This is how we decided to spend our 2022 Christmas Holidays. We had a credit due from Viking River cruises from a cruise that was cancelled a couple years ago due to COVID-19 and we decided to use it for this cruise. We had originally planned it as a u-drive like we did Jordan and Israel but because we had the credit, we decided to do it as a cruise. Cruises are okay but you are limited to what you get to see by the cruise line. They prefer you spend your money with them rather than somewhere else. Because there are not a great deal of places to see in southern South America we figured this would work. Here’s the course of our cruise.
We did add a four day excursion to the end of the cruise. We wanted to be sure to see Iguazu (pronounced E waah zoo) Falls so after disembarking in Buenos Aires we will fly to Iguazu Falls (more about the falls later), spend a couple days there, then fly to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, spend a couple days there, then fly back to the US.
17 December 2022 – We drove to Tampa for our flight to Houston, where we connected to Santiago. In Huston we hurried to the Santiago gate (because we had been delayed two hours in Tampa, and boarded with ten minutes to spare.
18 December – The flight to Santiago was nine plus hours and through the night. One of us got a good sleep, the other can’t sleep on airplanes. We arrived in Santiago at nine AM on the 18th of December. There we were met by Viking personnel who were herding passengers from various flights to a holding area. From there we boarded busses for transportation to Valparaiso where our ship was docked. The bus trip was about two hours long. Here are some pictures (through the bus window) of our first glimpse of Chile. Note: Southern Chile is not a real picturesque place. Here, being south of the equator, it is the start of summer and the coastal plains are dry and arid. Anything that is green is that way because someone is watering it through irrigation or canals.
So, the stories. The church of the Immaculate Conception: December 8th is the Roman Catholic Feast day of The Immaculate Conception. On this day, hundreds of thousands of people walk from Santiago and Valparaiso to visit this church and ask The Blessed Virgin Mary for assistance or to thank her for helping them with previous prayers and requests. The highway is closed to traffic for the entire day and night of this feast day while all the people walk to this church. Chile is ninety percent Catholic. The Trees: The indigenous trees in this region are not real big and grow slowly due to the arid conditions. Consequently, the lumber industry brought in pine and eucalyptus trees that grow faster. Unfortunately they draw much more water and have deprived everything else growing near by of any water at all. They just keep growing and have become a problem. The Grapes: The wine industry started in Chile only about fifty years ago. Is is now a flourishing industry and produces a great deal of excellent wine. Tomorrow we tour a wine producer. Lastly, the Venicular: Valparaiso is located on forty two different hills around a large bay. When the city was still young, Veniculars were built and operated to assist people to get up to their homes in the hills from the downtown area. Many of them still run having been converted from steam powered to electric.
That was our trip to the ship. We settled in and explored the ship learning our way around. We were going to explore Valparaiso but decided against it. We were tired and there didn’t seem to be much we wanted to see or do. Here are a few pictures of our surroundings in the port. I will do a tour of the ship later when we have a day at sea. For now, the Port of Valparaiso:
19 December – Today we went to a Vineyard … interesting tour … good wine. Then we visited a ranch where we had lunch and watched a display of Chilean horsemanship by Ouacha’s (pronounced wa kaz … they are the Gaucho’s of Chile). Very impressive. Lastly we visited the seaside town of Vina Del Mar which is located just north of Valparaiso. This city is an upscale area where the rich settlers of this region had summer homes and took vacations. It now has an abundance of high rise Condos and some interesting sites. We finished the day at a museum that featured the stone statues from Fiji. Crowded but interesting. Pictures from the trip:
20 December – Today we sailed. We left Valparaiso and headed south. Spent the day relaxing, exploring the ship, meeting people. Nice day.
Some comments about the ship. The ship is fairly small as cruisers go. It holds only 960 passengers (we have 850 on this cruise). There are no children on this cruise, thus no need for super slides and water activities. Most of the people are retired or close to it so the activities are a bit more sedate. There is a variety of shore excursions at each stop so you find any level of activity you seek. The boat is fairly new and exceptionally well kept. Being from Norway, it reflects the Scandinavian preference for uncluttered and modern.
21 December – We docked in Puerto Montt today. A small city that was settled by German immigrants. The town is rather worn down but still busy. We took a bus from here to an inland lake, Lianquihue Lake, and Puerto Varas on it’s shores. A very nice town, that sits on the edge of the lake. Very scenic, visited the Christmas market, etc.
22 December – Another day at sea. More exploring, meeting, chatting, etc … actually more relaxing. The ship offers many activities that promote relaxing so we try to take advantage of the ones we like.
23 December – Today we cruised into a Chilean Fjord and parked next to a big glacier. Amalia Glacier was quite impressive. We stayed parked as close as the Captain dared and everyone took pictures and watched the activities around the area. There are many glaciers along the pacific coast of Chile. Many are in smaller Fjords which are too small for this ship so this was a rare opportunity to see a glacier without having to take a smaller boat or a bus ride.
24 December – Today we pulled into Puerto Arenas, a small city in Chile that hosted a number of activities. We weren’t really interested in any specific tour or activity so we elected to walk off the boat and explore the town a bit on our own. The streets were busy with people doing their Christmas shopping at the street vendors selling trinkets and clothing. We spent about four hours walking around seeing the sights, had a latte, and a very pleasant time. Very nice town. We got back to the ship and cleaned up for the Christmas Eve festivities on the boat. The crew formed a choir and we all sang Christmas Carols for about an hour. Very nice.
25 December – MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! This was our first Christmas in Chile so we decided to go for a horseback ride in the mountains. We were in Ushuaia (pronounced Ush way Ah). We got up early and opened the gifts Santa had delivered during the night and had waiting under our little Christmas setting. Then we dressed and took a small van to a ranch where we did our ride. We rode up onto a mountain, through creeks and a sub-arctic forest. The ride lasted a little over two hours and was the perfect way to spend Christmas Day in Chile. The horses were well trained and very sure footed. We saw a lot of incredible country. Christmas night we had a special Christmas dinner with some friends we had met earlier. They had rode an old steam powered train to a National Forest so we exchanged the tales of our Christmas Day experiences.
26 December – Happy Birthday Andy!! … This morning the Captain took a right and we deviated south to circumnavigate the Island of Hornn. The island is named after a city in Belgium where the explorer who discovered it came from. I bet you thought it was named after the horn looking appearance of the tip of South America … Nope. Anyhow, this island is as far South as you can go in South Amorica and sits right where the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans meet. The area is considered to be one of the most dangerous places to sail due to the currents and winds. There is a small lighthouse on the island to provide a warning to sailors. We were told that a man, his wife, and their two children live there to tend the light.
27 December – Today is a day at sea while we sail to the Falkland Islands and Fort Stanley. During the day the Captain of the ship conducted a formal ceremony inducting any of us who wished to join the Order of The Drake. This is a special group of people who have sailed around the Island of Hornn going from one ocean to the other. The order was founded by Sir Francis Drake, the explorer who discovered Drake Passage around the tip of South America. We were doused with cold water, had a special ointment placed on the tips of our nose, and sealed the ceremony with a shot of Aquavit. We were supposed to get an ear pierced as well but most people declined that.
28 December – Welcome to the Falkland Islands, southernmost English territory on the planet (If you depart the Falklands eastward and do not deviate north or south, you will not reach land until you get to the west coast of Chile). After two days of lolly gagging across the southern Atlantic we pulled in the Falklands this morning at about five thirty. It was foggy and cloudy when we arrived but by eight or so the sun started peaking out and we had a nice day … albeit with a couple showers and a high of forty five Fahrenheit with a brisk wind.
We pulled into a sheltered bay and the tenders from the ship took us ashore in small groups to meet our buses and guides depending on what tour had booked. The tenders are really life boats the ship carries but they are enclosed and motorized so the ship can run three or four of them at a time shuttling people to shore. Each one holds about forty people (picture later).
We had booked just a general tour of Fort Stanley and the area immediately surrounding it. It was the scene of the most conflict during the 1982 invasion by Argentina. Argentina said it was liberating all the people who lived there (Mostly Brits) from their English occupiers. The war lasted for two and a half months, the UK won by deploying hundreds of ships and aircraft to the Falklands. Nearly a thousand troops (both British and Argentinean) were killed and several significant fighting ships (both British and Argentinean) were sunk. The war was a staggering shock to the Brits who lived on the Falklands and still today they talk about the stress it caused them. Argentina still claims the Falklands (known to the Argentineans as the Maldives) as theirs and the UK claims it as one of their territories. Relations between the UK and Argentina are not good. We enjoyed the tour. The guide was a local old Brit who had all sorts of interesting stories and an interesting history.
The Falklands were never a whaling community but whalers from New England and England, requiring up to three years to kill enough whales to fill their ships with whale oil, would winter here rather than sail back up north. The Falklands are mostly farmers with the islands having a population of nearly a half a million sheep.
That ended our tour of Fort Stanley. It was an interesting stop. We had many discussions why GB continues to feud with Argentina regarding who owns the Falklands. Many interesting points. The people who live here, more or less govern themselves but depend on GB for diplomatic and military support. Our guide told us there were eighty nine different nationalities that live here … most are of British descent.
Tomorrow is another day at sea so there will not be any new pictures. On the 30th we stop at a small city in Argentina named Puerto Madryn where we will do the variety of tours and sight seeing excursions. See you then.
30 December – As I mentioned above, we stopped today in the Argentina city of Puerto Madryn. It is actually quite a large city but has little to offer in terms of tourism. Penguins, seals, rocky shores. Everything that was offered here as far as excursions go involved a long bus ride. As the area was originally settled by immigrants from Wales that were offered free land it has a strong English infuence about it. We elected to do the tour of the original settlement and partake of an English Tea with treats. The excursion was advertised as a four hour trip. Turns out it was two ninety minute bus rides with an hour of tea and crumpets. To make matters worse, the countryside was quite underwhelming … and I don’t like tea! Anyhow, it was something different so the day was okay. After our tour we returned to the ship walked downtown to check, out some street vendors and ended the afternoon with a local pub and a cold beer. I made the servers day when I explained to her we had been on a ship the last two weeks and asked if she knew who won the World Cup. She lit up like a fourth of July fireworks demonstration and, in her best english, told me how Argentina had whupped France to win first place. Much much enthusiasm and pride … even the Chileans, who don’t get along with Argentina, are proud that a country from South America had won the World Cup. Pictures follow:
31 December – A day at sea today. Everyone is resting up for the BIG party tonight. Our Cruise Director assures us it will be a party to remember.
1 January 2023 – Happy New Year everyone!! As our Cruise Director assured us it was be a party to remember. At least I remember some of it. I believe a good time was had by all. It was assuring to see all the old folks on the ship that use walkers, canes, and braces suddenly get out on the dance floor and “shake their booty!!”
So now we are still at sea today. Many people complained about the number of days we are at sea but if you look at a map, two things should catch your attention. First, there are not that many places (developed cities or towns or developed parks) to stop and do something in this part of the world. Second, we are traveling some pretty significant distances when compared to cruising the Caribbean or the Gulf of Mexico, or even the Med. I just tell them they should have flown on South West if they didn’t like sea days.
Tomorrow we make a call at Montevideo, Uruguay. Nancy and I are spending the day on a ranch there just to learn what the Gauchos do. After that we are off to Buenos Aries.
2 January 2023 – Welcome to Montevideo, Uruguay. We pulled into port this morning and we had a day long excursion inland to spend the day on a ranch. The day started with a bus tour of Montevideo which is the capitol of Uruguay. Many old colonial buildings mixed with modern high rise buildings. Here they do have Gauchos (like cowboys), raise cattle and crops to feed the stock. They also raise, buy, sell, and race horses of all types. Interesting, entertaining, and we had great Bar B Q lunch. The day included a welcome talk by the owner, his family hosted the days activities, a ride around the farm on wagons (it was like a hayride because we all sat on bales of straw), demonstrations of local dances, watched a horse care preparation and learned a little about the Gauchos, and life on the Pampas of Uruguay. Montevideo is located near the mouth of a large estuary that extends inland all the way to Buenos Aries. Uruguay is bordered by the Atlantic ocean, Brazil, and Argentina.
The ranch was a lot of fun, interesting, informative, and well done. The spoon story. In Patagonia the locals drink a special tea. They put the crushed dried leaves in hot water and use this spoon to stir it. The spoons are not solid but hollow with tiny holes in the spon part and the handle is hollow. They use the spoon as a straw to draw the tea up while the tiny holes strain out the tea leaves.
3 January – As I mentioned, Montevideo is located on a vast estuary formed by the Uruguay River and the Atlantic Ocean. Our next destination is Buenos Aires, Argentina. Last night we departed Montevideo, sailed back out to the Atlantic to turn back in on the channel that will take us up through the estuary to Buenos Aires. The Estuary is quite shallow and boat traffic follows specific channels to their destinations. So, here we are in Buenos Aires. Had a nice trip last night and docked this morning in a huge port.
Today we are scheduled for a ten and half mile tour of Buenos Aires on bicycles (no, not electric … foot powered!)
That was our day in Buenos Aires. Very interesting, quite challenging, especially in the heavy traffic, but well worth the sore butt! The stories: The large metal flower. This huge, seventeen ton, chrome flower was designed and displayed by some great artist. It was originally designed to open in the morning and fold in in the evening just like real tulips do. However, after some time, it stopped working and there is no money to fix it. Now it just stays open and is in this big park by a large museum. Argentina once had the best economy in the world. Everyone did well and the country flourished. The Army, sensing a loss of power and influence over-threw the government and the economy went into a tailspin. Now Argentina is again a third world economy and most things that are broke don’t get fixed.
The monument to Eva Peron is the symbol of a very sad story. Wife of President Juan Peron, Eva spent all her time and effort lifting up the poor and, more specifically, poor women. She became vastly popular and was urged to run for Vice President. If you recall the movie, Madonna sang “Don’t cry for me Argentina” as she portraided Eva Peron announcing to the people that she could not run for Vice President because she was dying of cancer. Eva did not sing that song in real life but she did make that public announcement. She died shortly after just as the Army was overpowering the country and, although her body was snuck out of the country to Paris, there is a horrible story of the time she died until she was returned to Buenos Aires. Look it up or read the book.
Buenos Aires is the end of our cruise, but NOT the end of our trip. As I mentioned in the beginning, we have booked a five day extension to Iguaz’u (pronounced frequently as E wa Sue … but many other different ways depending where you are) Falls and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. So early tomorrow, five AM, we leave the Jupiter and get transported to the airport for our flight to the falls. The excursion to the falls and Rio de Janerio will be in a separate post found under this one in the menu. Thanks for “Turning the Horn” with us..
