Tuesday - February 26, 2008
Dining in the Queens Grille
One of the joys of sailing on the QE2 is the quality of the food, and the Queens Grille is considered the best dining room on the ship. I don't know if the quality of the food or service is any better than in the Princess Grille, but you do have more choice in that the daily menu is a bit more extensive and you can request a lot more dishes to be cooked for you at your table. We did this on a couple of occasions.
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Tuesday - February 26, 2008
The Passing of the Queens, Sydney
One of the highlights of the trip was to be the passing of the Queen Elizabeth 2 and the Queen Victoria, as we changed piers in Sydney. The Vic arrived in Sydney one day before us so she claimed the best pier at Circular Quay. When we arrived, we had to dock for a day at Garden Island Pier in the Woolloomooloo section of Sydney. On Sunday, February 24, the Vic would leave Circular Quay on her way out to Brisbane and we would leave to take her place at Circular Quay, passing each other at approximately 6:30 pm just a short distance from the Opera House.
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Wednesday - February 13, 2008
Party, Party
One of the nice things about having a nice, spacious cabin with a balcony is that it is a great place to give a party instead of having to ask people to meet for a drink in one of the bars. We have been invited to a number of parties by people we have met and by our friends on board, and we have another on February 15. We decided that it was time we reciprocated, so we invited our new Australian friends, Jan and Hildegarde, our new English friends, Audrey and Jim, and our Grosse Point friends, Marty and Lynne, to come to our cabin for a pre-Easter Island party.
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Saturday - February 09, 2008
The Great Pancake Race
To celebrate Shrove Tuesday, the different restaurants and departments of the ship fielded teams of 6 to race in the annual pancake race. Passengers can pledge money for their favorite team and all proceeds go to the various charities that the QE2 supports. The waiters from our dining room fielded a team called "Happy Feet" and one of our waiters was on the team, so we had to go out to give our support.
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Sunday - February 03, 2008
Flying Fish
You may think that flying fish are a joke, but they really do exist. If one has patience, one can see them flying out from the ship in our bow wave. Here's a little bit of information about these unique fish and a couple of photos.
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Monday - January 28, 2008
Crossing the Equator
People on board ship who have never crossed the Equator, called Polywogs, need to endure a rite of passage to become full-fledged Shellbacks. This rite, overseen by King Neptune on the day we cross the Equator, is a rather messy affair that is not for the faint of heart, or nose. Our friend, Lynne Krieg, was a real trooper and volunteered to endure the ordeal. You can see how she did by looking at the photos that tracked her, step by step.
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Tuesday - January 22, 2008
A Blogger's Curse
You may think that cruising the world and writing a blog is all fun and games, but there is a downside to being a reporter of truth. I just received my first piece of hate mail from a disgruntled reader - actually, my brother-in-law who lives in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The fact that it is winter there is enough to make anyone disgruntled, but he seems particularly cranky. Envy makes people say terrible things. Read on.
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Monday - January 21, 2008
Buccaneers' Ball
One of the highlights of the World Cruises for some people are the series of special occasion balls that are offered. There is always a theme, such as Valentine's Day, Black and White, Neptune's Ball when crossing the Equator, etc. The Queen's Room is decorated according to the theme, guests are asked to dress up if they wish, and the QE2 Orchestra and a singer provide dance music. We are not great dancers, but we like to go along to listen to the music, have a drink, and watch the experts among the guests strut their stuff.
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Friday - January 18, 2008
Home Away from Home
We were very lucky to have been upgraded from what we thought would be a very comfortable room to what is considered a luxury room! We have stareroom 8011 on the Signal Deck, which is one of the few cabins to have a balcony with an unobstructed view. This cabin also comes with three people to take care of us - Maureen, Therese, and Peter. The room is very spacious and elegantly decorated. When we arrived, we were greeted with flowers, two bottles of champagne, and a tray of canapes which we discovered are delivered every evening around 5:30 pm. What a life!
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