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4 - Sunday, July 21, 1985 - North Shore News

Revelling in royalty on Princess cruise

I HAVE been up the Inside Passage several times, but it was always either on a fishboat,

minesweeper or something like that. Never on a luxury cruiser. And never on the luxury cruiser in the world.

As fate would have it, my wife and I were among the few Canadians who got on board P&O’s new flagship, the Royal Princess, when she docked one rainy morning in Vancouver for her inaugural run to Glacier Bay, Alaska. I’m sure-everybody has seen the vessel out in English Bay at least once since early June,

The ship is-quite decep- tive, seen in the distance, because you assume she is built on the same scale as her older sister, the famous Love Boat.

Not only is she twice the size -- 45,000 tons, 761 feet jong -- but her design incor- porates the use of ‘com- puters, satellite communica- tions, fins, independent rudders and propellors and new kinds of engines.

Most importantly, from the passenger’s- point of view, a different basic body design was used which per- mits the construction of all-outside cabins. That is, every passenger gets at least ‘a picture window, and some 152 staterooms have private balconies.

And I mean private. They are set up so that, if you don’t lean over the rail, you can’t see anybody, nor can you be seen.

- Sunbathing on your balcony, .maybe sipping a drink, watching the lonely vistas of the: northern coastline go by, it’s as if you had rented a cottage perched on stilts over a beach, except that the scenery keeps mov- ing, the Veil of Maya forever unravelling, and you really can relax fairly quickly. .

Living seven stories above the water level in a ‘cabin

‘with a sliding door that leads

onto a balcony on a ship, one has to learn a few new habits. like closing the balcony door before opening the other door leading onto the hallway, otherwise one finds oneself in wind tunnel.

There was one night that will stand out forever. Hav-~ ing gone around Baranof Island on the outside, we found ourselves in a light swell off the Gulf of Alaska with a full moon abeam and the sun just over the horizon, even though it was 2 a.m., so that the moon floated in orange and pink light and the sea was a diaphanous lens. The tinkle of wine glasses, rustle of silk, etc.

Since the Royal Princess carries nearly 1,200 people, I was a bit worried about feel- ing crowded. I am not one of those peaple who subscribes to the rockery theory of good times.

a

the joggers are out in force, pattering along -- three times around, I think added up to one mile -- one merely has to walk slowly and it is as good as being along, since

strictly personal

by Bob Hunter

It was a pleasant surprise, therefore, to find that it was easy to become invisible on the boat, and that the interi- or was so vast there were plently of times of day and night when you found yourself wandering about almost as if the ship was yours alone.

Also, between the balcony and the TV set, you can se- quester yourself in your room quite nicely. Simply leave the Do not disturb sign up, call-room service, and

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forget the world.

Even in the morning “rush hour” on deck, when everyone else is breathing too hard as they lope past to bother doing anything more than nodding.

Food? Well, naturally, it was the best. The ship’s of- ficers might all be Brits, but the chef and his culinary staff were Italian, and there was much banter about the British and Roman empires. It was food for thought, all right. (Explain this ar-

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rangement to Caesar!)

This is where the credit card system has to be kept in mind, especially if one is not on an expense account and suddenly finds oneself, taste buds still trembling with ecstasy after the Veal Ossobuco Milanese, signall- ing giddily for another round of Pouilly-Fuisse ...

Scenery? i’d forgotten how the long stretches of

coastline cast a spell over -

you. After a while, you do feel a tranquility in your soul. It is a feeling that ought not to be mouthed up and can’t really be described It causes me to shiver, it does.

So that’s luxury cruising, eh? If you're going to ac- quire a new exotic taste, might as well start with the state-of-the-art, and that the Royal Princess definitely is. Whew!

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