The Last Days & London

I have 30 minutes to spare before my flight departs for Dubai. It seems so strange to spend 15 days at sea to get to London and then only 6 hours to return. I did post on the penultimate day of the cruise but it seems the post never made it to the blog.

One of the important things about shipboard life is preventing sickness. All around the ship there are pump-action jars of antimicrobial hand gel and we are expected to use it as often as possible. Each of the internet stations has a jar and its a good idea to use it before and after using the communal keyboards. All the dining rooms have them too, either at the door or beside plates and cutlery. Having been vigilant I still managed to get the flu in the last couple of days. My voice leaps from Greta Garbo to Mickey Mouse in a single sentence and I was in no shape to go ashore in France - a good thing I've been to Paris many times before.

We sailed from Le Havre to Southampton overnight and I was up at 5am to get ready for disembarkation. I felt sad to be leaving this magnificent ship and the new friends I've made. Fortunately Leonna had arranged a week in London so I hung out with her for a couple more days to help her get accustomed to the Underground, participate in my pilgrimmage to Harrods, and also to see the crown jewels at the Tower of London (my 3rd time - I never get tired of looking at them).

Last night we went to see "Billy Elliot", the new stage show scored by Elton John. I can see why it is getting rave reviews here. Some of the scenes leave you gob-smacked, especially one with the riot squad (pictured)and also a dream sequence in which Billy dances until he flies. At the end I couldn't believe how on earth they managed to find a kid so talented to play the lead role. He was awesome, dancing and singing his little heart out and throwing in some gymnastic tumbles also. I wonder how much longer he can keep the part though as a couple of times it sounded like his voice was about to break.

I'm sitting in Heathrow as I type this, and expect to start boarding in a few minutes. So I need to go powder my nose and stuff. When I get back to Dubai I'll add photographs of the things I've seen and done in the last couple of weeks.

Tootles.

Weeee....

We left Italy last night and have rough weather again today. I think this time it's at least a 5 metre swell and we had lightning and hail on deck around breakfast time this morning. Thankfully I have a cast iron gut when it comes to the rock and roll of a ship on rough seas. I'll chalk that up to holiday voyages on the Cook Strait Ferry as a young girl. The Cook Strait is the water between the North and South Islands of New Zealand and supposedly one of the roughest stretches of water in the world.

I think quite a few people have popped sea-sickness pills today and the halls are a bit emptier than normal so I suspect some are limiting themselves to their staterooms.

On Deck 2 it is possible to look out windows that are very close to the water line and its fun to watch the ship's wake smash against incoming waves and actually look upwards into the splash. Occasionally a sneak wave will splash up over the windows and make you want to jump back even though there's no way you'd get wet. From the look of the safety stamps, there are 4 layers of glass between us and the Mediterranean.

But Cunard are right. Queen Mary 2 is the greatest ocean liner in the world. The key distinction here is "ocean liner". She was not built as a cruise ship, but rather for the trans-Atlantic crossings. Even in rough weather like this she is far more stable than I expected.

We have sea days for the next 3 days before reaching Le Havre in France. There is still much to do on top of the customary Dinner+Show that we've had every night since leaving Dubai. We're going classical for the next couple of days; "Opera Babes" and a violinist whose name escapes me. I've just passed the theatre and seen the practice run - it seems we are in for Vivaldi's Winter set to lighting resembling this morning's storm.

So much to write about, so little time ...

Orvieto

Having been to Rome and the Vatican City before, I headed inland to Umbria to visit a town named Orvieto. It's an amazing place, fortified atop a limestone & tufo outcrop. Some of the houses are built right on the edge of the cliff faces so their walls beome almost a seamless continuation of the cliff.

In the centre of the town is an incredible cathedral of black and white marble, standing 6-7 storeys high. The front face is ornate being covered in gold and brightly coloured mosaics. There's lots of statuary too. Some of the windows are stained glass and some are glazed with thin slivers of alabaster that let in a honey-coloured light.

Off the cathedral there are cobblestone lanes and stone buildings adorned with ivy and wrought iron signage. Orvieto specialises in brightly coloured italian pottery. It is often on display on exterior shop walls, giving the place a cheerful feel even though it was brass monkey weather today (we passed snow-laden hills on the way there).

Tonight we were notified about formalities for disembarkation in Southampton. It isn't for a few days yet, and we have one more stop in France before the voyage is over. I'll be very sad when the trip is over as I've had such a lovely time and met some very interesting people along the way.

Sex Therapy & Eruptions

Got your attention?

This morning I went to see Dr. Ruth's presentation along with most of the other folks on the ship. She's 4'7", 79 years old and still works every day. One of the funniest parts of her presentation was in response to a question about Viagra. Dr. Ruth told a cautionary tale about what has happened in the USA since the drug was introduced. It seems women are beginning to tire of their partners' constant demands and they've seen a dramatic increase in "Not tonight, dear, I have a headache" sydnrome. She also says that testosterone levels are highest in the mornming so as you get older it is better to have sex in the morning rather than late at night. Another hot tip: every partnership needs to take a vacation together (without the kids) to rekindle the spark. She stressed 'without the kids'.

Earlier this evening we passed between Siciliy and the toe of Italy's boot. About an hour later, when it was dark, we passed Stromboli as it was erupting. It was pretty cool to see two rivers of bright orange lava streak down the mountain. The clicky link takes you to images of the same eruption, pretty much as I saw it. I've been fascinated with volcanoes since my teenage years and although this is not the first eruption I've seen up close, it was the first time I saw lava flows.

Tonight four of us went to Todd English restaurant which is on Deck 8 overlooking the pool. The food was divine and after eating a lobster bisque followed by a lobster main and a molten chocolate pudding for desert, I'm feeling a bit like Mr Creosote. One wafer thin after-dinner mint and Iam
likely to explode.

Early tomrrow mornig we reach Civitavecchia, the port closest to Rome. I've been to Rome before so I'm planning to head out to Orvieto, a picturesque village in the countryside.

Athens

They say you should try to learn something new every day and today I learned the Acropolis is the name of the hill, not the name of the ruins on top. That's the Parthenon, which I discovered I'd been confusing with Rome's Pantheon ever since I visited there in 1987. D'oh! *slap forehead*

I was determined to take a shot of a sign with greek and english on it. Excuse the glare/reflection; I had to take it from inside a moving bus.

The view from the top of the Acropolis is stunning, especially on days like today when the sky is brilliant blue and there's little haze.

We also went down to Cape Sounion - well worth doing if you are in this part of the world - to see Poseidon's Temple. The road winds south along the coast from Athens. Closer to the city there are elegant apartments facing onto inner-city marinas fit for their multi-million dollar yachts.

As with any place else, the highrise apartments give way to more suburban areas and then finally to the countryside. But no matter where you look along the way the water is crystal clear and the little coves and beaches look very inviting. Too bad we didn't have time to get off the bus for a picnic and a dip in the Aegean.

I got some close-ups of graffiti at Poseidon's Temple dating back to the 1890s. I'm sure there was older stuff but I couldn't get close enough to see or photograph it. You'll need to click on the pic and enlarge it to see the details. Bringing you proof that vandalism is nothing new...

Tomorrow we have a very interesting guest speaker: Dr Ruth, the world-famous psychosexual therapist. Her presentation is entitled "Sexually Speaking" so I guess anything is possible. I'm hoping it will not be about sex for the over 80s as the thought leaves me with disturbing mental images.

It is 10pm and I'm exhausted. Three hours from now we sail away to Rome and there's another sea day tomorrow. Might go get my nails done...

Piraeus & Athens

I will never need to give the Commodore lessons on reverse parking or 3-point turns. We arrived in Piraeus around lunchtime today and watched with awe as he reversed Queen Mary 2 though a narrow gap in the breakwater and then nosed her into the berth with only a few feet of water between the dock and bow. Notice the two lights, one on each side of the breakwater? Wait until you see how close we get to them! Check the Red Light / Green Light photos in the right hand column of this blog.

While the Commodore was busy reversing QM2, several hundred passengers stood along the stern railing (i.e. the blunt end, not the pointy end) of decks 7-13, enjoying a wee drinkie and live music at what's known as a "Sail In Party". It's all terribly civilized.

A good day's hunting and gathering for the tribe too. Me and a couple of Autralian ladies I've befriended - Leonna and Elaine - decided to just take it easy and walk around Athens in the afternoon. We were dropped by bus at Hadrian's Arch and spent a good 6 hours trolling he shops beneath the Acropolis. The shops are fabulous and I bought several pieces of hand-blown glass, costume jewellry, and the mandatory t-shirts.

The shopping/café district, Plaka, is very scenic; narrow streets and many old buildings with shuttered windows and traditional clay-tiled rooves. There are also plenty of picturesque chapels or historic columns thrown in for good measure and, of course, it is all in the shadow of the Acropolis perched high above on a hill of its own. [Editor's note: I've since learned the Acropolis is actually the name of the hill itself. More about that tomorrow.]

We found a wonderful indoor-outdoor café named Diogenes and had a Fawlty Towers moment when the waiters realised we didn't mean to eat a full meal, just cake and coffee. Who knew the complementary bread, olives and dip were only for those diners who planned to spend significant amounts of money? Try reading the website and you'll get a sense of the communication barrier.

Tomorrow I'm hoping to head down to Cape Sounion, the southern most point of the European continent, to see the beautiful coastline and Poseidon's Temple.

Pyramid Day

We exited the Suez Canal just on dusk yesterday and made our way across 200-ish kms of the muddied Nile delta in preparation for Queen Mary 2's final Maiden Call for the cruise, Alexandria. Many of us had booked 12-hour tours into Cairo to see the Pyramids etc. and had risen early to get breakfast and be ready for the bus transfers first thing.

Upon waking, the ship had a bit more movement than we'd experienced for the previous 5 days. I was surprised as she is normally solid as a rock and it hardly felt like we were at sea all the way here.

While I was tucking into a plate of the sweetest watermelon in history, I could see the skyline of Alexandria on the horizon and felt my excitement for the day rise in expectation. Ten minutes later I noticed the Alexandria skyline pass by again ... and again ten minutes after that. I'd been up since 5am; clearly the lights were on but nobody was home as it took me a few minutes to realise we were going in circles in rough water.

"Good morning everyone. This is the Commodore," began the announcement. It didn't bode well. We learned the authorities in Alexandria had closed the port due to gale force winds. This is bad for large ships because basically they are a wall against which the wind will blow, making declicate berthing manoeuvres far more risky than usual.

We circled for two more hours hoping for the weather to pass but no luck. By 10am we had to say farewell to Egypt and make an early start for Greece without ever saying hello to the Pyramids. To quote Mick Jagger: "You can't always get what you want..." and sadly that was true today. The image at the top of this post is a fraud but I'm sure I would have taken a shot just like it if we'd gone ashore.

This must have been a real blow to the Egyptians. To put things in perspective I heard that more than 50 buses had been waiting for us on shore. QM2 carries more passengers than 2x average sized cruise ships. That's a lot of lost revenue for both Cunard and the locals. So it was lose-lose-lose all the way around.

I was disappointed, of course, but there's no point yelling at the wind. And besides, now we will have an extra day in Athens - a place I haven't been to yet. And to quote Mick again: "But if you try sometimes, you might get what you need".

So, Stephen Wong, it seems our bet is still on. You may yet get to see the pyramids before me. I believe our original bet was made in 1997 so let's hope it won't take us another 10 years to get sorted!

Day ... ummm ... 5?

I have no idea what day it is today but we are currently in the Suez Canal having passed beneath the bridge with about 6m to spare. I got a great photo of the funnel and the underside of the bridge - it was lucky that I just happened to be standing in the right place at the right time.

It has been really awesome to stand and shout "salaam" (peace) to the folks that wave to us from the shore. I have some photos of what look like military guys who got up on the roof of their bunker and were whistling to us and waving.

Having arrived at the southern end of the Suez Canal around 1am this morning we had pole position for entry at 6am, at which time the north-bound traffic was cleared to sail. We lead a line of about 30 ships, many of them large container vessels. It's a very strange looking convoy and not easy to photograph as today is cold and a bit hazey from spitting rain.

It is now 2pm and we expect to exit the Suez Canal in about an hour and a half. Then we sail across the Nile delta for Alexandria, and tomorrow a full day trip into Cairo. I'm loving shipboard life and am now a total convert - this is definitely the best way to travel.

Days 2 & 3

Tom Burgess was right about being kept busy while cruising. For the last couple of days I've only managed to be able to eat afternoon tea and dinner but I think my waist-line is going to self-destruct anyway. Heartbreaking after losing 9kg this year but when I'm on holiday it is usually from schedules, diets, and exercise as well as from work.

The Planetarium is really fascinating and I find I am in there every day to see the show (there are 4 different ones to see). The first one was narrated by Tom Hanks and it was impossible to not walk away realising how small the world is. [Editor's note: others are narrated by Harrison Ford and Robert Redford.] Yesterday I learned that our galaxy and that of Andromeda are on a collision course. It's not something I'm really worried about because I don't expect to live to be 3 billion years old - about when NASA expects the crash to happen.

The spa is divine. I had an 80 minute hot stone massage yesterday. I came close to falling asleep it was so good. Before dinner I had my hair put up in a "Do" and had a make-up artist deal to my face which has been done the same way every day since the 1980s. It was nice to have a change and the ladies at my table were oohing and aahing at me ... I think I may have started a trend at our table.

One of the women I sit with for dinner every night is an Australian artist and she is writing a travel book and painting water colours as she goes along. The sketches she did of Dubai were beautiful and I wish there was more art like it available locally. She has also painted the grand stairwell here on QM2 and has given it much more life than my camera could capture.

Yesterday we had a bit of excitement as there were dolphins on one side of the ship and a large whale on the other. It was wonderful to be outside in the fresh air and seeing these animals in their natural habitat, splashing and playing in the water. Which reminds me, I still haven't been to one of the swimming pools and it has been 3 days already! Well, unless you count the jacuzzi in the spa. Usually I'm a wee water-baby and you can't get me out of the water unless a shark bell rings. Even that is a bit tricky - I recall Dad using all his powers of persuasion to get me back on the beach after a hammerhead was spotted at Titahi Bay one time.

I've lost track of time but I think we might arrive at the Suez Canal around 1am in the morning. Apparently it takes the best part of a day to get through so I'll be able to get some snapshots later in the day.

'Bye for now. I'm going to try my luck in the casino...

Day 1

After a leisurely embarkation process that is nowhere near as stressful as air travel, we board QM2 via Deck 2. We are all ushered in the right direction of our staterooms by staff located at strategic points. Yes, I have my own bathroom with a toilet, basin and shower and they are spotless. There's a TV that permits me to send and receive e-mails at US$1.50 a time, check how much money I've spent onboard, and arrange for wake-up alarms etc.

I was introduced to my cabin by Abraham, the Steward that takes care of the staterooms in our part of the ship. Yes, I have a bathroom with a toilet and shower and they are spotless. Abraham has his priorities straight and immediately points out my bottle of complementary "Bon Voyage" champagne, courtesy of Cunard. This is how everybody should travel and I can easily see why the rich and famous of days gone by preferred the original Queen Mary to flying.

While I'm unpacking we have a mandatory emergency drill and have to grab out lifevests and head to muster points all around the ship. It goes like clockwork which is good because it is very easy to get lost. From the photos of QM2 you might be forgiven for making the observation that there don't seem to be enough lifeboats for the 4000+ people aboard. QM2 sports some canisters that automagically become Zodiacs if necessary - quite a clever way to ensure safety while maintaining aesthetics.

We "pushed back" from Dubai a little late but then that's a ritual in Dubai. I'd managed a place on the open-air Observation Deck immediately below the Bridge and had fantasic views as we sailed out of Port Rashid. There was a helipcopter overhead taking publicity photos and I'm hoping I'll be able to see me in the picture if they are ever made available. Fortunately I was wearing my signature colour - lime green - so I'll stand out. I was also right under the foghorn and boy is that sucker loud. Cunard are not kidding when they say it can be heard for 10 miles. When they tooted farewell to Dubai I had the biggest grin on my face. [Editor's note: in the end Cunard's publicist chose to use the dawn arrival photo shown, and not a dusk departure one, but my apartment is visible as the highest building on the left of the image. Thanks to Brett & Susan for finding the photo on Cunard's website.]

As we spun around to face the harbour entrance I got some great shots of the side of QM2 with my apartment building in the background. That will definitely be a wonderful memory for me as I love my little apartment and its views over the sea.
I was so pooped that I crashed fast asleep around 8pm without having eaten a thing all day. I made up for that this morning with the best Eggs Benedict I've had since leaving NZ. Little did I know it would be the first of many wonderful meals aboard QM2.

After breakfast I went to a lecture by one of the pilots of Concorde. He explained to us that because she flew faster than a bullet there was never a military version of the aircraft made. No point - everytime she fired a round, she would have shot herself! Later in the cruise the same lecturer explained to us what caused the fateful Paris crash that signalled the beginning of the end for this wonderful aircraft. It turned out to be a tragically unique set of circumstances, very much a freak accident, but preventable with a couple of modifications. Who could have known that September 11 would take out 30% of British Airway's regular supersonic trans-Atlantic customers spelling economic death for Concorde?

Well, I'm due to see a thing in Illuminations, the planetarium, in a few minutes. It is huge - you have to image something that is movie theatre sized with a domed ceiling. I'm told the dome drops down over the audience when being used as a Planetarium but the rest of the time it is used as a movie theatre with a starry ceiling. [Editor's note: Yep, the dome drops down over 150 seats in the centre of the theatre.]

Anyway - I have to run or I'll be late. More later ...

Maiden Call on Dubai

The first time a ship enters a new port it is known as her "Maiden Call", and today Queen Mary 2 made her Maiden Call into Port Rashid, Dubai. She was a sneaky wee ship and snuck in at least two hours ahead of schedule so I missed catching her on video. She was also supposed to be at Quay 2 but I notice there's been a change of plan and she's been moved back into deeper waters, near where the container ships are. This is nothing new for QM2 - the same thing happened in Auckland as Princess Wharf is too short for her to tie up properly.

Yesterday I told you about the all-white imposter; you can just see her bow in the left of the photo. I would say she is about 0.5+ km closer to me than QM2. Also you can just make out a container ship in front of QM2 (foreground) - she has a black hull with a white bridge. That should give you a sense of scale.

I'm still in my Jammies and there are a couple of last minute errands I need to run so the next post from me will be from onboard.

Special note to Sallie: Damn, I wish you could have gotten the time off work kiddo. We'd have had a blast. I'll be thinking of you and will down a wee glass a champers in your honour. To absent friends!

The Longest Day

Abra are the water taxis of Dubai. They ferry workers back and forth across The Creek which is actually a salt-water inlet.

Dirham and fils are the equivalent of dollars and cents. US$1 is roughly 3.67 dirhams and NZ$1 is about 2.50 dirhams. The abra drivers charge each passenger about 25-50 fils and wait until the boat is full (20-30 people) before ferrying everyone over to the other side.

Smart tourists can negotiate to rent an abra for private tours up and down The Creek. Personally this is the way I'd do it because the little putt-putt abras are far more charming than the touristy dhows that charge hundreds of dirhams per person, and they'll take you up as close as possible to things you want to see better. Also you cannot help but smile when you climb aboard because the driver will negotiate hard (expect around 25 dirhams for a straight ferry, more for a tour) but you won't mind because you'll know you just saved him several hours work for the day. Just be careful getting in and out because the concrete jetties are very slippery.

This little guy will get the shock of his life if he's around the mouth of The Creek tomorrow morning because there'll be a ship three times the size of Titanic heading pretty much straight across his bow. Her name is Queen Mary 2. Only nine more hours to go now. This has been the longest day.

By the way, if you want to add comments, just click on the "number of comments" link below each post. Use the right hand side of the pop-up to type in what you want to say. Make sure the "Other" radio button is selected so you can enter your name (unless you already have a Google account). Please don't use "Anonymous" because I won't know who I'm talking to.

Time for sleep now. I have to be up early to photograph her coming into port. I should have time to post again before embarkation. After that you might not get many photos for a while but I've set up the blog so I can send e-mails that will permit me to add new posts without using the internet.

Night all.

Maintenance Day

Speaking of pyramids, there is a shopping mall in Dubai known as Wafi City and it is built around an egyptian theme. Dubai Raffles Hotel is under construction there at the moment, and the mall itself has some expensive shops: Graff, Lalique, Frette, Chopard, Chanel and so forth. Naturally it seemed like a good place to look for a hairdresser when I first arrived. I found a great little salon, Hair@Pyramids, and a wonderful spa called Cleopatra's right next door. "Maintenance Day" is when I hit both within a 24 hour period in preparation for a big event.

I've been maintained. Literally from head to toe and now sport blonde and copper highlights and french polish at respective ends of my body. It's a girl thing. Besides, Mum would probably take me out the back and hit me over the head with a shovel if I didn't scrub up before I got onboard "the world's most magnificent ocean liner".

I'm looking down on Port Rashid as I type this. The sun is setting and I notice there's an all-white imposter in QM2's parking spot - Costa Classica - using up about 25% of Quay 2. I looked her up and she carries about 1300 passengers. I'm trying to guess roughly how much of the quay QM2 will need for space if she can carry a maximum of 3500 passengers. Scary thought.

Two more sleeps to go ...

Officially on Vacation

As of 3pm today I'm officially on vacation and I feel good! Na-na na-na na-na na. From now until 1st April, work is a 4-letter word not to be used in public.

It is the weekend here in Dubai and there are only three more sleeps until Cunard's Queen Mary 2 arrives almost literally on my doorstep. As I write this she is making her way across the Indian Ocean from Cochin, India. The map shows you where I go from there. The Suez Canal and Cairo's pyramids are the big highlights for me. They're both feats of engineering that have fascinated me since I was in single digits. And of course living aboard a floating palace for a couple of weeks is pretty cool too.

I keep thinking of things I might need or want on the trip. Stupid things. Like spending money for Egypt when I don't even know what currency they use. Or knowing which train to catch from Southampton to London when QM2 arrives. I must be getting old because I never used to worry about such things. There was a time when a courier would hand me an envelope on Friday, containing a ticket and some survival cash and I would just go wherever the ticket pointed. Who knew that at Narita Airport a Limousine is actually a bus? Or that if you get your whites laundered in Beijing they are returned 2 sizes smaller and tinted an odd beige colour?

And then there are all the silly things I haven't done. Like arrange my car insurance, sort out hors d'oeuvres and extra glasses for the Bon Voyage party, pick up my last minute dry-cleaning, check if I really can still fit into my evening gown, and watering the plants.

But you know what they say - don't sweat the small stuff, and its all small stuff. Well, all small stuff except QM2 of course. Did I mention she's bigger than any aircraft carrier in service today?