Upgraded

To my surprise, Cunard accepted my £60 per person upgrade bid to Queen’s Grill, so my dad and I are now booked into a mid-forward Queen’s Suite on Deck 9 for our two nights aboard the Queen Mary 2. This means we will get to experience the best Cunard has to offer in culinary terms, along with a welcome bottle of champagne – which I plan to bring with me and save for Christmas in Kiruna.

With Halland Ultra-Beach coming up in just three days, it is good to have this grand maritime adventure on the horizon to help keep my nerves in check. Yesterday, Deutsche Post delivered this summer’s Monocle Mediterraneo newspaper, and since my custom-made Pan Am retro luggage tag arrived already a few months ago, I am almost ready to start packing.