By Benjamin S. B. Lyons

Waking an hour before sunrise, we watched the glittering lights of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge twinkling before us and listened to the sound of cars for the first time in six days. Soon, we moved to silently watch the Statue of Liberty glide by while an emotionally poignant Manhattan rose above the low clouds on an overcast October morning to greet us. With the passing streets dormant but still very urban at this hour, the QE2 headed upriver to complete her Transatlantic crossing and we onboard glumly started to think about having to hail a taxi on a Monday morning.

For the last 33 years, the Queen Elizabeth 2 has been providing regularly scheduled Transatlantic service, the last tangible link to when ocean liners provided the only means of transportation across the oceans. Having just completed her 773rd crossing, the ship has only 22 crossings left before being assigned to full time cruising and turning the Atlantic run over to the fourth Cunard ship to be called a Queen - the soon-to-be-completed Queen Mary 2.

For those who seek the most traditional and evocative experience, however, book a crossing in 2003 while the QE2 remains on the Atlantic. With time, the ship has come to define the North Atlantic experience and evolve into a happy, settled liner with an experienced and loyal crew. As wonderful as the QM2 will be with her balconied cabins, dramatic public rooms and absolutely immense size, she will be a very different ship, a 21st century product offering what will be a very different experience.

To cross on the QE2 from Southampton to New York or vice versa is not to cruise - traditionalists bristle at the term and rightly insist on calling it a crossing. The five days at sea blend indistinguishably into each other and melt off into the passing restless blue ocean. Without the daily intrusion of ports common on a cruise - if it's Monday it must be St. Lucia- passengers quickly settle into a comfortable rhythm as the ship develops an inner life and ambiance of its own that cruiseships simply lack.

Happily Cunard has spent hundreds of millions of dollars over the years to keep QE2 fresh and modern, and passengers who worry about boredom soon find an abundance of activities to keep them occupied. Some attended scarf tying lessons and Bingo while others entered in sports competitions and dance lessons before indulging in the ship's excellent spa, complete with a Thallasotherapy pool. (CONTINUE...)