Those Places Thursday: Mom's Trip to Europe, 1953 - Aboard the SS United States

Geraldine Guokas on board the SS United States, August 1953

From Mom's Europe trip diary, in the "GOING" section:

Sailed from New York Friday, August 7, at noon. We almost were stowaways since we got on board without having our berthing cards. Met some real nice people at dinner. The food is superb. 

Quite a sensation on this ship – first time in my life I ever went up and down and sideways in an elevator – also the first time the floor ever rolled under me at Mass.

For a while all I wanted to do was sleep but since I quit taking Dramamine, I haven’t been as tired.

Have movies every day – saw “So This is Love,” “Mr. Scoutmaster,” “Latin Lovers,” "Roman Holiday."

The library where I work has the July 21, 1952 issue of Life magazine with an article (with great photographs!) about the SS United States.  Here is a photograph of a Cabin Class stateroom (from a fold-out insert between pages 58 and 59):

Mom and her friends were in a Tourist Class stateroom, definitely smaller.

Click here for a virtual tour of the SS United States promenade deck, and here for some photos from on board taken by a crew member in 1955-56.

This is the fourth in a series of posts about my mother's 1953 Europe Trip.

© Amanda Pape - 2014 - click here to e-mail me.