We’re about halfway from Papeete to New Zealand today. The straight-line distance from Papeete to Tauranga is roughly 2,165 nautical miles (about 4,000 kilometres), so we’re somewhere around the 1,080 nautical mile mark, with the ship’s actual track adding a little to that. It’s a good moment to look at what’s under us. The Pacific is the largest ocean on Earth, covering about a third of the planet’s surface, and its average depth is around 4,000 metres. As we edge closer to New Zealand the seafloor drops away dramatically. Off the North Island lies the Kermadec Trench, which plunges to about 10,000 metres, making it one of the deepest places on the planet. Its neighbour to the north, the Tonga Trench, goes deeper still, past 10,800 metres, and is the deepest trench in the Southern Hemisphere. Think about that for a moment. Some of the deepest water in the world is in the stretch between us and Tauranga.
It’s also the route Polynesian voyagers sailed, in the opposite direction. The ancestors of the Māori set out from East Polynesia, the Society Islands and Cook Islands region, and crossed this same open ocean in double-hulled canoes, navigating by stars, swells, and birds. We’re doing it with a pizza oven and a cocktail menu.
Speaking of pizza, our start today is a little different. We’re up early and out by just after 9am, heading to the rear of the ship to Eden and the restaurant there. Mardi has booked me into a pizza-making class. There are two other couples doing it, and our chef guide explains the process as we start.
First, the dough, which has an interesting recipe. On top of the usual double-0 flour, salt, yeast, and water, we add sugar, oil, and white wine. The wine gives the dough a glossy look. We all mix our dough, and then it’s time to rest. Six hours. But we don’t have to wait six hours, because Chef gives us all a replacement dough that has already proved. Next we knead it, folding and stretching, then shape it. No rolling pins here, it’s all done by hand, which is great for learning the technique. Chef then talks us through the sauce base: fresh tomatoes, garlic, salt, sugar, and a blender. It smells great. We spoon this onto our bases, add a little cheese, then our toppings: tomato, pepperoni, basil, mushrooms, onions, and some more cheese. Yum. Then it’s time to bake. Twelve minutes.
We sit with the other couples while the pizzas cook, chatting about where we’re from, travel, and things to do in Sydney. The smell of cooking pizza fills the air. Then the pizzas are delivered. Five in total, mine last. It looks delicious, if not perfectly round, but it’s all about the taste. The dough is light and silky, the sauce is delicious, and the toppings are yum. Overall, an awesome experience.
We then head to morning trivia, and today it’s sports. We lament, thinking it’ll be all American-based questions, but Brian, our host, announces the theme is Australian sport. There’s a collective groan from the Americans on board, which is drowned out by an “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie” chant. Sadly we only score 12. Brian goes obscure with many questions, tapping into basketball, netball, and remote home grounds.
After trivia we head to the lounge before a late lunch. It’s pretty light today after pizza for breakfast, a tomato salad and a beetroot salad. After we eat we sit with Aldo and Rosina for a while, chatting. We chat for about an hour and are the last to leave. It seems Aldo and Rosina have a bit of a reputation for being the last to leave. We pop into the lounge for an iced coffee and a hot chocolate, then take it easy before progressive trivia. Today we do well again, scoring 17. We’re in third place and hopefully should hold our spot.
We then enjoy the afternoon sun and cool breeze in our room with a cheese and charcuterie plate, courtesy of Katarina. The weather is becoming more and more like what we’re used to at home, warm sun, cool air, low humidity. It’s a glorious afternoon, and we watch the sun set before heading to a late dinner.
During the afternoon I do some video and photo editing. While swimming in Moorea I took a lot of 360-degree footage, and I finally had a chance to look at it and get some great vision of rays, sharks, and fish. I’ll include some below.
Dinner is light again, cauliflower velouté, salmon, and orecchiette with sausage. We then take it easy in the room, and I watch the cricket for a while.
