Around the World on the QE2 is a personal narrative of the experiences of George and Barbara Perkins during cruises from China to London in 2006 and from New York to Australia in 2008. They visited ports from Hong Kong to Alexandria, from Turkey to Citivecchia, from Valencia to Lisbon and Southampton, from New York to Barbados and Rio de Janeiro, from Uruguay to Chile, from Moorea and Tonga to Auckland and Sydney.
They saw the Taj Mahal at sunrise, visited Mount Parnassus and Delphi, circumnavigated Cape Horn and Pitcairn Island, threaded the Strait of Magellan, walked among the tombs in the Valley of the Kings and the moai statues of Easter Island. Their account begins with shore visits to friends and universities in China and ends with similar visits in Australia.
Around the World on the QE2 celebrates the end of an era. Other cruise ships schedule their voyages almost entirely to local cruising because none can match the QE2 in the speed required for long distances from ocean to ocean and sea to sea on a truly global tour.
In 2008, the aging Queen was sold to Dubai to become a hotel, museum, and conference center.
Previous Perkins books include The American Tradition in Literature, The Reader’s Encyclopedia of American Literature, and additional books written alone or with others. They have taught and lectured around the world, from Eastern Michigan University and the University of Toledo to Scotland, China, and Australia. The Society for the Study of Narrative has honored them with lifetime memberships and in the name of the annual Perkins Prize for the best book in narrative studies. For details see www.georgeperkins.net
