Auckland's 75th Annual Santa Claus Parade

Today Jenn and I attended the Santa Claus Parade in Auckland. It was the first time we have worn shorts and tees to the Santa Claus Parade, 25 Degrees and Sunny!



Some of the All Blacks League team with there World Cup Trophy they won last week











The Grand Marshal of the Parade was the womans gold medalist, for shotput this year in Beijing.
Jenn anticipating the Parade

Def Leppard Concert!

Jenn and I went to the Def Leppard Show at Vector Area last weekend. They played an awesome show, and sounded better than they did...before we were born.

Night out with the Granvilles

Matt and Frank out on the balcony
Wendy, Frank, Matt, Jim and Jenn at Fortuna's Restaurant at the Skytower
A wondeful dinner with good friends in New Zealand! It was nice to see some familiar faces!

Celebrity Cruise Ship - Millenuim

Another Cruise Ship docked beside us

Jenn trying to get past security

Celebrity Cruise Lines launched the 1,950 passenger Millennium, in July of 2000. At 91,000 tons, the ship was the largest at the time ever built in France. It was the first of four state-of-the-art ships that the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in St. Nazaire, France, built for Celebrity. The Millennium was christened by its Godmother, Robyn Roux, wife of Celebrity's renowned chef, Michel Roux. She broke the traditional bottle of champagne on the hull of the $350 million ship, and a bi-winged stunt plane flew loops over the ship. Scottish pipers played and fireworks blasted overhead. It was quite an event!

The Millennium cruise ship has many intriguing and innovative features. For example, Millennium has glass elevators that allow passengers panoramic ocean views while traveling from deck to deck. (Wouldn't want to miss a single beautiful view!) Millenniumfeatures the cruise industry's first music library, "Notes", offering thousands of selections of digital recordings and individual listening stations. For those of us computer buffs who can't go a week without checking our email, the ship includes an Internet cafe called Online@CelebrityCruises, with 18 individual stations for guests. If you are willing to pay for a suite, you will find your own personal Internet access, with flat screen PCs and printers.

One advantage of building a new ship is the ability to improve and expand on popular features from other ships. Going along with the current trend, over 80 percent of the staterooms are ocean-view, and 74 percent have verandas. Millennium features the cruise industry's largest Penthouse Suite, at nearly 3,000 square feet (with veranda), and including such "necessities" as a butler's pantry, personal exercise equipment, and Baby Grand piano. Most new ships have spas, and Millennium has the largest at 25,000 square feet. For those who love to shop, you may never need to leave the ship. Millenniumhas the largest designer boutique afloat called the "Emporium". This shopping area includes fashion labels never before seen at sea. Finally, Millennium has expanded the choices for the physically challenged, offering accommodations in several categories, including suites.

In addition to its new public spaces and expanded elements, Millennium also includes Celebrity Cruises' highly acclaimed, fleet-wide signature features. These include museum-quality contemporary art collections, Cova Cafe Milano, Michael's Club cigar lounge, and Martini and Champagne Bars serving caviar and other delicacies.

One of the most distinguishing and nostalgic features onboard is the interior paneling in Millennium's Olympic specialty dining room, a 134-seat gourmet restaurant. This authentic, exclusive paneling was obtained from the premier dining room of the RMS Olympic, sister ship to the RMS Titantic. The Olympicwas launched in 1911, and catered to the wealthiest travelers from Europe and the United States. Celebrity Cruise Line found the paneling in a private English residence, and purchased it through Sotheby's.

Celebrity has long been renowned for its cuisine, and the cruise line plans for the Olympic Dining Room to become the signature experience for fine dining afloat. The restaurant also offers the industry's first demonstration galley, along with a dine-in wine cellar. "Millennium's Olympic restaurant offers our guests the opportunity to experience the elegance and romance of one of the great, turn-of-the-century trans-Atlantic liners," said Celebrity Cruises President Richard Sasso.

Master Chef Michel Roux has included the French culinary arts of decoupage and flambe within The Olympic's menu. Mr. Roux and his senior executive staff have hired a special team of highly-skilled servers and maitre d's to make your dining experience a special one.

In addition to the visually spectacular features, there are some technical ones. The Millennium was built to Panamax standards, allowing the ship to transit the Panama and Suez Canals.

Millennium currently sails European itineraries May through October. The rest of the year Millennium cruises the Caribbean or South America.

Millennium sounds like a wonderful ship. The Millennium has been joined at Celebrity with three newer sister ships, the Infinity (February 2001),Constellation (May 2002) and the Summit (September 2001). For a detailed review of several cruises on the Millennium, be sure to read the reports on the Millennium written by some of our fellow cruise lovers.

Labour Day Weekend - October 27

Mission Bay is a small suburb of Auckland and has a great waterfront and plenty of cafes and restaurants, as well as one of the best beaches in the city.