Paul Garthwaite is a master guitarist from Yorkshire, England, who performs nightly with his wife, Kathryn, in the Queen Mary 2’s traditional English pub.
He sometimes plays a 22-string guitar he invented and gives a daily talk interspersed with music on legendary guitarists such as Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana and Jimi Hendrix.
Garthwaite is an example of the abundant musical and educational offerings aboard the Queen Mary 2 as it crosses the Atlantic Ocean from New York to England.
This is no ordinary cruise ship. It is described as an ocean liner, and instead of a belly flop contest, a sculptor works daily in a cafe, expecting to complete a bronze horse sculpture by the end of the trip.
Expert speakers talk on topics such as the disappearance of Malaysian Flight 370, hurricane tracking and the evolution of policing in England. Musical options include pianists, guitarists and a string quartet. Like most passenger ships, the voyage has stage shows with music and dancing.
The ship has a planetarium where space-themed movies are shown in a domed ceiling. A small number of dogs made the crossing with us and were kept in a kennel on Deck 11.
Villagers are familiar with Caribbean cruises. On the Queen Mary 2, activity is centered inside. There are no ports to visit and deck walkers must dress warmly for 50-degree temperatures and battle cold winds.
We chose to begin our European trip by ship as an alternative to a cramped economy airline seat or an expensive first-class ticket.
The 80,000-ton ship, launched in 2003 and refurbished in 2016, carries nearly 2,800 passengers and more than 1,200 crew members. Powered by four diesel generators and two gas turbines, the ship produces its own fresh water from sea water that is stored in a million-gallon tank.
A slower pace gives time to think about the fact that many of our ancestors traveled this way when they came to America. Unlike our trip, their voyages were treacherous, with little protection from the elements, food shortages and rampant disease.
The crew’s officers are British and passengers are predominately British, American or German.
With three formal nights on a seven-day cruise, the Queen Mary 2 is far more elegant than Caribbean cruises. Formal nights mean evening dresses for women and tuxedos or suits for men. Casual nights require cocktail dresses for women and sport jackets for men. The food is high quality and the service impeccable.
High tea at 3 p.m. daily features upscale appetizers, champagne and a variety of gourmet teas with a harpist playing in the background.
Cunard, the ship’s operator, has a long history of passenger ships, going back to the original Queen Mary and the Titanic.
The company doesn’t hide its connection to the Titanic, which sunk in 1912 within 100 miles of our route. A tasteful wall mural on Deck 5 tracks the final hours of the doomed ship.
Beneath the passenger decks, a long corridor from bow to stern links the baggage area, the electric control room, firefighting equipment lockers and spacious kitchen facilities.
The kitchen has 21 refrigerated store rooms that hold 200 tons of food. Up to 16,000 meals are prepared daily and 1,000 bottles of wine opened.
The connecting corridor is known to the crew as Burma Road. On a previous passenger vessel, the corridor was lined with crew bunks. Crew members complained that it was as hot as Burma and the name stuck.
Villages-News.com’s Marv Balousek recently traveled overseas aboard the Queen Mary 2.
