2024 – Queen Mary 2 Grand World– Part 1 –Walvis Bay to Port Elizabeth 1.5

My email brought some very sad news to me, at sea, off the coast of Africa, on January 18.  Padma or Paddy, the Scalbergs’ wonderful dog has gone to meet her maker.  It was time, but it’s never time.  Paddy was Dave Lasker’s first Canine Companions puppy.  Candy and Ernie met her at a party at our house.  When she was released, they were waiting.  I can remember when I was going between the Scalbergs and the Laskers and Valerie was asking a lot of questions, to be sure their first puppy would have a good home.  I said “when I die I want to come back as the Scalbergs’ dog.”  I couldn’t imagine a better life.  I doubt dog heaven is as good, but Paddy will make the most of it. 

I did some research on Walvis Bay and decided on a car and driver.  Put out some feelers. Worked on some visas and took an appointment to do more. That afternoon the WC consultant says we can now stop doing visas.  The ship has realized what a nightmare it is for the passengers, and worked out something with the Indonesian government.  It will likely be a face-to-face, which is easier than all this phone stuff. 

At the podium for dinner, the lady in front of me backed straight up, when her table was assigned, rather than off to the side, like everyone else does.  So I backed up too, right into the man behind me.  He was a big one, easily six foot-four, but he had a cane, so I felt really badly.  Next thing you know, he was ushered to the same table, and we had dinner with Tony and Aramina and Margaret and Bob.  All brits, no Londoners, yet.  John is a farmer, over 90 and still very robust.  He takes the cane out because he promised his kids he would, so as not to fall.  He’s on the way to Perth to visit his son, who’s a wheat farmer in those parts. 

A lot of the passengers use the QM2 for transport to see the kids and grandkids in South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.  It’s the same price as first class air fare and a lot more pleasant.  John bought me a drink in the Chart Room and we saw Bellissima at 10:15.  They are Victoria and Celina, opera singers doing classical crossover.  We liked them very much.

The next morning, January 19, 2024, still at sea, the ship had changed the floral arrangement again and given us this nice swan.

The swan is white. It changes color with the lights. I filled the day with the minutia of my job and delivered Newsletter no 4.

Believe it or not, it was dinner with John again, and we didn’t plan it.  This time we had Lindsay and Jeff and Kinky & Geoff.  They had been told to look out for John, as their sons knew each other in Oz.  Small world.  The entertainment was Jon Udry, juggler and comedian and teacher of juggling.  I can’t say as I was impressed.  Montreal has spoiled me for circus acts.

The next day, we were still at sea.  It’s not easy to write to you when all we have are sea days and I don’t even take proper advantage of them, because I am a workaholic and happiest when I keep on top of things.  Very boring to write about.  Back in my stateroom, the last cabin I hadn’t reached finally answered the phone.  No wonder they never called back.  The guy had a very thick Russian accent and I am not at all sure he understood me.  I reported this to my Group Coordinator, who did yet another check and this time was able to tell me that my people had failed to board in Southampton, too.  So we are 25.

It was Glenn MacNamara again for the show, and I sat a lot closer but wasn’t any more impressed.  I have no taste for men in pancake make-up.

 We were still at sea on January 21, and there’s a little more traffic at the desk when there’s a dinner at night.  We established meeting point in Sir Samuel’s and I called everyone who didn’t pass by.  The dinner went very well.  Ten people came and the conversation was lively throughout.  I was disappointed in the food and sort of hokiness of the presentation.  The appetizers were a tour of Asia in a Bento box:

But the rest of the people, who hadn’t been spoiled by five years in Hong Kong, loved it, and it was a welcome change from roast beast, potato and veg.  I listened to the Jazz Trio in the Chart Room, for a bit, and skipped the show to get some rest.   

And we were still at sea the next day.  I took care of what needed taking care of, worked on my log and blog and did some work for my own clients.  I am trying to find out where we will dock in Sydney and Hong Kong, but those bits of information are still closely guarded.

No one came to Happy Hour at Sir Samuels again, so around 7pm, I went up to the Commodore’s Club to check it out as a possible new venue for evening gatherings.  It has possibilities.  I caught Bellissima’s second show and it was better than the first.  I like them a lot.

Just one more sea day before land.  I sent out a log and a blog, and had tea in the WC lounge.  Graham Howell, the Port Lecturer, was there.  He’s planning to spend some time in the WC lounge every day, which is an excellent idea.  He was delighted with an add-on tour just announced, an 8 hour game drive on Day 1 of Port Elizabeth, that starts at 12:15Pm, with lunch.  It sounded like my kind of tour.  We’ll catch the Big 5 at their evening meal, rather than at the crack of dawn.  Perfect.  I haven’t had a really good game drive since 2001, when we went on safari for three weeks, with Pati and Don Simon.  The game drive conflicted with the Elephant Park tour that I had, but, as it was a significant upgrade, the tour department had no problem with it. 

HKTB hadn’t answered, so I sent them my request for maps and all through their web site.  Then I touched bases with Liz nd Saly about the morrow and dressed for Masquerade Gala Night.  I went as COVID.  Here I am with a Marguerita in the Commodore’s Club before dinner. 

How scary is that?  I had great dinner partners that night, Ian & Clare, Martin and Linda and Graham and Janet.  Still no Londoners.  Ian was born there but has retired to the Coast.  He was particularly interesting, turned ADHD into an asset and still gives the odd motivational speech, though he’s well retired and looks like he’s stil in his 50s. The show was Apassionata again.  I am not happy when the production show repeats within three weeks, but it did give me a reason to get to bed a little earlier. 

Finally, on January 24, we docked in Walvis Bay, Namibia. I had been to Walvis Bay at least four times before.  This time I was showing Swakopmund to a new person, and an old hand came along for the ride.  CarloShuttle met us on time just off the ship, but we had to wait for our car, which took us to their office, where we changed car.  All of this took a good half hour, which I told them we would be wanting back for shopping at the port gate.  Do I know this port or not?

Actually, there was quite a bit of not.  I was there last year, but on a dune drive in a 4 x 4 with Nancy and Jim Martyn, HAL cruise buddies.  The other times were all pre-COVID.  So there’s a shuttle to a mall, now, where you can find all the international stores.  There are a lot more local tour options and you can book them online, like our 4 x 4 tour over the dunes last year.  I hear the dolphin tour is good, but it wasn’t in my plan.  Dune 7, now has a man-made oasis and charges.  

They have built a golf course,

and the German town of Swakopmund, which was so quaint in the ‘teens has given way to a much more tourist-oriented, modern place. I barely recognized it.  The new Strand Hotel complex afforded us the Ocean Barrel, where we had a lovely lunch.

With a pint and a view:

I had a nap when I got back and woke up thinking I had slept three hours.  That’s what comes of your watch being seven hours back of the actual time.  You have to do math, when you wake up, and I was so groggy, I got it wrong.  I raced up to the dining room, which I thought was about to close, and was half way into the meal when one of my dinner partners said something that enlightened me.  It turned out she was the first Londoner I had had dinner with.  It had taken 20 days to find one.  She was Paulina, accompanying her father, John to visit relatives in South Africa.  We have a new comedian on board named Phil Melbourne and I thought he was very funny.  There were a few people who thought some of his jokes were tasteless, dirty, and rude, and probably the Americans liked them, which was why he did it.  I won’t tell you what I thought.  You already know.

The 25th was another day at sea and time to write another newsletter.  Our first shore excursion is coming up in Cape Town.  I had dinners to add, more to say about visas, I was moving the evening gathering to a more popular bar and time and re-branding them “Friends of Helen M”.  Oh yes, and I had soap to give away.  Pure soap that wouldn’t make you itch.  I have people who aren’t tolerating the ship’s offering all that well, so I had amused myself in Swakopmund, picking up a bar of each of the purest soaps I could get.  I found five of them.

It’s Robbie Burns’ Day and we had the addressing of the haggis at 7:45 pm, with a piper and a chef’s parade of haggis, and all.  I then went into the dining room, and had a delicious haggis appetizer with Judy, and Kathleeen and Les and Diana and Dave, who live on Jersey, and whom I like a lot.  The entertainment was Suzanne Gregory, a flautist and she was very good, too.