I realise this won't be sent to you until I reach England, but there is too much not to write it down while I remember it all.
The Mauretania is beautiful, powerful, and a delightful ship. I spent much of our first day aboard just exploring the First Class areas. They have some beautifully upholstered, fitted areas and honestly it is easy to forget we are on a ship. Of course it has none of the rocking of a sailing ship, but there is a slight hum underneath your feet as you walk the promenade. A marvel of technology if ever there was one!
Our first day aboard, I confess to having been too excited by the prospect of travelling once again to attend to my duties in the social circle. I just had to explore the ship and all its nooks and crannies, so while my compatiriots were off enjoying meeting new people, I was pottering about looking at all the most amazing things. Did you know that the last time I was on one of these, Searle and I were returning home from India at the end of our Honeymoon? It has made me slightly out of sorts remembering, which no doubt explains, but does not excuse, my poor behaviour.
In the evening we were invited to attend the Captain's table, and while very little happened during the day, it was to be knives and aperatifs over dinner! Clearly our Captain is a man of refined tastes and has set his guests at play. The social graces have been dusted off for all concerned.
Our fellow First Class passengers who joined us tonight were a mixed lot. We had a real life Count who arrived aboard amongst the most bodyguards I've ever seen. Violet seems quite taken with him, and he her, and oh would it not be lovely to see her happy even just for this voyage? A whirllwind romance might just shake that cynical chip off her shoulder and allow her to find love again. I do hope she does not do anything too forward, as I know she did not sleep in her bed as it was empty when I was awakened in the dead of night.
The good Doctor also seems to have taken a shine to another of our passengers, a female academic named Martha. She seems nice enough, and certainly we were gratedful for additional female presence at the table. This boat is full of men!
Actually, it seems quite full of academics as well, for as well as Martha and Lord Covington, there are two professors travelling aboard. I only met one, a Professor Fuda, who attended the Captain's table with us, but had the misfortune of truly being outclassed. His field of study appears to be ancient history, and his viewpoints seem to coincide with that time for he was decidedly antiquated and out of touch with the reality of emancipated women. Naturally, his old fashioned views were exposed for what they were in the social play that was dinner and I have a feeling he shall not be joining us again.
There was actually another who was severely deficient in understanding the game, a Joe Rangel from Arizona. He is young and brash which no doubt serves him well in the West, but only shows him for a fool in good society. He had the misfortune to call Louis's honour into question, which was not just laughed at, but pounced upon. The poor fellow never really had a chance. He is outclassed in every sense of the word and well out of his depth in high society.
Joe's companion, though, is a young woman named Annie Anderson. She reminds me of myself a long time ago, when society was new and scary. I can't help but want to take her under my wing and show her a better way. I've arranged for lunch with her today, and I do hope I'll be a decent companion as I did not sleep well last night.
I shall continue this later as I am due to accompany Violet, Louis and Lord Covington to a shuffleboard game with the Count. Who knew Louis's sentimentality would come in handy?
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