BusTalk

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(see previous links)

Yes......both types of ships are HUGE......AND....they BOTH carry passengers (and they FLOAT!).....but there is a fascinating and intriguing world of difference between them...........

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_liner *

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cruise_ship *

["ALL AHEAD SLOW"]

*(outstanding collection of historic and modern photos on these pages!)

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Largest in the world.............

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icon_of_the_Seas

["ROYAL CARIBBEAN"]

[traildriver]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Just heard on the news that the world's largest cruise ship-"ICON OF THE SEAS"-is sailing out of Florida today (she was christened earlier this week by a soccer icon); this huge ship can carry 7600 passengers (full capacity) and is staffed by a few thousand crew (this ship also boasts the world's largest "at sea" pool!) She is also has greater fuel efficiency than older craft (a HUGE on-board party-to be sure-is now being celebrated on this towering and glittering ship!) "NYO"

[traildriver]

Yes...for decades now, RCCL has tried to maintain "bragging rights" for operation the world's largest cruise ship. The jump from the previous largest, their "Oasis Class" to this new Icon Class is only about 5 or 6 %, not nearly as large as their biggest previous leap of about 35% when their Voyager class was introduced...

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

[NEW YORK OMNIBUS 2629]

Interesting: Earlier-I found online photos for the 1969 flick "HERCULES IN NEW YORK" (Arnold Shwazznager/Arnold Stang!) One photo showed Arnold Stang at the West Side piers; in the background the "FRANCE" is seen docked-along with a tug at her prow (a long long ago scene-for certain!) "NYO"

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-----of course-not only are the old West Side piers seen in the 1969 fantasy flick "HERCULES IN NEW YORK" long since gone-without a trace-but also-the proud and graceful "FRANCE" has-likewise-long since ceased to exist-----when this flick debuted-such scenes were indeed endangered------"NYO"

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-----------ironic that-of all the graceful liners that once called at the West Side piers-only two are still in existence today-----one of these noble ships is (as we already know) a floating hotel/shopping center in California-while the iconic "SS UNITED STATES" has been sitting idle for decades-rusting and decaying further-despite the occasional news stories we hear that this once-proud ocean greyhound will finally be restored----------Your's Truly is NOT holding his breath on this------ "NYO"

[traildriver]

Besides the RMS Queen Mary in Long Beach, here's some more "survivor's" that have enjoyed a much better fate than the "Big U"....

https://ssrotterdam.com/

https://www.qe2.com/en/

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I had forgotten about these two graceful relics of another age; thanks for the heads-up! As a lad 60-odd years ago-I well recall the old the old "5th Street Pier"* in Hoboken-before operations shifted to a West Side pier; a worker there (at Hoboken) at the went to high school with one of Your's Truly's older brothers-and would hand us "guest passes" so we could go aboard and "see the sights"-------those graceful ships were indeed sleek and stately (and HUGE!) About 40 years back-I can recall seeing the "OCEANiC" undergoing work in Bayonne while aboard a St George-bound ferry (one of the "KENNEDY"-class diesels)-----as a kid-it was always quite exciting to be aboard a SI boat and see an outbound liner pass us-----ahhhh------what great recollections! *(Thislong-since-razed pier was also featured in 1954's "ON THE WATERFRONT")------"NYO"

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"Luxury Liner Row"------how lucky this now-gray fellow still recalls the long-ago days (60-odd years back!) when you could still gaze upon rows of classic liners awaiting their next sailings ( I can still see the original "Queens"-the sleek new "FRANCE"-and the stately "UNITED STATES"-----in the 1970's-on a sunny Saturday) I recall seeing the "DORIC"and the "SAGAFJORD" as well as three or four others on the West Side (these ships were then likely all doing cruise work) interesting also to recall a certain CUNARD ship (the "CARONIA")-which had the honor of being the first liner designed for cruising-------(recall too-the HUGE green gas tank with the big yellow sign: "GAS HEATS BEST")-just on the other side of the old West Side Highway)-------"NYO"

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Another personal childhood recollection-back in 1966-I recall seeing the sleek "CONSTITUTION" and her equally stately sister-the "INDEPENDENCE"- in drydock together at the old 14th Street shipyards (now long gone) in Hoboken; what a thrill-years later-to see a photograph of these two ships at the Hoboken shipyards in 1966-(just as Your's Truly recalled!) in the excellent book "GREAT CRUISE SHIPS AND OCEAN LINERS: 1954 to 1986"! Was QUITE surprised-to say the least-to see this photo-to say the least! By 1966-both ships also spent their winters laid up; the once-profitable trans-Atlantic trade was rapidly disappearing and both ships were-by then-also cruising to the Caribbean------"NYO"

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Interesting also-that-on the New Jersey side of the Hudson-the only location where transatlantic liners docked was at Hoboken (the last sailed circa-1964); also liners did not call at Jersey City (although plenty of cargo ships/freighters did); though Staten Island once boasted a plethora of "deep water" piers (again-used only by freighters) between St George and Clifton-there were no piers for passenger ships (the closest to liners docking in Staten Island were the troopships which connected with SIRT/B&O trains during WW2); of course-cruise ships now also dock in Bayonne-----"NYO"