QUEEN MARY 2 - DAY 3

During his talk from the bridge yesterday at around noontime, the Captain had mentioned that the sea swells would be fairly strong for the next twenty-four hours and he was correct.  The good news is that while we could feel a good deal of motion on the ship, since the QM2 is an ocean liner it was not as bad as it could be.  Keith did take a Bonine for the first time since we left home, as he didn’t feel the need to take it while we were on the Serenity.  Anne Marie took one as well and she did take it a few other times since we left home.  

Last night was the first of three formal nights on the QM2.  In the past as we understood there would have been five of seven formal nights but like most cruise lines even the formality on the Cunard ships is somewhat less than in the past.  The other nights are informal.

We received an invitation earlier in the day inviting us to join Captain Kevin Oprey and some of his Senior Officers in the Queens Room for cocktails.  We went to this rather than going to a Welcome Champagne Reception a little later in the evening.  While we waited to enter the reception, we spoke with the architect who was involved in the design of the QM2.  We chatted with the Captain for a couple of minutes and found him to be very engaging. Another couple joined us at the reception and they also live in our state and we spoke with them for 45 minutes until we went to dinner.  

After dinner, we dined at the Queens Grill.

We each began dinner with Chicken Consommé with Vermicelli.

For our next course we each had a salad. 

Anne Marie chose the Surf and Turf for her entrée but asked for it to be Surf and Surf so she had two Lobster Tails rather than Lobster Tail and Fillet Mignon.

Keith had the Grilled Salmon Fillet.  He also ordered a Baked Potato and for the two of us Keith asked for a Medley of Steamed Vegetables.

For dessert, Keith had the Canyon Ranch Spa selection which was the Lemon and Blackberry Tart with Vanilla Sauce and Anne Marie had the Low Sugar Apricot Cake with Apricot Sauce.  We each enjoyed both desserts.

After dinner we passed on the entertainment, which included a show starring Benjamin Makisi and a Black & White Ball. 

Good news is when we arrived back to our room we set the clock back one hour.  Yes!

We did sleep well.  Our room is fairly mid-ship so while we felt the motion it was far less than if we were very far forward.   The other good news is that the seas are much calmer now.

Keith was up early again and he read and wrote and then he went to the King Court where they have coffee very early in the morning.  This venue which is extremely large also has a full breakfast, lunch and dinner buffet as well as having selected sections that serve other meals during the day including a healthy corner breakfast, a burger and sandwich section, an afternoon snack, a pizza and pasta station and a late snack.  It is open at 4:00 AM and closes at 2:00 AM so for twenty-two hours each day you can always get something to eat there.  We plan to continue to dine instead at the Queens Grill other than possibly having breakfast in our room or possibly dinner one evening. 

After Breakfast, Keith worked out at the Fitness Center.  He used two different types of stationary bikes, the treadmill and the elliptical machine.  Anne Marie went for a treatment at the spa.

Later in the morning we continued to explore the ship.  We dined at the Queens Grill for lunch.  We prefer this dining room over the other dining venues including the massive buffet area as we do enjoy the service in the dining room and its relatively small size.

We had pre-ordered Chefs Salads for each of us and we also had a fruit plate.

We walked around the ship after lunch.  There was a cake in the main lobby area for the QM2.

We tried to get tickets again for the Planetarium as there was a different presentation today but none were available. We will be sure to get the tickets for tomorrow the first thing in the morning.

There is a lecture in the afternoon by the architect of the QM2 who we met last night at the Captain's Reception about the Lusitania and the Mauretania.

Seas continued to improve which is great news.

This evening is another formal night followed by a show.

Keith & Anne Marie