TA W/B 27 Jul

[days2do]

Just back from our TA and in addition to the formal review thought I'd raise a couple of observations.

1. I could not believe the tension and antics in the laundry rooms. Is that the norm'?

2. The car boot, sorry table sales, lower the tone, especially as some of the dresses had pulls etc in them. The scramble for the Radley handbags, with women rushing the tables to peek under the covers was unbelievable. If they must take place why not put them in one of the unused port lounges on 1 deck and not in the lobby? Can't complain though, DW did buy a nice bag.

3. It was funny but in away sad to be verbally attacked on deck 7 by a 'large' apparently single gent on the first night because I didn't respond to his rhetorical 'well we didn't hit anything' comment as we left the Solent. Not sure why my being bald made me a bad person.... lol Ps if you are reading this I'm so so glad your car was late picking you up at Brooklyn and it caused you to break into a sweat. Honestly it will do you good.;)

4. Chris Wells is a star; his Q & A session with the equally brilliant Ents' manager was fantastic and shouldn't be missed.

5. Surely Maria King can't really be single and lonely?:rolleyes:

6. I had more chance of understanding the Universe as described in Illuminations than I did the workings of the Kings Court.

7. Where did all the cookies go? The closest I got to one, was the 4+ I saw on a ladies plate one night through a window.

8. Mooneesh (waiter) and Monika (wine) are the best.

9. Taxis to Midtown are half as cheap as town cars but the wait is twice as long....

10. Where else in the world can you find 3 fully armed and equally verbal Police officers, 2 Brooklyn terminal staff and several porters trying to manage 1 line for cabs and 1 line for town cars in temps of 80+. It has to been seen to be believed. Made the time pass though..

11. When can I go again?

[T5LHR]

Point 3 is completely unacceptable? Did you challenge his comments? Or speak to a member of staff about his verbal "attack"?

 

I would not stand for anything of the sort on any for of transport, never mind an ocean liner...

 

As to point 11, there is a very nice sailing taking place on the 14th of October from Southampton to New York if you fancy joining us? (You have to pay your own way though... ;) ) :)

[safarigal]

Point 3 is completely unacceptable? Did you challenge his comments? Or speak to a member of staff about his verbal "attack"?

 

I would not stand for anything of the sort on any for of transport, never mind an ocean liner...

 

As to point 11, there is a very nice sailing taking place on the 14th of October from Southampton to New York if you fancy joining us? (You have to pay your own way though... ;) ) :)

 

We can assure you that you would meet some great people on the October 14th sailing!:);)

[days2do]

Point 3 is completely unacceptable? Did you challenge his comments? Or speak to a member of staff about his verbal "attack"?

 

I would not stand for anything of the sort on any for of transport, never mind an ocean liner...

 

As to point 11, there is a very nice sailing taking place on the 14th of October from Southampton to New York if you fancy joining us? (You have to pay your own way though... ;) ) :)

 

To be honest no, never really occured and we just laughed it off. I mean he was right in that I am bald but wrong in that I do have married parents. Apart from seeing the 'gent' in Brooklyn, the only other time our paths crossed he was proping up a bar and trying to talk German.... badly

 

I'd love to join you but HM the Queen has specifically asked me to represent her somewhere else for a few months and I can't really let her down as she pays the bills.... next time maybe.

[Cruise NH]

Yes where did all the cookies go??

 

On our two transatlantics this past year my DH was able to scare them up once..we had one cookie a piece and then we never saw them again...and believe me we looked!

[Crzn-Life]

To be honest no, never really occured and we just laughed it off. I mean he was right in that I am bald but wrong in that I do have married parents. Apart from seeing the 'gent' in Brooklyn, the only other time our paths crossed he was proping up a bar and trying to talk German.... badly

 

I'd love to join you but HM the Queen has specifically asked me to represent her somewhere else for a few months and I can't really let her down as she pays the bills.... next time maybe.

 

We too were on this cruise. Have a feeling that this was the same very large "gentleman" who verbally accosted DH in the Winter Garden where he (the big brute) was holding up the bar. DH had never met this guy or spoken to him. DH walked up to the bar and said to the bartender that he'd like 2 cokes to go and this really large old brute (with a buzz cut) at the other end of the bar yells out loudly, "You didn't say please and that shows how ignorant you are." DH chose to ignore him. We saw him several times throughout the cruise in various bars always alone. Assume diplomacy is not his strong suit and if he's trying to "meet & greet" people, he's definitely leaving the wrong impression! :rolleyes:

[MadScientist_01]

Actually, on point 3 I think you are to blame - this man probably first had that thought as he was leaving the ship several years ago... what a witty comment it would make, how everyone would laugh and you would become best cruise buddies... for years he nurtured that thought, until finally the day came that he was actually back on the ship. His moment came, he uttered the immortal line, and... nothing.

 

His dreams crushed, he staggered off to the bar to wallow in defeat... how could this happen, that carefully planned witticism that had lain dormant for so long? This formerly jovial man was reduced to hurling abuse at passing strangers at the bar, as what might have been played out in his mind for eternity...

 

 

 

Or maybe he was just a complete jerk ;)

[shinyshoes]

Point No. 10.

 

I have never failed to be enormously entertained by the police officers in charge of the taxi line. I don't know if they are specially selected for their repartee or whether they just really enjoy this particular duty. If the NYPD don't have a badge for good humour and excellent public relations they should invent one.

SS

[Cruachan]

1. I could not believe the tension and antics in the laundry rooms. Is that the norm'?

 

Absolutely! The best free entertainment on the ship, and the best scuttlebutt too. I have witnessed one actual, physical punch-up in there, the two "ladies" concerned demonstrating boxing skills that would have made Nicola Adams jealous!

 

3. It was funny but in away sad to be verbally attacked on deck 7 by a 'large' apparently single gent on the first night because I didn't respond to his rhetorical 'well we didn't hit anything' comment as we left the Solent. Not sure why my being bald made me a bad person.... lol Ps if you are reading this I'm so so glad your car was late picking you up at Brooklyn and it caused you to break into a sweat. Honestly it will do you good.;)

 

Sounds like a PONTI to me. I hope you told him to go take a long walk on a short pier.

 

11. When can I go again?

 

Any time you like - just get it booked! :D:D

 

J

[Q-step]

#10-cab line with the Brooklyn cops.

It was a long wait, 90 degrees F with 90% humidity and I was wearing a Red Sox shirt. Not only was I hot & tired, but slightly abused as well.

[Cruachan]

...We saw him several times throughout the cruise in various bars always alone...

 

I wonder why! Hee hee.

 

:D

 

J

[days2do]

Out of interest did anyone else suffer camera problems due to the change in temp' between the air con' cool stateroom and warm humid air out on deck when coming into NY. My pictures of the bridge are all blurred due to internal misting.:mad:

[CoachMarty]

We are on TA WB in September. Are the taxi queues always this long and slow?

We are staying near Times Square and will need transfers. Is it better to pre book a car service, or can we get one at the terminal without too long a wait?

 

 

Many thanks

 

CoachMarty

[days2do]

We are on TA WB in September. Are the taxi queues always this long and slow?

We are staying near Times Square and will need transfers. Is it better to pre book a car service, or can we get one at the terminal without too long a wait?

 

 

Many thanks

 

CoachMarty

 

Hi, The cost of our cab to Times Sq area (8th and 48th) was $25 plus tip. The wait was about 30 minutes. The advertised rate for a black car was $50 plus tolls, taxes and tips. The line was shorter and about 10 minutes long. I considered pre booking a car but as I wasn't sure of the time we would emerge from the terminal I wasn't sure how you could arrange the pick up time. Thats unless you have access to a 'phone to call the company when you were ready or you find out your deck dis embarkation time and add 30 - 40 minutes for bags and immigration. If I was going again I would still stick with a Yellow cab and enjoy the view of the QM2 from the outside and the entertaiment provided by the NY Port Authority Police officers at half the price.

[Q-step]

The taxi problem varies somewhat with what time you leave the ship. We've noticed that a large number of cabs show up when people start coming out of customs and they keep coming at a fairly good clip. But as they go and take people into Manhattan, they don't come back. It is not worth their effort to fight the traffic back to Red Hook for another fare. So about halfway through the cab frequency goes down and gets more spaced out.

 

The lines grows.

 

Then people start coming to the QM2 hoping to get on early for the next crossing. The cabs drop them off and then pick someone up and the line starts moving again.

 

So get off early - or late - and you'll have cabs.

We pack a day bag with our bathing suits and some soft drinks and go hang out in the pool on deck 8 while everyone else is in their 'holding pens' waiting to be called. We're usually last off. On 8/3, we misjudged a little and had to wait for a cab. It would not have been that bad except for the 90 degrees temps & 90% humidity.