A Late October Atlantic Crossing

On day three out of Southampton, southwest of Ireland, I saw a whale spout about 100 yards from QM2 but the mammal otherwise stayed out of sight. On day four there was the most horrific Atlantic storm all night. The Captain said the highest recorded wind was 110 mph. Neither my wife nor I were ill and we attribute lack of sickness to the absence of a roll, something to do with two inches of steel in the bow, and great stabilizers. But the ups and downs of the ship were huge! The Captain said his vessel was 'good for it'. It's almost luck to see fish life; however, on the westbound crossing in May, the ship steered slightly further south than usual, because of pack ice and my wife and I saw thousands of dolphins over a couple of hours - thought they were going to jump through the picture windows of Sir Samuels coffee lounge on deck three. To get back to last week's crossing. Everything was ship shape, from our cabin steward who kept marvelously out of sight but knew what we needed, to the Purser's staff who found me a pair of black shoes when I realized my formals were left behind in the London hotel. We ate in Brittania Club. The pleasant thing about that niche restaurant, is, you can stop by for dinner anytime between 6:30 and 9:30 in the evening, for the superlative dining experience.