Great Western Coffee Shop

I'm currently on what's one of the longest non-stop pubic transport journeys left in the world, and making the journey rather more for the journey's sake that to get from "A" to "B". To fill you in on "A" and "B" - "A" is Newark, New Jersey, "B" is Barcelona, and it's about five days from Newark to the first intermediate stop - in the Azores.

With a journey this long, service remains largely fixed-based and staffed - like a buffet or restaurant car - and there are trolleys going up and down the aisles with tepid coffee and "we've only got one egg and cress left". However, the metrics are such that I am NOT required to take my personal possessions with me at all times, and that I'm secure in the knowledge that my own place will be availabel to me when I get back - I won't have lost it to some person joining at an intermediate stop, nor to someone who's having to stand all the way.

In order to keep passengers happy, various entertainments are provided - and the size and space of our vehicle is such that larger spaces are avaiable than would be the case on a train. True, we fitted under the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge with just 6 feet (or was it 6 metres?) to spare, but then with clearance of 70 metres (230 feet) below, that's a generous gauge that even Brunel didn't look to equal on his broad gauge, heavily specified lines.

WiFi connectivity is provided - but at a $$$ price.  Sign up for it when you start the journey, and listen to the advertising blurb over the tannoy and all-pervasive all-invasive screen when you board - and you'll learn it's just like the internet at home - "this ship has more internet connectivity than all other cruise ships put together" and the techie bloke being interviewed says "it's like having a fibre optic cable attached to the rear of the ship".  But in reallity that cable is shared by 4905 passengers (at maximum load, and I think we're at about 3500) and 1500 crew - with many of the 5,000 or so wanting to be in touch with home at peak times of day.  So browsing speed for sites that download lots of clever stuff in the pages is frustrating.

Transport links into the departure point were / are truely awful - you can get a coach if you're on some sort or package, or a taxi or minibus if not - it's 2 miles out onto an industrial  peninsula, with a potholded road with no pavement.  True, the rapid transit tram at the top of the peninsula looks good and modern ... but even from there, the company's recommendation is "take a cab", and having seen the place / tram stop, I recon it would be quite hard to find one unless you had a number to hand. We had been pre-warned and took a cab from our hotel in Newark; the least sustainable leg of our trip so far.

It just so happens that my wife, her brother and sister, her brother's wife and her sister and husband, and her siste's exwork colleaguage and travelling companion are also making the journey.  That's no co-incidence, even though this is a pretty rare crossing these days - a "positioning move" for the ship which let us get places at sensible prices. I had better go off and do some things with the group ... see if I can post this first.   And I am glad we're not on the whole 53 day voyage to Shanghai ...

I'm sorry GrahamE but I can beat that one.  Left Canaries evening of day 5, arrived Bahamas morning of day 12.  We even got a certificate at the end javascript:void(0);.  A group of us ended up together each night in one of the watering holes.  1 American, 2 Australian, 2 English (us) and one Scottish.  We didn't try the WiFi, couldn't get a mortgage.  I agree with your points about the Newark cruise terminal.  It is far from being tourist friendly and I had coach transfers!

As an aside, that reminds me of my own experience, many years ago, sailing on the Cunard Queen Elizabeth 2 under the suspension bridge over the Lisboa - I even wondered whether we'd fit under it.  ::) :o ;D

My wife and daughter sailed on the QM2 to NYC in 2010. Apparently, the crew had to 'adjust the ballast' to allow the ship to fit under the Verrazano Narrows Bridge

I've sailed under that on board a modern Cruise Ship much larger than the dear old QE2 (P&O's Ventura) and although it looked like quite a tight fit, I don't think it was at all. That bridge makes a lot of noise as you pass under, due to metal roadways I think.

Smooth seas to Grahame.