Saturday 11th

Woke to a gentle swell and bright sunshine wind 4 to 5. Sorted final texts and emails as the Scilly isles slipped by to starboard and we will be out of touch of the UK networks for some time. (By the way thanks to everyone who sent mails off blog and a reminder to those who want to email us off blog, the addresses are in the contact us page.)

Had a full English and then down to the IT dept. to try and sort out the problem I have in transferring photos from the camera to the tablet. We have bad weather forecast so captain is heading south to avoid the worst.

IT Dept. only knows about iPads and iPhones so drawn a blank, photos may be in short supply until we get back. Went to a lecture on dolphins and promptly fell asleep, so don’t know if it was interesting or not, must have been that breakfast. Weather gradually deteriorating even though we are heading south. Lots of empty places at dinner, one lady missing from our table, Carol made it but was not feeling too bright, she cheered up after a couple of quells but went straight up after dinner. I went to the Golden Lion for a couple of Boddies, but there was only me and the piano player and he kept singing songs at me, so had one and joined Carol.

Sunday 12th January

Weather continued to slowly worsen during the night, heard the odd crash but the bed has good springs so slept well, but there was still only the odd white cap to be seen. Had a lazy day watched the goffers (waves) break over the bow. By afternoon weather is finally making an effort to get serious with white caps on each and every wave. Show has been cancelled tonight as the dancers don’t feel safe (never done flight deck jumping then). If anyone turns up there will be a comedian, hope it’s not the Aussie.

The ship is lurching along, creaking and wheezing, more like an indigent old duchess than a queen with a curious wiggle every now and then, but you can’t call it bad by any stretch of the imagination. If it continues like this I can see it’s going to be me and that piano player again tonight.

Monday 13th January

Well it did get gradually worse last night. We went to a pre-dinner drinks party where the captain informed us that we would continue to head south to skirt the storm some 750 miles to the north of us. Dinner was formal but was sparsely attended, pity really as it was fillet steak. The comedian had to work hard, both to amuse the few and keep his balance, we staggered to bed after the show and strapped ourselves in for a night of crashes and lurches, one minute up high the next plummeting down to hit what seemed like a solid wall. Fortunately Carol has at last found her sea legs (I knew I’d packed them) and we slept OK, just as well really as we woke to a force 9 with waves reaching 8 metres high. Spray was flying past our cabin high up on deck eight (just behind the bridge). That must be one hell of a storm 750 miles to the north. We are now as far south as Portugal heading South West and passing just north of the Azores. If we keep on this heading we will also pass to the south of Bermuda. Looking on the bright side though, there were plenty of seats at breakfast and I had a full English again. The clocks went back an hour again last night making us two hours behind UK and they are going back again tonight. I like getting an extra hour every night.

I am going to have to have a serious word with Carol about cabin etiquette if we are going to share this space for four months. Start as we mean to go on if you get my drift.

Now she has her sea legs she was up and showered first thing, which is fine I have no problem with that and Carol being Carol was busying herself sorting through what washing needed doing when I finally went to my ablutions. I closed the door behind me and (not to put too fine a point on it) settled in to my morning routine. There I was, sitting contemplating life as one does with the ship bouncing around like an excitable colt, when the lights went out. Uh oh! power failure was my first thought, but as the aircon was still whirring away and the ship had not gone silent as they tend to do when the power goes off, I quickly realised that Carol, on her way to the launderette, had whipped the card out of the holder by the door thereby switching off all the lights in the cabin, leaving me alone in the buff in a tiny room that was as black as the inside of a cows belly, half way through the job in hand. It was while I was considering my next move that I realised with horror that removing the card also signals to the steward that the cabin is now empty and can therefore be made up! An inconvenience had become a crisis that had to be dealt with, and quickly, were I not to be discovered by the steward, lurking, in the buff, in the dark, having ‘in effect’ called him. In an increasing state of panic I also realised that being halfway through the task in hand, so to speak, the paperwork needed to be completed. This is not easily accomplished single-handedly, but in the dark, in a force nine gale, it is damned near impossible – one hand is required at all times for personal safety. But terror leads a man to accomplish feats that would be otherwise impossible and the speed at which I managed to do the necessary shoot out of the bathroom, retrieve my key card, deposit it in the slot by the door and retreat into the comparative safety of the bathroom was remarkable by any standards, let alone under the conditions imposed by the weather. I didn’t hear Carol return, what with the wind, the creaking and the aircon I assumed she had stayed in the launderette. After shaving I got in the shower but within seconds of getting wet, the lights went out again. It appears that Carol had returned, not noticing that the lights she had inadvertently turned off were back on, fussed around for a while before deciding to return to the launderette to wait for the wash to finish so she could transfer the load into the drier. Once more whipping the card out of the slot by the door as she disappeared leaving me almost back where I started, but this time without a card. Lady luck was with me this time however as the wash was completed and only minutes ensued before she was once more back in the cabin. I wouldn’t mind but when I remonstrated with her, she just collapsed into fits of giggles. Women!

Went to a lecture by Dr. Ellen Baker on working and living in space, she had completed three shuttle missions and was on board the first shuttle to dock with the Russian space station MIR. She had some cracking stories and pictures about incidents in space. It makes current sea conditions seem mild in comparison. Shots from the shuttle of the UK were impressive. We could see our back garden (almost).

We are currently crossing the mid-Atlantic ridge – so what? we asked. Well it seems that right underneath us is a crack being pulled apart by the continents of North America and Eurasia as a result molten rock is pouring out beneath us. Great! So not only is the sea boiling on the surface it is boiling on the seabed.

By afternoon conditions had settled somewhat, though we were told to expect more of the same for the next 36 hours. Dinner was not well attended again. We had a quick look at what was happening in the theatre and decided that piano playing was not our bag, so we repaired to the Golden Lion. Where there was yet another piano player this time singing to someone else.

Tuesday 14th January

Weather continues in the same vein for the night and much of the day, we are promised improvement as we move west and the storm moves east. Had rather a lazy day couple of pints etc. Had a go in the gym, weights light as a feather one minute heavier than lead the next.

Wednesday 15th January

Woke to blue skies and flat calm with the mood at breakfast defiantly lighter. Saw two small whales playing together as we passed by, no time to photo them as we were doing twenty knots trying to make up lost time and they were heading in the opposite direction but they seemed like they were happy that the weather had improved, in fact they were having a whale of a time, (sorry about that). Talking about having a whale of a time, the ships company had fun putting a fire out this morning, a pretend fire that is, all in the interests of ships safety. And on the subject of ships safety, tonight whilst we are asleep we will pass close to where the Titanic sank on April 14 1912 (within 14 miles of her sinking position). Fortunately this is not iceberg season. Had rather a better time in the gym this afternoon now that the ship has stopped going up and down like a demented elevator.

Friday 17th January

After a choppy night we woke to nearly flat calm heading into the Gulfstream making 23 knots through the water but only 20 over the ground due to the current. By midday we were making 25 knots over the ground but 22 through the water as we had passed through the Gulfstream which was against is and into the Labrador current which was with us. As well as affecting our speed the currents warmed up the air and we are now basking in temperatures of around fifteen degrees. We are definitely going to be about 3 hours late getting into NY which has its good points. We won’t have to get up as early as we were going to and we will see the statue of liberty in daylight. The have also delayed sailing until 9pm to allow those on tours time to complete them, (an advantage of booking through Cunard. Clocks go back an hour again tonight which is just as well. I’ve noticed that we are getting up later and later despite the extra hour we keep getting. Even though the temperature has risen today, we can expect it to fall as we approach NY where it is predicted to be 3 to 4 degrees possibly as low as 1. Good job we packed the thermals.

Went on a virtual tour of the bridge in the theatre today given by two officers, it was a fascinating insight into the way a modern ship is conned (that’s a nautical term meaning driven Laura). Paperless has come to the high seas, they don’t use paper charts any more, they dial up an electronic version, overlay the radar display onto the chart and then overlay the echo sounder, which gives them a 3D display of the world around the ship. They then superimpose the course they want to take and hey presto. Just like an aircraft, the ship sails itself. There are two officers on watch like an aircraft and they sit in luxury seats side by side and just chat. One guy in the audience asked if they could use a sextant, they said that they had one but they made the cadets use it. Oh and they don’t do dog watches any more. I asked why not and they said it was to keep life simple. Dog watches made things complicated and were best left to the Royal Navy. Hmmmph!

Oh! By the way thanks for the comments coming through. The ships internet connection is excruciatingly slow and I’m having to post most of these entries via emails to Paul, but occasionally I manage to log in myself. It’s good to know that somewhere out there someone is reading this doggerel.

Thursday 16th January

A lazy day, wandering around watching people doing all sorts of things that they don’t normally do and suddenly find to do. We noticed a chap doing a jigsaw, he was quite pleased with himself as he reckoned he would finish it in a couple of days and it said on the box 8 to 10 years! Weather is warming up a bit as we head into the gulfstream and the ship has picked up speed but it looks like we are still going to be late into New York. Got another gym session in but it was packed. Will try again tomorrow.

Saturday 18th January

We slunk into a gloomy grey Hudson with the New York skyline slowly approaching out of the murk to starboard, slipping under the George Washington Bridge with inches to spare (well it looked like inches). Past the statue of liberty and eased into a berth in downtown Manhattan (end of 48th street) right alongside USS Intrepid, a converted US aircraft carrier that is now a museum. On the flight deck, she had a Blackbird stealth plane and would you believe, the shuttle, along with a myriad of other types. Between us there was a British Airways Concorde, which I thought was a bit rich as they never wanted her to land in NY when she flew and there she is, an exhibit in the centre of New York, like a scalp, celebrating the fact that if we can’t build one, we can stop her flying! They learnt something from the native Indian then. Bitter? Me?

We finally struggled ashore through immigration, I felt sorry for those who were not going on organised trips as first off were passengers who opted to carry their own luggage, followed by those on organised trips, followed by the rest of the disembarkers who’s luggage was waiting for them, then following up the rear were the people who were doing their own thing. As visitors to the US know, immigration is a major bottleneck (I won’t go on about that here – might not get back in – or even worse, out) suffice to say the poor passengers who decided not to go ashore here, had to go ashore through immigration and then to rub salt into the wound were not allowed back on board until everyone else had been processed.

Anyway we got out of immigration into the teeth of a snow storm (well it was snowing, but into the teeth of a snow storm sounds better) and we clambered aboard our coach to start our tour of The Big Apple. The temperature was minus one, but we were well wrapped up. Our tour guide was quite funny, she didn’t mean to be, but she was. Her commentary consisted of “it’s nice living here in Greenwich there are lots of lovely shops and things to do” and “all this area was covered in dust after 9/11” but we were soon aboard the tour boat that took us round all the sites, Ellis Island, statue of liberty, the three bridges Brooklyn, Manhattan and Wilbraham. The guide on this part of the tour was excellent, but as is always the case, they tell you so much about the shore lines that you forget a lot of it. We learnt that the berth we were in, was right opposite the part of the Hudson that the Airbus put down on after the double bird strike almost to the day five years ago (Jan 15) temperatures about the same. I don’t think I would have liked going into the water today. He earned his money. We swerved the tail end of the tour on the coach and got off by central park, walked down 5th avenue wandered around Times Square and made our way back to the ship on foot. Temperature had by this time risen to the dizzying heights of plus one, so we needed a hot drink and a meal. For a first visit to New York we did see a lot of the sites that you hear about, but the tour guide on the bus did seem to major on 9/11. She did have the grace to say that those of you from the UK don’t need reminding of the trauma of terrorism.

So here we are with 700 new guests from today the cruise is going to have a distinctly more American flavour about it. At tea we sat with a couple who were new on board who said, “we hear you had a pretty rough crossing to get here” they were worried that there would be more of the same. I was tempted to say “it’s hell out there”, but I resisted that temptation and told them most of it was over on our side of the Atlantic. We slipped out of NY at 9pm and watched the Manhattan skyline glide by, what a difference from the morning. From grey to an amazing light show, like a band of jewels on black velvet. Anyway onwards we go this time heading south and to warmer climes.

Monday 20th January

We are currently about 200nm due East of Jacksonville and by 20:00 will be abeam of Cape Canaveral. The weather continues to get warmer sun is now a more permanent fixture with only a few cotton wool puffs of cloud. The upper deck is now littered with people all laid out to dry. Went to the first of four talks on Canals, today’s was on the first 200 years. The final one just before we transit Panama will be on the current upgrade to the existing Panama canal. Then as a sucker for these talks I dragged Carol to a talk on Captain Cook and his three great voyages, much of which we will be tracing on this voyage. Carol rested her eyelids for a lot of it. We lose one of the couples on our dinner table at Fort Lauderdale as they depart heading for Naples. That’s Naples Florida, not Naples Italy. Carol saw her first flying fish today, but didn’t know what was until after she saw it. I was having a shower so couldn’t be sure, but from the description and the fact there have been a few more sightings it seems certain that was what it was. Now she knows what to look for, she is prepared.

Sunday 19th January

Only 300 miles further south and the temperature is slowly climbing from around zero to 15/20 degrees the sun is showing it’s face and the mood on board is markedly brighter, though that could also be the result of having a greater percentage of Americans on board. Their open and friendly nature gradually breaking down the reserve of the Brits and a party spirit slowly taking hold. We are passing the New Jersey coastline heading for Delaware Bay. We had the Port presentation for Fort Lauderdale and after went to a lecture on The Great Atlantic Liners over the last century, race for speed etc. SS America took the Blue Ribbon by completing the journey in under three days at an average speed of 39 knots. Makes our 8 day voyage look positively pedestrian.

Tuesday 21st January

Woke to a fantastic sunrise and guess what? For the first time it was warmer on the balcony, than in the cabin at 7:30, like stepping out into a cup of warm tea.

Had breakfast and then away into town (no immigration this time), Carol wanted to have a ‘quick’ look at the Mall first, but after leaving me to log on to the local WiFi she was soon back and we shot off for a boat trip around the area. For a relatively small (by American standards) town. Fort Lauderdale was impressive it has over 170 miles of water front properties on their Inter-coastal Waterway and if you are a millionaire you can’t afford one. You have to be a multimillionaire or if you want to be a bit less stretched, a billionaire, as the property tax on many of these waterfront houses exceeded $44,000 per month. The waterway is laid out herring bone fashion, with a main throughway and inlets stretching about a kilometre left and right. Each property had its requisite super yacht, I quickly realised that taking photographs was useless as there were so many, though I did take one of Steven Spielberg’s daddy of all yachts.

We stopped for a quick beer on the way back, I say beer, I meant lager ‘ugh’ and the trouble was it was buy one get one free, so I had to drink two. Carol sneaked a picture of me drinking it. She’s demanding payment or she will mail it to the Jolly Brewers.

We got back in time but two unfortunate guests didn’t. The gangplank had been removed and we had singled up, (sailor talk for all ropes taken off, bar one forward and one aft) when we got an announcement that there would be a slight delay as they had got word that two missing passengers had just arrived at the port. (We would have left without them). Anyway, there we were watching the fun, fifteen various port officials milling around below us when a taxi pulls up and the two unfortunates scramble out and into immigration. One of the port officials, a lady of ample proportions set off in a lumbering gait towards us shouting up at the bridge in a strong southern accent, “Ceptaaain Ceptaaain yer tooo missing pessengers err hea” repeatedly. A head pokes out of the bridge window twenty feet from us and a cut glass voice shouts back “thenk-yoo”. While our two unfortunates were negotiating immigration, a police car screams round the car park all lit up like a Christmas tree, blue red and white lights flashing out how important he is. The sole occupant jumps out leaving his door open and the lights flashing and strolls to the fence where the fifteen officials are still milling around. He is promptly allowed through to make the fifteen sixteen. Just then the two unfortunates exit immigration and it soon becomes apparent why they were late. They had, should we say, partaken of American hospitality to excess, or at least the one in red had. This was getting better than last night’s show (a virtuoso guitarist with a broken backing track-but that’s another story). The lady official of ample proportions (who seems to be in charge) makes her way back towards us and shouts up to the bridge “are yo goin to open a dawer or somthin”. Then, as if in answer to her demands, there is a crash and a bang and gangway appears below us crashing onto the quayside. The unfortunate in red makes a dash for it and there is a synchronised chorus of no’s! both from the sixteen milling officials and the ships staff manoeuvring the gangway. The unfortunate in red is persuaded to move back, but then the gangway recedes back into the bowels of the ship. This prompts the unfortunate in red to make another dash for the gaping hole in the ships side thinking that we had decided against letting him aboard, there is another chorus of no’s and he is once more persuaded to return to the safety of the sixteen milling officials. At this moment another car screeches into view with Sherriff proudly emblazoned on the side. He jumps out leaving his door open (trusting lot these American law enforcers) and makes his way to the fence whereupon he is allowed in to make the sixteen milling officials seventeen. It appears that the angle of the gangway was too steep for the unfortunate in red and his companion to climb (elfin safety and all that) so a rope is lowered from ten decks up to attach to the end of the gangway whereupon it re-emerges from the ships side and gently lowers to the quayside. The seventeen milling officials escort the unfortunate in red and his companion to the gangway whereupon they scramble into the safety of the gaping hole in the ships side and out of our sight. The gangway disappears inside the ship, a loud bang announces ‘thet the dawer’ is now closed and the seventeen milling officials wave at the now dark and black ships side. The lady of ample proportions trots down the quay towards us and shouts up to the bridge that the unfortunate two are abowaad and an arm appears out of the bridge window in waving acknowledgement. All shipshape and Bristol fashion the remaining lines are slipped the engines rumble into life and we ease away from the quay. We wave to the seventeen milling officials and rush down for dinner for which the side show has made us a bit late

Dinner was a bit of subdued affair as two of our table Roger and Barbara from Lytham, had departed leaving a gap, both in the seating and the conversation. Janet summed it up for all of us, when she said “it’s not the same without them”.

One or two of you have commented that the map that should be showing our position, is not. Sorry about that folks but the way that should work is the ship sends its coordinates via satellite to an independent site which displays it along with all the other ships that send their coordinates, we then redisplay that map on our site. Somehow there is a break in the chain and for some reason QE (and all the other ships) are not being displayed. Paul is working on it but I don’t think there is much he can do. We will just have to wait for the problem to be resolved