FKN - 057 - Cruise Ship Queen Mary 2 on her visit to Cochin.

Stock Image No: FKN - 057
Photograph 12: RMS Queen Mary 2 sailing from Cochin Harbour. Traditional Chinese net can be seen in foreground.
The RMS Queen Mary 2 (QM2) is a Cunard Line ocean liner named after the earlier Cunard liner Queen Mary, which was in turn named after Mary of Teck, the Queen Consort of George V. At the time of her construction in 2003, the QM2 was the longest, widest and tallest passenger ship ever built, and at 148,528 gross tons, was also the largest. She lost that last distinction to Royal Caribbean International's 154,407 gross ton Freedom of the Seas in April 2006, but QM2 remains the largest ocean liner (as opposed to cruise ship) ever built, and her height, length, and waterline breadth are unsurpassed by any other passenger ship. The true distinction becomes somewhat cloudy, because "gross tonnage" is actually a measure of a ship's enclosed volume, not weight. "Displacement tonnage" is a measure of the weight of water the ship displaces -- and hence its actual weight. The Royal Caribbean "Freedom" ships displace about 64,000 tons; the QM2, about 76,000. QM2's facilities include 15 restaurants and bars, five swimming pools, a casino, a ballroom, a theatre, and a planetarium.