Our second visit to Napier was on October 27th and again I had no specific plans. However, we had driven past the downtown area, some beautiful gardens, the visitor center, etc. on the way to Cape Kidnappers and I wanted to wander around that area on this visit. I took the free shuttle from the ship to the visitor’s center and started walking along the shore drive. There were gardens, an amphitheater, fountains, statues. It was a very pretty place to visit. Then I saw a store called Opossum World and I had to go in there! Possums are a huge problem in New Zealand. They were introduced to solve some problem (I don’t remember what) but, as often happens, the plan backfired! Now there are estimated to be seventy million possums and they’re destroying vegetation at an unbelievable rate. So this store sells everything you can imagine that can be made from possum fur, with the concept that buying their products will save trees. Whatever works, I guess! They sell possum sweaters, socks, gloves, scarves, etc. My personal favorite was possum fur nipple warmers. But I had no idea who might want those as a souvenir. By the way, if you think that I’m making this stuff up, feel free to Google Opossum World!After browsing around the downtown area (and finding another Starbucks), I caught the shuttle back to the ship.
However, there was a surprise awaiting everybody. We were now sailing under “Code Red” conditions. After being on board for more than a month with no problems, passengers who boarded in Auckland brought a virus onto the ship. Norovirus is a highly contagious intestinal bug which causes severe vomiting and diarrhea. In a closed environment like a cruise ship, it can spread very rapidly. It is contracted through touch, either directly by contact with an infected individual or by touching common items, like a rail or a door handle. It usually runs its course in three to four days but the infected person must be quarantined during that time. The only way to reduce the spread of the virus is to constantly sanitize common surfaces, continually sanitize your hands and eliminate, as much as possible, passengers handling common items. Hence, the Code Red. Self-service in the Lido restaurant was eliminated, salt 
and pepper shakers were removed from the tables, latex gloves had to be donned before entering the shops, etc. In short, I couldn’t even get myself a cup of coffee without help from a crew member! Of course, the crew had to work even longer hours serving meals, serving drinks, wiping down every surface of the ship, etc. in addition to their routine duties. Everyone pitched in to help, including casino staff, cast members, shop personnel, etc. who all took a turn serving meals in the Lido. At one point, there were over a hundred passengers sick. Fortunately, neither I nor any of my friends were among them. We were under Code Red conditions for the remainder of the cruise.
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