sapphire Princess adjusted her clocks 30 minutes back, in order to align herself with Newfoundland’s unusual time zone of UTC-2.5. In the early hours of the morning, Sapphire Princess made her final approach to Newfoundland from the East, embarking the local pilot at 07:42 en route to the berth. After proceeding through the narrow harbor entrance, she berthed bow in, starboard side alongside the quay. Sapphire Princess ran her first lines ashore at 08:25, marking the end of her 5-night, westbound Trans-Atlantic voyage. By 08:44 all lines had been made fast and both Deck 4 gangways had been rigged and ready, safe for guest use.
Having spent the day lying quietly alongside Berth No.10/11 in St. John’s, Sapphire Princess was ready to sail at 17:40, so she commenced letting go all lines. Five minutes later, at 17:45, all lines had been recovered and Sapphire Princess was underway, thrusting laterally to port off the berth and proceeding astern to the swinging basin. After manoeuvring the vessel to an easterly heading, she exited the harbor and disembarked the local pilot.
An initial south south-westerly course was steered throughout the evening as she paralleled the eastern coast of the Avalon Peninsula en route to her next port of call, Sydney in Nova Scotia.
Noon Position: Alongside in St John’s
Wind: Gentle SSW’ly breeze, Force 3
Sky: Sunny skies (1/8 cloud cover)
Seas: Calm Rippled (Alongside), Slight Seas + Short Low NNW’ly swell
Pressure: 1020 hPa
Air Temperature: 15°C / 59°F