Gay meet up P&O Arvia

[Cpt Pugwash]

32 minutes ago, besberry said:

On the Arvia maiden there was an LGBTQ session every evening.  Unhosted.  First day 4 of us met up.  There were other people there but not sure if they part of the meeting or not.  It sort of dwindled on the vine after that, though I did end up with a drinking buddy. 

 

When I was on a P&O cruise a few years back, we were told we couldn't call it a 'Friends of Dorothy' get together as it was considered derogatory.  Not that they asked us!  Same goes for Battle of the Sexes, I dunno what it's called now, but you get a kicking if you call it by the old name.

It always comes down to the same thing it's peoples personal opinion especially these days when a thing cannot in any way be derogatory someone will make out it is.

Be Proud of what kind of person you are folks no matter what, it's you life live it your way Not the way others want you to.

No doubt some people would not agree with my opinions on subjects but why should i change them to suit them, you are doing yourself a disservice if you change  to suit others.  

[Dermotsgirl]

4 hours ago, GSPG said:

Sorry I have absolutely no animosity towards gays, but why is there a need for this gathering?

 

It seems double standards to me where gays complain when they are singled out, but I would have thought it would be better just to ‘blend in’ with others on the ship.

 

When it comes to diversity etc, they say they want to be included with everyone else, but at the same time have an event(s) like this that excludes other people, or do many straights attend.

It seems a bit hypocritical to me. 

 

I don’t know, it would be good to get on a ship and be free of politics, religion, race even diversity and treat all fellow guests the same for that short period of time we are together, and just enjoy the sights, sounds and food that come our way.

 

Perhaps it’s an age thing, but can someone enlighten me where my thoughts are wrong.

 

Substitute the word 'gay' with Masons, Rotarians, Friends of Bill W, religious people, crafters, line dancers, ukulele players,  choir singers or bridge players and you'll see how odd your post sounds.

 

A lot of people like to meet other people who they have things in common with. The LGBTQ meetings are just a way to meet like minded people, just like the meetings for all the other groups that I mentioned  

 

 

 

[zap99]

2 hours ago, bobstheboy said:

They are not "special"   My wife and I were in a bar where they were socialising. We joined in and had a good laugh. Why post if you object to an announcement in the ships paper ?

Being a Morris dancer is not easy these days. No onboard meets for us.

Edited March 25, 2023 by zap99

[yorkshirephil]

5 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

 

Substitute the word 'gay' with Masons, Rotarians, Friends of Bill W, religious people, crafters, line dancers, ukulele players,  choir singers or bridge players and you'll see how odd your post sounds

 

 

 

You missed the Knights that say Ni

[Dermotsgirl]

1 minute ago, yorkshirephil said:

You missed the Knights that say Ni

Add them on too, there's room for everyone on a cruise

[bobstheboy]

6 minutes ago, zap99 said:

Being a Morris dancer is not easy these days. No onboard meets for us.

Let me know time and place so I can be sure to avoid. 😁

[Cj hanlon]

4 hours ago, GSPG said:

Sorry I have absolutely no animosity towards gays, but why is there a need for this gathering?

 

It seems double standards to me where gays complain when they are singled out, but I would have thought it would be better just to ‘blend in’ with others on the ship.

 

When it comes to diversity etc, they say they want to be included with everyone else, but at the same time have an event(s) like this that excludes other people, or do many straights attend.

It seems a bit hypocritical to me. 

 

I don’t know, it would be good to get on a ship and be free of politics, religion, race even diversity and treat all fellow guests the same for that short period of time we are together, and just enjoy the sights, sounds and food that come our way.

 

Perhaps it’s an age thing, but can someone enlighten me where my thoughts are wrong.

Totally agree for what it’s worth. 

[zap99]

Just now, bobstheboy said:

Let me know time and place so I can be sure to avoid. 😁

We are going to practice on the pool deck at 05.30am.

[yorkshirephil]

10 minutes ago, zap99 said:

We are going to practice on the pool deck at 05.30am.

It will be busy then, people putting their towels out

[Britboys]

21 minutes ago, zap99 said:

Being a Morris dancer is not easy these days. No onboard meets for us.

Now there's a group that deserve to be discriminated against...😉

[Camberley]

1 minute ago, Britboys said:

Now there's a group that deserve to be discriminated against...😉

Although never underestimate the pleasures of the camp hankie-swishing and the tingle of ankle-high bells

[Britboys]

10 minutes ago, Camberley said:

Although never underestimate the pleasures of the camp hankie-swishing and the tingle of ankle-high bells

What you get up to behind closed doors is up to you...🤭

[Adawn47]

Having read this thread through, I have to say that I am completely flummoxed by some of the posts. 

Having gay friends and family members my gentle reminder is this. We are all individuals with our own personalities, we are all part of this unique and diverse human race, and as such we should be able to live our lives in our own way.

I hope the OP gets the information he is looking for and enjoys a lovely cruise with P&O

Avril

[grapau27]

1 hour ago, Adawn47 said:

Having read this thread through, I have to say that I am completely flummoxed by some of the posts. 

Having gay friends and family members my gentle reminder is this. We are all individuals with our own personalities, we are all part of this unique and diverse human race, and as such we should be able to live our lives in our own way.

I hope the OP gets the information he is looking for and enjoys a lovely cruise with P&O

Avril

Nicest post on the thread Avril.

One of our Sarah's male workmates is gay and he is a wonderful friend to her.

There are various get togethers on board ship for single people,gays, AA to name a few and it is a good idea.

On our Oasis of the seas Caribbean cruise last month we chatted to a couple in Chops Grill restaurant and they had met on the ship.

 

 

 

[lincslady]

As has already been said, there are meetings for all sorts of groups who are likely to have things in common, and want to meet like minded others,  like the friends of Bill W, knitters, bridge players, and so on and so on.  This is just another group, no more, no less.

[Denarius]

6 hours ago, majortom10 said:

People with alcohol problems.

Bill Wilson was the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. Not sure about Dorothy.

[Denarius]

4 hours ago, Dermotsgirl said:

 

Substitute the word 'gay' with Masons, Rotarians, Friends of Bill W, religious people, crafters, line dancers, ukulele players,  choir singers or bridge players and you'll see how odd your post sounds.

 

A lot of people like to meet other people who they have things in common with. The LGBTQ meetings are just a way to meet like minded people, just like the meetings for all the other groups that I mentioned  

 

 

 

When I first started sailing with P&O in the mid 1990s they used to organise onboard get togethers for Rotarians, "Masonic Bretheren" and "Masonic Widows". Perhaps reflecting the passengers they got or hoped to get in those days.

[Cpt Pugwash]

With this post going from a simple question to personal opinions to make this post a bit lighter does anyone want to meet up to play Tiddlywinks on B312.? 🥸🥸🥸

[grapau27]

2 hours ago, lincslady said:

As has already been said, there are meetings for all sorts of groups who are likely to have things in common, and want to meet like minded others,  like the friends of Bill W, knitters, bridge players, and so on and so on.  This is just another group, no more, no less.

There are also Cruise Critic Roll call get togethers too.

[Selbourne]

9 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

There are also Cruise Critic Roll call get togethers too.

We went to one of those some years ago and enjoyed meeting a few of the regulars on this forum. Unfortunately, the organisers of one or two meets since then opened them up to Facebook groups as well, which resulted in half the ship turning up, which rather defeated the object IMHO, so we stopped going. 

[Vampiress88]

There definitely was one every day on iona. 
also travelling solo, friends on bill w, I’ve checked two days that I had saved. 

those are the only ones I would see as “get togethers” the rest seem to be the join in line dancing and yoga etc so like an activity. 
 

I do wish there was more on and to do during the day really. I mean we do get rid of the kids in the club for two hours, have some adult time 😉 then what to do with the rest of the 1hr45 😂 we then end up in a bar. 
 

on another note I wonder if anyone starts dating at any of these meets. Surely there must be some that have met maybe solo travelling- then cruise wedding! 

[grapau27]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

We went to one of those some years ago and enjoyed meeting a few of the regulars on this forum. Unfortunately, the organisers of one or two meets since then opened them up to Facebook groups as well, which resulted in half the ship turning up, which rather defeated the object IMHO, so we stopped going. 

TBH we have never went to any meetings on board except for the Top tier parties on RC and Princess as Pauline and i prefer to keep ourselves to ourselves.

On our last 2 cruises we have spoken to couples who had just got together at the ships singles get together.

Graham.

[Britboys]

1 hour ago, Denarius said:

Bill Wilson was the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous. Not sure about Dorothy.

There are two main theories around the term Friends of Dorothy.

One relates to the Wizard of Oz, with Dorothy's little band of outcast friends and the fact that Judy Garland became a gay icon.

The second relates to the American Socialite Dorothy Parker. She was quite anti-establishment and had a large circle of very bohemian friends, including a number of gay men and lesbians.

I believe there are some other theories and no-one knows for sure but it became quite a common way for gay men in particular to safely check out other men by asking "are you a friend of Dorothy" or "Do you know Dorothy".

Fortunately, in most liberal countries we no longer have to resort to such tweeness. That doesn't however mean that for this 60-something man, it doesn't feel like he's 'coming out' every time he's asked if he's ever been married...

[scottish ed]

Thanks for your responses and advice. I didn’t realise what I was starting when I asked the question. 
 

15 hours ago, GSPG said:

Telling me to jog on, I am interested. What makes them so ‘special’?

In response to this post- I’m not suggesting we’re special. Sadly, bigotry doesn’t take a holiday and whilst most people are accepting of LGBT relationships, not everyone is. Until they are, I think these meetings are important. It’s not about excluding anyone (and I’d hope anyone would be welcome) but just about spending a bit of time with people who you have something in common with. 
 

Thanks to the others who made similar points & came to my defence.

11 hours ago, Adawn47 said:

Having read this thread through, I have to say that I am completely flummoxed by some of the posts. 

Having gay friends and family members my gentle reminder is this. We are all individuals with our own personalities, we are all part of this unique and diverse human race, and as such we should be able to live our lives in our own way.

I hope the OP gets the information he is looking for and enjoys a lovely cruise with P&O

Avril

 

Thanks  Avril for the kind words- am really looking forward to first cruise!

[Beckett]

4 hours ago, scottish ed said:

Thanks for your responses and advice. I didn’t realise what I was starting when I asked the question. 
 

In response to this post- I’m not suggesting we’re special. Sadly, bigotry doesn’t take a holiday and whilst most people are accepting of LGBT relationships, not everyone is. Until they are, I think these meetings are important. It’s not about excluding anyone (and I’d hope anyone would be welcome) but just about spending a bit of time with people who you have something in common with. 
 

Thanks to the others who made similar points & came to my defence.

 

Thanks  Avril for the kind words- am really looking forward to first cruise!

Hello Ed.

 

I thought I'd just tell you about an experience of mine on a Princess cruise. I went on this cruise with a dear friend who is Jewish. She noticed that there was a Friday night Sabbath service/get together for Jewish passengers. I went along with her and we met a lovely couple who had arranged some private tours of synagogues in Gibraltar and Tallin. They asked us to join them which we did and the tours were both full of enrichment and knowledge for me and I've never forgotten them. What I'm trying to say in a very long-winded way is that me, a non-jew, was welcomed into this group with open arms as I'm sure I would be in an LGBT+ group - and I'd be proud to be welcomed.

 

We are all special - to each other and to those who love us. You have a wonderful time on your cruise. Very best wishes. Jane xxx