Cruise on the Queen Victoria
across the Indian Ocean & the Med
Spring 2010
(Please scroll down to see the photographs)
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24
Mar
2010 |
Singapore |
 |
- |
Changed planes
at Hong Kong! |
25
Mar
2010 |
Kuala
Lumpur
Malaysia |
 |
Glimpses |
4 stops |
26
Mar
2010 |
Phuket
Thailand |
 |
Patong Resort
Escape |
Buffet lunch
but no beach! |
30
Mar
2010 |
Cochin
India |
 |
City &
harbour cruise |
5 stops |
01
Apr
2010 |
Mumbai
India |
|
Heritage walk |
5 stops |
03
Apr
2010 |
Muscat
Oman |
 |
- |
Souk |
04
Apr
2010 |
Dubai
UAE |
 |
Panoramic |
Snow dome in
the desert! |
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07
Apr
2010 |
Salalah
Oman |
|
Contrasts |
Queen of
Sheba's castle |
11
Apr
2010 |
Aqaba
Jordan |
 |
- |
2 trips into town |
12
Apr
2010 |
Sharm el
Sheik
Egypt |
 |
St. Catherine's
monastery |
Expensive tour! |
13
Apr
2010 |
Suez Canal
Egypt |
|
- |
Lots of sand! |
15
Apr
2010 |
Piraeus
Greece |
 |
Ancient Corinth &
Canal |
Greek lunch |
17
Apr
2010 |
Civita-
vecchia
Italy |
 |
- |
Trajan's market &
Castel San Angelo |
22
Apr
2010 |
South-
ampton
UK |
 |
- |
Home by 9 am! |
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Dennis, Art, Gregory, Jay, me, Peter B, Horst & Peter M.
Come in number 17 your time is up! Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The promenade, Muscat, Oman
Self portrait with Leo Sayer in Salalah, Oman
St. Catherine's monastery, Sinai, Egypt (C) Dr Tony Waltham
The temple of the winds in Athens, Greece
The gate on the Appian Way, Rome
Here's my report on the cruise:
Just to let you know that I have just got back from my month
in the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean on board Cunard's Queen Victoria.
She's a lovely big new ship with about 2000 passengers and 1000 crew.
Good points were:
- Flexible dress code.
- Two excellent orchestras (ballroom and theatre).
- Excellent programme of up to 3 lectures per sea day.
- Retractable sun roof over Winter Garden (but seldom opened)!
- No silly rules to obey (e.g. access to pools and jacuzzis).
- Some good theme nights (Indian, Egyptian etc).
- Free (small) launderette on every deck.
- Good cabaret acts & production shows.
- Planning spreadsheet for us.
- Fridge and minibar in cabin.
- Efficient cabin steward.
- Lovely treble height Royal Court Theatre.
- Lovely treble height Grand Lobby.
- Quiet and smooth outboard propulsion pods.
- Indian visa reimbursed!
- Evening off: One per month.
- Choice between restaurant and cafeteria for dinner:
- I chose the former the other 7 dance hosts ate in the Lido!
- I hosted two tables in the main dining room as on Saga ships.
Usual sea day programme:
- 10:15 - 11:00 Line dancing in ballroom.
- 11:15 - 12:00 Solo travellers coffee break in Winter Garden.
- 12:15 - 13:00 Dance class in ballroom.
- 13:00 - 13:30 Lunch in Lido cafeteria.
- 13:30 - 15:00 My siesta in cabin.
- 16:00 - 17:30 Cabin mate's siesta.
Usual evening programme:
- 18:00 - 19:45 Dinner in main dining room.
- 19:45 - 20:30 Dancing in ballroom.
- 20:30 - 21:30 Show in theatre.
- 21:30 - 22:15 Dancing in ballroom.
- 22:15 - 22:30 Break which hostess tried to get us to dance through!
- 22:30 - 23:15 Dancing in ballroom.
- 23:15 - 23:30 Break for midnight snack.
- 23:30 - 00:00 Dancing in ballroom.
Here was my itinerary:
- Mon 22nd Took train to Brian's in Ealing.
- Tue 23rd Flew Cathay Pacific 747 from Deathrow (sic) to Hong Kong.
- Wed 24th Flew Cathay Pacific 777 from HKIA to Singapore.
- Thu 25th Glimpses tour escort in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
- Fri 26th Patong Resort Escape tour escort in Phuket, Thailand (pool but no beach)!
- Mon 29th Masquerade ball, thanks for the mask Margaret!
- Tue 30th City & Harbour Cruise tour escort in Cochin, India.
- Thu 1st Heritage walk tour escort in Mumbai (Bombay), India.
- Fri 2nd Night at the Raj ball.
- Sat 3rd No tour in Muscat so I took the shuttle bus to the souk.
- Sun 4th Panoramic tour escort in Dubai, UAE.
- Mon 5th No tour in Dubai so I took the shuttle bus to the old quarter.
- Tue 6th Combined Big Band and Black & White ball.
- Wed 7th Contrasts tour escort in Salalah, Oman. Sat and chatted with Leo Sayer on the coach (see photo above)!
- Thu 8th Survived transit of pirate alley.
- Fri 9th Putting on the Ritz ball.
- Sun 11th No tour in Aqaba, Jordan so I took the shuttle bus into town twice.
- Mon 12th St. Catherine's Monastery tour escort in Sharm el Sheik, Egypt.
This tour cost half as much again as the same tour last year with Voyages of Discovery!
- Tue 13th Suez canal transit.
- Wed 14th Egyptian ball, I wore the outfit given to me by my Saudi student over a decade ago!
- Thu 15th Ancient Corinth and Canal Cruise tour escort in Piraeus, Greece.
- Fri 16th "Sock Hop" dance night.
- Sat 17th No tour in Civitavecchia, Italy so I took the train into Rome.
- Saw Michelangelo's Moses in San Pietro in Vincolo.
- Free entry to Trajan's Market, a two thousand year old shopping mall!
- Free entry to Castel San Angelo.
- Sun 18th Costume ball, I wore my Greek tunic.
- Tue 20th Royal Ascot ball, I wore my union flag bow tie.
- Thu 22nd Southampton and then home by 9 am!
For the record ...
- Food: Excellent.
- Tours: Good but expensive.
- Weather: Excellent no rain at all!
- Sailaways: Most ports but few dancing ladies present!
- Tea dance: None.
- Masonics: Not hosted by us.
- Service clubs: Ditto.
- Dinner host: Yes, in the lovely double height Britannia restaurant.
- Line dancing: Yes, hosted by Amanda the ACD and Jim Gardiner from Scotland.
- Sequence dancing: Yes, twice hosted by me, thanks Sandra!
- Ballroom dancing: Yes, most nights in the lovely double height Queen's Room.
- Western night: No.
- Tropical night: No, but there was a Night at the Raj and an Egyptian ball.
- British (Red, White & Blue) night: No, but there was a Royal Ascot ball.
- Singles party: Yes, twice. We had a coffee morning every day at sea too!
- Singles lunch: Yes, once.
- Formal nights: Yes, including Masquerade, Black & White/Big Band, Ritz and Costume balls!
- Cocktail parties: Yes, most formal ball nights.
- Captain: Christopher Rynd, very English.
- Cruise Director: Alastair Greener, English.
- Assistant Cruise Director: Amanda, English.
- Host/ess Jennifer, American.
- Host: Thomas, not English.
- Cabin mate: Peter Maciejewski, Polish American.
- Dance couple: Petre & Roxana Samoila from Romania.
- Other dance hosts: 2 Anglo Americans, 2 Asian Americans, 1 German American, 1 German Canadian.
- Lecturer(s): Peter Smith, Christine Roussel, Richard Hayman, Roy Hattersley, John Stalker, Joe Snyder.
- Musician(s): Lots including EOS String Quartet & Harpist Ellen Smith.
- Comedian(s): Mike Doyle & Alan Stewart.
- Singer(s): Jeri Sager, Opera Interludes, Lorraine Brown, Paul Ritchie et alia.
- Song of the cruise: "Weekend in New England" a waltz by Barry Manilow.
- Cabin: 4182 inside twin.
- Passenger(s): Leo Sayer (see photo above), Sandra from Dessau, Gill from Isleworth, Stephanie from the US & Jackie from Brighton (thanks for the photo)!
- Photographs taken: 646
- Emails back home: 435
- Good, free Wi-Fi:
- Hong Kong International Airport.
- Virgin Store, Dubai.
- outside Macdonalds in Aqaba!
- free PC in Corinth hotel lobby.
