It's 5:30 a.m. here in Southampton, and I'm still aboard the
Queen Mary 2. I would imagine most of my fellow overnighters are
still sound asleep. I'm up early because I made the mistake of
returning to my cabin after dinner last night to drop off some
things, sat down and fell sound asleep. I missed the late-night
festivities. But that's what a voyage is all about, right, doing
your own thing at your own pace?
So, it's time to roll the credits and wrap this up.
There was distinct absence of sequins and extra body weight on
nearly all of last night's guests. I attribute that to the absence
of U.S. citizens. Yes, let those cards and letters pour in.
The ceremonies and toasts all have been on time, on target, far
from cloying, blessedly brief and, for the most part, compelling. In
retrospect, the entire ceremony was one in a million.
Grace before dinner, delivered by the ship's master, Commodore
Warwick, was about one sentence long. Something like bless this food
and this ship. Amen. Sit down.
A U.S. version of same? I won't answer that. Not in a million
years. Any attempt would guarantee that I would be
seat-belt-strapped into the next hot rod to hell.
THE Toast. Did you get that? ONE toast. From a member of the
British governing body. I quote: "To the Queen." That was it. Stand
up, sit down, eat, eat, eat.
(We did eat, by the way. Trilogie de Canard - which I take to
mean duck prepared three ways - fantastic. Consommι en Croute, which
would be essence of pheasant with pistachio crust. Braised Maine
Lobster in Champagne Sauce, "nestled" in papardelle pasta with green
asparagus. And champagne, and wine and dessert.)
The ship is huge, and grand. Would I sail on her? I'm not sure.
Honestly, I am not one for cruises. So how did I get the travel
editor's job? Who knows? That said, a crossing of the Atlantic, an
entirely different affair, is appealing - and that's what the Queen
Mary 2 is built for. But this ship is not inexpensive. You can see
some of the prices in an earlier entry.
But it might behoove you to wait until the ship has settled into
its normal runs, and then watch for discounts. Check with travel
agents who specialize in cruises. The discounts will come. Maybe not
for a while, but they will. A majority of the early bookings on this
ship are from the U.S. The Europeans aren't using her - yet. I would
imagine, from conversations here, that they will do what they always
do: Wait for the impetuous, suckers-for-any-trend Americans to have
their way with the ship, move on to the next fleeting passion, and
leave room for those who really do like to sail.
I like Southampton. I wasn't here long enough to see much of
it, though. Our schedule was quite understandably jammed and focused
on the Queen Mary 2. But I like this town. Reminds me of home. And
I've enjoyed the folks I've met here very much. (Including the two
guys I met at a pub the other night who slaughtered me in darts but
who still insisted that I skip one of the press dinners and come
with them to a game at their new football stadium. I regret not
having done that.)
Did you know that Southampton was the departure spot for the
founding fathers and mothers of what we know now as the United
States?
"Would you all please be upstanding..." is a much more
appealing way of saying "Please stand up." Sadly, it's not something
we brought with us to the colonies.
"Ladies and gentlemen please note that all prices on board are
quoted in U.S. dollars which makes the shopping even more inviting."
I had to reread that a couple times. It's a line from the Daily
Programme issued on board, a rundown of what we overnighters would
be doing, seeing, eating, etc. "More inviting?" It was absolutely
frightening. At least with quotes in pounds we can pretend - for a
few minutes.
There was scant mention of the folks who died in the production
of this vessel - and there have been several - except by religious
figures brought aboard for the ceremonies. Frankly, I find that
appalling.
And it's que-NARD. Like the que ball.
With that, I'm outta here. It's been grins. Cheers.
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