James O'Rourke learns a thing or two about fine dining and the industrious Tasmanians.
"It's a ship darling, not a boat," said fellow journalist Maggie as she leaned over to me on our first night at Curtis Stone's Share, correcting me on my description of our home for the next six days. It was the first of many things I would learn.
Having only been on a cruise once before — where I was stuck in a windowless cabin with three other males in their 20s all intent on drinking and eating their body weight for 10 days — I had my cruise sights set pretty low. It was when I opened the door to my balcony stateroom (A723) on the Aloha deck of the Sun Princess, equipped with a generously sized (albeit slightly soft) queen bed, wall to wall mirrors, private bathroom with a shower the size of a wardrobe and my own private balcony, that I realised I was going to be experiencing a cruise the way it is supposed to be experienced.
Operating since 1995, the Sun Princess is one of the more "experienced" gals.
Based in Australia and operating out of Brisbane, the Princess sails year-round and covers off most of Australia, New Zealand, the South Pacific and Southeast Asia. With a capacity for 2000 guests and 900 odd crew, she can still pull her weight and does so in her own style.
Sailing out of Sydney Harbour is always a pleasure. To do so from the top deck of the Princess (49m above the waterline) as the underside of the famous bridge passes not that far above your head, is a real treat. The Sun Princess is the largest cruise liner able to sail under the Harbour Bridge. Couple that with a view of the Opera House, the Sydney city skyline and a blast of the ship's horn and you have yourself a pretty good time (even if it was raining).
When it comes to food aboard any cruise ship, you can pretty much fill your boots at any time of the day. On the Princess, you get a variety of options, from the plentiful, yet bland, buffet, which is open almost around the clock, through to evening service restaurants the Sterling Steakhouse ($29 a head) and the very reason for the cruise, Curtis Stone's Share.
Set up 18 months ago by the award-winning Aussie chef, Share is an exclusive partnership with Princess Cruises, designed specifically for an Australian palate. While Curtis wasn't aboard, we were looked after by Curtis' hand-picked, ever-smiling, 26-year-old LA native, corporate chef Christian Dortch.
As the name suggests, Share is all about encouraging diners to connect with each other as they enjoy the fresh and local flavours on their table. The menu is comprised entirely of local produce supplied by farmers at each port the Princess stops at. Almost every dish on the menu is designed to be shared with at least one other, with a strong focus on quality, not quantity. Over three nights we experienced the entire menu that Christian and his team had to offer and every meal had us scraping our plates clean.
With classics such as a charcuterie board, bread-and-butter pudding and beef-cheek pie among more modern dishessuch as lightly poached shrimp with lemon gel, turnip, citrus salt and brioche, or the crowd favourite of roasted king-crab legs, there is a range to choose from and to expand your eating experience.
The ship is the largest cruise liner able to sail under the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
There are a number of ways you can enjoy the menu, from simply picking and choosing the best-sounding items (roast chicken with a bacon slab and onion slaw), to experiencing several courses matched with a choice of their 22 local wines. At $39 a head, plus alcohol, it is the most expensive restaurant on board the Sun Princess but this shouldn't put you off. With a separate kitchen and staff focused on making your Share experience the best part of your cruise, it is well worth at least one of your nights.
The only thing Tasmania has in common with the mainland of Australia, are its citizens' accents. Everything else, the landscapes, climate, the townships scream "New Zealand!" Burnie is the first of three stops on our voyage.
A must-see is the truffle farm, Truffledore, 45-minutes drive from Burnie. A shrewd, passionate and forward-thinking businesswoman, owner Jennifer runs the 700 English-oak farm with the help of her truffle-seeking dogs, Toby and Checken, solo and loves it that way. "It works because it is small enough for me to manage alone and I intend to be here for a while".
While Port Arthur is known for its fairly colourful past, as well as its Unesco World Heritage Site. It's also home to a thriving farming community. A 30-minute drive from the historic Port Arthur site, in the small township of Dunalley, is the Bangor Wine and Oyster Shed. On a small hill between two stunningly blue bays is where you find Matt and his team of locals trying (and succeeding) their hands at wine making. Standing on the balcony of the restaurant, you are treated to one of the best panoramic vistas on the island. Creating only 1500 cases of their cool climate wines a year (pinot noir, chardonnay and pinot gris), it is a blink-and-you'll-miss-it harvest and a product all wine lovers should experience.
The final stop on our week away from real life was the capital Hobart for a day excursion. Much like the other parts of the island, Hobart is a place where hard work is commonplace and rewarded. An example of this can be seen at the Coal River Farm, just 15 minutes from the city centre. The farm is owned and operated by a couple who gave up the corporate life to live off the land. Dan (an ex-political lobbyist) and his wife, an ex-lawyer, along with their five children, live and work on the farm that provides a range of products. Cheese and chocolate is handmade on site, in picking season they offer pick-your-own fruit and they have a number of pigs and very friendly goats.
While there wasn't time for a full visit to the renowned Museum of Old and New Art, owned by the eccentric David Walsh, we did manage to squeeze in a lunch at The Source, part of the Moorilla Winery. Another stunningly beautiful view to take in as you enjoy your food, it also comes with outdoor tables with all-organic "tablecloths" made entirely of moss and grass. The menu at The Source is wide and varied with a focus on local produce. It offers elaborate dishes such as miso and soy roasted eggplant with koji pumpkin, confit Tasmanian abalone with pickled daikon and seared wallaby with smoked beetroot in almond and wattleseed butter, which this writer highly recommends.
As we made our way leisurely back up the east coast of Tasmania and then the mainland there was enough time to ponder what had been learned over the course of our six-day voyage. I learned the main reason people go on a cruise is for the ease of it all, but also for the service. Making sure the passengers want for nothing is a primary focus of the crew. It was also revealed that many passengers aren't there for the stops, some just really enjoy being at sea away from the distractions of their lives on land. But there definitely are those who look wholeheartedly forward to the excursions, particularly those afraid of air travel.
I also learned that Tasmania is a unique and amazing place and an ethos of hard work runs through its locals. But ultimately, the biggest lesson learned during my time on the Sun Princess is that "it's a ship darling, not a boat".
