Chandris Lines’ Amerikanis was first built in Belfast, Northern Ireland as the one-class Kenya Castle (526 passengers) for Union-Castle Line’s England via Suez to East African service and occasionally circumnavigating Africa. She entered service in 1952, was withdrawn in 1967 and sold to Chandris Lines who heavily rebuilt her into a full-time cruise ship. She reentered service in 1968 taking up to 911 passengers.

Chandris ships were easily recognizable with the funnel marking a bold white X on a blue background.

The Amerikanis is on weekly Bermuda service until November 1st when she will sail from New York via Bermuda to the West Indies to be based for the winter at San Juan. The docking pilot provided by Moran Towing is disembarking.

Royal Viking Line’s Royal Viking Sea, built in Finland in 1973, was the last of a trio of similar 21,800-ton ships taking 536 passengers. Then in 1983 she had a 91-foot midsection inserted increasing her tonnage to 28,018 and her passenger berths to 812. She will be sailing on a 14-day fall foliage cruise to New England and Canada as far as Montreal. When she returns two weeks later, the ship will sail south to circumnavigate South America then transit the Panama Canal to arrive at Fort Lauderdale on December 21st.

Home Lines’ 42.092-ton Homeric, completed in 1986 in Germany, is another ship on the weekly Bermuda run where she will remain until her final sailing of the season on November 14th. She is just a year and a half old, replacing an earlier Homeric built in 1931 as Matson Line’s Mariposa. The QE2 is docked at an adjacent berth.

Cunard Line’s 67,139-ton Queen Elizabeth 2, completed in 1969 in Scotland, will be sailing later on her five-day express crossing to Southampton. She was completely re-engined earlier in the year becoming a motorship. The Homeric is docked at an adjacent berth.

Royal Cruise Line’s Royal Odyssey was built in France in 1964 for Zim Israel Lines as the 25,338-ton, two-class transatlantic liner Shalom. In 1967 she became the German Hanseatic then Homes Lines’ Doric before joining Royal Cruise Lines as the 817-passenger Royal Odyssey. She has completed her fall foliage cruises from New York to New England and Canada, and today is sailing to Los Angeles via the Panama Canal. She is being fueled by the small tanker alongside her stern and the QE2’s newly enlarged funnel appears over the bow.

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