Peter, magnificent tour! Thank you for your excellent production and well-chosen music. Now I am literally going to book a cruise on the Volendam today. Much appreciation for an outstanding - and convincing! - tour.
She won’t be the only ship we might soon lose, from what I know the MV Astoria (former Stockholm) is about to broken up for scrap too, as G&B ship register puts it as “to be broken up” I always wanted to visit the port of Rotterdam to see the ocean liner named after it, but after I lost interest in ships in 2023 that went to the back of my mind, but recently I have been getting sort of interested in ships again, so maybe I can visit Rotterdam and perhaps catch a quick glimpse of Astoria before she is sent away.
I little late But I am saddened about the fate of Aurora I had no idea she was sold I found out about her fate several months ago actually, the fact she was so close to being saved to!
Absolutely stunning ship! What a privilege for you to have had the access to all those beautiful staterooms! Thank you so much for making the video of your fabulous tour!
Wow Peter the original Sea Cloud is magnificent!Her interiors renmind me of the Titanic!she also looks like a ship of Titanic's time vs the 1930's which is wild.Its also good to see this piece of 1931 history still preserved!
Hi Peter. Does this ring a bell ?? "A, B, C, D, E, F ..... E.F. Hutton !!!" When E.F. Hutton Speaks, people listen. Now I am really dating myself !! The ship is lovely.
On leaving Gravesend sea school my first ship was the Canberra. The Windsor Castle with her resplendent lavender hull was moored behind, looking like everything a ship should. In my heart I wanted more than anything to join & sail on her! Still cannot grumble as I had 6 great years on reefers to New Zealand 😊
Ah, wonderful! Those were the halcyon days of Brit liners in my book. Loved the P&O and UCL ships the most. Thanks for watching and posting. By the way, this video is enjoying a renaissance. Where did you find out about it?
I was an asst. waiter for American Hawaii Cruises in 1983 and it seems ridiculous but I can't remember if I worked on the Independence or Constitution, as it was only the one. I wonder if there is a record of their journey's somewhere that you could nail down the port and the date? One interesting perspective is that I never got to see many of the nice interior areas or deck areas because crew is not allowed there, unless your job is serving passengers...so the only place I was allowed was in the dining room which was totally enclosed with no windows, or my room shared with four others in bunk beds below the water line with no windows, but only a red light on almost 24 hours, or a small area at the fore or aft amongst the ropes, and of course crew dining also below water line. So it was quite a claustrophobic experience out at sea on a beautiful ship but I hardly saw daylight...very different experience from the passengers. We had to carry all the food from the kitchen to the tables on large oval trays held above our shoulders by one hand, all while the ship was swaying from side to side...and Hawaii cruises are amongst the worst for motion because the broad channels between islands funnel a lot of wind through. It was really hard to carry those trays, but I never dropped one...when someone did wow was it a huge noise and everyone knew what had happened. A good memory was the large round tables that put together passengers who didn't know each other at the start, but they were assigned to stay together for the whole cruise, and so they came to really have a good time together, and we were always the same wait staff, so we got to know them and they treated us so well and had fun with us. Even though we were working so hard from early til late, setting up before the meal, serving, then tearing down, take a quick break then come set up the next meal...I have such a fond memory of them all having such a good time that it made me happy to be around them, and know I was helping create that energy.
Hi Jeffrey. Thank you so much for taking the time to post here. Love reading about your time on board and the not-often shared info about what it was like to work on the ship. On the timeline, INDY started Hawaiian service in 1980 and CONNIE followed in 1982. Both served together until 1994, when CONNIE was withdrawn. After that, it was just INDY until 2001, then she went kaput.
Immigrated to Perth, Western Australia in March 1972, it took 4 weeks and as a small child, I totally enjoyed it. I was so sad to hear about the sinking of this great ship. Thank you for the videos, really enjoyed them - cheers
thank you for this. i'm a long-time lover of ocean liners. i used to pay 50 cents to the seamen's fund to wander around the liners when they were in port in the 50's and early 60's. i saw the united states in turkey in 1992, and i have a drawing of her at her pier at 48th street in the summer of 1952 street. btw, isn't the qe2 still around somewhere?
Not sure if you are making a statement or asking a question but the story is still unfolding. Looks like the reefing deal will go through but many of us are hoping for something better
Thank you! That was so nice of Chris to refer his viewers here. I'm so glad you like the channel and look forward to sharing many more videos about ships, both old and new. :)
I'm guessing there was no new unnamed owner. Chris must have come to the fairly obvious conclusion that he could not afford to repair the hull in dry dock and that for that same reason no one would buy it. So he fakes an anonymous sale and abandons ship. Of course I could be wrong but what else was he going to do?
Honestly, I do not know what is actually going on. I'm very disappointed with this whole situation. Chris said he would never give up the ship, so if he did, it must have been a very traumatic decision to make.
I haven't made it yet. There has been so much goign on with the UNITED STATES and other assignments. It is on my list but probably a few months away. It will appear on the front page of this channel when it does get posted. :)
@@midshipcinema Thank you for letting me know. I totally understand what you mean. lots going on here too. I am scheduled for a tour of the BIG U this coming Saturday 09/28/2024 at 2:00pm so I am really looking forward to that. Hope the weather holds out for it. I'm also looking into eventually going to Rotterdam to see the ROTTERDAM and eventually Japan with one stop being the HIKAWA MARU. all of these are bucket list visits to see classic liners I love that still exist.
@@midshipcinema I hope so too. But doubt I will get to get to places like you saw. I have an image of you in a book on top of one of the funnels! How memorable!!!
It's a curiosity. I'm pretty sure it exists merely to offset the owner's real estate gains. The "we're going to turn it into something useful" story is a joke. Seeing as the Conservancy has owned it for 30 years and this all that they can do, it should be obvious that turning an enormous hulk of a ship into something that can generate profits isn't possible. It wasn't worthy of investment when they purchased it. It certainly isn't now. Hopefully you get to visit an actual museum ship like the Intrepid, Hornet, Lexington, Texas, Alabama, or even Queen Mary while you visit. This tax dodge is an annoying mess.
Wow, you sure seem to think you know your stuff. I've visited hundreds of ships, active, preserved, laid up and even in the process of being scrapped. Try Googling me to see what I have done in the world of ships for the past forty years. I've stated my case on behalf of the UNITED STATES and do not need to retread with you here. And, so you know, the Conservancy has not owned the ship for 30 years and she is structurally sound according to recent tests by prospective buyers.
Amazing that it still exists, amazing that it may soon be gone. I went up from my home in Delaware a short 40 miles to see her on Sept. 22, and felt sick knowing her uncertain future. With all that is spent on nonsense in this world it's a sin that something can't be done to keep her afloat.
Thank you for this. I last saw her as my family and I disembarked from our voyage from Scotland to the U.S. om May of 1958. That was my second of four voyages across the Atlantic. The other three ships I sailed on are long gone, I still have some hope she will not soon join them in existing only in memory and photos and videos.
@@midshipcinema the Captain Cook in 1955 and the Empress of Britain in 1962. After some modifications, she later became the first Carnival Cruise cruise liner. I also have a photo Dad took of the Empress of Britain while she was still under construction at a pier on the River Clyde.
@@MarkWick Fantastic! When the former EOB was scrapped in India, I rescued many of her fittings, including her builder's plate and CARNIVALE bell, etched glass panels and marquetry paneling. Some of those items can be seen on board the new CARNIVAL CELEBRATION in the Golden Jubilee Bar. Thank you for sharing. :)
@@midshipcinema I still have two decks of cards in their box, from that voyage. I also have numerous items from the Queen Mary, on which my grandmother sailed in 1956 or 57. Those items include a dinner menu and deck plans showing all the decks and cabins.
I came over from England on that boat in 1968 with my British Mother & American Dad, three sisters and my brother. The irony, I live in Okaloosa County who is trying to make it a Reef.
Not an American ship, so not sure what you are getting at. There's a much bigger, actual American ship on the east coast that might fit your analogy better.
My family and I sailed on this grand ship in 1963 when we moved to England. I was only 9-year-old but I still remember so many details. I remember meeting actor John Wayne in the dining room. It was a trip of a lifetime. Looks much different now :(
I spent a year on her when she was the EXPEX in Los Angeles harbor. After working aboard, I saw a Calif. Maritime Academy book in the ships small library Ended up going there and spending 23 years at sea in the Merchant Marine. This ship changed my life and gave me the world.
Wow, fascinating! I've never encountered anyone who had anything to do with her EXPEX phase. I saw her anchored off Long Beach when I was with some friends on their boat celebrating the 4th of July. We circled her and I took some slides. Would love to learn more about what she was doing there or what the plans were before they sold her to Friendships.
@@midshipcinema EXPEX was suppose to be a world traveling floating U. S. products Export Exhibition Ship in order to generate world trade for U. S. Manufacturers. I along with other workers and the owner/ his family lived on the ship. It changed my life. I was basically a deckhand and ran the launch that took people ashore to the office everyday. I knew I wanted to have a career at sea and although the project never got off the ground, it changed my life. I went back to community college and then went to the Calif. Maritime Academy. I spent 23 years at sea, 22 on 3 U. S. Navy auxiliary oceanographic research ships. I saw the world. Working on this ship gave me the discipline to go back to school and follow my dreams. A real shame what has happened. We all know the saying, ships are holes in the water you dump money into. I also think ships have the closest thing to a soul that inanimate objects can have. I sailed many years on the RV Melville. She finally reached her lifetimes end and was given to the Philippines Navy. Also worked on RV Roger Revelle and RV Sally Ride.
Once her interior fittings were removed the ship essentially died. The Queen Mary avoided that fate that's why she's still around as a hotel. The best fate for her now would be to sink her as an artificial reef. Divers could visit her. That's her hope of avoiding the scrapyard
I appreciate your opinion but disagree. She never could have been preserved with her original interiors, which were filled with asbestos. They had to be removed, especially the Tourist and Cabin Class areas, to make her viable in any sense, static or still mobile. The MARY was and is filled with gorgeous artworks, rich woodwork, etched glass, etc. whereas UNITED STATES was very modern, sleek and clean with comparably easy to replicate interiors where desired. You basically need drywall, melamine and brushed steel to recreate her. Very different ships. I do agree that reefing will be better than scrap but really dislike either option. Thank you for taking the time to post.
@@midshipcinema I hope you're right & I'm wrong. I always thought the interiors could have been removed & stored. Then the asbestos removed & then the reinstallation of the original interiors. If that wasn't possible at all then you have the inevitable result. Imo I was hoping that NCL would install modern interiors with balconies etc like the SS Norway which I had the pleasure of sailing on in 1993. But we can always pray for a last minute miracle/savior can't we?
I remember hearing for the first time, about this "Cruiser," *_"Aurora"_* way back in 1997, albeit at the time, I'm pretty sure it was named *_"Faithful"_* then. Soooo, I am a "professional, 'gun for hire' drummer," and "A1 Audio Engineer," working my entire life in the music industry. While on a project, and attending the *_"Winter NAMM Show"_* ("all things music industry related") in "Los Angeles" in '97, where I nearly got an opportunity to see her up close, at that time...... At that time, a dear friend working at *_"Capitol Records,"_* and a "yachtie junkie," who spent as much time as possible, at the various marina's throughout the greater L.A. area, was hoping we could, "With time permitting," go check her out, "stem to stern," while she was moored in L.A., he was waiting for a "go ahead," or "mother-may-I," from the then parent company owners, (and if memory serves me, as it's hell getting old... 😂) "Friendships." That, unfortunately, never came to happen. However, I did have a vision where "optimal use" for her, and many like her.., and could be helpful to so many, "i.e.," *"TEMPORARY HOUSING!!"* For, "the displaced" (by "FEMA"®️ standards,) "relocation services," "witness protection services," "unique, themed hotel services," "health related," (for "temporary family lodging" due to cancer, specialist surgeries, etc.!!!) OK, so, that list, and if in enough time, could be "virtually (keyword here,) "infinite!!" When using a structure for those services, certain buildings and building "code standards" can be much more "generously," different. Anyway, rather than writing a *"babbling on **_dissertation,"_* 😂 I will simply say, another "possible solution," in taking *_"Aurora"_* and other's just like her, into new, unknown, "uncharted..," (ALL PUNS INTENDED...😅) water's, where "housing" (albeit temporary or not) "solutions," are needed!!! THE VERY SAD THING IS, SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE GAVE EVERYTHING THEY HAVE, AND IN SO MANY DIFFERENT WAYS, FROM "INCEPTION OF HER," TO "LAUNCHING HER," TO "SEE HER WORKING IN HER INTENDED CAPACITY," TO "EXCEPTIONALLY DRIVEN RESTORATIONS" AND BEYOND, for some "dumb-ass," "politically driven morons," "ET AL" with "ZERO VISION," to get some sort of "stupid-dookey," "satisfaction" out of watching others, "fail" while and at trying to keep our history from quite literally, "sinking" right in front of us!!! 😮💨 *_FINALLY AND IN CONCLUSION,_* I TRULY, SINCERELY AM SORRY THAT YOU, YOUR TEAM(s) WERE UNABLE TO SEE *_"AURORA,"_* INTO "PROJECT COMPLETION!!" I say that, in this way... I am very sure that you've invested a "financial cornucopia" of, "blood," "sweat," "tears" and enough, $"DO"~$"RE"$~"MI,"$ into the *_"AURORA,"_** **_"PROJECT,"_* to have a custom, meduim sized catamaran made, and put to sea, while currently enjoying the "fruits" of that laborious task!!! *HOWEVER,* I GET THE FEELING, that despite every penny spent on *_"AURORA,"_* IT REALLY WASN'T ABOUT "THE MONEY," BUT *"THE INTEGRITY"* OF THE TASK AT HAND!!! *ANYWAY, KEEP ON KEEPING ON BROTHER, WELL DONE, YOU!!!"* 😎🤘🏼
There’s nothing wrong with this ship,other than no one wants to restore the last Flag Ship of American! Ship of State . There are no more changes this is the last one!
Hi Peter! My name is Hugo and I'm from México. Watching this video has really broken my heart at remembering these three iconic ships. I live in Acapulco and I still remember when these ships were in port at the time. I have to mention that in 1986 when I was 16 I had the chance to come on board both the Pacífic and the Island while the were docked. I never got on board the Sun Princess though but I remember seeing her at the dock in the early 80's. In 1990 when I was 20, I worked on board the first Sky Princess (formerly Sitmar Firsky). Then the following year I worked on the beautiful Royal Princess for two years in a row. I still remember seeing the Pacífic and The Island on different ports around the Caribbean and other places. I remember watching the TV series The Love Boat in the late 70's when I still was a kid. I was really sad to know that these ships were broken apart. I've seen some pictures of both Pacífic and Island that I found in internet. As far as I know the Sun Princess ended up half sunk somewhere in Taiwan, correct me if I'm wrong. As a memory I Will mention one time some time in the 80's the captain of the Pacífic Princess took the ship so close to The cliffs because I think he wanted the passengers to watch the famous cliff divers. Anyway, the thing is that the ship ended up hitting a rock and a big hole was made open on the ship's side. So they had to return to Port inmediately and the ship stayed for a whole week so that the hole could be repaired and then the ship be taken to an inmediate dry dock in Los Angeles, I think. Did you ever know that? Anyway I really appreciate this video and the others you have shared. I'm sending You My regards from Acapulco, México. Buon Voyage!!
I'll probably do a full top to bottom video tour of the ship taken during my visits over the years but haven't done so yet. Sorry you are disappointed but I didn't make any claims about showing her interiors. If you go on the Aurora Preservation Project channel, you might be able to find some of her interiors. :)
I say those to blame for why the ship sits as it is have long since died and what’s left is a ship that waits for a commandant with the US Marines to bring it to Congrssional docking for complete refurbishment. G. Myron. Cmmdt.
