November 2023: I am delighted that I have been offered the above cruise. The ship looks beautiful and very luxurious, and the itinerary great. It is my first invitation to speak on a Cunard ship, and I look forward to the cruise and an exciting new opportunity and experience!
October 2024: Well! I have just come back from a truly lovely 14-day Mediterranean cruise on the and the Queen Victoria; which proved to be a beautiful, spacious and luxurious ship!
It was my first time with Cunard, however, from the outset, the staff was friendly, welcoming, professional, and efficient. Our cabin was comfortable, the food and entertainment terrific – all of which which helped me quickly relax into my role as a speaker.
We were due to board at Trieste, northeast Italy, however, my guest and I had booked a 4-night stay in Trieste itself, prior to the cruise; a place we knew nothing about, but we discovered a very beautiful city, with a fascinating history.
We both fell in love with Trieste – so much so, that I felt I have to write a talk about it, and I began my research whilst enjoying its very varied history and sites – my favourite of which was Miramare Castle
I discovered that Miramare Castle is not only beautiful, with wonderful views and enchanting gardens, but it also has a most incredible history – which I have decided will be the subject of my next talk!
The ’Victoria’ stopped off at some lovely places – I found Split in Croatia fascinating – with the Roman Emperor Diocletian’s Palace tucked away behind the beachfront. As I have written about Diocletian in my talk on Istanbul, I felt there was a great link there for another interesting talk – again, I began my research as we spent a most enjoyable day there!
The talks I gave on the cruise appeared to be received well; as always, I had tailored them to make them relevant to what the passengers would find in the ports ‘Victoria’ was calling at, and I received some nice feed-back and enjoyed some interesting conversations with the passengers too.
The weather was perfect every day, and each evening, I made sure I was up on deck (maybe with glass of wine in hand) to watch the wonderful, warm, setting sun. Gorgeous! Then into our cabin to dress for a delicious supper and great evening entertainment. Terrific!
We left the ship at Istanbul – another fascinating, ancient port-city, where we stayed for a couple of nights, and enjoyed taking our time relaxing, seeing some great sights, and eating delicious Turkish food.
I returned home feeling very lucky to have had such a wonderful experience; and hoping very much that I might be offered another cruise with Cunard – a most impressive line! Fingers crossed again
Unearthing Egyptology - Talks on Egyptology 