The Seabourn Odyssey left Cairns and is headed for New Caledonia. The Battle of the Coral Sea  occurred between 4 and 8 of May 1942, five months after Pearl Harbor.   Japan vs the USA and Australia.   First aircraft carrier battle ever fought. All the fighting, however, were carried out by airplanes from those ships. This was the first time in WWII that Japan experienced failure in a major battle. This was the victory that saved Australia, for Japan was advancing towards Australia. The U.S. knew more than the Japanese suspected, for America had broken the Japanese secret naval codes.  The strategy was to sink carriers, for that would destroy the plane runway.  The problem was that each was protected by a screen of cruisers and destroyers. The Japanese were led by Admiral Shigeyoshi Inoue, with Admiral Frank Fletcher in American command. The final truth is that this was actually a tactical victory for Japan, as the American USS Lexington carrier was scuttl...

Yesterday was, again, a boring day.  Loved it.  Did virtually nothing but eat and sleep.   We are now in the Coral Sea, and will cruise for two days.  I thought the internet would be non-existent.  Works well.  Yes, I continue to be very happy. What is particularly nice is not to have to do anything.  Well, maybe this blog is a bit time-consuming.  But some tell me they love to live vicariously through my postings.  Not sure if humdrum appeals, but  I nevertheless continue. Well, anyway, we were in the state of Queensland ( 5.3 million people ) for the past few days, where we ported in Townsville (181,668), Cairns (153,951), and smaller towns, Airlie Beach and Moreton Island.  Still wondering why we bypassed Brisbane, which has a population of 2.5 million.  Queensland has more area than all but 15 countries--about the size of Mexico and Indonesia--and different from previous visited states in that there are rainforests and cora...

We had to be weighed the other day to board the flight, and to my astonishment, was at 153.6 pounds, about what I was when I left Honolulu three weeks ago.  I'm eating a lot and drinking too much.  But I'm sleeping a whole lot.  When we returned from our recent Regent Seven Seas cruise from Dubai to Singapore, I noticed that I only gained a couple of pounds, a big surprise.  The key was sleep.  Read my posting of  23December2022 . We were yesterday in Townsville and this morning docked in Cairns, our last stop in Australia.  Being bored on a cruise is a kind of luxury.  Usually, the day is filled too many activities.  I slept until late in the morning, and my day began with another sumptuous lunch. After a three champagne lunch, I caught the cruise shuttle into town.  I wanted to visit Townsville's two aquaria.   However, before boarding the vehicle, I learned that both were closed for reconstruction.   But there was a free bus...