Cunard Cruisers - How are things where you are ?

[NE John]

4 hours ago, roscoe39 said:

Gallipoli

Good early Mel Gibson movie too. 

[Lanky Lad]

A quick hello from on board Queen Victoria. Boarding was smooth as usual. A bit of a surprise was that we had an old fashioned muster drill at 4pm. The video on TV still says to go to be scanned on so not updated yet. 

[Host Hattie]

Have a great trip  @Lanky Lad

[D&N]

The breeding pair from our nearest river appeared this morning with six cygnets.

There is a group of folk that keep an eye on them, and in one of the pics you see daddy telling a woman to get the food out of her backpack and throw it to his hungry kids. She obliged a minute or so later.

I've included a FB link to someone else's much better close up of mum and babies than I got with my phone from the bridge above.

This group usually survive until adults. The pair in the next river along the coast have an issue where their nest is overlooked by seven floor flats, and gulls swoop down and attack the young. Hopefully their support group will prevent that in future following a loss of about half their chicks a few years ago.

 

 

 

[buchanan101]

Out in Cambridge on a glorious spring morning before the tourist hordes arrive. Tourists eh… wouldn’t catch me being one… oh…

[Host Hattie]

This was my evening yesterday 

 

[alc13]

WHAT!!!!!

 

I bet it was amazing.  Bruuuuuuuuce.......

[Host Hattie]

It was ... I've seen him a few times but this was one of the best. 

[Lee Jones Jnr]

On 5/6/2024 at 8:27 PM, Host Hattie said:

This was my evening yesterday 

 

Must be Queen Anne, the other theatres are smaller than that

[D&N]

Lunch today. Not quite Cunard standard!

 

[D&N]

Dinner was very tasty. Start of a short break in Rome. Other nights will probably be a bit more refined but these Pinsas were lovely.

 

[Bigmike911]

On 5/16/2024 at 2:52 PM, D&N said:

Dinner was very tasty. Start of a short break in Rome. Other nights will probably be a bit more refined but these Pinsas were lovely.

 

You whet my appetite, I will take two.

[D&N]

We were not in Glasgow's Kelvingrove Museum today!

 

[Bigmike911]

It's Memorial Day in the U.S. The day set aside to remember those who gave all for us in the US Military from the U.S. Civil War until today.

 

There will be a laying of a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns in Arlington National Cemetery as well as parades and celebrations across the land. It is very much like Remembrance Sunday in the UK, but since it began before WWI it is held in May instead of November. 

 

I want to thank all who served, including those of our Allies some of whom gave their all.

 

It is also the Late May Bank Holiday in the U.K., so there is celebration on both sides of the "pond". 

[MylesS]

Had a day in NYC for business last week and stayed a few extra days to celebrate my birthday. Had to detor to take a look QM2 on the way into Manhattan from JFK.

Also got to try the new Virgin Atlantic Upperclass "suite" - while I would much rather travel to and from NYC on QM2, I can't complain about this too much!

 

[techteach]

@Bigmike911 Thinking about you and the weather. I hope you are doing well.

[Bigmike911]

On 5/30/2024 at 8:11 PM, techteach said:

@Bigmike911 Thinking about you and the weather. I hope you are doing well.

Thanks for your concern TechTeach. All is well here. I live on the crest of the Brazos/San Jacinto River watershed, so water goes down hill from me. And I have a 26 K.W. back up natural gas powered Generator, so plenty of power to run the air conditioning system, and no trees down, even though I live in a forest.

 

A power surge tripped a circuit breaker and my back up freezer went out, unbeknownst to me, so I lost some frozen foot.  I had the opportunity to "clean it out", which I should have done long ago. The freezer was fine when the circuit breaker was closed. 

 

All in all we did fine. Others in the area had major damage and eight people lost their lives. The power was out for over one million people for up to seven days amid awful heat and humidity.  And the city center was awash in shards of glass from windows in Skyscrapers that were blown out by 100 mph Derecho winds. Multiple blocks were closed to allow the remaining dangling shards to fall, and then be cleaned up, The area is back to normal for the most part now, in time for Hurricane season starting June 1. 

 

Life on the Texas Gulf Coast is always interesting. 

[techteach]

@Bigmike911 Glad to hear you haven’t been affected by all of the storms. We get rain up here on the Pacific Coast, but it really isn’t the same as the deluge others experience. And the tornadoes? Wow. Take care —

[Bigmike911]

I was not quite here on June 6, 1944 D-Day, I had to wait until the next month. My oldest Brother Ben was 18 and had graduated from High School at age 17. He joined the army as many did, and took part in the Normandy Landing on D-Day.

 

After the war he came home and got a football scholarship at Mississippi State University, after graduation he became a high school football coach and math teacher. 

 

As a callow youth of 18 I asked him about it on day. Even nearly two decades later it was something he could not talk about. 

 

As I continue into my dotage I see the 100 year old plus vets attending the services in Normandy and in Portsmouth on television and they remind us of the courage and sacrifice it took to fight that fight. They makes us all proud of their achievement. 

 

They were truly, The "Greatest Generation". 

[Millieloulou]

13 hours ago, Bigmike911 said:

I was not quite here on June 6, 1944 D-Day, I had to wait until the next month. My oldest Brother Ben was 18 and had graduated from High School at age 17. He joined the army as many did, and took part in the Normandy Landing on D-Day.

 

After the war he came home and got a football scholarship at Mississippi State University, after graduation he became a high school football coach and math teacher. 

 

As a callow youth of 18 I asked him about it on day. Even nearly two decades later it was something he could not talk about. 

 

As I continue into my dotage I see the 100 year old plus vets attending the services in Normandy and in Portsmouth on television and they remind us of the courage and sacrifice it took to fight that fight. They makes us all proud of their achievement. 

 

They were truly, The "Greatest Generation". 

 

13 hours ago, Bigmike911 said:

I was not quite here on June 6, 1944 D-Day, I had to wait until the next month. My oldest Brother Ben was 18 and had graduated from High School at age 17. He joined the army as many did, and took part in the Normandy Landing on D-Day.

 

After the war he came home and got a football scholarship at Mississippi State University, after graduation he became a high school football coach and math teacher. 

 

As a callow youth of 18 I asked him about it on day. Even nearly two decades later it was something he could not talk about. 

 

As I continue into my dotage I see the 100 year old plus vets attending the services in Normandy and in Portsmouth on television and they remind us of the courage and sacrifice it took to fight that fight. They makes us all proud of their achievement. 

 

They were truly, The "Greatest Generation". 

 

[Millieloulou]

Thankyou so much for your comments and kind thoughts.We took time out to watch as much as possible of the tv coverage on DDay, as we have visited Normandy some years back, stayed in Bayeaux and visited every beach.I cannot explain how moving every day turned out to be.Not ashamed to be moved to tears ,on so many times.We visit France often,and are so often driving down a lane and come across a small cemetery,so beautifully maintained.They are never forgotten.