Hello from a very busy Queen Victoria. This week we have been heading north visiting Guatemala and Mexico and on board we have been celebrating Burns Night and Australia Day. But before I tell you all about that, here’s “This week in Cunard’s History” for the week of the 30^th January to the 5^th February.

 

 

2008 January 30

Queen Victoria makes maiden call at Los Angeles

 

1945 February 4

The beginning of the Yalta Conference where Churchill used the Franconia as his base. The conference, which lasted 1 week, was held with Roosevelt and Stalin who looked at the post world  war 2 world

 

1975 February 5

Queen Elizabeth 2 makes her maiden call to Mombassa, Kenya

 

 

Our first port of call after our Panama Canal transit was Puerto Quetzal. Of course the first bit of fun was trying to find out exactly how to pronounce this port’s name and no-one I spoke to had been here before. Anyway it turns out to be “Ketzarl” so now you know! Many of our guests went to La Antigua which is a city in the central highlands famous for its well-preserved Spanish Mudeja influenced Baroque architecture as well as a number of spectacular ruins of colonial churches. In 1965 it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and according to our guests was very impressive. Unfortunately like many of us, I only had time to explore the port area itself which serves the nearby, and somewhat less developed town of San Jose. They had done a great job with stalls and cafes in the port area and it gave everyone their first opportunity to practice their bargaining skills with the locals. Some I might add were more successful than others, with wooden musical instruments being very popular, especially the small wooden flutes which I’m sure will become gifts for many at home. Neil, our Audio Engineer in the Royal Court Theatre was delighted with his purchase acquired for $15, until he discovered I had bought exactly the same one for just $5! Mind you he wasn’t alone – it appeared at the show that night that numerous guests had bought the very same instruments for prices varying from $5 to $20. It’s all part of the fun and knowing the upcoming ports it’s just the beginning.

 

After two days at sea we reached Mexican waters and the very popular resort of Puerto Vallarta situated on the Pacific Ocean’s Bahía de Banderas.  It’s a great place and I have to thank Shiva, the ship’s printer for this great photo taken from his parasailing trip.

 

 

It’s a large town named after Ignacio Vallarta, a former governor of Jalisco, and has a population of over 180,000. It’s proximity to the Bay of Banderas, the agricultural valley of the Ameca River, and the important mining centres in the Sierra have given the town a more interesting past than most Mexican tourist destinations. Puerto Vallarta was a thriving Mexican village long before it became an international tourist destination and the old town area has a lot of charm despite the modern hotels and beaches just a few hundred yards away. For us it was an opportunity to get back to negotiating for sombreros, ponchos and Mexican blankets. I might add this was so we could decorate the Winter Garden for the deck party that night, rather than for personal use!

 

Our second Mexican port was Cabo San Lucas which is one of my favourite ports of call. It’s a city at the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula with a population of over 60,000. Mind you it’s changed a lot since I first came here ten years ago, having expanded dramatically. It is quickly becoming a high-end holiday destination with a number of resorts and timeshare clubs appearing along the coast. It also has a claim to fame as the location used for the 2004 movie Troy which starred Brad Pitt and Diane Kruger. Despite its expansion the port is still too shallow for us to dock so we tendered in the bay but that provided this stunning shot taken by one of our on board photographers.

 

 

The stunning rock formation is adjacent to what is known as lover’s beach and is well worth a visit by water taxi from the harbor; mind you don’t go there for privacy, it’s a very popular spot!

 

Before we got to Los Angeles on Tuesday we had some celebrating to do. Firstly the evening of the 25^th marked Burns night, so after guests had the opportunity to try Haggis for dinner in the restaurants, we marked the occasion in the Queens Room with a Burns Night Ball. Guests had spent some of the previous days learning some Scottish dancing and it was fantastic to see them perform dances including ”Strip The Willow” for fellow guests. The highlight of the evening was the presentation of a large Haggis and the famous “Ode” which was read by one of our Third Engineers, Stewart Crawford, from Inverkeithing in Fife. He did a great job and his reward of course was the opportunity to propose the toast with a very nice malt whisky. Meanwhile many of our Indian crew members were celebrating India Republic day as we prepared for our next guest party.

 

The 26^th of January is Australia day, and with about 100 Australian guests it was the perfect excuse for yet another celebration. This time we invited guests to join us in the Winter Garden, decorated with Australian Flags and yellow and green balloons, for a celebration including Aussie “Tucker” and music to mark the occasion. We knew from last year that it was going to be a great evening and I’d like to thank Neville and Judy King (draped in the Australian flag!), from Lismore, New South Wales for giving me this photo.

 

 

That’s about it for this week but thank you again for logging on and your comments – keep them coming. I’ll be back next week with news of our Pacific Crossing to Hawaii (I know what you’re thinking – tough for some!). Meanwhile I’m hoping to get some news from Queen Mary 2 as she progressing with her World Cruise and watch this space for updates on the new Queen Elizabeth. Cheers for now, Alastair

It’s been quite a week for the history books with the inauguration of the 44^th President of the United States, Barrack Obama. The historic nature of the day was not lost on guests aboard our ships as we broadcast the celebrations on the big screen. On Queen Victoria it was really great to see so many different nationalities watching the event together and the spontaneous applause at the moment of inauguration. Much as many our guests would have loved to have witnessed the event first hand, a few mentioned they were quite grateful to be able to go up on deck and sunbathe afterwards instead of the cold in Washington D.C.!

Thank you again for your posts and questions as I always enjoy hearing from readers. There was a question regarding Cunard and how we work with our parent company Carnival Corporation. As you know, Cunard has very proud traditions which are as evident on both Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria as they will be on the new Queen Elizabeth. Cunard will always retain its own unique personality which is distinct from anyone else, but one of the advantages of being part of the larger Carnival family is that we can team up with our sister companies for some of the behind the scenes aspects of our business and this often means we can deliver even better service to our guests. Cunard has offices in several locations around the world but is now mostly based in Southampton.

Meanwhile it has been quite a week for us on Queen Victoria, as we transitted the Panama Canal for the second time on the second leg of our World Cruise. But before I tell you about that amazing day, here’s “This week in Cunard’s History” for the week of the 16^th to the 29^th January.

January 16 2002

The first steel is cut to mark the start of construction of Queen Mary 2.

January 16 2008

Queen Victoria’s maiden call at Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

In answer to the title question of this blog relating to the direction the Panama Canal flows, the answer is neither! By the way this is always a great trivia question at a pub quiz, and the reason the answer is neither, is because of the S-shape of the Isthmus of Panama. So in fact the canal runs from south-east at the Pacific end to north-west at the Atlantic, meaning the Atlantic entrance to the Panama Canal is actually further west than the one on the Pacific side. To avoid confusion the canal authorities classify transits as northbound (Pacific to Atlantic) and southbound (Atlantic to Pacific).

For those of you unfamiliar with the Panama Canal, here’s the history bit! The construction of the canal was one of the largest and most difficult engineering projects ever undertaken. It has had an enormous impact on shipping, as ships no longer have to travel the long and treacherous route via the Drake Passage and Cape Horn at the southernmost tip of South America. As a result of ships being able to transit the Panama Canal the journey has been reduced by over 8,000 miles. Although the concept of a canal in Panama dates back to the early 16th century, the first attempt to construct a canal began in 1880 under French leadership. After this attempt collapsed, the work was finally completed by the United States, and the canal opened in 1914. Today the canal accommodates the passage of more than 14,000 ships a year, carrying more than 203 million tonnes of cargo.

The transit day for Queen Victoria started at 7:30am with the boarding of various officials including the Canal Pilots, Linesmen and a Lecturer who gave a commentary throughout the transit. Meanwhile we had gained permission for our on board photographers to go ashore and take pictures of the transit, so I have to thank Stefan (Chief Photographer) and his team for the pictures I couldn’t take! We then proceeded to the first set of three chambers which comprise the Gatun Locks. Our guests had armed themselves with binoculars and cameras and along with many of the crew, made their way to the outer decks to capture the excitement of the day, as we inched in to the first chamber.

Yes that is a road you see in front of the gates and it’s one of the few points where cars can cross the canal. Almost at the last minute it swung back in to the side of the chamber as we approached. The Panama Canal can accommodate vessels from small private yachts up to fairly large commercial ships. It has also become one of the “must do’s” of travel, so many passenger ships now make the Panama Canal part of their itineraries. In fact the day we arrived we were joined by two sister ships from the Princess Cruises fleet, so it was perfect that the Queen had two Princesses as her escorts! This is Queen Victoria with the Tahitian Princess in the other Lock.

As you can see Queen Victoria is quite a bit larger and was indeed designed specifically to fit through the canal locks and ships of this size are known as a Panamax vessels. It’s a bit of a squeeze, as they just fit in the locks with literally inches to spare on each side of the ship, as you can see from these photos.

There are now an increasing number of modern ships which exceed the Panamax limit, and these are known as post-Panamax vessels. Queen Mary 2 is an example of this, which is why she has to take the longer route around Cape Horn. The authorities have embarked on a massive project to build new locks which will enable much larger ships, including Queen Mary 2, to transit the canal once the locks are completed in 2014.

Now for some more statistics. Each lock chamber holds about 8,800,000 cubic feet of water, or about 65,800,000 gallons. Every time a ship makes a complete transit, some 52 million gallons of fresh water are spilled into the sea. No pumps are used in filling the lock chambers. The principle involved is simply that of letting the water run downhill. The man made Gatun Lake is 85 feet above sea level, so the water flows from one level to another through 18 foot culverts located in the centre and the side walls of the locks. From these, the water flows through smaller culverts which open the floor of the lock chambers. The lock gates, at each end of the chambers steel structures, are believe it or not, the original gates. These gates, which are regularly serviced and checked, are 65 feet wide 7 feet thick and vary in height from 47 to 82 feet, and weigh from 390 to 730 tons; they are covered with a sheathing of steel plates riveted to girder framework in a way similar to that used in ship construction.

Special Canal Pilots are on the bridge throughout the transit and they communicate continuously with a control centre as well as the linesmen, the towing “mule” drivers and the lock engineers. They work very closely with the ship’s Master and Bridge team and I was able to get a picture of Captain Paul Wright and Staff Captain Andrew Hall with one of the pilots as we waited for one of the chambers to fill with water.

The lines at the bow and stern are handled by Panama Canal linesmen who have to attach lines to the ship and to the towing “mules” at the locks. Once on our way, the transit through the first set of locks took just over ninety minutes and it wasn’t long before we could enjoy the beauty of the Gatun Lake. Four hours later we approached the Pedro Miguel locks on our transit, and here you can see the width of the canal and the constant undertaking by the authorities, to dredge and widen the canal.

During a ship’s first passage through the Canal, an Admeasurer boards, and it is his job to measure the ship, define its Panama Canal tonnage, and from that calculate the toll for each transit. Fortunately payment is all arranged by our Head Office in advance, so we don’t have to worry about throwing money in to a toll booth basket! Just as well really, as Queen Victoria’s approximate toll fee for the transit of the Panama Canal was in excess of a few hundred thousand dollars! Mind you if that sounds a lot, the Suez Canal costs are double that and we’ll be going through there at the beginning of April!!!

Meanwhile, only the Miraflores set of locks remained between Queen Victoria and the Pacific Ocean, and we transitted them just a couple of hours after entering the Pedro Miguel locks. In the distance you could just make out Panama City as we passed under the magnificent Bridge of the Americas.

Well that was our special day and it’s about it from me for now, but we’ll have more next week from our World Cruise, and hopefully some pictures of Queen Mary 2 going around Cape Horn. Don’t forget that in the meantime you can keep an eye on both ships on their webcams by clicking on the links below.

Queen Mary 2 Bridge Cam

http://www.cunard.com/bridgecam/qm2_cam1.asp

Queen Victoria Bridge Cam

http://www.cunard.com/bridgecam/qv_cam1.asp

Cheers for now, Alastair

Thank you again for your continued feedback. It’s great to hear from you and of course this helps me look at different topics to discuss on future blogs. It’s another eventful week for Cunard Queens as they embark on their World Cruises, and for both Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria, it will be their second time to circumnavigate the globe. Before we get on to that story here’s: “This week in Cunard’s History” for the week of the 9^th to the 15^th January.

1972 January 9

Several fires break out on Queen Elizabeth, while she is in Hong Kong Harbour as a floating university. Arson was suspected but never proven. By the next morning she was on her side where she stayed for 3 years before eventually sinking.

2004 January 12

Queen Mary 2 sails on her 14 day Maiden Voyage to Fort Lauderdale.

2007 January 15

Queen Victoria Floats Out Of Her Dry Dock for the first time.

Regarding the “This week in Cunard’s History”, I have to apologise and make a correction for last week’s typo and thank you to Peter Stevens, the Caronia II Timeline Webmaster, for putting me right in that January 4th 2009 was the 60th Anniversary of Caronia’s Maiden Voyage from Southampton to New York, arriving there on 11 January 1949. Interestingly he also added that RMS Caronia was named the Green Goddess by the people of Liverpool, her home port, because her livery resembled that of the local trams at that time.

Meanwhile I returned to Queen Victoria on Monday after my holiday, (yes I know many may suggest that being on board is so great so why would you need a holiday?), and it was lovely to see so many familiar faces amongst the crew and guests. In fact this started on the plane when I happened to find myself sitting next to guests who were joining Queen Mary 2 and recognised me from a previous voyage. Oh yes fame at last!

Queen Victoria was in Fort Lauderdale on the 12^th day of her World Cruise and her guests and crew were delighted to be greeted by the warmth of 80 degree temperatures after the cold and even snow of New York just two days earlier. She was docked right next her big sister, Queen Mary 2, on the adjacent pier, so it was lovely to see the sisters reunited again. This provided a great news story for the press and TV who were taking photos of the ships from helicopters hovering above the port.

It’s always great when our ships are in port together – an event that doesn’t happen that frequently. Not only is it a great photo opportunity it also gives colleagues an opportunity to spend some time together and catch up. Having said that it was a very busy day for both ships, especially for Queen Mary 2 who had a big crew change and of course all her guests joining for the first leg of her World Cruise. As we left our berth there was the traditional exchange of the ship’s whistles with each attempting to out do each other with the last blast – I’m not sure who won that one! The occasion was also almost reminiscent of the grand farewells of days gone by, with guests leaning over their balcony and promenade deck hand rails, waving and shouting “Bon Voyage“ messages to each other as their different sea adventures began. After a call at one of my favourite Caribbean islands, Grenada, Queen Mary 2 was of course heading south to circumnavigate Cape Horn, whilst the Queen Victoria set a course for the Panama Canal once she had visited the Dutch Antilles island of Curacao.

That night around the ship it was almost like coming to your second home meeting up with old friends amongst the guests and crew, catching up on all the news and looking forward to the voyage ahead. Sometimes for us working at sea, we feel as though we lead a bit of a double life with our time with friends and family at home and then our friends on board. Walking in to the Golden Lion Pub was also a bit like walking in to your local at home, with so many guests that I recognised. In fact in just the couple of days since I have returned, I have already bumped in to at least 30 guests from last year’s maiden World Cruise on Queen Victoria, and countless more who I have met during my time with Cunard so it feels like a grand reunion about the ship already.

There’s not much more to tell you at this stage, and I’m afraid no pictures, but I will have lots for you over the coming weeks as we progress around the world starting next week with our second transit through the incredible Panama Canal. I’ll also be in touch with my counterpart, Warren Smith on Queen Mary 2 and try and get some pictures of Cape Horn and her travels.

Also, many of you have been asking about Queen Elizabeth, whose launch is now just over 18months away so I can assure you there’ll be some news about her coming to you quite soon, along with some construction pictures in due course. In the meantime I’ll be back next week with more Cunard news.

As this is the first Blog of 2009 I would like to wish everyone a very happy and healthy new year. The beginning of the year is always a busy time for Cunard as the traditional World Cruises get under way. Queen Victoria is currently sailing across the Atlantic, beginning her second round world voyage, having left Southampton last Friday.  She will meet Queen Mary 2 on the 13^th of January in Fort Lauderdale, to mark the beginning of her second world cruise. It has also been an eventful week as we look at Cunard’s history for the week from the 2^nd to the 9^th of January:

 

January 2 1969

QE2 arrives in Southampton for the first time.

 

January 4 1949

Caronia is launched is launched by Princess Elizabeth (H.M. Queen) at John Brown Shipyard, Clydebank. She becomes known as the ‘Green Goddess’ because of the colour of her hull.

 

January 4 1975

QE2 sails from Southampton on her first World Cruise – a journey of 38,000 miles.

 

January 8 2004

Queen Mary 2 is named by Her Majesty the Queen after 20,000 people have worked with 300,000 parts, 1,000 miles of welding in just 2 years of construction.

 

This week it is a great pleasure to introduce one of our Principal Medical Officers, Dr. Peter Hawthorne. I have had the pleasure of working with Peter many times including the maiden season on Queen Victoria where he is currently serving. Peter heads a vital department on board our ships and although they are always busy I am very grateful for him to spend so much time answering my questions and give us an insight to his life on board. It’s funny how many years you spend at sea I must admit there are always things you get to find out with these interviews, so thank you again Peter!

 

Interview With Queen Victoria’s Principal Medical Officer; Dr. Peter Hawthorne

 

 

Could you please give us an idea of your career so far?

Variety is the keyword. I have been qualified well over 30 years and have been at sea with Cunard for 8.  Prior to that after qualifying at Queens University in Belfast I worked in the Royal Air Force, and in the Middle East, Nigeria, Spain and Germany. I did my postgraduate training in General Practice and have also worked in a variety of specialties including emergency medicine, surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, and tropical medicine. Although not the standard medical career path, this kind of varied medical background is probably ideal for marine medicine where we have to deal with just about anything and often in a remote situation without easy access to specialised back-up. I also believe change prevents stagnation in one’s career and provides an impetus for one to maintain and improve one’s professional knowledge and skills as the years go by. 

 

Please could you describe your role on board and how it differs from being a Doctor at home and do you have to have any additional qualifications to be a Doctor at sea?

My role on board as a Senior Doctor is an all encompassing one. I have overall responsibility for the running of the medical centre and am the leader of our on-board team of doctors and nurses. Our work not only involves direct out-patient and in-patient care but the maintenance of medical stores and equipment and the provision of an occupational health service for the crew and the provision of public and community health services for all souls on board. Examples would be the flu vaccination programme we run for the crew, our own in-house medical education program, crew educational programmes, the doctor’s involvement in the public health inspections of the ship etc. As team leader it falls to me to deal with personnel, disciplinary and other issues relating to the medical department and to co-ordinate our departmental continuing education programme. I am also a member of the ships executive (management) committee and will be called upon to advise the Captain and other Senior Executive officers on all things medical. With Cunard there are also social obligations as it is traditional for our officers to host guests at cocktail parties and in the dining room and the Senior Doctor has his role to play in this respect though not to the detriment of patient care of course!

 

Tell us a bit about the medical facilities on board and how much this has changed since you first came to sea?

On Queen Victoria we have a well equipped medical centre with 2 doctors consulting rooms, 2 treatment rooms and 5 single bedded wards for in-patients. All wards have piped oxygen, 3 have full bedside and remote monitoring facilities and we can ventilate a patient if necessary. We have basic but comprehensive lab, ECG and digital x-ray facilities with the possibility of getting a radiologist read on our x-ray films within 24 hours from a remote site.

 

Since I first came to sea the equipment has certainly become more sophisticated. Now our x-rays are digital, retained on computer for easy re-viewing and transmissible for remote site reading. We can give a patient a copy of their x-ray on CD for their doctor at home. Also our lab equipment is more comprehensive. We used to have to test for each parameter such as sodium one test at a time. Now we have a machine that gives us complete profiles such as a liver panel within 10 – 15 minutes and is much less labour intensive. All our ships have completely up to date and broadly similar equipment now so that if one is sent to work on a different ship it is not difficult to get up to speed with the equipment in a short space of time.

 

Our most valuable resource is of course the team itself, this is medical department on board Queen Victoria.

 

 

New staff are carefully screened – for example nursing candidates must have a CV which includes experience in one of the acute medical specialties such as intensive care, accident and emergency or acute cardiology. If short listed they will be interviewed and tested not just on their knowledge but on their psychological suitability for life at sea. Doctors are all expected to have experience in accident and emergency and primary care. 

 

Please could you tell us something about your job that would surprise us?

On our ships with kennels, for example, Queen Mary 2, the doctor also functions as the vet and I am available as required to look after their medical needs too! Fortunately these precious international travelling pets are usually in very good shape and my most severe canine case so far has been constipation which responded to increased fluids in the little one’s diet.

 

Where is your favourite place on board?

I’m not sure have a clear favourite as it depends on what I am doing. I spend quite a lot of time in the gym which is at the front of the ship and has a commanding view of wherever we are – I can look out the window at the scenery, listen to music and work-out at the same time –the ultimate in multi-tasking – I really do enjoy going to the gym in as much as all that pain is enjoyable!

 

What does “We Are Cunard” mean to you?

It means identifying with our product and what it stands for. I have worked for Cunard for 8 years apart from a few short stints with some of our corporate partners and I believe very much in the integrity of our brand. The cruise industry of today is a very broad industry catering for the needs of a wide variety of people across our complete social strata, providing a product at many different levels from casual to formal, and from cheap and cheerful to five star exclusive. In other words guests can pick and choose their voyage using a variety of parameters such as price, formality, style, service, itinerary, food, entertainment etc. to suit their personal needs.  I believe Cunard has a special place in this market. We offer our guests our famed white star service and high quality cuisine with formal nights, gala evenings and cocktail parties. Our ships are designed for the 21^st century and yet pay their dues to the elegant liners of yesteryear. We are a brand steeped in tradition and legend and we take a special pride in that.  I believe it is important to maintain the stability of the officers and crew and nurture their belief in our brand as they are our greatest asset in meeting our guests’ expectation. After all the best salesmen for any product are those that have already sold the product to themselves!

 

If you could pick any shore excursion to go on what would it be?

The Taj Mahal in India. This is usually a 4-5 day side trip when we visit India on the World Cruise. Last year my wife got to see the Taj Mahal but of course I had to work so all I got to see were the photographs!

 

Where would you like to go in the world that you haven’t been to yet?

Macchu Picchu. My wife and I would plan to go hiking there when time permits and before we become too arthritic. Also Easter Island and the Galapagos Islands. I love remote places – but not for too long!

 

When you are on leave; what is your perfect night?

A good steak and a bottle of red wine on my terrace at home – with my wife across the table, dog at my feet, candles burning, and some relaxing music in the background of course!

 

What would be your favourite golden nugget of advice to guests coming on a voyage for the first time?

Don’t forget your travel insurance! Insurance is one of those things that you hope you will never need to use but if you do have to use it, it is worth its weight in gold. You are buying peace of mind and it is false economy to skimp on it or make a false declaration to your insurance company to lower the price.

 

On a lighter note – you don’t have to do it all the first day! Food, drink and sun are great temptations and we tend to supply them in copious amounts. New guests will have a healthier and more enjoyable voyage if they take a steady approach to these indulgences.

 

Do you have any unfulfilled dreams?

I think we all do. I believe the secret to continued happiness in life is always having something to look forward to. I would like to run a marathon some time but I will have to do a lot more training first! I would also like a Caterham Seven car. Maybe when my son finishes university!

 

What is the most important lesson that life has taught you?

Not to be too judgmental.  There are few people in life that we can really say we know well. Often we make our judgments on people based on very superficial criteria and regret it later.

 

What is your favourite quote and who said it?

‘What goes around comes around’   I don’t know who said it but I believe it implicitly. We all have to give a little to get a little in this life.