sfred

QE is transiting the Panama Canal today 31 August. Photos below of the Bridge of the Americas and our first lock system at Miraflores.

A somewhat hazy sunrise this morning 31 August on QE's approach to the Canal. Panama City buildings on the horizon. A pleasant 27c temperature.

It was very impressive! First photo is moonrise last night while at sea. Second photo is moonset this morning 31 August on approach to the Canal.

Thanks @NE John! Unfortunately our QE itinerary doesn't include any "unseen" ports for the Where in the World game. 🌎 I do prefer QM2's PG cabin layout to QE/V, but I can easily struggle through. We have more than sufficient storage space even on this current 36-night long voyage. My consultant career taught me to pack efficiently, although I do need to violate the consultant "carry on only" rule to accommodate formal gear. 🧳

I won't jump into the dress code debate except to say that like many others I happily and eagerly put on a coat and tie each evening for a pleasant stroll around the ship followed by a consistently excellent meal. Admittedly we're in PG on this QE trip, but Mrs sfred and I just commented last night that menus had not repeated once since we boarded in San Francisco. IMO, presenters and entertainment have been very good. One thing I used to do in my past work life as a partner in a big consulting firm was to teach and coach junior consultants on how to make presentations. So unfortunately I cannot help but watch for mistakes by the Cunard insight presenters. Some could benefit from a class or two on presentation techniques, but most are perfectly acceptable given the challenges of the venue and a diverse audience. On this QE voyage, the two Canal historians have been great, one having been part of the research team for David McCullough's famous book The Path Between The Seas.

Wednesday 30 August. QE's last full day in the Pacific for this voyage. Tomorrow is Panama Canal day.

QE is in Puntarenas Costa Rica today 29 August. Mrs sfred and I went on an excursion to the Espiritu Santo coffee plantation. Very nice coffee at the end of the tour.

Sorry for the delay in posting yesterday's sunrise. I was conserving my WiFi allowance. Venus and sunrise Monday 28 August from QE between Cabo and Puntarenas.

I forgot to mention... The officer also said that we would be going through the older Panamax lock sets.

One of QE's second officers gave a "virtual bridge tour" talk yesterday, and one of the Q&A questions was whether we would have issues going through the canal. The officer said there would be no problem, that passenger ships get priority and our booking slot will be okay.

Apologies I noticed a small typo in the QE location list. The Deck 2 access point typed as 3016 should of course be 2016.

@bluemarble's test booking is the same as our booking experience. OBC for many Aus/NZ promotions is often a mystery until after the booking is placed and it shows in the booking confirmation email My theory (and only a theory) is that the Cunard site may have challenges in dealing with both A$ fares and promotional US$ OBC simultaneously, and maybe there are ACCC (Australia Competition and Consumer Commission) regulatory issues in promoting a sale fare that contains multiple currencies. Or maybe it is just the typical Cunard IT. Anyway, unfortunately I don't think there's an online solution to your query, @alibabacruisers. Hopefully the call centre can help you on Monday.

Following @Mercruiser's excellent work for QM2, here are the WiFi access points for Queen Elizabeth. I added a deck or two per day to my usual morning ship roaming walks (before going outside to watch the sunrise, of course 🌅), and made note of the access point locations. An Excel is attached, and a copy and paste shown below. Wi-Fi Access Point (AP) Locations Queen Elizabeth August, 2023 Notes Information is provided "as-is" without any guarantee of accuracy. Use at your own risk. Cabin number indicates closest exterior cabin to an AP. This list only includes APs I can see in the guestroom hallways. Does not include APs in cabins, public rooms, or out of view. Deck 8 Port Stb 8002 8001 8018 8017 8030 8029 8042 8041 8048 8055 8052 8061 8064 8071 8080 8083 8088 8089 8100 8099 8110 8113 8118 8119 8126 8127 8140 8137 8154 8153 8170 8173 8178 Deck 7 Port Stb 7012 7009 7022 7021 7030 7031 7036 7037 7040 7041 7048 7051 7052 7069 7064 7087 7070 7091 7078 7101 7086 7109 7094 7117 7104 7123 7120 7143 7144 7171 7150 7177 Deck 6 Port Stb 6014 6011 6024 6025 6038 6035 6050 6045 6058 6055 6068 6063 6082 6081 6096 6103 3102 6109 6106 6117 6112 6129 6124 6141 6136 6149 6144 6155 6152 6175 6168 6195 6186 6202 Deck 5 Port Stb 5004 5001 5022 5019 5040 5039 5048 5045 5058 5053 5068 5065 5078 5073 5090 5085 5098 5095 5106 5103 5114 5109 5126 5123 5138 5131 5146 5139 5154 5151 5174 5167 5188 5189 5198 Deck 4 Port Stb 4008 4007 4026 4021 4050 4037 4056 4049 4066 4055 4082 4067 4096 4079 4102 4093 4106 4097 4116 4099 4126 4111 4136 4121 4142 4131 4154 4139 4160 4149 4178 4159 4184 4171 4192 4183 Deck 2 Port Stb 2008 3016 Deck 1 Port Stb 1014 1009 1022 1027 1046 1045 1056 1057 1072 1071 1088 1085 1089 1097 1107 QE Wifi Locations.xlsx

Wow - great photo! We've seen these creatures from QM2 but never managed a photo.

Sunday 27 August on our second QE sea day to Costa Rica. In addition to the usual sunrise, the first photo has a Venus rise just prior to dawn. Hopefully the Cruise Critic photo compression will not filter the point of light at the upper right.

Sunrise earlier today, 26 August, on QE's first sea day from Cabo to Puntarenas Costa Rica. It was a hot humid morning 29c at dawn. Felt like home in Queensland!

QE is in Cabo San Lucas Mexico today 25 August. A beautiful sunny and warm day.

Thanks! I did struggle a bit getting up this morning after a late black and white formal last night. But dawn at sea on Cunard is worth it. I can sleep when I get back home. 🌞 🌅

Second sea day, 24 August, between LA and Cabo. Getting warmer each day.

First sea day from LA to Cabo San Lucas on QE.

Correct on both, @Chart Room Princess!!

Oops, wrong Cunard ship. 😀 Here's the correct one.

PORT 2 A famous ship, as seen from the ship. And a view towards the Cunard ship.

These two previously seen ports should be rather easy. PORT 1 From the ship, a famous landmark

Welcome to all those joining QE today in Los Angeles. We've arrived at dawn to the World Cruise Center in San Pedro. A photo of the Vincent Thomas bridge shown below.