Friday 4 December 2009

Skywatch rhapsody


Taken from the forecourt of the Sydney Opera House, the passengers are on Deck 10 sipping their champagne and cocktails as the crew readies the "Rhapsody of the Seas" for departure. This first image shows the full glory of the sun setting behind the ship; the fourth image shows the vacant dock after the liner has departed.

The second image is one of many tracking the setting sun, whereas the third image shows the departing liner doing a uie between the harbour bridge and the opera house.


The Rhapsody of the Seas is a Royal Carribbean ship that took its first maiden voyage in May 1997. At the moment, it sails around Australia (anti-clockwise), up-and-down the East Coast of the continent and also across the Tasman Sea and around New Zealand. It has a passenger capacity of just under 2,500; a length of 915 feet and a draft of 25 feet.


See Skywatch posts from all over the world at the home of Skywatch Friday.

59 comments:

Jo said...

Very beautiful skywatch captures and interesting post about the Rhapsody of the Seas. Thanks for sharing. Jo

Lois said...

Gorgeous color Julie!

Sylvia K said...

Incredibly brilliant colors, Julie! Fantastic shots for the day! And I, too, enjoyed reading about the Rhapsody of the Seas! Very interesting.

Enjoy your weekend!

Sylvia

Anonymous said...

I believe I hear that cruise ship SCREAMING my name! I'm going on a cruise in the spring, but we haven't quite decided where, yet. Beautiful scenery there in Australia & New Zealand, too!

Joan Elizabeth said...

I really like the top shot. The railings, people and lights all give it great interest. As for cruises if I went on one it would have to be somewhere very exotic, not just up and down ANZ ... I am not keen on floating about on water.

cara said...

Great shots - and as always a great read. I love the people silhouetted in the top one.

Colin Campbell said...

Glorious colours. Love the silhouettes in the first shot.

My name is Riet said...

Wonderful pictures, I love them all.

FO - 2 said...

A lovely journey through your beautiful series. The last shot is great. Wonderful colors and silhouettes. :)

Bestemor Drillo said...

One word: Beautiful;)

Photo Cache said...

love the first image. i think sipping champagne and watching a glorious sunset go together like hand and glove.

Joe Todd said...

"Red at night sailors delight"

clairz said...

Wonderful Skywatch photos and a nice glimpse into Sydney life. Thank you for sharing and thank you for visiting my blog (I think we've finally stopped moving around, by the way).

EG CameraGirl said...

Rhapsody of the Seas! Now wouldn't that be a fun way to see the coasts of Australia and/or New Zealand?

JTG (Misalyn) said...

Wow! I like your sky photos. Great shots!..beautiful skies. Thanks for sharing..never been to Sydney..thank you for 'taking me there'.

Thanks for following my blog and for commenting on my sky photo. I'm following you too.

Diane said...

Wow! Look at all that color! Amazing!

Randi said...

Wonderful colours and a very interesting post!

eden said...

Woww.. fastastic colours of sunset. I love the first picture so much with the silhouette of the passengers sipping champagne..

marianne said...

wonderful photos! the color is beautiful.

eileeninmd said...

Beautiful colors in your skies. I love the shots of the cruise ship too.

Yes, a lifer is a bird seen for the first time. Thanks for visiting my blog.

Anonymous said...

The bottom picture with the darkened buildings against an orange sky with clouds is interesting. Great pic.

rhoen said...

silhouettes. warm colors. great travel photo!

Happy skywatching and happy weekend!

K Soucy said...

Love your photos and blog, will check in again.

D Herrod said...

Love the golden color of the first one.

Unknown said...

Julie, WOW, I LOVE the first pic very much. Fabulous colour and fantastic silhouttes of people having a good time. I wonder if this ship comes to Port Melbourne...

THe rest of the pic are lovely too - nice colours...

Have a nice weekend.

judi/Gmj said...

surreal. The colors, it looks like a foreign planet. Wonderful to study.

Janie said...

Beautiful sunset colors. I like the people silhouetted against the sky. Interesting to read about the Rhapsody of the Seas, too. Nice name.

Anonymous said...

Desire for life, Knowledge of how to build a ship, nicely put in scene by your photography.

Please have a wonderful Friday.
p.s.: thank you also for providing this amazing idea about 'time'.

Ann said...

Glorious sunset. Also particularly like the people in the top shot. Think I'd go crazy on a cruise. Still each to his/her own.

Are we still on for tomorrow?

Ebie said...

Hi Julie, love the first shot! From afar, it looks like they are being serenaded under the exploding colors of the sun!

Marie-Noyale said...

Never seen the view from the Opera house!
We are usually shown the other side.
I like the first one very much.

Virginia said...

Good Golly Miss Molly!! THese just knocked my socks off. Just a gorgeous set for us today Julie. My oh my!
V

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

This is such a beautiful orangy sky. It is not due to the bush fires is it? When I was growing up in Borneo, when the sky is red, mum would say, the natives are burning the jungle.

It is a terrible storm here. Would you like some of that in Australia?

Maria said...

Hi Julie!
Thank you so much for visiting my blog!
What a wonderful visit I am having here at your blog. Your photos and commentaries are GREAT. I'm taken in by every one... almost as if there.
Thank you for bringing all of this to us!
~Maria

raf said...

Wonderful post, Julie. Striking sunset images for SWF and interesting commentary about the vessel and cruise line.

Loran said...

Great series. I'm fascinated by the Opera House and would love to see it in person.

Sally in WA said...

That's neat capturing the ship with that blazing sky. I really like the silhouettes of the people in the first one. Great shot!

Thanks for the visit. Have a wonderful weekend.

Jim said...

Gorgeous golden skies.
Sydney - City and Suburbs

Eve said...

What an amazing and vibrant sky - it's so red!!
Beautiful photos! :)

Firefly the Travel Guy said...

Beautiful pics of the ship, specially the first one of the people on the deck with the sun setting. Makes me want to go on a cruise.

VP said...

Wonderful set of photos, my favorite is the first with the silhouetted passengers.
This summer we had our share of 'of the Seas' ships, but the background of Sydney Harbour is unbeatable.

Eric said...

WOW, some great silhouet shot here, done a great job!!

Happy SWF.

Eric

Julian Davis said...

Beautiful color of the sky. I love all the photographs of ship too. Really great Julie!!

Jilly said...

All superb photos but that first one is incredible. So beautiful,it really makes us feel a part of what is going on - we see the sunset and enjoy it, along with the guests.

BlossomFlowerGirl said...

Wonderful photos - the first is out of this world! Amazing.
Melbourne Daily Photo

Arija said...

The first shot is pure glory and romance.

Carver said...

These are all wonderful sky shots. The first one is great with the people in sillhouette. I like the perspective of the ones with the boat and so much drama in the last shot.

Diane AZ said...

These are all terrific images, but the first one is quite mesmerizing. It's nice to see so many people enjoying that spectacular sunset.

Nefertiti said...

great photo !

good w end off Luxembourg ;O)

Corner Gardener Sue said...

These are wonderful photos! The first is my favorite. I would love to be one of those people enjoying the sky and water.

Unknown said...

I love that silhouette images of sunset & golden sky.

storyteller at Sacred Ruminations said...

That first shot with the silhouetted people against that orange sky is amazing! The others remind me of good times I've had on cruises ;-)
Hugs and blessings,

PJ said...

Really stunning, you knocked this one right out of the park.

diane b said...

Great sunset shots. Love the first one wth the people giving proportion to the shot. The ship looks huge against the bridge. I'm glad I'm not on it...2500 people.

Debra said...

Great shots of the gorgeous sunset! I love the sillouette of the people on board the ship in the first one and the orange and yellow colors in the sky are beautiful! The orange sky in the last one is awesome too!

Martha said...

Beautiful!

Quiet Paths said...

Very evocative urban images. Love the color....

shaker said...

Great series !

Johnny Nutcase said...

Hey Julie, thanks for the kind comments on my blog, and thanks for following! Nice silhouettes on the first shot, pretty cool looking! Looks like a sweet sunset also, thanks for sharing :)