"Bon Voyage! to Two Cruise Ship Monarchs-(3/3)
Two celebrated vessels sail into the sunset in 2008

Delta Queen
The Delta Queen, too, evokes emotional responses from its admirers.
“It has warmth and charm, almost like a person,” recalled Patty Young, who directed public relations for the Delta Queen line for 13 years until 1998. “The first time I went on board, I started crying. The captain asked me what was wrong, and I said I felt I had just gotten a hug. He just smiled.”
For years, the Delta Queen sailed on the Mississippi and its tributaries , giving its guests a unique view of heartland America. Ohioan Danny Back, who with his wife, Sue, has sailed on the paddleboat five times, loves the steamboat feel and sound, and its homespun itineraries. “It’s always a treat to arrive at a town where the boat has not been before,” he said.
Life aboard is leisurely, with little formal entertainment. A “riverlorian”-river historian-gives talks on the history of the region through which the ship is traveling. Meals feature regional specialties like crawfish and fried dill pickles. An 1897 steam calliope makes itself heard every now and then.
The ship’s décor is rich in art and antiques, with hardwood paneling, brass fittings, and Tiffany-style stained-glass windows-all of which have been enjoyed by such diverse guests as Britain’s Princess Margaret, Marilyn Monroe, and three presidents-Herbert Hoover, Harry Truman and Jimmy Carter.
Those are all memories for Nori Muster, daughter of Bill Muster [president of the line in the 1960s and 1970s], and they make the Delta Queen’s coming retirement especially painful for her.
“My father once told me that boats die and that it can be as sad as losing a person,” she said. “His words ring in my ears now.”

Vocabulary Focus

evoke (v) to make someone remember something or feel an emotion
homespun (adj) simple, ordinary and unpretentious