First time for 34 years

Last night we had another Formal night - this one with a "Black and White " theme. This theme leaves a lot of room for some personalization of everybody's dress - from the traditional "Black Tie" to all combinations and permutations of black and/or white jackets, ties, and shirts (Talking about men's dress here). For the past 34 years, I have been carrying around a white "tie it yourself" bow tie - which I have
never ever worn. It has " Property of the Royal Australian Navy " on a tag on the back of it - I never did know why it was issued to me as we only ever wore black bowies way back in my old Navy days. Anyway, I had packed it with a number of other ties - as I was well aware of the large number of Formal nights we would have on these cruises. Most men onboard are wearing modern ready tied bows - except for one of my table companions who insists on tying his own in the traditional manner. Following a challenge from him, I decided to drag this old white Bowie out - and discovered that I still remembered how to tie one. It isn't rocket science - if you can tie your shoelaces, you can tie a Bow Tie. I have been asked to describe what the differences are between a P&O UK cruise and a P&O Australia one. I have previously described the food differences - and the obvious Passenger Nationality differences - but there is also quite a difference in the nature of the nightly entertainment in the main Theatre. Last night, we had a Violin duet as the main entertainment. I was a bit ambivalent about it as we entered the theatre - and prepared for an easy and quick exit if needed. I cannot imagine such a thing being presented as the main entertainment for the night on a P&O Australia ship. But WOW!!! - this young married Polish duet were absolutely fabulous!!! In fact, I would say that they were the best entertainers/performers that I have seen since leaving Brisbane and I am looking forward to their next performance. There are good reasons for Aussies to try out different nationality cruiselines - other than the usual reasons floated on the Internet cruising Forums.