Queens of Sydney

People lined every available inch of the central harbourside when the two Queens met last night.

The Queen Elizabeth 2 was due to sail past the Queen Mary 2 at 7pm last night - the first time the two had met in Sydney. During World War II the two orginal ships had met in the harbour.

After the welcome the QM2 had received in her pre-dawn arrival, I anticipated that there would be a lot of interest in this meeting.

But the 7pm ferry from Circular Quay to Manly was more rammed than ever - with people queuing at the wharf from 6.30pm and rushing to the sides so they could watch the QE2 sail into the international dock at the quay.

As we left the wharf at 7pm, people were lined around the quay and all around the Opera House. They stood on the banks opposite the quay and peered over balconies of apartments and bars.

We heard the loud horns of the two ocean liners as they met and then rounded the corner of the quay to see hundreds of boats welcoming the QE2 and watching the historic meeting of the two ships. Small speedboats bobbing dangerously to huge catamarans and pleasure boats scattered the water around and between the two ships.

The QE2 is a smaller, older sister to the QM2 but perhaps more famous if not as impressive. The QM2 longer than the highest tower in Sydney is high.







But the ship is still beautiful. It took us ages to manouevre through all the boats and past the QE2 - but no one cared. Water canons sprayed the ship to welcome her and watch her dock at the quay. There was an atmosphere that something special was happening - not least because there were eight helicopters circling overhead.



The QM2 (below) left the naval base dockland (it was too long to dock at Circular Quay and too high to sail under the bridge) late last night but we saw the QE2 as we arrived for work this morning. How wonderful to be able to sail into one of the most beautiful harbours in the world and have a fantastic city lying right at your feet.