David George
We invite guest blogger David back for an account of his recent cruise on Oriana...
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| Beautiful Oriana... |
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| David's most recent cruise sees him swinging for his supper... and loving every minute of it! |
It was when we walked through the archway into Armstrong Park in New Orleans that I knew I had finally arrived in the spiritual home of jazz, New Orleans. Louis Armstrong’s presence surrounded us: imposing bronze sculptures not only of Satchmo himself but also of his contemporaries and the one that impressed me most of all, a jaunty toe-tapping bronze of an entire jazz band marching through the park.
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| One of the bronze statues you can find in New Orleans |
From here, it was a short stroll to Bourbon Street in the French Quarter and home to most of the city’s clubs and bars, many of them dedicated to jazz, much of it played live. In the evening, the fun spilled out into the streets with street musicians and visitors – locals as well as tourists – dancing, listening to the music or just chatting. This was my first visit to the States and the kindness of strangers that evening will stay with me; passers-by and bar tenders were equally charming and nothing seemed too much trouble. We asked someone for directions to Fritzel’s, a well-known haunt for jazz lovers, and rather than point us in the right direction he happily walked us to the door.
We were in port overnight with the result that having enough time to explore wasn’t a problem. Climbing aboard one of the famous streetcars, part of the oldest continuously operating system in the world (and incidentally with concessionary fares for the retired – just carry your passport), we visited the upmarket Garden District to see some of the magnificent mansions that I had only ever seen in Hollywood films. But the warren of streets in the French Quarter is the biggest attraction and one that was easily accessible from Oriana on foot. We headed to Jackson Square with its classical gardens, views of paddle steamers on the Mississippi and a cathedral constructed in white stone, some of its features reflecting the city’s early French ownership.
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| A cathedral in New Orleans |
A couple of blocks away, Royal Street is packed with antique shops and cafes that are set amongst elegant homes with their trademark wrought iron balconies, many decorated with hanging baskets.
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| A colourfully-decorated balcony in New Orleans |
It was here that we also had our first opportunity to sample the city’s famous beignets, square doughnuts dusted liberally with icing sugar and packed with calories. At Café Beignet they are sold in threes, more than enough for couples wanting something with their coffees.
Back on board Oriana, the cruise had settled into its stride. We had already enjoyed the sunshine of Caribbean islands like St Kitts and Grand Cayman with their white sandy beaches and pale blue seas, and Oriana was delivering a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.
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| Tiffany's on board Oriana |
The ship has long been one of my favourites but on this cruise she seemed to have upped her game another notch. Okay, Oriana may be getting on in years but she still sparkles and every officer and crew member we met impressed with their courtesy and interest. The United States is deservedly famed for the quality of its service culture, sadly something that is becoming less evident in our own country, but I’m pleased to report that on Oriana it is still very much alive and well.
At the New Orleans’ Sailaway, enjoyment of the waterfront scenes was marred only by the knowledge that we were leaving behind such a vibrant yet relaxed city: no wonder Americans call it the Big Easy. Yes, some marvellous ports lay ahead of us like laidback Key West and elegant Charleston, but New Orleans was truly special, more so because of the background talks given by guest speaker and jazz historian, Chris Walker. He set the scene and whetted our appetites whilst his jazz trio together with Oriana’s orchestra and Magnifique, one of Oriana’s music groups, provided a soundtrack to the city’s personality.
I would love to have stayed longer and happily when I returned to my cabin next evening I discovered a way of doing it. My brilliant steward Rosanna had left a flyer with news of a forthcoming event for those dining in the ship’s exclusive specialist restaurant, Marco Pierre White’s Ocean Grill. The evening was to be called ‘Swing For Your Supper’ and it would provide the opportunity to relive the Big Easy experience by dining in style in the company of Chris Walker’s jazz trio. We agreed to book a table and what a good job it was that I changed the habit of a lifetime by doing it promptly because within hours every table had been taken.
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| The jazz band live in the White Room |
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| Passengers enjoying their jazz-themed supper |
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| An impressive Chateubriand steak being finely cut to your liking |
The first slice confirmed that chef Joseph’s definition of ‘medium rare’ matched mine exactly; this was beef at its most tender, the flavours enhanced by the Madeira jus and accompaniments of triple-cooked hand cut chips, field mushrooms, crispy onion rings and vine-roasted cherry tomatoes. Wonderful! The recommended Argentinian Malbec was a good choice and by the time we had finished, we needed extra time before summoning the courage to select desserts.
With the trio playing such swing classics as Ain’t Misbehavin’ and It Had To Be You, this was no problem at all and we settled back to savour the atmosphere of a swish New Orleans’ restaurant.
Colin and Sylvia Jarvis from Bradford in West Yorkshire loved every minute too. “We’re into jazz and we’re also into good food,” Colin told me, “so what better place to be than here in the Ocean Grill? We really are ‘Puttin’ On The Ritz’ tonight!”
As regular cruisers will know, news travels fast on ships and it came as no surprise when I heard about the decision to repeat the event. I found out later that ‘Swing for your Supper’ was the brainchild of Dianne Lilley, Food and Beverage Manager, and Tom Driscoll, Commercial Manager. I spoke to Tom when the restaurant had emptied and he was still buzzing with excitement. “It went even better than we hoped,” he said. “The waiters and galley staff loved it too – the evening was so busy that time flew!”
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| Tom O'Driscoll, the man behind "Swing For Your Supper" |
And how did the idea come about?
"We like to look at what people do ashore and in New Orleans we saw that the bars and jazz clubs were popular with guests. We looked at ways of adding to that enjoyment back on Oriana and decided that a combination of swing classics and fine food was an idea worth looking at. Fortunately the passengers agreed! That's what it's all about for us - passenger satisfaction."
Next day, new adventures awaited us. This is the bonus of cruising for me – there’s never enough time for time to stand still. On sea days I joined Tony Westmore’s art classes and over the length of the cruise completed eight watercolours related to the ports we had visited. I’m no artist but Tony is an exceptional teacher and his encouragement and practical tips inspired us to achieve ever more challenging paintings. On the last day, pictures were displayed outside Harlequins and we were amazed to see the number of passengers who came along to view them.
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| Passengers enjoy each others' artwork |
Those art sessions helped to make the cruise the success it was and I hope one day to attend another of Tony’s cruise classes. Others found their enjoyment in such activities as bridge classes, port talks, quizzes and gym workouts, all organized by Cruise Director Jon Bartram and his team. Each day the Horizon newspaper circulated details and inevitably there were clashes from time to time but only because there were so many choices to be made.
The weather had been kind, ranging from 27c in the Caribbean to a brisker 15c beneath blue skies in the States but on the way home across the Atlantic our luck ran out and squally showers kept us indoors. By contrast, the much-maligned Bay of Biscay was more like a port in a storm, calm and tranquil. None of this bothered me. I continued to complete my paintings, table companion Meirion Roberts-Thomas continued to defy logic by arguing that England would never beat Wales on Saturday to win the Triple Crown and therefore the Grand Slam in the Six Nations, and our waiters Chandru, Bala, Sandip and Vineeth continued to spoil all of us each evening in Peninsular Restaurant.
What did the senior officers make of the cruise? I had the opportunity to ask the Head of the Hotel Department, Executive Purser Ian Wynne Smythe, and he too sensed that overall the cruise had been a great success with passengers.
“But for me it has been memorable for another reason,” he added. “For the first time, we’ve achieved three major challenges which are unique to visits to the States - we met the US Coastguard inspection requirements, US Immigration was our most efficient yet and the icing on the cake was that we also passed the US Port Health inspection, a very stringent examination of Oriana's standards of hygiene. I'm very proud of the ship's company for these achievements – they're on a par with winning our very own Triple Crown!"
I had never been on a cruise as long as this one and when I booked it I wondered if I could stay the course. Well, after visiting so many destinations new to me, and having done it in such style, I needn’t have worried. The obvious next question must be: why stop at 35 nights? Could a world cruise beckon? Maybe first I’d better see what my savings’ accounts have to say!
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