Blog 792 Day 43. End (almost) of parts one and two.

Tonight is my last on board Queen Elizabeth, home for 43 nights.

I thought it would never end; I didn’t want it to end, but this time tomorrow, I could be taking afternoon tea in the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, my home for the next two nights. Right now, I am almost outside Fairmont’s Empress Hotel in Victoria on Vancouver Island, hoping for an afternoon tea cancellation at 4 pm. The Pacific Northwest is not particularly warm as I wait at the nearby waterfront and quayside. If it was less windy, I would have jumped at the chance of one of the numerous whale watching or other trips on offer.

Needless to say, when I walked into the Empress on speck, my lack of previous reservation did not stand me in good stead. I am on (at my suggestion) the waiting list for the next session of an $89 afternoon tea, which I think is a bargain! I have a nasty suspicion that I will have just 60 minutes in which to consume what they have to offer. At least, I have set foot in this still prestigious place where perhaps I might actually stay should the unwelcoming climes of this part of the world call me back.

Ye Gods! The packing is all but complete and there’s adequate room for the remaining few items still at the ship’s laundry. I have the documentation in place for the big blue suitcase to be transferred to Queen Mary 2 in New York. I didn’t need to find a post office to mail excess baggage home; I just hope that I and said suitcase are reunited on 8th July!

And, of course, a place for me was found for the 4 pm sitting of Afternoon Tea at the Empress. This was superb, with the chef, at very little notice, organising a special diet tea with low/no sugar pastries and diabetic jam for the scone. That’s another box ticked! I wasn’t restricted to one hour,nor just one decent sized pot of tea. But now, the magnificent tea room is almost empty.