Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 285 days

Although this Blog is being posted on New Year’s Eve, I would like to take the opportunity to wish you all a very happy and healthy New Year for 2010. It’s going to be a very exciting year for us at Cunard, as we welcome Queen Elizabeth to the fleet in October, and we’ll follow her progress to that big day with regular Blogs including photos, videos, and announcements as they happen. In fact I’ll have some pictures to post on Monday, just before her float out ceremony on Tuesday. I’ll be there and will post plenty of pictures and video shortly afterwards. Before I get to this week’s post, thank you so much again for your continued support of this Blog; it’s fantastic that so many of you are logging on each week. Also thank you for all your comments as it’s always great to hear from you, so please keep them coming during 2010. Now it’s time to see how Cunard has marked the New Year in Cunard’s history, for the week 1 to 7 January:

1 January 1934 Cunard merges with rival White Star and Olympic, Majestic and Georgic all transfer to Cunard

2 January 1969 QE2 arrives in Southampton for the first time

4 January 1949 Known as the ‘Green Goddess’ due to the colour of her hull, Caronia embarks on her maiden voyage to New York

4 January 1975 QE2 sails from Southampton on her first World Cruise – a journey of 38,000 miles

6 January 2008 Queen Victoria begins her maiden World Cruise, crossing the Atlantic with QE2 as she begins her final World Cruise.

Interview with Cunard’s Culinary Ambassador – Jean-Marie Zimmermann

Many of you may have met Jean-Marie Zimmermann on either Queen Mary 2 or Queen Victoria as the Executive Chef. He is now Cunard’s Global Culinary Ambassador, since he was appointed Corporate Executive Chef for the Cunard fleet and his work has drawn international praise for his interpretive Classic Modern Cuisine. As well as his menus for the many restaurants on Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria, Chef Zimmermann has created sensational menus for distinguished guests including HM Queen Elizabeth II, HM Queen Noor of Jordan, President George H Bush, the President of Mexico, Ambassadors to the United Nations as well as stars of music, stage, TV and screen. He has cooked for many celebrity guests on Cunard ships including Sarah, Duchess of York, Terry Waite, Lenny Kravitz, Patrick Duffy, Terrence Howard and Bo Derek. The James Beard Foundation acknowledged Chef Zimmermann for outstanding contribution to the foundation in July 2009.

Born in Strasbourg in the Alsace region of France, Jean Marie discovered his love of cooking from his grandmother. He developed his skills working in the most respected gastronomic restaurant in his city and after this apprenticeship he headed for Cannes, Juan Les Pins, and Monte Carlo before settling in London. He was appointed Executive Chef at the Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington, and the Britannia Intercontinental Hotel. He received Sheraton Hotels’ award for culinary excellence while also being their youngest Executive Chef in Europe and Africa.

He was proprietor of “The Warrener” restaurant in Berkshire, England; a restaurant recognised by Michelin and Egon Ronay for his classic modern cuisine. Diners included Diana, Princess of Wales, Michael Parkinson, Sir Terry Wogan and Ernie Wise. During that time he caught the culinary eye of one of the world’s most respected chefs, Michel Roux, owner of the Michelin 3 Star Waterside Inn at nearby Bray. They became both rivals in business and firm friends.

Now, after two years in the making and working with well-respected French publishers Glénat, Chef Jean-Marie Zimmermann has published his first 208 page recipe book. Entitled “Ocean Liner Cuisine”, it is now on sale in France and on board Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria.

The book was co-authored with noted radio presenter RTL/FRANCE, Food Critic and Author for the Restaurant guide Routar, Jean-Sebastian Petitdemange. All the recipes were prepared and stunningly photographed by Jean-Francois Mallet, on Queen Mary 2.

I was grateful that Jean Marie was recently able to take some time out of his busy schedule to answer some questions:

It must be quite an honour to be Cunard’s Culinary Ambassador. Could you tell us a bit more about the role and what it involves?

I am responsible for the quality and style of the gastronomy in all Cunard restaurants and work on designing the operational side of all new restaurants, and am currently working hard on innovations for Queen Elizabeth. I am responsible for establishing the food specifications for our menus and work very closely with our purchasing department. I am involved in choosing all the suppliers for Cunard and will only work with the freshest and highest quality produce. I introduce menu changes when necessary throughout the year and ensure that we are keeping within our food budgets. Here I am in my favourite place – the galley at work:

I am also responsible for the safety of the food and public health in all the galleys on our ships. I work very closely with my team of over hundred chefs and act as their motivator and critic, always ensuring they are meeting the highest standards for our guests.

I have just seen the Queen Mary 2 Cookbook, which is superb. Could you tell us a bit about the inspiration behind the book?

Whether in my kitchens in luxury hotels in London, my own restaurant in Berkshire, or on board luxury liners, my passion is the same; I love to produce dishes that excite the eye and the palate. Queen Mary 2 is the quintessential grand ocean liner, and like a grand hotel she carries certain traditions; elegance, style, superb restaurants and innovative cuisine. Whether it’s afternoon tea with white glove service in the Queens Room, traditional fish and chips for lunch in the Golden Lion Pub, or a five course supper in the Queens or Princess Grill; it all takes passion to create and present. This passion comes not just from me; but from the hundreds of chefs, waiters, and officers who are part of this creation. We spend so much time deciding what should be served, how it can be prepared, how it can be delivered in excellent condition, how we can make it more attractive to the eye therefore exciting the diners’ palates. How could we communicate this? The obvious answer was a book that would allow guests to take some of these experiences home with them.

How far in advance do you order food for our ships, especially considering the huge amount of planning that must go into a World Voyage?

I will not forget the first transatlantic voyage on Queen Mary 2 when we ran out of, of all things, turkey!  It isn’t always possible to just stop off somewhere and pick up what we need. We always have to think ahead, not only what food, but the logistics of getting the right food to the right port at the right time. We work several months in advance with the purchasing team, to ensure orders are in place in ample time, so that there is a timely delivery. As we attract a diverse clientele on all voyages, especially the World Voyage, we like to bring cuisine of the various regions we visit to our guests on board, by purchasing local specialities so we can offer those as specials on board.

When you are at home in France, who does the cooking?

Traditionally I used to do much of the cooking at home, but more recently my wife has decided to spend more time there and she enjoys it. With more frequent stays in hotels I don’t get such a chance to cook, although when I’m on the oceans I am cooking or watching others cook. When I’m at home we both get pleasure from making forays to local markets, farms, vineyards and producers to seek out the freshest and most natural ingredients, so that we can enjoy the kitchen between us. As for the actual cooking, we both enjoy watching the other cook, so we tend to go for our own specialities so we don’t create any conflict in the kitchen!

Are there any particular trends in on board cuisine at the moment?

Guests seem to be increasingly enjoying the opportunity to dine in alternative restaurants, as well as new International cuisine in a more familiar setting. Being on board ship guests have greater confidence in the source of the ingredients and know that the kitchens will be spotless and that the chefs are well-trained.

What and where would be your perfect restaurant?

It would be a bright, light restaurant on the coast; perhaps somewhere on the Riviera where it could take advantage of that light. It would use the freshest of ingredients from the sea; as well as organic produce from nearby farms and the breads and patisserie would be created in-house.

What is the most frequent question you get asked – and what is the answer?

“What is your favourite cuisine?” I’d have to be very French and say “French of course.” That’s not really a truthful answer, because it’s probably International cuisine that I have demonstrated over the years. But most recently the question I hear most is; “When will there be another book?” Well, for that we shall just have to wait and see.

You’ve achieved so much already – are there any other dreams you have yet to fulfil?

I guess my dream would be to create that delightful restaurant in Paris or one by the sea and maybe retire there someday surrounded by family.

And finally; what is your favourite quote and who said it?

“It is not what we do; it is how much love we put in the doing”. (Mother Teresa)

I’d like to thank Jean-Marie for taking the time to chat to me, and if you would like to more information about Jean-Marie Zimmermann and his cuisine you can log on to his website at www.ChefZimmermann.com. I’m returning to Monfalcone on Tuesday for the float out ceremony of Queen Elizabeth and will do my best to get you the pictures as soon as possible. Before that, I’ll be posting some pictures, which have just come from the shipyard, on Monday. Cheers Alastair

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 292 days

As Queen Victoria spends her Christmas in the Canaries and Queen Mary 2 celebrates in the Caribbean, we’ve already had snow falls here in Britain. Who knows whether it will stay or not for Christmas, but it has certainly made things very festive as we think of our colleagues in warmer climes. Thank you again for all your comments and to answer the big question regarding Queen Elizabeth and when she will float out; well read on as Peter Shanks mentions it in his message. Before we get to that here’s this week in Cunard’s history, for the week 25 to 31 December:

25 December 1981 QE2 makes her maiden call at Kralendijk, Bonaire

26 December 1949 Caronia makes her maiden call to Ciudad Trujillo (Santo Domingo)

26 December 2003 Queen Mary 2 arrives in Southampton for the first time

27 December 1930 John Brown Yard Manager, Donald Skifflington, hammers first rivet on Queen Mary

28 December 2007 Queen Victoria makes her maiden call at Madeira

30 December 1964 Contract to build QE2 is signed between Cunard and John Brown Shipyard.

As we reflect on this remarkable year for Cunard, it’s a great pleasure to hand over to Peter Shanks for his thoughts on this last year and a look at the one ahead.

Guest Blog – Peter Shanks – President and Managing Director Cunard Line

Happy Christmas

As we look forward to Christmas and the dawn of a new year, it’s good to reflect a little on the past year and what we have to look ahead to in 2010.  The past year has certainly been a tough one for all of us, whether in business or in our personal lives, given the very challenging economic conditions we have seen around the world. First and foremost, all of us at Cunard Line would like to thank our valued guests for travelling with us over the past year. We are fortunate to have a wonderful sense of loyalty amongst our guests. We have also seen a growing number of guests sailing with Cunard Line for the first time in 2009. Almost every sailing has been full during the year and we really appreciate that support.

As you know, we very carefully measure our guest satisfaction on each and every voyage. Through the year our guests have scored their satisfaction at record levels on both Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria. Over 98% said they would recommend Cunard to a friend and over 97% said they would return to sail with Cunard again in the future. That is terrific and the credit for that must go to the ship’s company. We pride ourselves on our White Star Service – it’s the most special thing we have.  In a Christmas message to all of our staff who work so hard on board our ships I was able to thank each and every one of them for the marvelous “White Star Service” they deliver to our guests, so rest assured their efforts in looking after all of our guests have been, and will continue to be, well recognised.

I hope you have enjoyed reading our Blog during 2009, it’s really starting to take on a life of its own. From my perspective there have been a number of highlights during the year, many of which have been shared on the blog, but in particular I will remember the year for:

·         Queen Mary 2 Around the British Isles Voyage – this was a wonderful way to celebrate the 5^th birthday of Queen Mary 2 – without doubt the most famous ship in the world. The welcome we received in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Cobh and Cherbourg was amazing. It reminded all of us of the proud tradition of Cunard Line.  To be on Queen Mary 2, on the Mersey River, alongside the historic Cunard building, in the Royal Court Theatre, with the 73 piece Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra performing “You’ll never walk alone” was very Cunard. Queen Victoria will go round Britain in July 2010 on her inaugural lap of honour and I certainly won’t miss that one!

·         My lapel pin – I never thought a lapel pin could mean so much. All of us at Cunard Line wear the White Star Service lapel pin. It is a small piece of metal, but it represents something which is incredibly special both to all of us at Cunard Line and I trust to our guests as well.  Each time I go on the ship, it acts as a point of reference – all of our staff have their pin and wear it proudly, they also recognise the fact that I have my pin on as well. So even to those staff who I have not yet had the pleasure of meeting, there is instant recognition that we are all part of something special.

·         So many awards – it’s fine for all of us at Cunard to be proud of the service we deliver to our guests.  However to receive third party recognition is much more powerful as it salutes the holiday experience and service we offer to our guests.  2009 has been a great year for awards including:

-       “Cruise Line of the Year” – British Travel Awards

-       “Best Cruise Line in four out of five categories” – the first ever Zagat awards in North America

-       “Top two ships in the world” – Berlitz Cruise Guide

-       “Top Cruise Line” – Cruise.co.uk guest reviews

-       “Conde Naste Readers’ Travel Award”

Those are only a few but it was terrific in each case to be able to send a very positive message to our ships’ company for what they have achieved.

·         Meeting our Guests – in my first six months as President and Managing Director of Cunard Line I have really enjoyed meeting so many of our guests whilst on board our ships.  That has been a real highlight for me personally as it is always useful to hear just how our guests feel about their experience as well as ideas for future itineraries and areas where we could further innovate and improve in everything that we do.  So thank you for taking the time to share those ideas and I look forward to meeting many more of our guests during 2010, including when I join Queen Mary 2 in New York in June eastbound Transatlantic Crossing.

Looking forward to 2010, it’s going to be a very special year indeed. The highlight of course will be the introduction of Queen Elizabeth in October. There is a real sense of anticipation and excitement building now and we have much to do and much to announce as we go through 2010. Our Blog has become a really useful way of us communicating how the ship is developing and Alastair has been terrific in terms of the photos and video blogs he has been posting.  We will continue with that starting with the Float Out ceremony on 5 January in Trieste. Rest assured we will share all of our exciting news as we go through each month of 2010.  The one for everyone to watch out for will be the launch of the Queen Elizabeth inaugural Summer Season for 2011 which will go on sale in April. We are currently working on her itineraries to ensure they are the best we have ever had, with a range to suit everybody in all of our international markets. 

In the year ahead Queen Victoria also has some exciting new itineraries as she settles down to fly/cruising in the second half of the summer in the Mediterranean and of course her exciting new programme for Winter 10/11 which includes the Caribbean, Panama Canal, West Coast of USA and Hawaii. And with Queen Mary 2 and her historic Transatlantic crossings we really have an awful lot more to offer our guests than ever before.

So thank you for being one of our “bloggers”. We will be launching a new website in the first part of 2010 and we will continue to make sure that our “We are Cunard” blog plays a prominent part.

It gives Alastair, myself and many other colleagues the ability to tell the many exciting and varied stories that come to us on a daily basis at Cunard Line. It is really very special to have a brand with 170 years of heritage and the youngest fleet in the world.

So a very happy Christmas to each and every one of our bloggers and guests and thank you so much for your interest and support of Cunard Line during 2009.

Best wishes too for the year ahead in everything that you do. We hope that one of the highlights of your own year ahead will be a voyage, or two, with Cunard Line – we would love to welcome you back.

Best regards,

Peter Shanks

Thank you Peter, and when you look back, it’s certainly been an amazing year. It just leaves me to add my personal best wishes to everyone for a wonderful Christmas season wherever you are in the world. I’ll be back next Thursday with the 125^th and final post of 2009. Cheers Alastair

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 294 days

With exactly 42 weeks to go until Queen Elizabeth enters service, I have some stunning new pictures to show you. There are so many key moments in the new build process, but for Cunard, the addition of the iconic red funnel has to be a very special one. We’ll come to that in a moment, but Simona Capraro, who has done such an amazing job over the months taking photos of our new Queen’s progress, took some other fascinating pictures as well:

Here you can see the two ABB pods which will literally hang from the stern of the ship, moving Queen Elizabeth through the water with two of these propellers.

6 x Mak M43C diesel engines will create the electricity to power the ship and the pods, which can rotate 360 degrees. This means, just like her two sisters, there is no need for a rudder or stern thrusters. I’m afraid I don’t get much more technical than that, apart from telling you that Queen Elizabeth will have a top speed of 23.7 knots which is the same as Queen Victoria.

The bow section has also recently been added and this brings a wonderfully elegant line to our stunning new Queen.

Don’t worry, the letters spelling out “Queen Elizabeth” are still there, but along with the rest of the new bow section, have just been painted with the special protective paint. The letters will be prominent again when the bow is painted in the traditional Federal Grey paint with the lettering in white just like her sisters.

It was a busy week as the funnel was delivered to the dry dock from one of the other areas of the yard. When you see it like this you realize how colossal it is.

The funnel was then lifted gently in to place:

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It’s quite a tight squeeze under the massive crane with only a few feet to spare. The total height from her keel to the top of the funnel is 64.6 metres which is nearly 212 feet (of which 56.6 metres or 185 feet will be above the waterline). What a splendid sight that is and to me becomes the crowning glory of the construction process, often referred to as topping out.

There is now very little left to add to the main superstructure, but this will happen over the coming weeks. As you can see from this picture she is already looking fantastic:

The next important event will be early January, when Queen Elizabeth’s hull will touch water for the very first time. The final details of the Float Out are still being made, but rest assured we’ll all be there to capture the excitement of the day with photos and video footage to be posted on this Blog shortly afterwards.

I’ll be back on Thursday with a festive Blog and pictures of our decorated Queens, but in the meantime I hope you are enjoying this special time of year wherever you are. Cheers Alastair.

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 298 days

As many of you will know, each month we feature a “Star of the Month” from either Queen Mary 2 or Queen Victoria. The title is awarded to just one crew member per ship each month as a result of guest and crew feedback and then consideration by our on board White Star Committee. The “Star of the Month”, also has their photo displayed prominently in the Grand Lobby for guests to see, so it’s now a great pleasure to talk to Queen Victoria’s latest star; Emiliano Sajol Jr. who is the Deck Storekeeper.

34 year old Emiliano is from Camp Phillips, Manolo, Fortich Bukidnon in the Philippines, where he was also educated. After school he headed to Nautical College for three years where he studied for his Associate in Marine Transportation. Emiliano has been married to Maryjane for four years and they live in his home town of Camp Philips. They don’t have any children yet, but they are hoping they may be able to start a family next year.

Emiliano’s career at sea began on QE2 in November 2004, when he joined the Housekeeping Department. However during his spare time he completed deck training and two years later changed department and became an O.S. (ordinary seaman). He worked as an O.S. for one and a half years before being promoted to the A.B. (able seaman) position. He told me that he always tries his best to learn everything about his job and is still enjoying learning today on Queen Victoria, his second ship with Cunard.

As Deck Storekeeper, he looks after the deck store inventory, doing weekly and monthly checks. He told me “If we need something I advise the Marine Supervisor and he orders it for us”. The external fabric of the ship is maintained by the Deck Department, so there is constant cleaning, painting and varnishing taking place around the ship to ensure she is not only protected from the elements, but also looks immaculate, as a Queen should. Part of Emiliano’s job is to issue the paint, cleaning chemicals and tools to the deck crew as well as the personal protective equipment they need for the job they are doing. An important aspect of his job is to make sure the Deck Department abides by all the very strict environmental regulations for using, storing and discarding of chemicals, paints and refuse that the department uses every day. Here he is at work:

Emiliano has an early start with his alarm going off at 4am. After his prayers, he showers and heads to work. His morning routine involves being part of the team that cleans, washes and dries all the open decks of the ship before our guests get up in the morning. The team then gets breakfast, and if the ship is at sea he will go to the deck stores and check everything is ready and prepared for the day. He will then get the materials the deck crew need for the jobs they are given that day by the Marine Supervisor.

During the day he will look after the stores and maintain inventories, keeping everything in order. Before his lunch he will take back the supplies from the morning’s work from the deck crew and then prepare everything for the afternoon tasks. In the afternoon he enjoys time to relax, he will often try and call his wife to catch up on things from home. Returning to the stores later in the afternoon he puts everything away again from the afternoon team’s work and gets the materials and supplies ready for the night crew.

The port days are very busy for Emiliano because whenever the ship arrives or leaves, Emiliano will go to the mooring deck and drive the winches for the mooring lines. If the ship is at anchor he will also be involved in that operation.

His dinner time will depend on the ships maneuvering schedules and his duties on the mooring deck, but after he has finished that, the evening gives him time to relax with friends or enjoy a movie in his cabin.

Although Emiliano says Queen Victoria is a great place to work, he does look forward to his holiday times at home where he is a keen sportsman, playing basketball every day and watching sports on television

I asked Emiliano how he felt about winning the “Star of the Month Award”; he said, “I would like to thank my Supervisor and everyone who was a part of my nomination and to Cunard for giving employees a chance to win such a prize.” Here he is accepting his award in the special presentation in Queen Victoria’s Hemisphere’s Lounge, with (from left to right) Captain Paul Wright, Emiliano Sajol Jr, Staff Captain Andrew Hall, Marine Supervisor Gerry Crant and Hotel Manager David Hamilton.

That evening he celebrated by buying his friends some drinks and is also looking for a special gift for his wife.

As for the future, Emiliano hopes to save up enough money so that he can invest in a business in the Philippines and spend more time at home with his wife.

Our Congratulations to Emiliano again for his well deserved award, and next month we’ll be learning about Queen Mary 2’s new star. I’ll be back on Tuesday with those stunning pictures of Queen Elizabeth’s progress in Italy that I have being promising you. There’ll also be a special festive post for next Thursday – Christmas Eve. Cheers Alastair

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 299 days

It’s all in a day’s work for the Deck Department keeping Queen Mary 2 pristine, but if you have ever wondered how they paint those hard to reach areas of Cunard’s flagship read on for a guest Blog from Peter Shanks. In the meantime I was hoping to have posted more than one Blog this week but upon returning home, my computer decided to give up on me, so while it is being nursed back to life I am grateful to my neighbour Roger, who has kindly lent me his laptop to post this one!

It’s an exciting time on board as both ships prepare for the festive period with Queen Mary 2 celebrating in the Caribbean and Queen Victoria heading back to the Canaries. I’ll be posting some pictures of their festivities over the next couple of weeks.  Also with the countdown to Queen Elizabeth under 300 days I am pleased to tell you we have just received some amazing pictures from the ship yard in Italy, and I’ll be posting them on Tuesday. 

Thank you again for all the comments especially from St Agatha’s School, it was great to hear how much everyone at the school and on board enjoyed the day and the follow up Blog.

Here’s this week in Cunard’s history, for the week 18 to 24 December:

18 December 1948 Caronia is commissioned and leaves Glasgow for her run to Southampton

18 December 2007 Queen Victoria makes her maiden call at Hamburg

21 December 1918 Carmania becomes one of the first ships to be released by the government and makes her peace time sailing

21 December 1971 QE2 makes her maiden call at Port Everglades, USA

22 December 2003 Queen Mary 2 is handed over to Cunard

23 December 1923 Ascania II is launched at the Armstrong Whitworth yard in Newcastle

23 December 1968 QE2 completes her sea trials in the Irish Sea

Just before I get to the title of this Blog, I couldn’t let tomorrow go by without mentioning something here. Many of you in the UK will be aware that tomorrow (Friday 18 December) will be Sir Terry Wogan’s last broadcast of what has become the most popular breakfast radio show in Britain with over eight million listeners every morning. To read more about Sir Terry you can follow this link to an interview I did in the summer before he announced he was retiring from the show. Sir Terry Wogan’s interview.

He will be returning to the airwaves in February in his new Sunday show, and he will still be joining guests and TOGs on board Queen Victoria on 14 May 2010. I had the privilege of meeting him on the TOGs Voyage last November and on behalf of us all at Cunard, would like to wish him a well earned rest from the early mornings and of course look forward to seeing him in May.

Under the leadership of the Staff Captain and Marine Supervisor, the Deck Department have the huge task of keeping the outside of our ships in an immaculate condition. This may not seem too complicated until you think about all the areas that includes, from the waterline to the highest point of the funnel and masts. The highest point of Queen Mary 2 is the top of the funnel and at nearly 204 feet above the waterline, painting it is quite a logistical operation.

Here’s Peters Blog:

Guest Blog – Peter Shanks (President and Managing Director of Cunard Line).

Keeping The Most Famous Funnel In The World Clean

After a very busy transatlantic season and some challenging Autumn weather, Queen Mary 2 is now in the Caribbean. I asked our Captain how the weather had impacted our ability to keep the ship looking at her best. He told me not to worry as he had a plan in place with the deck team and he would keep me up to date.

Yesterday he sent me these pictures of our team working hard to clean the most famous funnel in the world.

I thought I would share the fabulous pictures with our bloggers. We often talk of our White Star Service and everything our ship’s company do to look after our guests. Often it is the hotel team who are seen to be delivering the service. However, as these pictures show, it’s every member of the ship’s company that makes the difference. Of course it also means that we will have a beautiful clean Chimney just in time for Father Christmas!

Thank you Peter for your Guest Blog and to Queen Mary 2’s Deck team for these fantastic pictures. If you are wondering how the crew get there, well they actually climb up ladders located on the inside of the funnel itself. They then lower themselves on ropes secured to special points on the inside of the funnel. The ladders to the ships horns are a permanent fixture so that engineers can service them. As many of you will know one of the horns (or Typhons as they are officially known), is on permanent loan from the original Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. It was put aboard QE2 on a Transatlantic crossing from Fort Lauderdale to Southampton where it was taken to St. Nazaire in France to join its new twin. To give you an idea of how big they are; each one is 7 feet long, 3 feet high and weigh in at 1,400 pounds. However you don’t want to be too close to them when they are sounded as they generate a shattering basso profundo blast keyed to low bass A, two octaves below middle C!

Peter will return soon with a special end of year message and speaking of the Deck Department, Queen Victoria recently named their latest Star of the Month as their Deck Storekeeper and you can read more about him tomorrow. Meanwhile I’ll be back on Tuesday with some stunning pictures of Queen Elizabeth’s progress in Italy and a special festive post for next Thursday – Christmas Eve. Cheers Alastair

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 306 days

We always enjoy showing off our Queens and there is always a huge amount of interest from the residents of the ports we visit. Recently on Queen Mary 2, the Officers and crew were delighted to host a very special group of youngsters. Before we get to that special guest Blog, thank you again for all the great comments; I know I say that virtually every post but it really makes a difference hearing from readers and having the opportunity to respond to your comments and questions. Talking of which; thanks Jeff for your message, I know many others will feel the same about our friends and colleagues who were affected by the floods in the Philippines. We don’t have a specific charity for this purpose; however in talking to crew on board and our head office in Southampton, we suggest that if anyone wishes to donate something, perhaps the International Red Cross would be a suitable organisation, as they do such an amazing job all over the world where such disasters strike.

Meanwhile back on board, Queen Mary 2 is continuing her Caribbean season and Queen Victoria is celebrating the festive season with a voyage to the Christmas markets in Norway, Germany, Holland and Belgium. Although I am writing this from Queen Victoria, I will be disembarking this afternoon and heading back up to Wiltshire where I’ll be until January 12^th, when I rejoin Queen Victoria in New York. Amanda Reid will be taking over from me again while I’m away, but fear not I’ll be staying in touch with my colleagues on both ships over the next five weeks, so I’ll still be posting lots of Blogs. So on to this week in Cunard’s history, for the week 11^th to the 17^th of December:

December 11 2007
Queen Victoria begins her Maiden 10 day voyage to the Germany and Norway

December 12 1946
The Media is launched at John Brown Shipyard at Clydebank and becomes the first new passenger ship on the Atlantic after the war.

December 14 1954
Ivernia II is launched and goes in to service on the Canadian run a year later

December 14 1955
Carinthia III is launched at John Brown Yard at Clydebank, and along with the Sylvania II they are the last liners to be built purely for the North Atlantic market. She becomes the last ship doing the Canadian route.

December 17 1970
QE2 makes her maiden call at Castries, St Lucia.

On Queen Mary 2’s recent round Britain voyage, Cunard received an interesting request from St Agatha’s School in Glasgow. It transpired that the children are writing a project on White Star Line and they had requested to come on board to see what a real liner actually looked like. Our White Star Academy Trainer Rishi Chadha takes up the story:

Guest Blog – Rishi Chadha – White Star Academy Trainer – Queen Mary 2

“I met all 22 children and 3 teachers in the terminal who were eagerly but patiently waiting to come on board, in a neat straight line.

All of them were totally amazed to see Queen Mary 2 close up as the biggest ocean liner. The children started taking pictures and were so excited to climb up the gangway, greeting our delighted guests with huge smiles. The children were really very attentive and very anxious to know all about Cunard and its history in their brief visit.”

The children walked down the Burma Road (the name Cunard uses for the main crew working alleyway on deck one), to see some of the crew areas, getting a brief taste of life as a crew member on board. Rishi said that everyone on board was impressed by the children’s nautical knowledge as they were familiar with words such as deck, forward , aft and the galley.

As they walked around the ship they met many of the ships company including Commodore Warner, John Duffy (Hotel Manager), Ronnie Kier (Chief Engineer) and were delighted to be able to meet Cunard’s President and Managing Director, Peter Shanks.

Peter spent quite some time with the children sharing his experiences with them. He also asked them if they could find Homer Simpson on the massive piece of bronze artwork between the Britannia Restaurant and the Grand Lobby. All the children got very excited and ran to see if they could solve the mystery. It was only a few seconds before some of them screamed “I found it. I found it”

As part of our on board safety culture, our ships hold regular crew drills, to exercise the crew in their emergency duties and the children found it really exciting to see all the crew in their life jackets performing their safety duties . Rishi explained the reason for the frequent drills and importance of safety on board

As they continued their tour, Rishi continues the story; “During our tour, I told the children that in another few seconds they would be in the biggest ballroom at sea, called the Queens Room. All of them started a loud countdown to a big round of applause from passing guests. When we entered the magnificent room and the sheer expanse as well as standing on the biggest dance floor at sea made them feel like stars.

Then they met Tracy Jessop, (Director for Hotel Operations), who welcomed them again and told them briefly about the ship’s operation and Cunard’s history. She asked the children if any of them might like to work or sail on Queen Mary 2 one day, to which many of them screamed: “I’d love to”.

In the Britannia Restaurant they were shown the Commodore’s table and met Mark Oldroyd (Executive Sous Chef) who told them about the galley’s operation.

They asked how many meals were prepared in a day and when Mark told them it was around 16,000, they were totally amazed saying “Wow…”

Then it was the time to visit the Bridge, where they met Jonathan Ward (Senior Watch Keeper). Known to everyone as Johnny, he gave them a detailed tour of the Bridge and each of them were given the opportunity to wear Johnny’s cap and have their picture taken, while pretending to drive the ship.

 Before they left the Bridge there was just time for one more photo opportunity.

By this time the children were bit hungry, so Rishi took them to the ConneXions meeting rooms where they enjoyed fresh warm assorted biscuits from the ship’s bakery and a selection of juices. It wasn’t long before everything had disappeared. The tour then continued, as the children were taken to the White Star Academy training room, where Rishi talked more about his job as the White Star Trainer.

He explained about the different training that is conducted on board, for all our crew and officers, for their personal and professional development. Rishi said “The children were happy to see that it wasn’t only them who have to study!”

As the children left they were extremely appreciative of their day out, with comments like “It’s like a dream come true” and “This was incredible; thank you all so much”. Rishi thinks we may have some future Cunarders in the making, with a few candidates for the positions of Entertainer, Dancer, Navigation Officer, Chef and quite a few looking to the top position of all, Captain. The teachers said they would love to come back on board Queen Mary 2, but as guests rather than for work.

A couple of days later Rishi received a wonderful message of thanks from the school which read “Thank you to the Captain, Staff, Crew and Passengers for a wonderful day on board Queen Mary 2. Wishing you all a safe and pleasant voyage! From Primary 5/6 at St Agatha’s Primary School” They also sent this photo which is displayed prominently in the White Star Academy Training room as a memento of the day.

Thanks to Rishi for sharing this great story; who knows if in a few years time one of these youngsters will return to Queen Mary 2, but as crew and see their picture on the wall. Meanwhile I’ll be back on Monday and we’ll be celebrating Queen Victoria’s latest “Star of The Month”.

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 309 days

This is a very different Blog to normal and although it’s long, it’s a story I hope you won’t mind me sharing. Many of you will be aware of the tragic consequences that floods bring. We are reminded of this all too often, especially recently as our thoughts go to those in Cumbria in the north west of England. Only a couple of months ago many of our Cunard family from the Phillipines were also affected by the devastation caused by flooding. Some were at home, and many were on board, but they all felt the same sense of loss and helplessness which for so many was overwhelming.  Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng left a trail of devastation in Manila and nearby provinces; in fact Ondoy brought as much rainwater in a six-hour time span as would normally fall in the whole month of September.

So many of our friends and colleagues from the Philippines have a story to tell about their experiences and how they have managed to cope. For some the damage was fortunately very light, but for others the tragedy was made even worse by the loss of family members and friends. The homes of two members of my department were virtually destroyed and one of them, Armando Gayona, was kind enough to tell me his story in this special guest Blog. Armando is a member of the Stage Crew, working back stage during the shows as well as assisting with the technical aspects of the Entertainment Product on board. Here he is with two of his colleagues working in the Queens Room; (from left to right, Ben Salavante, Armando Gayona and Christopher Mirilag).

Guest Blog – Armando Gayona – Queen Victoria Stage Crew

I joined Cunard in 2007 and have worked on Queen Elizabeth 2, Queen Mary 2 and now here on Queen Victoria. Although I came to sea to provide for my family and create our dreams little by little, it has also given me the chance to see the beauty of the world; I can see places, meet new people and friends, and travel the world. I have seen many different faces in all aspects of life and I strongly believe that being at work and in tune with nature can make my life complete.

I come from a family of two brothers and two sisters and I live in Novaliches, Quezon City which is a part of the capital of the Philippines, Manila. I am away for over six months a year, so I really treasure the precious time I have at home to spend with my family.

This is my family from left to right, Gerald (10), Me, Joyce (12), Argie (7), my wife Mary Jane & Arris Christian (13). I’m very proud of my children who are very clever and so keen to learn; they are already talking about future careers such as engineering, teaching and nursing.

My wife is a teacher, so when I am away my father in law and my cousin help out with the children and looking after the house. We are lucky to be able to live a two storey house that I built myself and call home. There is a river nearby and it is a very busy area with hundreds of neighbours living in different sizes of houses.

September 26th is a date I will never forget, as it was when Hurricane Ondoy hit my country, with the eye of the storm above my city.

I was on my vacation and wasn’t that bothered at first when I saw the flooding, as we are used to seeing this heavy rain and it’s normal to see floods every time a hurricane passes my country. There are many people who treat the flooding as part of everyday life. This time was different though, because the rain continued for several hours and when I saw the strong current of the water in the river by my house, I realized this wasn’t the normal seasonal flooding; it was going to be worse. In the distance I could see low lying houses being hit by the river water and the waters kept rising.

Some of those families were scared and asked us for help as we were on slightly higher ground. However, I couldn’t believe my eyes, because within minutes the water had risen so fast that it was now rushing towards my house. It happened so quickly that we were frantically trying to make sense of it all, as it had never been this bad before. Immediately, I tried to save some of my belongings that I had worked so hard for, while getting my family to the second storey of the house. When I came back down after just a few minutes the water on the ground floor was already above my waist.

I realized I had to evacuate my family to somewhere higher, so I took them to the four storey Elementary School buildings nearby.

When we got there we found many other families who had experienced the same, and had literally just run to the safety of higher ground.

Thankfully the water subsided by the following day and we were able to go back to our homes to see the damage the flood had done. It was a very sad sight looking at the wreckage the flood had left behind; so many things from basic necessities, furniture, household goods and personal treasures that had been completely ruined, such as this cabinet that my mother had given me many years ago.  

It wasn’t long before I heard about other friends I work with at Cunard, who were also victims of this disaster as well. So many of them had a similar story to mine, but sadly some families were even worse off. I can be thankful that my family and I are alive and that I was at home so I could be there for them.

Looking back it was amazing, how some of my on board training with Cunard came in very handy. Because my safety role on board involves looking after guests in the assembly stations in the case of an emergency, I was able to avoid panic and put my skills to use to help my family and others in our community.

I did what I could before I left to begin clearing up the mess, but it was difficult to know where to start. Here’s a picture of me and my wife’s sister (May Anne), who along with other members of my wife’s family, came over to help as much as they could in the clean up.

I had just one week to achieve as much as I could, and fortunately we were able to live in the top floor of the house again quite quickly. The local authorities did what they could to clean the streets and restore the water and electricity, which took about a week. They also helped with relief food and water for those who needed it, supported by our national TV and radio stations. There was also damage to a nearby bridge which they have already started to repair.

It was hard to leave my family to come back and work, but I’m glad to have the opportunity to support them financially and look to the future. I am comforted by the thought that we are still alive and although our house is damaged, at least we have shelter and dreams to pursue. One of the lessons I have learned from this experience is the need to be strong and calm, and you realize that the safety of your family has to come first. I felt it was really important to protect my wife and children from the fear I was experiencing, so they could have confidence in the future.

We have a strong sense of community at home as well as on board, so I am very grateful to the all the people who have supported us. I would also like to thank the crew of Queen Victoria, who gave so generously, which has meant so much to me and my family. Thanks to them we now have some money to begin rebuilding our futures.

Brian Lynch is the Personnel and Training Manager and he coordinated the relief fund on Queen Victoria. I asked him about the impact the whole tragedy had on our crew. He told me: “Times have changed so much at sea, due to the many innovations in communication, not least CNN. Thanks to its up to date news we were able to keep up with events in the Philippines when it was struck by those two devastating typhoons. We on Cunard ships always like to feel we are a family, and like all great families we have our rifts, our prodigal sons and daughters but for the most part we enjoy being together. So when calamity strikes, we react just as we have done in the past. We banded together, gave solace where it was needed and where financial help was required we raised money through crew activities such as donations and a Grand Prize Draw to help our friends’ families back home. This sense of belonging was further demonstrated by crew members who were offered funds, and then declined them to give even more help to those who were more affected than them. This was a financial sacrifice that demonstrated their sense of social responsibility to their colleagues whose needs at that time were greater than theirs.

I am reminded by what Norman Thomas said; “The secret of a good life is to have the right loyalties and hold them in the right scale of values “. I am proud to say that philosophy is alive and well at Cunard.”

Meanwhile I also spoke to Rishi Chandha, our White Star Trainer on Queen Mary 2, who told me: “Many families of our Filipino crew on Queen Mary 2 have been affected. Some managed to escape the floods literally at the last minute as the water level increased so quickly. Many of our returning crew have told us about their own rescue experiences. Communication hasn’t been easy as many households were without electricity, but with the help of our Manning Agents in Manila and the efforts of Sally Spiers, our Personnel & Training Manager, we were able to ensure regular communication between those on the ship and their loved ones back home. As soon as we heard the dreadful news and how many of our colleagues were affected, The Filipino Flood Relief Fund was started by the crew and officers of Queen Mary 2. Through donation boxes and charity auctions and further contributions from our head office in Southampton, I am pleased to say that the all of this money has now been transferred to those most affected.”

Thank you to Rishi and Brian for their help in telling this story but mostly to Armando for sharing his experiences. We all of course, wish him and his family, as well as all our other friends and colleagues, all the very best as they look to the future.

Meanwhile I’ll be back again on Thursday with another regular Blog and this time we’ll be going over to Queen Mary 2 and some very special visitors who went on board recently.

Cheers Alastair.

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 313 days

Welcome to another special Queen Elizabeth update, and the last of the videos and pictures from my visit to the shipyard a couple of weeks ago. Thank you for all the great comments, especially about these updates; we’ll certainly keep them coming and will try and get some more pictures posted before Christmas. The next key date everyone is waiting for is when Queen Elizabeth will be floated out from her dry dock and move to her first outfitting dock. I’m afraid I don’t have a firm date on that yet but we understand it will be at the beginning of January. I’ll of course let you know and we’ll hopefully get some pictures and video of that to you very soon after the event.

I also have some more news about recent awards Cunard Line has won. In the recently announced annual Porthole Magazine Readers’ Choice Awards, Cunard was awarded ‘Best Onboard Educational Programs’, ‘Best World Itineraries’ and ‘Best Transatlantic Itineraries’. With that great news here’s this week in Cunard’s history, for the week 4 to 10 December:

4 December 1975 QE2 completes her first million miles of steaming

6 December 2008 Queen Victoria makes maiden call at La Goulette

10 December 1999 The Caronia is renamed at a ceremony in Liverpool

10 December 2007 Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Cornwall names Queen Victoria, Cunard’s 147th ship.

So now back to Queen Elizabeth and the third and final installment with pictures and video from my visit to the shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy. As we walked forward through the ship, I had to really think hard about which space we were in. Passing through the Queens Room and Royal Arcade, I was excited to see how the Royal Court Theatre was looking. Walking in on deck 2, I was greeted by this incredible view of what will be the stunning auditorium.

Click Image To Enlarge

With a bit of imagination you can see where the seating will be, with the stage area directly ahead in the middle. Queen Elizabeth’s Royal Court Theatre will have the same amazingly clear sightlines, so don’t worry, the big steel girders are just there temporarily while the shipyard strengthen the structure around the theatre. The big white panel on the stage is the biggest fire screen door that will be on the ship. This leads from the stage to the scenery dock area where the scenic elements of shows will be kept. Just before you ask, I’m afraid I don’t have any details on the shows yet, but I do know they will be brand new shows, designed exclusively for Queen Elizabeth. Of course, as with all the breaking news items on our new Queen, I’ll let you know as soon as I can. Meanwhile it was time to try out one of the theatre boxes.

Queen Elizabeth will be just the second ship in the world to have private theatre boxes, following their huge success on Queen Victoria. I had to clamber up scaffolding to get there, but it was so good to see it all coming together. So here it is, the final video clip of our visit:

Our thanks again to Simona and Antonio in the Fincantieri ship yard for all their help over that weekend. They were so accommodating with their time and I think the results of their patience speak for themselves. We’ll try and get some more pictures soon but in the meantime I’ll be back on Monday with a very different Blog which tells a moving story from one of our crew members. Cheers, Alastair

Countdown to Queen Elizabeth – 315 days

If you are back in Britain, America or Canada experiencing dreadful weather that comes with the beginning of December, you probably don’t want to hear how lovely it is in the Caribbean where Queen Mary 2 has just completed her first voyage of the season. Likewise the fact that it is warm and sunny in the Canary Islands where Queen Victoria has been for the last week, might seem like we are rubbing it in a bit; so I’ll get straight on with this special Blog.

Cunard is very proud of its association with The Prince’s Trust charity, founded by The Prince Of Wales, and it’s a pleasure to be involved with any activity or event that helps them continue their tremendous work. Regular readers may remember I interviewed Amie Hoyland, Head of Corporate Partnerships, in a Blog posted on the 25^th of June where she told us more of their important work.

http://wearecunard.com/2009/06/a-charitable-royal-partnership/

More recently in Southampton, Cunard hosted a special event where over eighty guests were invited to a fund raising lunch on board Queen Victoria. The guests were Cunard Platinum and Diamond World Club Members and supporters of the Trust, and thanks to their generosity, the event raised over £8,350, which means Cunard has now raised an amazing £423,000 for The Prince’s Trust.

The guests were joined by some of Queen Victoria’s senior officers including Captain Ian McNaught, Prince’s Trust Young Ambassador Chris Elkeke and Moira Stuart (BBC Newsreader and Broadcaster), who works as an Ambassador for the Trust. Richard Curtis, Cunard’s Head of Marketing, takes up the story:

Guest Blog – Richard Curtis – Head of Marketing for Cunard Line

Our beautiful Cunarder looked especially impressive basking in the autumn sun at Southampton’s Ocean terminal, but equally impressive when I arrived in the Queens Room for our Champagne reception was the stunning ice carving spelling out ‘The Prince’s Trust’ (complete with an ice apostrophe!). The attention to detail of our onboard teams and their ability to exceed expectations never ceases to impress me!

Moira Stuart spoke about the importance of the work achieved by the Prince’s Trust and the extra demands faced during today’s difficult times. Here she is pictured with Captain Ian McNaught.

Even more moving however was the eloquent story told by Chris Ekeleme, and how his involvement with east London gangs and a life of crime had been reformed after being introduced to The Trust. Chris has managed to turn his back on gang life and now works hard as a Prince’s Trust Young Ambassador and at a school in South London. Here is a picture of Chris with Moira Stuart, Paul Brown and Rhiannan Sarah Spugeon from the Trust, and myself.

Lunch on Queen Victoria is always a special occasion but the lunch on this wonderful day was particularly memorable as the menu had been designed and prepared by celebrity chef Todd English and our very own Global Culinary Ambassador Jean Marie Zimmerman. Todd had flown over especially from Las Vegas for the occasion and it gave our guests the opportunity to experience his delicious cuisine which can also be found in the Todd English Restaurants on both Queen Victoria and Queen Mary 2.

The only problem with events such is that they go too fast and soon come to an end. I can guarantee that nobody attending the lunch wanted to leave Queen Victoria and wave good-bye that day, least of all myself.  As we watched lucky guests embarking the ship ready for a sixteen night Mediterranean voyage in the sun, it made leaving even harder!

Thank you Richard, and I certainly agree that it was a fantastic day which was not only really enjoyable, but we were able to play our part in helping raising money to help underprivileged youngsters. The Prince’s Trust does such an amazing job and if you would like more information you can visit www.princes-trust.org.uk.

I’ll be back soon with more news from the fleet as well as the regular updates. Cheers Alastair