"Live from" Queen Elizabeth to the Mediterannean! My First Cunard Experience

[Shallwe123]

Sarah - thank you from us too - loved reading your account of your holiday and life onboard QE and loved your photos. A big thank you for bringing back lovely memories of our fabulous cruise on board Queen Elizabeth in September 2013.

[lovely_serenity]

After our post dinner snack, we headed to stairwell B and went down one floor to deck 8,

 

 

To freshen up, change out of high heels, & go to the bathroom if need be. We arrived at our room, and were greeted by this:

 

 

Each night, we would receive the Daily Programme for the next day. Oh yeah! That reminds me! Here was the Daily Programme for Embarkation day! It was left in our room on the vanity upon arrival:

 

Front side:

 

 

Inside:

 

 

Inside #2:

 

 

Backside:

 

[lovely_serenity]

Inside the Daily Programme is always a separate sheet of paper called “Discover…”:

 

Front side:

 

 

Backside:

 

 

Every night, besides the chocolates and the next day’s Programme, you also receive a personalized newspaper for that day to read before bed! We were delivered “the Canadian” every single night. When I wasn’t feeling seasick, I read them right before bed:

 

Front side:

 

 

Inside:

 

 

Backside:

 

 

Pretty cute (: I like how they gave us this because we’re Canadian. We didn’t even request it either!

 

Anyways, we then gathered back up and continued to explore the upper decks. We first headed up to the Yacht Club:

 

[lovely_serenity]

*spots sign by door*

 

 

Well, it’s fine :P It was nowhere near midnight!

 

Upon entry, I was faced with a giant, beautiful model of the Queen Elizabeth 2:

 

 

 

It was quite empty, but there were still lights flashing everywhere:

 

 

After looking around and quickly losing interest (there’s nobody around LOL), we headed back out into the corridor. On the way to our next venue, I spotted this lovely, shiny object:

 

 

We continued on our way and passed by a door that led to the outer decl. It seemed very windy. I actually tried to go outside, but the wind was so strong, the door was extremely heavy. I aborted my mission within 2 seconds LOL:

 

[lovely_serenity]

We kept walking, and I spotted the bell that’s usually located at the bow of the ship. I remember seeing the one on the Volendam. I forget if this is the original and the one on the bow is a copy, but I think that’s the case.

 

 

We continued and found our way to the Commodore Club;

 

 

 

From this point forth, I apologize for the mediocre quality of the photos LOL. The lighting there was just absolutely terrible. My camera could not capture a single high quality image.

 

I found the second ship model that a person from Cruise Critic had told me to look for. I had been informed that the 2 ship models on the QE were very nice. They were correct! This one was of the Queen Mary 2:

 

 

It was located at entrance of the Commodore Club:

 

 

[lovely_serenity]

After looking around (the atmosphere is warm, relaxed, but extremely quiet), we were on our way once more. It was slowly approaching the time for us to make our way to the theatre for tonight’s show. As we walked, I spotted this little room, “Churchill’s Cigar Lounge”:

 

(I’m sorry, I tried like 5 times. My camera could not focus in such dark lighting .____. )

 

 

 

 

I don’t know if this room is actually for smoking or just for show, but it looked really suave. (:

 

We walked walk through upper pool deck and proceeded to Garden Lounge to relax for a bit. It was seriously windy up there!! 0_0 No wonder we were starting to feel the motion of the ship. After what felt like forever, we arrived at the other side of the deck, and entered through the automatic double doors.

 

My dad & I were slowly starting to feel a bit of motion sickness. We all decided to rest for a little while since we weren’t feeling too well. While we were resting, I had Sis help me hold on to the bar menu so I could take these pictures of it (I tried my best, it was really dark in the Garden Lounge too LOL):

 

 

 

[lovely_serenity]

 

 

 

 

 

[lovely_serenity]

 

 

 

 

By now, I was really starting to feel sleepy. After a bit, Mum & Dad said that it was time to go to the Royal Court Theatre. We got up and dragged our feet across the ship, all the way to the theatre. It was about 15 minutes ‘til show time. I think 15 minutes is a good amount of time to show up before show time, so I suggest you guys do the same! You get your pick of the seats! I took some photos of the theatre from our seats (that Mum & Dad picked out). Middle, upper floor:

 

 

Now, we were seriously starting to feel sick. The curtain was swaying back and forth because the motion was so strong. Anyhow, here is my advice for you all when picking your theatre seats (in my opinion):

 

(This is the right side of the theatre)

 

[lovely_serenity]

Do you see those blue lights coming from the floor of the seats closer to the top? Don’t pick those seats. The largest seat portion on the upper floor has them on the sides. If you’re going to be sitting there, don’t sit by the staircase with the blue lights. Likewise regarding the 4 seater private seating booth (second from the right). All of the seats with blue staircase lights are bad because you will get a lot of glare when all of the lights turn off for the performance. I would not suggest the highest booths either (I’m going to call the private seating areas booths because it’s easier to type LOL). They are so very high up, it’s near the lighting! It’s very hard to see the acts too. My optimum choices are indicated below. Booth #2 and #3. #3 is better. Since the glass barriers are curved, it will create glare if you are facing the stage too slanted. Booth #3 provides a view that is facing more forward toward the stage, as well as a closer view than most, since it is ~50% closer to the stage than the main upper deck seating. Here are my top seat picks (trust me, I ran all over the theatre in search of the perfect seats LOL :D):

 

 

It honestly doesn’t matter if you sit on the right of left side of the stage, only that the best seats are the 3rd closest booths to the stage (: The booth closest to the stage is too close. You can’t see what’s happening on part of the stage because you’re too close. It’s position is also extremely awkward because of the circular glass barriers. If you don’t look through the glass at its flattest point, the image will look warped. This is why you cannot be seated so close to the stage. All of the flat points face forward. The closer you are, the more slanted your position.

 

 

These booth seats are free as long as you do not see a velvet rope blocking your way! If there’s a velvet rope there, that means they’re selling special treatment time in the booths! I believe it costs $55 plus a service tip of 50% per person (or something along those lines). You get some chocolates and champagne, as well as first pick of booth seats. Honestly, they don’t sell well, so if you want to sit in the booth area while they are selling, just wait around until it’s almost time for the show when they can’t sell anymore. They’ll unhook the velvet rope, and you can make your way down the narrow stairway. :D That’s what we did LOL.

 

Ignorant of the wonderful booth seats available, we sat on the upper beck, right in the middle. It felt really far away from the stage though. The show finally began to start. It was a singing performance! It was the Welcome Aboard show, hosted by our Entertainment (Cruise) Director Amanda Reid. She was a very nice British lady :D.

 

The singing was quite good. There were 2 men and 2 women. They were all very talented singers. Unfortunately, I could never stay awake for their performances :/ Their voices were too soothing and they always, always sang British songs that I had never heard of! I would always doze off, wake up, doze off, and wake up near the end. It was kind of funny, for this embarkation show, I woke up at the beginning of every song LOL. Rest assured, they sounded nice while singing all of them! I heard about the first 20 seconds of each song. One of the women had a nice, powerful voice which I loved! She was my favourite!

 

Since the motion was so strong, the rocking wound up rocking Dad, Sis & I to sleep :P. Apparently there was some sort of storm brewing outside. Once the show was over, Mom woke us all up and we staggered back to our room. Combined with my tiredness from just waking up, as well as the ships motion, we all probably looked drunk LOL. I seriously wanted to throw up. The motion was so bad. We quickly returned to the room, kicked off our shoes, and passed out on the bed. Sis & I changed into our pajamas while lying on the bed, and left a crumpled pile of dinner clothes on the nightstand. During this trip, I learnt that lying down flat on a bed significantly reduces the impact of strong waves, since the movement is distributed throughout your body. It’s actually the movement of your head swaying that makes you dizzy. That’s why staggering and walking isn’t as bad as sitting upright on a chair. Your head is forced to move with the motion in that scenario. Anyhow, we passed out and successfully went to sleep without throwing up! :D Yay us!

 

 

 

 

End of Day 1

Edited January 9, 2014 by lovely_serenity

[lovely_serenity]

I'm sorry for taking so long! && thank you all for being so patient! (:

[Vict0riann]

I'm sorry for taking so long! && thank you all for being so patient! (:

 

It's worth waiting for, Sarah!

[lovely_serenity]

Great pictures, Sarah. The food looks delicious and I added a few more things to my list. I am glad to see that Cunard has trays in the buffet (many cruise lines are doing away with them). Have a good time in Shanghai!

 

Thank you very much! (: Excellent, I hope by the time I am done this report, you will have a full list of yummy things to try! ^^ I actually like the tray system. It is a much easier way to carry around the food, as opposed to running back and forth from table to buffet! && Thank you! I did ^^ The food was awesome!! After I’m done my report, remind me, I’ll post some yummy looking food from my trip LOL.

 

It is interesting to see that your dinner menu for the first night is either the same as, or similar to, the one we had on our first night. I can remember that I had the mushroom for my main course, and the Baileys creme brule for pudding :)

 

Is that so? I guess they use the same order of menus for most, if not all of their voyages! :0

 

Great pictures Sarah.

 

Thank you Krazy Kruizers! :)

 

Loving these pictures Sarah. :) They really are increasing the excitement for my upcoming cruise on QE.

 

Thank you Whitemarsh! ^^ I’m happy I can help hype up your excitement! Have fun on your upcoming cruise!

 

I think Whitemarsh may have been quoteing "tongue in cheek" above.....possibly? If I am wrong then I apologise.

 

However I find your Blog from "a teen point of view" extremely entertaining Sarah and I like your pics very much. If you look at the views of your thread it appears I am not alone.

Please carry on when you return from Shanghai as we are all waiting for your next instalment.

And I have to say that I am now even more excited about my upcoming QE cruise. Even though I have been on her several times, your pics have reminded me how beautiful she is. Just eight days to go now. :)

Thank you for your commitment in putting your highly detailed Blog together and I hope you ate well and shopped til you dropped in Shanghai. :D

 

Loving the picture Sarah and can't wait until I will be on there too on 6th Jan 2014. Hope the noro has cleared up by then?

 

Sara

 

Thank you very much Sara! (Hehe same name) Haha, I’m really happy that other people enjoy reading my blog, as much as a love writing it (:

 

I have just completed my next installment, please enjoy! Sorry for the wait, though! I took a little long haha! ^^’

 

Yay! I love hyping people up and getting them excited about their upcoming cruises! :D Have fun on your cruise! (I think you’re on it right now?)

 

Thank you for reading my report so diligently :-) It’s my pleasure. I very much enjoy doing it! LOL I indeed did! I gained a few pounds, and shopped so hard, we basically collapsed in the hotel room and slept at like 10pm every day! Haha :D

 

Does QE have egg cups available? A picture or two would be greatly appreciated :)

 

I actually did not see any egg cups on board, unfortunately D: Sorry

 

Sarah, it has been great fun to read your review and relive some of my own experiences through your eyes. Thank you for all the photos and commentary. I look forward to your future installments!

 

I’m very glad you enjoyed it Artemis! :D Thank you for taking the time to read it! I will work hard on my installments! ^^~

 

Happy New Year Sarah!!

 

Thank you Krazy Kruizers!! :D Happy New Year to you too!!

 

Just finished reading your Volendam report and the progress on this one. All I can say is, wow! As a fellow teen, I can relate to a lot of your points, and I've seen a lot of techniques in your photography and prose that I can apply to my role as the photojournalist and associate editor of our school newspaper. Also, the way you construct the report, it definitely feels as if I'm there cruising with you! Keep it up and I hope you get to go to more cruises so we can have more "live from" reports from you!

 

By the way, we've got the same camera, the EOS 60D. :D

 

Ced

 

Wow! Thank you for taking the time to read both of my reports, Ced! :D It must have taken so long to read LOL. Nonetheless, thank you! Wow, you’re one of the only teens I’ve seen on CC thus far haha. I’m so touched that you could take anything away from my report and apply it to your photography :,) I’m not even that good LOL. Yay! That was the feeling I was going for! :) Thank you once again for your support! (go tell my Dad that haha ^^ thanks!)

 

:-D YAY CAMERA TWINS!

 

My teen daughter wanted a camera for Xmas, so we got her an EOS 650 Rebel.

 

Wow that’s so nice! :D My parents actually recently gave my sister a camera about a week ago because she had been wanting one! Since it was not part of her Christmas present, she paid for a small portion of it. She now has a nice, sleek Canon Rebel T3i! It feels lighter and more portable than my camera. I’m sure she’ll have a lot of fun with it, both my sister and your daughter! (: Great present!

 

Indeed the Canon vs Nikon debate is up to the person. That's why I said "I find Canon's menu and interface more intuitive and easy to use compared with Nikon." Then again, some of my fellow school photojournalists swear by Nikon. In fact, of us 4, 2 have Nikons and 2 have Canons. I guess it's up to the user. I'd really like to hear Sarah's side on this one, whether she has used Nikon and if so, which she prefers.

 

Regarding pocket digital cameras, I do agree that they are the ideal choice for cruising. These cameras nowadays can, in ideal lighting and environmental conditions, match the quality of dSLR's. Plus, they are way less bulky. I also find that the auto mode in pocket cams seem to adapt to conditions more easily than the auto modes of an dSLR. However, there are still times where a dSLR will provide better quality images, especially when used by someone with knowledge about the various settings. Again, this one depends on the user, whether they prefer the convenience of a pocket cam or the broader types of photos (i.e. panning shots, background blur, etc) dSLR's can offer. Plus, dSLR's shutter is quicker, which is crucial of you plan on shooting sports or any fast moving subjects.

 

Ced

 

I have been using primarily Canons my whole life, so I’m a little biased toward them ^^. I haven’t had a Nikon before, but I’ve heard some of my friends in Photography say that they had found the settings and whatnot, much more complicated on Nikons than on Canons. I also agree that, if you aren’t as crazy as I am regarding the amount of pictures I take, I think normally, pocket digital cameras would be the ideal camera choice for regular cruisers. Only the extreme ones like me lug around a huge backpack full of camera equipment onto the ship! :D Ones like me (crazy photographer), professional photographers, hobby photographers and retired people who are interested in photography, are normally found running around with 5-6 lb cameras around their necks LOL. If you are not categorized under any of the above categories, the pocket digital camera is probably the one for you. :P

 

Thanks, Sarah, for all the beautiful photos around the ship. We will be on her for this summer for our first cruise on Cunard. I have a question about formal nights. Do most of the men wear tuxedos or a dark suit? Are the women in long gowns or cocktail dresses? This cruise is the last 2 weeks of a 6-week European trip so we need to pack carefully. Any tips?

 

Thank you for reading! :) Oo! Have a wonderful time on your cruise! I hope I can help you prepare for the trip through my reporting! (ie. help avoid death trap foods etc.) On formal night, the majority of men wear bowties. Not necessarily tuxedos, but a lot of men cheat and wear regular dark suits/dress shirt & a bowtie, pretending they have a tuxedo on. I would estimate that 30% of men wore tuxedos, 60% of men wore dark suits + coloured dress shirt + bowtie, and the remaining 10% wore something else (coloured suits, some awesome traditional Japanese kimonos, only a dress shirt, or regular suit ties). I think it’d be a nice idea to wear a tuxedo on formal night. Since this is one of the only cruise lines that actually have FORMAL formal nights, it’s pretty cool! Women on formal nights wear gowns. Almost every single woman had long dresses that reached either the floor, or close to the floor (no need to drag the dress on the floor, just about an inch off the ground is good, mine was). Only about 10% of women had short dresses (from what I recall). Cocktail dresses would probably be good non-formal attire. If your lady is not planning on wearing a different dress every night, she would probably still be in the majority if she brought many stylish-formal tops and dress pants + heels (plus perhaps a silk wrap?). There are complimentary laundry machines on every stateroom floor, which we used frequently. You basically only need to bring a suit jacket, and a tux (if you wish). You can wear sweaters, dark v-neck t-shirts, and dark tops underneath your suit jacket every night, so it’d be easy for you to dress for all the non-formal nights. (Jacket required every night). If you guys need to pack light, bring a lot of things that can switch and alternate, such as skirts and tops for the lady, and different tops for under your either one or two suit jackets. If you don’t want to bring a tuxedo, just use that same dark suit, but bring a dress shirt and a bow tie. You basically won’t need a regular tie. It doesn’t even fit on non-formal night of formal night LOL. Anyhow, hope I helped! If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask!

 

Waiting for more.

 

I spent a few hours today and posted a whole bunch! :D Sorry for the wait!

 

 

Me too!!

 

Sarah I know you have been traveling and now you are probably back in school but as one of your loyal followers I would like to say we miss you!

 

I have just completed a whole bunch of posts after working on them for a couple of hours! :D Sorry for taking so long! && Thank you for being so loyal :P I MISSED YOU GUYS TOO WHILE I WAS AWAY D,: Thanks for waiting so patiently!!

 

Sarah - thank you from us too - loved reading your account of your holiday and life onboard QE and loved your photos. A big thank you for bringing back lovely memories of our fabulous cruise on board Queen Elizabeth in September 2013.

 

Thank you for reading! :D & I’m glad you are enjoying it! Haha, it’s my pleasure. How was your cruise? You were on board before me! Did you enjoy it?

[lovely_serenity]

It's worth waiting for, Sarah!

 

Aww~ :,D thank you Vict0riann!

[lovely_serenity]

Go one page back if you missed my latest posts LOL. I just realized that if nobody realizes, nobody will read it :P

[zzed_41]

Wow! Thank you for taking the time to read both of my reports, Ced! :D It must have taken so long to read LOL. Nonetheless, thank you! Wow, you’re one of the only teens I’ve seen on CC thus far haha. I’m so touched that you could take anything away from my report and apply it to your photography :,) I’m not even that good LOL. Yay! That was the feeling I was going for! :) Thank you once again for your support! (go tell my Dad that haha ^^ thanks!)

 

:-D YAY CAMERA TWINS!

 

I have been using primarily Canons my whole life, so I’m a little biased toward them ^^. I haven’t had a Nikon before, but I’ve heard some of my friends in Photography say that they had found the settings and whatnot, much more complicated on Nikons than on Canons. I also agree that, if you aren’t as crazy as I am regarding the amount of pictures I take, I think normally, pocket digital cameras would be the ideal camera choice for regular cruisers. Only the extreme ones like me lug around a huge backpack full of camera equipment onto the ship! :D Ones like me (crazy photographer), professional photographers, hobby photographers and retired people who are interested in photography, are normally found running around with 5-6 lb cameras around their necks LOL. If you are not categorized under any of the above categories, the pocket digital camera is probably the one for you. :P

 

 

 

 

I do think we teens are a minority here in CC. And yeah, CAMERA TWINS! :D

 

For most cruisers, a pocket camera is definitely enough. But for some, including me(and probably you :D), the photography part is one of the more awaited parts during a trip. It's not a bother to carry those extra pounds of camera and lenses because it's a source of fun. :)

[lovely_serenity]

I do think we teens are a minority here in CC. And yeah, CAMERA TWINS! :D

 

For most cruisers, a pocket camera is definitely enough. But for some, including me(and probably you :D), the photography part is one of the more awaited parts during a trip. It's not a bother to carry those extra pounds of camera and lenses because it's a source of fun. :)

 

Definitely, I rarely see many teens on CC. && :D

 

I definitely agree!! && :-D DEFINITELY. the photography is my favourite part of my trip LOL. I never find my camera heavy when running around! I only notice when other people point it out haha :p.

[alibabacruisers]

Welcome back Sarah! How was your trip to China?

 

Thanks for posting the entire programme and entire drinks menu! Had some good information there. Also great pictures and comments regarding the theatre seating. Good leg work:) reviewing the best seats.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Great pictures Sarah.

I see on the bar menu that the Grey Goose we love is only slightly higher than on HAL.

HAL - $6.95 --- Cunard - $7.25

In fact, many of the drink prices are right in line with HAL.

[lovely_serenity]

Welcome back Sarah! How was your trip to China?

 

Thanks for posting the entire programme and entire drinks menu! Had some good information there. Also great pictures and comments regarding the theatre seating. Good leg work:) reviewing the best seats.

 

Thank you! It was great! :D The food was the best part! Although I wasn't so crazy about the extremely crowded subways D: It was fun buying things though! Haggling was interesting.

 

No problem! ^^ Thank you! (: I literally tried every seat in the house LOL. I hope I helped some people find excellent seats ;)

[retiring soon]

HI all!

 

Sarah ~ welcome back, you were missed! Your pictures are lovely & the ship looks beautiful/elegant. Thanks for such a detailed review.:D

 

DH & I went on a cruise from Shanghai to Singapore once & really enjoyed it. Did you take the Maglev train while there? We ventured onto the subway

& found it easy to use.

 

Patiently awaiting more of your cruise experience.;)

 

~ Jo ~ :)

[lovely_serenity]

Great pictures Sarah.

I see on the bar menu that the Grey Goose we love is only slightly higher than on HAL.

HAL - $6.95 --- Cunard - $7.25

In fact, many of the drink prices are right in line with HAL.

 

Thank you! :) oo interesting, I did not know that. You know, my brother likes Grey Goose! ^^ && Huh, I would've thought they'd be more expensive!

[lovely_serenity]

HI all!

 

Sarah ~ welcome back, you were missed! Your pictures are lovely & the ship looks beautiful/elegant. Thanks for such a detailed review.:D

 

DH & I went on a cruise from Shanghai to Singapore once & really enjoyed it. Did you take the Maglev train while there? We ventured onto the subway

& found it easy to use.

 

Patiently awaiting more of your cruise experience.;)

 

~ Jo ~ :)

Hi Jo! Thank you! :D & thank you again! Thanks for taking the time to read it! (:

 

Oo, my parents went on an Asia cruise last year! They enjoyed it as well! I think they boarded in Shanghai though.

 

We did! It was fascinating! The fastest it hit was about 413km/hour!! :eek: The subways were indeed convenient, but a little crowded & pushy for my taste (: We had to use it to get everywhere!

 

It's on its way! Thanks for the patience! :P

[CateW]

Thank you for the wonderful photos. We board Saturday for 19 days! How was the shopping in Shanghai?

[Shallwe123]

Hi Sarah,

 

We loved our very first cruise aboard QE... And yes aboard before you guys but seeing your photos and comparing to mine - I think I need to attend photography lessons :rolleyes:

 

Loved seeing your photo of the laundry room and the Churchill smoking lounge - we didn't venture into either !! ........

 

My word Sarah you have certainly made a lot of folk very happy with your reports and fab photos. Thank you once again.

[lovely_serenity]

Day 2: At Sea

Sunday, November 10, 2013 : Formal

 

I awoke that morning at around 6-something am and since I could not return to sleep, I started writing my logs (notes on iPad on what I did during my trip). After writing for a while, Sis woke up and groggily went to go take a shower. I put away my iPad after I was down logging and took a look at the Daily Programme of the day to see what the day had in store for us:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As we were getting ready, Mom called about 3 times to make sure we were awake and would be ready to go eat breakfast soon since, we were due to arrive in Katakolon very soon. Initially, we were also planning to get a quick load of laundry done, but wound up cancelling that idea after realizing that the laundrette was completely full. Oh well.