Arriving in NYC is always fun and exciting. Arriving when NYC is preparing for a blizzard is NYC at frantic stage. Despite that we got to our room, enjoyed our dinner and tried to sleep with the excitement of setting sail on our long journey chasing sleep away.
Departure day! Or not, as it turned out. The blizzard had started to move in and our wise captain delayed our departure until the following morning. And although it did not look significantly better to us we left port in a Queen Mary 2 covered in snow and with the wind howling! For the better part of a week we moved through the 40’ seas of the North Atlantic. The QM2 handled the big ocean like the ocean liner she is, plowing through the heavy seas with confidence although there was a lot of ship movement. We are happy to say that neither of us was ill, though many of our fellow passengers did not make it to meals! Our only slight moment of worry was one night when the Captain announced we were within 100 miles of the sinking of the Titanic. This caused a sober moment, but the QM2 chugged on.
Although our statement is small, it has a beautiful balcony with wide windows looking out into the sea or port! Every detail is thought of to make sure there is plenty of room for storage, more than enough seating, a compact but very usable bathroom all done in a sleek finish with attention to detail. Our steward, Bert, works hard to make sure we are comfortable and taken care of. The ship is magnificent, and we consider the stateroom to be our bedroom in this beautiful house! The QM2 has several pools and deck areas, none full size but great for cooling off in the heat and soaking up the sun. The Canyon Ranch Spa offers many services, expensive by shore comparison, but the massages and manicures/pedicures are wonderful. There are saunas and hydrotherapy, and a fitness center with all the necessary instruments of torture!
When we turned the corner from the North Àtlantic into the English Channel it was a fine sight! We were bold explores and had conquered the ocean! LOL.
The first week at sea was spent acclimating to new space, foods, and our entertaining dining companions. We met a Frenchman, Boris, and his wife, Susan, a New Zealander, who were heading off to make a new life in Australia. We saw them frequently until they disembarked at Perth.
Our departure from Southampton was again delayed due to reprovisioning but we left the following morning. We also did some personal provisioning as we could not imagine a trip without popcorn for movies or Coke Zero (which on the ship is $5 per bottle)! The thrift side of us laughed that we saved $150 and had enough to last us ‘til Perth/Fremantle Australia when we could easily stock up again. The ship makes great headway and easily made up lost time as QM2 cruises at about 22 to 24 knots with ease, with a maximum speed of 38 knots. Every day at noon the great whistles of the QM2 are set off. It is an enormous, body-filling sound which can be heard for miles. Immediately after the captain addresses everyone over the PA system with an update of position, conditions, and anecdotes about where we are headed.
Every day it got warmer as we got further south. We sailed on until January 14 when at dawn we awoke in the beautiful harbor of Madeira, Portugal. The view was spectacular, pink streaky sunrise over the mountains. We had signed up for a tour of the city and mountains, a trip that made Ken hold on for dear life as we precariously rolled around the steep and twisty roads – mountain on one side and sheer drop off cliff on the other. Who knew that the captain who loved crossing the Atlantic in his own boat was worried about heights!!
QM2 2018 World Tour 