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Cruise Lines Escape US-Cuba Travel Ban

Obama ended the US ban on Cuba and the ice-age, and cruise lines hurried to line up getting access to a "new" un-used destination. ADONIA of Fathom cheered by Cubans - own collection, source: Cubatravel On Friday, in the “ Little Havana ” neighbourhood of Miami , surrounded by Cuban Americans, Donald Trump’s words for Cuba were " we will enforce the ban on tourism. " However, the Thing´s edict will have very little effect, hopefully, on the cruise lines that have been able to return to Cuba in the last year thanks to a loosening of regulations by former president Barack Obama. But the apprentice is giving his clientele what he promised in election ... decisions against wisdom. by Earl of Cruise Jumping off the Morro Castle at Malecón in Havana , Cuba - Source: Wikipedia Since the US-Spanish war in 1898 , Cuba was free from Spanish colonialism, but not from US influence, which was nearly a colonial system. After attempts of real democracy on ...

Gathering of the three QUEENs - Cruise vessels meet in Southampton to celebrate the 175th anniversary of CUNARD

CUNARD ´s 175th anniversary brought the existing three QUEEN´s, the "shadow of a once great fleet" together in the now abandoned port of register, Southampton. It was the first time the vessels have sailed together in daylight from CUNARD's once (2015) port of register , now Hamilton, Bermuda, on the southern coast. QUEEN MARY 2 , QUEEN ELIZABETH and QUEEN VICTORIA sailed after to New York, Hamburg and Guernsey, respectively. You may ask, why so late about that long gone event? At first my last article about MAURETANIA and menues, and second, there is more to say ... And I am anxious about the future and a Bicentannial of CUNARD with CARNIVAL, if the revenues may drop significant. by Earl of Cruise  Cunard's three Queens - flagship QUEEN MARY2 (centre), QUEEN ELIZABETH (and QUEEN VICTORIA (top), sailed together - © Daily Mail (file photo)   A massive crowd was gathered when the ships reunited in Liverpool later that May 2015 to sail down t...

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Ocean Liners in Movies or Films at Sea (updated Nov 2017)

For liners and the shipping companies movies and films had been a top marketing tool Movies or Films and liners at sea, had been intriguing me since I have read about in my youth in LUXUSLINER - BILDER EINER GROSSEN ZEIT by Lee Server ( THE GOLDEN AGE OF OCEAN LINERS ). But earlier, mot only since my first crossing, I was keen watching movies with liners in it, and disapointed, which was an understatement, when I realized the films have been made in a set ashore in some movie "factory". That was after my first crossing.   by Earl of Cruise an essay in progress `Sabrina´, Humphrey Bogart in the office, while LIBERTÉ is sailing out of New York harbor - screenshot Ocean liners, especially those of the luxury category, had been the location of dramas, love stories, thrillers, suspense and catastrophies sinde film was born, or nearly. In this list, the most descriptions are taken from Wikipedia, as I guess no one can expect having seen all these films ... otherwise I w...

HISTORY - The CUNARD - WHITE STAR Liner rms QUEEN ELIZABETH (1938-1972)

Over years, in my early youth, the QUEEN ELIZABETH was shaping my mind for the perfect ocean liner, despite having made my first experiences with a liner onboard the HANSEATIC (1), ex EMPRESS OF SCOTLAND, ex EMPRESS OF JAPAN. When leaning at the rail of HANSEATIC entering the port, my eyes where every where and I wished to by a camera, I took all in. And when seeing the QUEEN ELIZABETH with my own eyes, the nice behaving young boy turned into a tomboy, that my grandmére was no longer able to tame ... I did draw quite a lot of looks, back then. I found, while on research, this article and thought it interesting publishing in my blog: written and published by John Sheperd at liverpoolships.org editing and comments by Earl of Cruise I ( John Shepard ) joined the CUNARD LINE in March 1962 as an Assistant Purser and sailed the QUEEN ELIZABETH throughout that year, before transferring to the Liverpool-based CARINTHIA in November, where I remained as Crew Purser for the next five...

HISTORY - ts / ss BREMEN and ts / ss EUROPA

Germany’s two luxury liners, BREMEN and EUROPA , have not only played an important part in their country’s mercantile revival, but have added also an immortal chapter to the history of transatlantic travel. Copy from Shipping Wonders of the World   From part 6 , published 17 March 1936 editing by Earl of Cruise ss / ts BREMEN in her early years - Source: Shipping Wonders of the World/Bundespresse Archiv The PRIDE OF A NATION - the NORDDEUTSCHER LLOYD quadruple-screw turbine express liner BREMEN . The keel of this ship was laid in June 1927. Her launch took place in August, 1928. In less than a year later, the Bremen made her first voyage to America, when she crossed the Atlantic from Cherbourg to New York in four days seventeen hours forty-two minutes, thus setting up a new record and gaining the coveted “Blue Riband”. During the passage the Bremen attained an average speed of 27.83 knots. ss / ts BREMEN in her early years - Source: W ikipedia For the pop...

HISTORY - FRENCH LINE - COMPAGNIE GÉNÉRALE TRANSATLANTIQUE, a review - Part II Belle Epoque

The COMPAGNIE GÉNÉRALE TRANSATLANTIQUE, known since the Belle Epoque as FRENCH LINE in the English speaking world (or TRANSAT or CGT), had its origins in 1861.  by Earl of Cruise E mperor Napoléon III. wanted strengthening the French primacy on the oceans and an adequate mail line for the French mail. The 1855 established COMPAGNIE GÉNÉRALE MARITIME of the Péreire brothers was the core for the new company. This company´s headquarter was, as any major business in France, situated in Paris, while the homeport of the vessels had been Le Havre for the North Atlantic and Marseille for the route to the Orient and Africa. Houseflag of COMPAGNIE GÉNÉRALE TRANSATLANTIQUE S.A. - soure: ebay "On   limited space, we put our country on display", a crewmember declared once. And no other line put in more of its national personality into its product than COMPAGNIE GÉNÉRALE TRANSATLANTIQUE . After the French - Prussian/German war of 1870/71 France had to sig...

ss NORMANDIE 1935-1942 XIII - Le NORMANDIE the great triumph and tragic end of the greatest ship of France

NORMANDIE at sea - courtsey coloured by Daryl LeBlanc Le NORMANDIE , the greates ship of France, was a great triumph for the French industry, economy the most gracious ambassador of France - a symbol of cultur and Savoir de Vivre. NORMANDIE never surppassed by any liner. But whom the gods love, they beat him to a tragic ending. In case of NORMANDIE the gods let do their dirty job by careless, ignorant and arrogant US Navy officials and their sub contractors.   by Earl of Cruise   NORMANDIE had 4 years of living and the chance to bring Glitz, Glamour and Luster into a world that was just in front of an abyss since October 1929. Sailing with NORMANDIE , created to cater primarily the First Clas clientele, and enjoying life on board seems to me today, as a Dance on the Volcano, that errupted in 1939. Longitudinal cutaway of PARIS - own collection copy from a CGT broshure ÎLE DE FRANCE , Cie Gle TRANSATLANTIQUE provoking ART DÉCO liner - own collection  ...

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Design - Call me FRANCE again - will the mythical ship be back at sea

Le FRANCE, the famous and mythical French ocean liner, will he be back at sea again? President Charles De Gaulle claimed, during the christening ( by Yvonne de Gaulle ) ceremony May 11th, 1960, that FRANCE III is a true revival of glamorous NORMANDIE ... Those having sailed on NORMANDIE and had the luck of experiencing his grandeur and then top luxuries on board, named FRANCE "vulgar" ... as my aunt and others able to compare. Didier Spade, a French naval architect and businessman, connected to FRANCE via his father´s and grandfather´s engagement in the outfitting of the famous and last French Transatlantic liner, created a new interpretation of the famous and still loved FRANCE. by Earl of Cruise Didier Spade´s vision of the Nouveau FRANNCE - courtesy Mer et Marine When FRANCE was purchsed by visionairy Kloster, the once liner lost its character after the transforming into the then biggest cruise vessel. What was left was only a last glance of the 1950/60s design ...

ss NORMANDIE 1935 - 1942 IX

s s / te NORMANDIE starting from cold Owners: COMPAGNIE GÉNÉRALE TRANSATLANTIQUE BUILDERS: PENH Ö ET, St. Nazaire, France   by Stephen Carey © , editing by Earl of Cruise   This document is almost exclusively about the engineering aspects of NORMANDIE , mainly on how to start her up from cold. If you are looking for photos of the passenger spaces, there is a plethora of them on the web, in Facebook groups - Admirers of the ss Normandie , ss Normandie photographic file , The French Ocean Liners / Les Paquebots Fran ç ais , ss Normandie , GREAT LINERS OF THE PAST & PRESENT , and others, Pinterest and in articles about NORMANDIE here in the blog, please see at the end of the article. Using "ss" for NORMANDIE is quite incorrect, as NORMANDIE was a Turbo Electric vessel and not a steamship, therefore NORMANDIE should be adressed as "te".   by Earl of Cruise te / ss NORMANDIE berthed in Le Havre, Gare Maritime May 29th, 1935 - colouring courtesy ...

Ships of State - BREMEN the shocking modern German Greyhound

When BREMEN , the first of the two, the world shocking last German Greyhounds , and ` Ships of State ´, was introduced in 1929 - BREMEN had provoking radical new streamlined lines and broke with any traditions. When asking todays public: what is a typical liner, BREMEN is named among the first five. Only ten years after the Versailles Peace Treaty , with 20,000,000,000,000.00 Goldmark anual reparations for the next 58 years, an occupation of the Ruhrgebiet , a raging inflation till 1923 (then introduction of the Rentenmark ), the resurging Germany and NORDDEUTSCHER LLOYD back at the top again. And BREMEN and EUROPA had been financed private! Bank loans from German and US American banks, plus the liberation of frozen LLOYD capital from pre WWI. by Earl of Cruise BREMEN, in her first years with the squat funnels - courtesy coloured by Daryl LeBlanc The difference to EUROPA are the paired windows in the front of the promenade deck and the big ventilators, the last remains o...

ss NORMANDIE 1935-1942 XII - The Most Beautiful Ocean Liner Ever Built

For many, or should I say for "a great many" Ocean Liner Lovers, NORMANDIE is the most beautiful liner ever built. Me, I am among those aficionados.   NORMANDIE was technically decades ahead of time. The vessel got implemented technologies that would have been copied by others, who then claimed to be the first to have. Alternative facts are not a modern days invention of a certain chrétien and his backward oriented entourage ... NORMANDIE´s interior was the peak of ART DECO in France, and was, still is, the peak of chic. Never again any liner, or passenger vessel, except NIEUW AMSTERDAM had been designed exterior and interior that strict in the "guide lines" of the ART DECO (Link in German) movement - as ART DECO is "only" a movement and not a school like BAUHAUS . Therefore the style was in a permanent "move" and development. NORMANDIE, the perfect ocean liner, Le Vaisseau de Lumière, Le Deesse de la Mer - courtsey coloured by Dary...