Perspectives QUEEN MARY TRADITIONAL ELEGANCE By Mike Currie A Cruise Holidays franchise owner If you’re more interested in dining in high style, with cutting edge Mediterranean creativity, try the Todd English restaurant. A reservation for lunch and dinner is required as well as semi-formal attire. Two other can’t- miss British traditions onboard are pub food and High Tea. The classic Golden Lion Pub features top-rate lagers, pilsners, stouts and cider on draught. How about fish and chips, bangers and mash, shepherd’s pie, or mushy peas for lunch, along with a game of darts? High Tea is served at 3 o’clock. Classical music plays as you select your tea leaves and scones with clotted cream. Personally, I love the tea sandwiches and the optional Veuve Clicquot French champagne (giving another connotation to the name of this charming daily event). Tradition and history are ever-present as we tour the decks. Large, tasteful wall displays line the hallways explaining the evolution of ocean travel. One wing has a chronologic description of how the ocean-liners, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary, transported WWII troops, war brides and children, along with global leaders. A frequent traveler on Queen Mary was Winston Churchill; he crossed the Atlantic five times during the campaign and the ship’s cigar room features his name. Post-war the high-society and theatrical crowd kept cruising in the news. Bing Crosby, Ingrid Bergman, Bob Hope and many other celebrities as well as royalty are candidly photographed during free time and while enjoying their favorite hobbies on board. Many times, prior to this trip, we were asked how we would keep entertained at sea for a week. Well, each night, the daily newsletter describes an array of choices… history and art appreciation lectures, book signings (in the 8,000 book library), ballroom dancing, acting demonstrations, planetarium presentations, 3D movies, full length Shakespearean plays, spa specials, spin class, wine and beer tastings, golf challenges and, of course, bingo! That’s just the day time possibilities and all events are country club casual for attire. At night, we are predominately in formal wear, enjoying fine wine and dinners in conversation and leisurely elegance. Dancing is prevalent throughout the ship in ballrooms or disco clubs. And, the casino rarely sleeps. (Thank goodness, that while sailing in this direction, the time zone changes give us 25 hour days!) All in all, this trip is so very different from other cruises. Beyond the tradition and elegance, this adventure is personally about fulfilling my “travel list” and safely crossing an ocean. As I stare at the moving seascape from my balcony during a 4 am sunrise, or at mid-afternoon among patchy fog, or with a glass of wine at gleaming dusk, I recall the words written by US Poet, Carl Sandburg: … The sea is always the same; and yet the sea always changes … When the sea is everywhere from horizon to horizon … The sea gives all, and yet the sea keeps something back AT FIRST SIGHT, she is Big, British and Broad. Gloria and I approach her, feeling small, yet safe and somehow reassured by her size, her reputation and one smart looking crew. We need to feel this confidence as we are about to embark on a trans-Atlantic passage. (Yes, I am crossing my first ocean by sea and that excites me.) Many before us have crossed this sea … some to find their dreams in a new land, some to defeat the European aggressors, and others to experience high society British service with traditional elegance. Sensing an adventure ahead, this Southlake couple is anticipating the latter. Gloria and I will average five “sail out” parties per year on a wide variety of cruise ships. We try them, in order to provide our clients firsthand knowledge that helps us match your travel experiences to your expectations. We are onboard Queen Mary 2 right now as guests of Cunard Line and as a member of Cruise Holidays’ President’s Circle (annually, a recognition award as one of North America’s top cruise specialty stores). That said, this trip is more to me than just testing the hardware. My British heritage, my expectations of British formality, and the historic relevance of cruising are all at stake here. She leaves Southampton for New York with flags waving, bands playing and the ship’s horn sounding. I am on deck, just as my Dad and thousands of other GIs were onboard the first Queen Mary in 1942, to watch land fall away and set our sights on the Great Atlantic for seven days. It’s a bit eerie, yet exhilarating. Onboard, the look and feel is very yester-year. It allows us to enter the old world, ocean liner days of white-coated officers, stateroom butlers and excellent service. The Queens Grill and Princess Grill categories are similar to the days when the privileged class enjoyed exclusivity in dining and deck relaxation. In fact, in Queens Grill, your table for dining is really “your table”. You and your party will be the only ones to sit at that particular table for the length of the cruise. Show up as you like for breakfast, lunch and dinner, view the menu, and then order whatever comes to mind. 16 CRUISE HOLIDAYS