Cruachan

Well I'll be damned - in 60 something years of knotting ties, both as a civilian, and as a soldier, I never once realised that there were politics involved. And for the benefit of those people who appear to think such things are important, I don't have the foggiest clue what kind of knot I tie in my tie, and nor, indeed, do I care.

I have said this many times in the past whenever this board has become ever more deeply mired in trivia - you are going on holiday! The fashion police are a fantasy - wind your tie around your neck and tie it in a clove hitch or a sheepshank or a bowline or something like that. Nobody else will give it a second glance and nobody else will care.

J

...Lord Archer is a very interesting speaker, but I was surprised that he was so poorly dressed...

Jeff still wearing his old prison uniform is he?

:D

J

Isopropyl alcohol?

Either that or a cheeky little Alaskan battery acid.

:cool:

J

OMG! I wish I'd saved a bottle. It could become a collector's item!!!

 

And if they do away with Pol Axer, what will we have to joke about?!?!?

On our recent cruise on QV we didn't get dear ole Pol Hacker - it was some other stuff but, sadly, I wasn't sufficiently interested to take note of the name.

J

...Do I REALLY have to wait until I rack up 5000 nights before I can be on the Fashion Police Execution Squad? By that time, I'd be so old and my eyesight might be so bad that I wouldn't be able to spot the infractions. :(

Oh, that's interesting. I heard that the Fashion Police Death Squads had already been recruited and that they are actively training up in Middlesbrough using the ship shown below on which to practice their assassination skills. And could there be a more appropriately named vessel than "Tuxedo Royale"?

J

I feel Gobsmacked. :eek: What ever that means...

It's British English. Google is your friend - look it up.

J

Hi Cruachan,

 

From my limited knowledge on this (or any other) subject, I think you are entirely correct, the "size" limit is 96,000gt, if I read things correctly.

 

Best wishes,

Yeah - I think they picked the size limit deliberately so as not to exclude Fincantieri built ships! :cool:

J

Bear in mind that Venice is hell bent on introducing new rules for large cruise ships using the port. The proposal is to route them in west of the current cruise terminal thus avoiding the Giudecca Canal. However, from memory, both the Vista Sistas will be "small" enough not to be affected. Assuming you use the traditional route then port side is best for sailaway and I can thoroughly recommend the observation deck at the forward end of Six Deck as a vantage point - not sure if that is open to passengers on QE (it certainly is on QV) but it will be worth your while to check up on this before you get to Venice (it's also excellent for the sail in on arrival).

Incidentally, if you a re interested, you will find some of my photos from Venice on this page on my website:

http://www.shipworld.org/2013-cruise/

J

Well just so I am clear where does my Ruby status come?

It entitles you to a free tat in any Ruby Arts studio of your choice.

:D:D

J

That makes Gold to come close to Cheapaboozium

Oh! Well, I'm no chemist, but I thought Chepaboozium was one of the Transactinides, right up there next to Livertrashedium.

J

Well I was hoping that people were joking about the 'status' thing. What does it matter how many times you have been on a ship? I am a newbie so maybe it has bypassed me.

Actually, I think that if anything substantive at all has come out of this thread it is that, by and large, people on Cunard generally don't care about it. You should take a swing by some of the other boards and you would, I would dare to suggest, be totally gobsmacked at the seriousness of the discussions on this very topic. Not only that, but you would be amazed, horrified, and depressed in equal measure by the sense of entitlement that some of the protagonists clearly harbour in their loyal little bosoms.

J

Never heard of Unobtanium but I would love a glittery pink card to put in my stateroom door[emoji3]

In the periodic table it comes right next door to Cantaffordium.

J

Please tell me that nobody really cares........it is just a loyalty card...I have a Nectar card, Boots card, do these count??? Cruising on Cunard is lovely that is all there is to it the extras are fine but what really matters is an enjoyable cruise.

Well, they care about clotted flaming cream so why not loyalty cards? :D:D

J

Or just "Glitter"?:D

Indeed! Glitter for the Glitterati - perfect :D

J

I think we should stick with the metal theme. How about Thallium or Arsenic or maybe Polonium? :cool:

J

My, you people are such experts!

 

No matter where the three Queens were built or are flagged or owned, they are not Lithuanian or French, etc., they are English in tone. Look at the damn art. Deal with it. Stop being "too cute." And stop hollaring about the Germans.

Nobody is being cute. You need to learn that English and British are not synonymous. Before QM2 was flagged out to Bermuda she was a British ship - never an English one, no matter what the "tone"!

Go figure

J

... Not so much about Germans, for any port-to- port short-cruise out of a country other than England would load up with the local nationals and could change the tone of an English ship...

English ship?

J

Hello Everyone,

 

We are trying out QM2 for the first time. I am excited to go onboard this famous ship, especially as I visited her predecessor when she was berthed in LA many years ago. I haven't sailed on a Cunard ship since 1969 when I was a child!!!!!

 

Up to now, we have always cruised on P and O, but could not resist a mini break on QM2 in November.

 

'Cocktail dress' is one of the options given for informal evenings, which is making me wonder how smartly people dress during the day, when just pottering round the ship.

 

Any advice please?

Whatever you wore on P and O during the day will be equally fine on Cunard. It's a holiday, not the Queen's Birthday Parade.

J

aaarrrggghh:eek::eek::eek:

 

I have just booked one of these mini cruises:eek::eek:

 

Why? Not because it was cheap, although it was, but because I wanted to go aboard the QM2...as a taster to see if I liked her. I enjoy P&O, but was hoping QM2 would have something more to offer in the way of tradition and elegance.

 

Seems like the experience might put me off for ever!

 

Is there any way to avoid these marauding hordes, or will I have to stay holed up in my cabin?

Don't let it put you off! Make the best job you can of it (it will probably be a whole bunch better than you are now expecting), and then book a "proper" cruise of at least 10-14 days - you will love it.

J

One of the first questions was which ship I took my last cruise on which was the QM2 so a lot of the questions were about the QM2 - which type of cabin I prefer Classic or Contemporary etc so this is obviously geared to the refit next year.

Ah - that all sounds familiar. Maybe we were singing from the same hymn sheet after all :D

J

I've now received another Cunard email with a link to a questionnaire that now works. Some very interesting ideas for the Kings Court and the Winter Garden. Took me ages to complete (longer than 20 minutes) :D

It's strange - they seem to send out loads of surveys at the same time but the surveys themselves aren't always the same. I just had another one which appeared to be identical to the one I filled in last week which may have failed because of the problem that's been mentioned. But there was no mention of Kings Court of the Winter Garden.

J

On my first QM2 sailing, a well informed Cunard cruiser mentioned that the cream was not clotted cream, but you could get it if you asked. And she asked for it and we received the real stuff at our table. So you might ask for clotted cream and plain scones. You may be surprised at the outcome.:)

Clotted cream, plain scones, and black pudding :cool:

J

HI.

We are thinking of doing a Black Sea Cruise from Southampton in September.

The choices are Queen victoria or Aurora.We like deck games ie hosted shuffle board and quoits on sea days .Does anyone know if The QV has these facilities?

We are struggling to make up our mind whether to try Cunard for the first time or stay with P&O as we are Caribean Level with P&O.

Well, they say a change is as good as a rest. Give QV a go - I'm certain you'll love it.

J

Well well, this has been a vintage dress code thread such as we have not seen around these parts for quite some time - bitterness, acrimony, insults and napalm. What more could we ask. And now I see we have a clotted cream thread simmering away nicely and waiting to explode.

Quick someone - start a thread on tipping, and one on smoking and we will have a full house :cool:

J

...That said, until Cunard interviews perspective passengers about their shipboard psyche, turning away those that don't fit in, I think there is little anyone can do about it....

If they start that I won't have an ice cream cone's chance in hell of ever setting foot on another Cunard ship :eek:

J