This picture is splashed across today’s Cape Argus (a Cape Town daily,) click on the pic for a larger view, the restrictions on these pages just can’t do justice to the photograph.
From the paper…
“THE 345m Queen Mary 2, one of the world’s most luxurious cruise liners, dwarfs the immigration marquees on the Eastern Mole of Duncan Dock.
The ship arrived at dawn yesterday carrying 2 300 passengers and leaves for Durban tomorrow before setting off across the Indian Ocean for Australia and the Far East.”
Boadicea's Chariot 
Just read yet another report that a competitor’s cruise ship contracted stomach bugs which laid low 600 souls!!
Novovirus specials seem to float about every winter. For the life of me I cannot understand why people bother. Those ships hold up to 6000 people, more like a floating black hole of Calcutta!
They would have to pay me a fortune to get on one!
I recently read a comment from a former cruise ship crew member to the effect that the current trend of hiring low-paid staff from far-off countries, where the word “hygiene” is not much used, was leading to these terrible outbreaks of food-poisoning and such. The 21st century version of scurvy?
I don’t have a problem with cruise ships, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the odd cruise that I’ve been on.
It’s estimated that world wide passengers in 2012 was over 20million! ( http://www.cruisemarketwatch.com/articles/cruise-market-watch-announces-2012-cruise-trends-forecast/ )
There’s bound to be the odd hiccup (norovirus even) Not living in the world of Hi-viz jackets, hard hats and heath and safety on every corner, I’m still prepared to take my chances 😉
I’ve never been on a large cruise ship, Soutie, but I have friends who think this is the perfect holiday.
I have been aboard this Queen Mary, but that doesn’t really count.
http://www.queenmary.com/
We got into cruises a few years ago and really enjoy them. Our eldest daughter moved with her Husband and the three Grandchildren to Manhattan a year ago and we have flown over three times, going again in three weeks. We are considering the Queen Mary for one of our trips and flying back, will keep you posted if we do it.
I hate these modern cruise ships, ugly boxes all of them.
There were three cruise ships in the harbour of Santorini at the same time. Absolute chaos on land, with people wearing their badges, racing around trying to find the correct group. No thanks.