Your first Cruise was it on the SS Uganda

[Shogun]

Hi Taf,

 

You must do a back to back, small things that we like,

 

you do not need to go to life boat drill unless you want to, everybody then looks at you sitting by the pool when the alarm sounds and wonders why you do not move,

 

the bar staff know you so welcome you by name and ask if you want your regular drink, the folk around the bar then think you must be important or something its quite funny.

 

you do not get lost

 

you are able to help others who are lost

 

if you are doing any islands twice you get to go to the place you should have gone to the first time.

 

 

same with meals you see what other people have ordered and wish that you had picked that no problem you can get it next week

 

I find that I am far more relaxed the second half and enjoy my cruise more.

 

Crew get to know you so officers etc are more willing to spend time chatting to you.

 

You have the sun tan so do not feel so white looking when you first came aboard.

 

Watching others having to say good bye then watching all the new folk arrive.

 

Being tied to certain times of the year for holidays is a pity as everyone tries to make more money out of you, I work for myself so pick dates that are cheap,

 

this year we are going out the cruise after christmas, next year we fly on christmas day all these things make it cheaper.

 

these days I always pick inside cabins for cost savings, have done the mini suit and all that and while if you have never done them you must do these things once, now a days I just want to cruise so I hunt for odd times cheap cabins etc.

 

Last year I got the best deal that I ever had my cruise cost about £30 a day. When you met others that had paid over a £100 a day you had to feel sorry for them.

 

Aus and NZ are on my list of places to see, not sure how many years away this will be but I hope not to many.

 

happy cruising

 

yours Shogun

[ashleyrunt]

Hi all those who have sailed on the Uganda.

For those who have yet to find the SS Uganda Shipmates Forum please pop along and add your memories :

http://www.voy.com/71354/

The forum has been running for several years now and includes postings from passengers , crew , members of the Armed forces and numerous posts from the leading members of the `SS Uganda Trust` and the authors of the definative SS Uganda book "UGANDA The story of a very special ship".

 

Ashley (Runt)

Forum Admin (The SS Uganda Shipmates Forum)

[the english lot]

hi my first cruise was on the uganda with a school trip in 1972 or 73 not sure which, we sailed from venice to various ports around the med like herecklion,alexandria for the pyramids and cairo mueum, also israel,jerusalem. and pompeii and flew back from naples .

[old boy]

Shogun - are you sure it was 1974? I recognised that itinerary as the cruise I worked on in the school office but it was june 78 - I do remember the Bay of Biscay though! And I remember playing football in Coruna with some local lads.

[old boy]

Some pictures of that Jun 78 cruise here at last http://www.fototime.com/inv/BCD79B1AF0FE96B

[Shogun]

Hi There Old Boy,

 

I have had a check back and you are right , Bay of Biscay was great fun, as one of a few very few that did not get sea sick.

 

 

yours Shogun

[old boy]

Did you check out the photos - there's a fancy dress sick bag in there

[Shogun]

Hi There Oldboy

 

 

I did check out the pics, sick bags were in short supply if I recall correctly,

 

ah the good old days.

 

yours Shogun

[lahrbrat]

Wow! This thread came up on a search I was doing for the SS Uganda. I was a Canadian military brat living in Lahr, W. Germany in the 70's, and I took an educational Christmas cruise in 1978 on the SS Uganda along with many UK students. The plane left from London, and actually made a stop in Lahr, Germany to pick up the Canadian students.

 

We departed from Naples, and visited Jerusalem, Cypress, Turkey, Greece and Malta, from where we flew home.

 

We students were relegated to the less desirable areas of the ship, so I can't say I got my love of cruising from the Uganda, but what a memorable trip it was!

 

Cheers!

[Shogun]

Hi val,

 

I think the Uganda has a lot to answer for, we were a group of 13/14 year boys, were did they take us and let us out by ourselves Amsterdam,

 

lets just say, we learned a lot from that cruise.

 

yours Shogun

[cinnamon]

Just found this thread by chance. I will go over to the Uganda thread as well.

 

I sailed on a 'school cruise' on Uganda in April 1969. I still have my dormitory badge, Marco Polo, right next to the infirmary where manypeople were sick as we sailed through the Bay of Biscay in a force 10 gale.

 

I started cruising again in 1998 with my husband and am now about to take my 16th cruise!

 

Cinnamon

[lahrbrat]

we were a group of 13/14 year boys, were did they take us and let us out by ourselves Amsterdam

 

Lucky boys! We were a group of 16/17 year olds, and they set us free in Bodrum, Turkey, which at that time was a sleepy little town. We still managed to get in a large bottle of beer and a camel ride!

 

Here is my class aboard the SS Uganda.

 

[Shogun]

Hi Val,

 

Can not show you pics from Amsterdam, as we were not allowed to take photos :)

 

 

yours Shogun

[116redrock]

The common thread here is not just the ship but surviving a force 10 in the Bay of Biscay!

I managed that feat in 1977.

I remember parts of the experience like it was yesterday. We visited La Coruna, Brest, Malaga and Tangier.

I can still smell the bacon and boiled tomatoes which wafted up from the galley on the morning; although I like bacon and tomatoes the very thought of that smell makes me want to heave!

Someone had a birthday while we are at sea and a cake was produced covered in 'butter' icing. The 'butter' was margarine and the taste was appalling. It also lingers in the memory.

 

Some years after this trip I met one of the boys from Royal High who was on the ship, through rugby, but have never met up with anyone else.

 

The man I eventually married worked for a time as a ship's surgeon on the Ocean Islander, so we were both ready to become cruisers and have now sailed many times with HAL. We are sailing in the QE2's Farewell to Britain next year and I am greatly looking forward to sailing up the Clyde, to my home city of Glasgow, for the first time in 21 years.

[Shogun]

Hi There,

 

Sailed into Greenock on the Golden Princess a few years ago is was so nice to sail up the clyde, even better was the sail away one of the best if not the best send offs we have ever had, loads of people lined the river banks, little boats followed us for miles waving flags etc, what was so great about the whole thing was the captain joined in the fun, as these little boats tooted at us the ship replied with a full blast of its horn, then some little boat played some tune on its horn, so did we.

 

yours Shogun

[JIMNI]

Yes, the SS Uganda was my first cruise. It was during Christmas 1968. I was 14 and all of my best friends were on the cruise, too. I think there were 13 of us in our dormitory. I believe it was Glenn. We had rough seas and all but two in our dorm got sick. They got sick everywhere, it was awful. Two of us went on deck for a while to get some fresh air and when we went back down we put perfume on our pillows and tried sleeping with our face in the pillow. To this day, I still cannot stand that scent! We had dances every night. The food was certainly not up to todays standards, but still made for great memories. We Sailed from Tripoli, Libya and went to Naples, Barcelona, Palma, Mallorca ; Ajaccio, and Malta. Since it was during the Christmas break, we did not have any classes. It was an amazing time and it did start a love a cruising.

[Shogun]

Hi Jimni,

 

Have you still got your little metal badge your post card etc, ah the good old days, I think there must be more than a few that recall the Bay of Biscay, those little brown paper bags.

 

May be one day P&O will have a Uganda get together on one of there ships.

 

yours Shogun

[Arranach]

UGANDA, although post 1972, was owned by P&O, she was still run in the manner of her original owners, the British India Line, and continued to have the BI funnel and fly the BI houseflag till the end of her days

 

Arranach

[Shogun]

Hi Arranch,

 

Did you cruise on her.

 

yours Shogun

[mikenhe]

The Uganda!!!

I could have gone on that as a school cruise.. however my parents wanted to go on a cruise and told me if I waited a year I could go as a passenger with them!!

So I waited. I think the school area got about 1/3 of the ship for 900 kids – and 2/3rds went to the 300 other passengers..

I really enjoyed it – must have been February 1978 I went – Venice to Naples via Dubrovnik, Alexandria, Izmir, Patmos, Athens and back via Stromboli.

We did get caught in a storm too – bad enough to stop you going outside and at meal times for a couple of days there were only about 5 tables in use… got good service though.

I do remember going up on desk and there was a big plaque (well it seemed it to me) from the builders of that part of the ship – it was from Acrows of Saffron Walden – and that’s where I was living at the time!

I do remember us being assigned the same stateroom crew member and waiter. Did those guys EVER sleep?

The pool seemed to have a hell of a lot of salt… always gave me nose bleeds.

My mother still has a bunch of menus from the ship – must get her to dig them up.

Never managed another cruise. However that’s about to change – I’m taking wife and kids on a cruise next month…

[London]

Just found this thread.

February 1971 - a memorable month, when Britain dropped shillings and pence (£-s-d) and went decimal (£-p).

My first trip on a ship, and first on a plane, was to join SS Uganda on a school cruise from Naples to Venice.

My schoolmates (King Edward VI Grammar School, Nuneaton, Warwickshire) and I were in Stanhope Dormitory.

Hazy memories include being woken each morning by the Masters-At-Arms yelling "Feet on the deck!" ... a blue night-light right by my head on a top bunk ... juke box selectors like the ones you see in Johnny Rocket's ... falling desperately in love with a girl from Myton High School, Warwick, who I never saw again ... and having a sneaky cigarette with a teacher!

Great days.

[Rockley]

Hi Folks,

 

Who many of us went to sea the first time in the SS Uganda.

 

yours Shogun

 

I went on SS Uganda, but it wasn't my first time at sea. I had cruised as a child with P&O half a dozen times before Uganda. I had a wonderful time on her. I was in the sixth form, so was able to mix with the normal cabin passengers in the evening. My team won the tug of war and I put on 1 1/2 stone in weight. The food was so good.

[Shogun]

Hi Rockley,

 

What ships were you on,

 

yours Shogun

[MrsTW]

Yes my first cruise was on SS Uganda Feb/March 1976. Flew Dan Air to Dubrovnik, called at Navarino Bay, Alexandria, Haifa, Antalya then finally to Venice.

Dormitory was Mungo Park and classroom Defoe. I was a ship's prefect and we had a special cocktail party with Captain Terry. 1st staff officer was Mike Fatchen. Wonderful memories of a great ship. Has anyone read the brilliant book....."Uganda the Story of a Special Ship"

It wasn't until 30 years later that I finally cruised again and this year I've 2 cruises booked! :) Thank you Uganda x

[safarigal]

My first cruise was on the Uganda, but I don't remember the voyage alas! However my memories of a later Uganda trip, together with the other BI and P&O trips in the 50s and 60s are what I constantly try to recapture on present day cruises. I know that that time has passed, and air conditioning certainly is a good thing when you are cruising, but it really was a very special time. The school cruises on the Devonia and Dunera were an amazing experience, I think we are amazingly lucky to have had that opportunity! I hope my little blue sailor dolls and metal badges are still somewhere in a box at the back of our store room.