First we flew to Buenos Aires and spent a night of sightseeing and enjoying a year's worth of good beef. The next day we took a flight to Iguazu Falls. Our hotel room was close enough to hear the roar and see the falls in the distance. These falls are the fourth widest in the world and the various viewpoints were all spectacular. We got the mist from the top and a good drenching from the bottom on a raft, but the weather was so hot that it felt delicious. A train ride around part of the falls helped us appreciate the jungle and rivers that border Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
Back in Buenos Aires, we were treated to street performers doing the tango (said to be a vertical art celebrating a horizontal desire) and more of this colorful and exuberant city. Are they not beautiful?
We spent the night in port in Buenos Aires after settling in our little "stateroom" on a big ship. Once we got the suitcases out of the way it was much tidier!
Our first stop, once we were out of the port, was Montevideo, Uruguay. It was rainy and windy but the thought hit me that I've dismissed Uruguay as just one of those little countries I don't know anything about. It's really a beautiful and significant place. Can you ever dismiss anyplace--or anyone--until you know them? Easy from a distance, but not easy up close.
Something tells me, though, that wind is not unusual in Montevideo!
Because of the wind, this is as close to our Falklands (Malvinas) stop as we were allowed. I was really looking forward to a little bit of England off the coast of Argentina, but high waves made it impossible to land.
The old sailors had a saying that below 40 degrees (latitude) there is no law. Below 50 degrees there is no God. We got as far south as 64 degrees, and could see their point--cold, barren, menacing storms--but the beauty of this place made us feel closer, not further away from our Creator.
We were told that his massive iceberg is fairly young--not a lot of signs of weathering.
We saw whales and dolphins and PENGUINS and so many sea birds and even a seal basking on a chunk of floating ice.
We had 13 days at sea without a port but on a ship there is more than enough to do. Besides just enjoying the sights from one of hundreds of comfortable viewing spots, there are so many ship activities: a violinist playing every night, a guitar player, shows, movies, (gambling, bingo, cards, drinking), a great library, a couple of swimming pools, hot tubs, classes, computers..... I started and finished knitting a vest from the wool a student and friend sheared, carded and spun for me that I took along thinking I might. It was a great conversation starter and time filler as I was gazing out the windows.
We went around Elephant Island exactly 100 years from the day Shakleton's ship got caught in the Antarctic ice eventually having to be abandoned. His men waited 105 days waiting for rescue while he and two others took the incredible trip to South Georgia Island and were able to save everyone. After near-perfect navigation in the vast southern ocean, they landed on the wrong side of the island and had to climb over mountains to get to the manned station. Independently, all three later said they felt there was a fourth man helping them make the astounding overland journey without sleep after the sea voyage.
Jay and I also read a gripping book about whalers in the 1800s (In the Heart of the Sea) and the wreck, whale attack, that inspired Moby Dick. I may have to buckle down and read that book, now! (I have found that I prefer late encounters with great literature--not that I can do anything about my poor choices in my youth!) I also enjoyed a couple of lighter books and S. Michael Wilcox's 10 Great Souls I Want to Meet in Heaven. Two of the souls he highlights were Shackleton and Darwin, and we enjoyed seeing Egg Island of Shackleton fame, and of course we traveled through Darwin's Beagle Channel. Dr. Wilcox was on the cruise and lectured on most days about places and people noted for connections to Antarctica. His knowledge of this place, full of quotes from literature and lessons that put the stories into a thoughtful context was the icing on the cake for this trip.
While I enjoyed being out in the cold a little, Jay enjoyed it a lot! I didn't get seasick at all, but at night he would feel the ship rocking and think he was stalling in a plane: distinctly uncomfortable for him. Several people who have done multiple cruises said this was the roughest seas they'd ever had.
Another beautiful iceberg. The colors were amazing!
Within a (one of my brother's) stone's throw of the Antarctic Continent. We loved watching the penguins, dolphins, whales and sea birds. The penguins leap out of the water in arcs, one after the other. We saw a seal basking on an iceberg, enjoying "summer."
Gorgeous Patagonia at 10:00 at night.
Here we are at the end of the world--Ushuaia, Argentina--There's a little post office off this dock. The original inhabitants wore no clothes and did just fine until the white man came introducing clothing, religion and diseases. There are little hills full of shells from the food they caught and ate from the lake behind us and the sea. Impressive people--only one woman left from from this culture.
Here's a sliding down the mountain kind of glacier (Holland Glacier). Massive and ancient.
And of course, penguins! Seeing them swimming in the ocean was a thrill. Seeing them waddling on land a little less thrilling. Smelling them, distinctively NOT thrilling. Their habitat is the sea and they look so joyful leaping out of the water and swimming under it.
We got to climb aboard this ship and others--replicas of some of the early explorers' rigs. This one was the only one of Magellan's three ships to complete the circumnavigation of the globe--the Victoria. We thought so much about our ancestors who came to America on these old sailing vessels--in steerage, not a stateroom--and how scary that would be, and cold, and miserable in a million ways.
The little boat in the foreground is a "tender" that takes passengers from the ship to the dock. It holds 90 people; as a lifeboat, one hundred fifty. I think this is Puerto Chacubuco, Chile. We were unable to take the tour here because of a strike going on--it's a big area for farmed salmon, and the workers apparently don't make enough money. The World reaches even the wilderness corners of itself. I found just the right button for my knitted vest and the little vendor even traded it for the one I'd temporarily used (a peach pit made into a button) and sewed it on as I stood there. This area reminded us a lot of the Seattle area--minus the big city.
The colors of blue defy description and every view as we were going around little inlets in the Antarctic Peninsula was breathtaking.
Puerto Montt, Chile. This is a restored area originally settled by Germans. Their presence is still very much in evidence, with architecture and pastry shops all over and Germanic people and names.
The Osorno Volcano was spectacular, as were the waterfalls and water chutes in the foreground carved out of the twisted volcanic rock formations.
We were treated to native flute music and tried to make some of our own, which gave us an appreciation for the skill of others. There is something about breathy wood flutes that is evocative of a slower, peaceful way of life. Plus it makes me want to be lying on a massage table getting the treatment!
Our last stop was Valparaiso, where we left the ship. Valparaiso is built on many hills, and they use these old railroad-type "asensors" to get down to the city and back home--many not restored, but a thrilling gondola ride.
A museum in Valparaiso, or maybe Vina del Mar, has one of the Easter Island moai on display. Easter Island, or Isla de Pascua, is a Chilean territory, and I'm thinking that may have to be our next trip! Wouldn't it be amazing to see the quarry where these guys were carved?!
Great experience! Finally, here's a shot of Cape Horn as we were going through Drake's Passage. It was very windy and rough, but had calmed down some from the night before. We saw a little sailboat almost lying horizontally in the water attempting the crossing. Jay didn't get his ear pierced nor the hooped earring, though, because we had power sources on the ship and didn't rely on just the wind and our skill. The little sailboaters might have earned them, and I wear them undeservedly!
