Queen Elizabeth Position

[sfred]

1 hour ago, LincolnLegend said:

@sfred I think I can help with that, the following are a near and a far shot of the Queen Elizabeth docked at the grain wharf in Port Lincoln

 

Thanks @LincolnLegend!  Very nice photos.  I hope QE's passengers had a nice port day.

[Wonky]

Can anyone guess where she is today?! Hopefully these will be of assistance to Cunard as the boarding passes currently say TBC for embarkation terminal!

[sfred]

It looks like a stunning day in Sydney for QE's day in port.  What a perfect blue sky!  Best wishes for a great voyage. 

[NE John]

1 hour ago, Wonky said:

Can anyone guess where she is today?! Hopefully these will be of assistance to Cunard as the boarding passes currently say TBC for embarkation terminal!

Classic photo!

[daisybel]

Beautiful view and ship at Circular Quay. Should be on board but unfortunately had to cancel 21 day Wedding Anniversary cruise day before boarding 😂😂

[sfred]

QE is back in Sydney this morning, Tuesday 20 February.  And so will Mrs sfred and me, boarding later on today.  It will be so nice to be back on QE again.  Looking forward to a beer outside on deck 9 this afternoon.  Screenshot is from https://webcamsydney.com/

 

@Wonky, hope you had a nice voyage.

 

 

Edited February 19 by sfred

[bluemarble]

Have a great cruise, @sfred. I'll be expecting some photos for us to identify in due course. 😉

[sfred]

Weather has turned a little wet.   But it's always sunny on embarkation day.

 

 

 

Edited February 20 by sfred

[daisybel]

Wouldn’t mind

 a bit of cloud and rain - Should  be boarding today, also a week ago , 21 days of bliss ! Better half became very ill with a virus 2 days before sailing on 13th and we had to cancel 😂 had 6 days in hospital home now but very weak and grounded for a while. To everyone embarking today Enjoy !

[sfred]

7 minutes ago, daisybel said:

Wouldn’t mind

 a bit of cloud and rain - Should  be boarding today, also a week ago , 21 days of bliss ! Better half became very ill with a virus 2 days before sailing on 13th and we had to cancel 😂 had 6 days in hospital home now but very weak and grounded for a while. To everyone embarking today Enjoy !

 

Sorry your adventure was interrupted @daisybel.  Hope your better half recovers soon. 

[Wonky]

9 hours ago, sfred said:

@Wonky, hope you had a nice voyage.

Lovely thank you, so nice we’re staying on for another 2 weeks! See you at the shuffleboard court😊

[sfred]

What's the better port for an embarkation day beer outside on deck 9?

 

San Francisco? 

 

Or Sydney? 

 

As an Aussie I have to say Sydney.  But actually I'd be happy anywhere on Cunard. 

Edited February 20 by sfred

[exlondoner]

5 hours ago, sfred said:

What's the better port for an embarkation day beer outside on deck 9?

 

San Francisco? 

 

Or Sydney? 

 

As an Aussie I have to say Sydney.  But actually I'd be happy anywhere on Cunard. 

Actually, perhaps NY, if you are at the Manhattan Terminal and get to sail down the Hudson. But, as you say, it doesn’t much matter if you have glorious days on Cunard to look forward to.

[NE John]

My favorite QE sailaway was the maiden voyage to Odesa, Ukraine. The crowd at the pier was so packed and waving to us like a scene from the old liners leaving the port in good old days. So much excitement on land and onboard. A year later, things changed in Crimea. 

[sfred]

QE is back in Sydney today Tuesday 5 March.   Coffee on disembarkation day isn't nearly as good as beer on embarkation day.  Safe travels to all those returning home today. 

 

[Wonky]

Her arrival this morning..

[sfred]

Thanks @Wonky.  I think I can see us on our balcony in the first photo.   🙂

 

[NE John]

11 hours ago, sfred said:

Thanks @Wonky.  I think I can see us on our balcony in the first photo.   🙂

 

So @sfred…are you going to give a review of your voyage (onboard experiences especially)? What cabin grade did you sail? Your opinion is valued including your thoughts about the hits and any misses. 

[sfred]

4 hours ago, NE John said:

So @sfred…are you going to give a review of your voyage (onboard experiences especially)? What cabin grade did you sail? Your opinion is valued including your thoughts about the hits and any misses. 

Thanks @NE John - appreciate your kind words  We were in PG on this voyage (our sweet spot for medium/longer trips).

 

Pros (there are lots of them - I'll try to keep it to the big ones)

• PG service from our steward Glenn, maitre d' Stanley, assistant Lesandro, waiter Nell, assistant Alma, and sommelier Rajesh.  It was an outstanding team of Cunard professionals who did a wonderful job from start to finish.  We also went by to say hello to some familiar faces from past QE voyages who had moved to other areas -- maitre d' Sanjay and Joon who had moved to Britannia, and waiter Sanjoy who had moved to QG. 
• Entertainment show Circa, who were aboard for three performances.  They are Queensland based (circa.org.au) and are outstanding.  One of the best evening shows that Mrs. sfred and I have seen on Cunard.
• Insight lectures from forensic dentist Dr. Judith Hinchliffe and New Zealand astronomer Dr. Chris Benton.  They gave very interesting talks, and both were good public speakers.
• Port calls in Noumea and Suva.  We had nice walking adventures, and found good restaurants and cafes for lunch and coffee.
• Our weather was great.  No typhoons, which are always a threat this time of year in this area of the Pacific, and only one big afternoon thunderstorm in Suva, which happened after we had gotten back to the ship and was fun to watch from our balcony.  Seas were calm except for our last afternoon and evening before arriving back in Sydney, when we got into the same waves which impacted QV on her Tasman crossing from NZ to Australia.  For me it was fun - I like the ride - but Mrs. sfred prefers a more stable deck under her feet.
• Many nice sunrises with coffee.  My favourite time of day when aboard.
• FInding the additional Mauretania photos scattered around QE, and imagining what a TA crossing would have like back in the early 1900s.
• Internet was fast and reliable throughout.  I still wish Cunard would offer a 2 hour option to make the Diamond credit last longer, but that's a topic not specific to this voyage.  We supplemented the ship internet with mobile phone roaming on port days.

 

 

Could have been a little better 

• Port calls in Lifou and Luganville, new ports for Cunard and QE.  Getting to things worth seeing were very long walks and there wasn't much in the areas around the ship.  This isn't Cunard's fault - they had many excursions on offer.  It's just that our usual port day routine is to do our own thing and explore on foot.  This wasn't a practical strategy in these ports.  Note to self - organise a Cunard excursion when in more remote places.
• We didn't go to any of the Cunard singer/dancer evening shows.  We've seen them all before several times.  I guess we've been aboard too often!  🙂   Cunard might consider a more frequent refresh of these shows.     

 

Cons

• None.  We had a wonderful time.

 

Let me know any questions - happy to expand on any further items.

[NE John]

51 minutes ago, sfred said:

PG service

I’m glad this Pro was front and center but this makes really afraid that after our next PG experience coming up in Alaska we’d never go back to Britannia!

You ‘da man!
 

[sfred]

6 hours ago, NE John said:

I’m glad this Pro was front and center but this makes really afraid that after our next PG experience coming up in Alaska we’d never go back to Britannia!

You ‘da man!

 

It is tough to go back!  😀  Best wishes for Alaska.  If you see any of the PG people I mentioned above, please say hello for us.  They were great!

 

Also, if not too much trouble, please have a look in the corridor outside the Deck 10 Commodore Club for the port plaques from our six maiden call ports.  They hadn't been hung yet when we got off in Sydney.  I think they will be with the other Oceania/Australia/NZ plaques on the starboard side.  Thanks!

[NE John]

12 minutes ago, sfred said:

 

It is tough to go back!  😀  Best wishes for Alaska.  If you see any of the PG people I mentioned above, please say hello for us.  They were great!

 

Also, if not too much trouble, please have a look in the corridor outside the Deck 10 Commodore Club for the port plaques from our six maiden call ports.  They hadn't been hung yet when we got off in Sydney.  I think they will be with the other Oceania/Australia/NZ plaques on the starboard side.  Thanks!

Will do. I want to also check out our Black Sea maiden voyage plaques too. It’s fun to be a ship geek…

[NE John]

9 hours ago, sfred said:

Let me know any questions

How was the Cunard dress code adhered to in the South Pacific? White dinner jackets? DJ/tux at all?

[Wonky]

Completely agree with @sfred. The team in PG were superb. Stanley, I think has to take a lot of credit for this, I’m sure not long before he dons the grey tie of senior maitre D’. You must have been very close to us as we had Nell and Alma occasionally serve us but Alvin and Khosi were our main ones, also brilliant.

The only con I found was the housekeeping team that seem obsessed with keeping hold of “their” glasses from the room and were desperate not to replace them if we dared to take them out for a drink and leave them in a different location!

[Wonky]

2 minutes ago, NE John said:

How was the Cunard dress code adhered to in the South Pacific? White dinner jackets? DJ/tux at all?

Much better than when we were on board from Barcelona to Singapore at the end of last year.