Colin_Cameron

Normally we're looking for something closer to Southampton. Bicester, Oxford, Reading, Aldermaston, to head for the ship the next morning. But that's not what you want.

 We have stopped at the Holiday Inn at Haydock, and various Travel Lodge/ Travel Inn/ Premier Inns on that stretch of the M6. But they're more just a place to sleep.

We have had a couple of nights in Blackpool. Went dancing at the Tower Ballroom. It was Oct. or Nov. so the illuminations were on.

On 5/22/2021 at 10:20 AM, Csardas said:

 I had thought of Stratford as I've never been there before but any recommendations are welcome!

Since you mention Stratford we once broke the journey at Studley Castle Hotel which is about 10-12 miles away. It has been taken over since then and had a very major refurbishment so I don't know what it's like now.

Let us know what you do, and how it went. We're always looking for recommendations as well.

On 5/21/2021 at 1:58 PM, lissie said:

We sailed on the QE in 1068 - inside deluxe - its below the Queens Room and next to a service corridor - we heard absolutely nothing the whole trip. 

I agree. We've been below the Queen's Room a couple of times. On one occasion I thought I could hear the music. But the harder I listened the less sure I was. Never heard any sounds from below.

On 5/21/2021 at 1:58 PM, lissie said:

One thing it lacks is under bed storage - I've seen people say that you can store bags under the bed - but ours was solid - with no drawers - the steward put the big bag behind the sofa.

This should be a reminder to us all that any information we provide only represents our experiences. (Anyone who says "Cunard always ...", or "Cunard never ...", should be immediately ignored.)  

We've been in five of these deck 1 insides and, apart from QV's maiden voyage when there were no drawers in any cabin, they have all had a large drawer under the foot of each bed, with space for a bag or case under the top half. And I would have been happy to assure anyone that they were all the same.

I would also have been happy to say that they all had large three-seater sofas (I know they only have two cushions, but they're three seats wide). And yet there's Lissies photo  of 1068 with a smaller two-seater sofa! From the deck 6 & 8 deluxe insides that I've looked into, I thought this was one of the differences. Deck 1's had a three-seater and decks 6 & 8, being that bit smaller, only had room for a two-seater. I wonder if it did have a larger one but it got damaged and was swapped out with whatever was available?

7 hours ago, Bigmike911 said:

I think I am now officially post tech. 

5 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

"Post tech"  sounds pretty good --  I am surely nowhere near that level, not even "tech", probably just part way through "pre tech"'

I spent 42 years in the IT industry. Towards the end customers asked me, more than once, "How do you keep up with the twenty year olds in this game?" My answer was always the same. "Keeping up with them isn't a problem. But it is getting harder to leave them in the dust." 🙂

I have just spotted a huge glaring omission from the not seen yet list. I have lots of photos of this port but they are all instantly recognisable. I'll keep looking for something a little more challenging.

In the meantime here's another Cunard port, taken from an ex-Cunard ship.

1 hour ago, Solent Richard said:

And the second clue...

 

This one I can place as The Esplanade in Lerwick.

Maybe I read too much into the 'NOT in Kansas' clue. I started looking in Oz🤣

We've had several of these on both QV and QE.

I'm fairly sure this was 1078 on QV. Just to show the alternate layout that @Palmeat mentioned. This was the original carpets, bedspreads, etc. Newer style in Palmeat's photo.

2 hours ago, bluemarble said:

 

OK, it's time to identify this port. The ship appears to be P&O Oceana. @Solent Richard's blog includes a Caribbean cruise on Oceana. Looking at the ports on that cruise, I was able to locate this gazebo within Old Hospital Park in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Oh. In that case my next one won't take long 😁

2 minutes ago, North West Newbie said:

They worked at the Cunard Shell Works in Bootle, Merseyside?

Well Done. I really didn't think anyone would get this.

6 minutes ago, Solent Richard said:

I'd go for roughly the First World War years.

Spot on. The photo is dated 1917.

The little triangular badges that some of them are wearing look like this.

8 hours ago, Host Hattie said:

Did they work on the ships or on land ?

Good question. They were photographed at their workplace. So, on land.

I still think working out a timeframe is the best way to go.

1 hour ago, sfred said:

... ladies' maids/stewardesses?

Not even close.

7 hours ago, Colin_Cameron said:

A little bit of an aside: I hope nobody minds.

While researching Cunard Ports I came across this picture of some Cunard employees.

 

What did they do?

Meant to add that it’s a job no longer to be found within Cunard.

Working out a date, even approximately would be a good first step.

A little bit of an aside: I hope nobody minds.

While researching Cunard Ports I came across this picture of some Cunard employees.

What did they do?

45 minutes ago, carlmm said:

 Even the MS Europa with almost 200 metres length does sail directly into Seville.

Thus I am quite confident that Sea Goddess(es) made it, too.

As with @carlmm, I knew that much larger (although not Large, by today’s standards) ships do sail upriver to Seville, so I had no hesitation in adding it to the list for one of the Sea Goddesses.

21 minutes ago, sfred said:

While we continue the search for @Palmeat's latest, here is a contribution from me.  This is a port on our unseen list, although I have not visited it on a ship.  If you would like a hint to narrow the geographic possibilities, have a look at posts 2103, 2104, and 2105.

 

Would that be Townsville, QLD?

5 hours ago, Jim9310 said:

Did your glass come from here?

TRURO VINYARDS OF CAPE COD

It did. We visited in October 2013. We spent a couple of nights at Chatham during a tour of New England. And were on our way back from a day trip up to Provincetown.

22 minutes ago, Solent Richard said:

That looks like Pont Jacques Chaban-Delmas. Since he was Mayor of Bordeaux, that's where I'll guess.  

54 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

Where on the Cape?— I spent a number of August weeks at Corn Hill in Truro.

Funny you should say that. I’m sitting here with my Truro Wineries glass in my hand. Although that’s not what’s in it.

You could always take a shore excursion to the zoo. At least then you wouldn't have to pay for the car park.😂

If anyone doesn't know the story of Bristol Zoo Car Park:

Outside the Bristol Zoo, in England, there is a parking lot for 150 cars and 8 coaches, or buses.

It was manned by a very pleasant attendant carrying a ticket machine charging cars £1 (about $1.40) and coaches £5 (about $7). This parking attendant worked there solid for all of 25 years. Then, one day, he just didn’t turn up for work.

“Oh well”, said Bristol Zoo Management – “we’d better phone up the City Council and get them to send a new parking attendant…”

“Err … no”, said the Council, “that parking lot is your responsibility.”

“Err … no”, said Bristol Zoo Management, “the attendant was employed by the City Council, wasn’t he?”

“Err … NO!” insisted the Council.

Sitting in his villa somewhere on the coast of Spain , is a bloke who had been taking the parking lot fees, estimated at £400 (about $560) per day at Bristol Zoo for the last 25 years. Assuming 7 days a week, this amounts to a couple of millions… The funny part? No one even knows his name.

Forgot to confirm @bluemarble was correct with Dakar, Senegal. ✅

22 hours ago, Solent Richard said:

...  were we shipmates then? 😉😄

In 1964? I was preparing for a big adventure of my own. Starting primary school. 😂 

My “stirring up trouble” comment was intended to reference the 27th August in particular, not the mission as a whole, or your part in it.

For those who don’t know the story, the following is from Wikipedia:

“On 27 August 1964, the British aircraft carrier HMS Victorious and her two destroyer escorts sailed through the Sunda Strait, an international waterwayclaimed by Indonesia, en route to Australia. Upset by the casual warning the British had given of the ships' impending passage through the Strait (a telephone call made two days before, which did not mention the carrier) and wary of the possibility that the British were attempting to provoke a violent response, the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs decided two days later to prohibit the warships from making the return journey to Singapore, scheduled for the middle of September.”

19 minutes ago, Palmeat said:

I think we have a couple of ports yet to identify - one each for Carl and Richard. I'll need clues (as usual). Here's a new one from me. 

New Orleans, Louisiana

1 hour ago, Solent Richard said:

I had understood we were defending Malaya against Indonesian aggression 😄.

That's what happens when you believe what "management" tells you😁

I thought this book might provide some answers. It looks like we really need the 64-65 version but it doesn't seem to be available.

I'm going with somewhere in the far east. But there are numerous possibilities on the list.

The photos themselves don't help much but you had been stirring up trouble in Indonesia that August 😁 before returning to Singapore in September, and were still there the following March. But what you did and where you went in December I haven't yet worked out.

3 minutes ago, Palmeat said:

Colin - is this Alter Do Chao, Amazonia?

✔️That didn't last long, did it. I suppose there's not many Amazon ports left.

I struggled to find a photo of this port and resorted to lifting a frame from video.

Well Done, Helsingborg it is ✔️

Not much to go on with this one. I'll just say there was no way I was going paddling here.