December 27 to January 2
Well they almost had to take us screaming and kicking from our beautiful hotel back to Rio, but since we were going back for the New Year´s festivities, we went.
We are back at the Debret until we leave Jan. 3. Our room is on the side with a decent view of the beach and fortunately several tall trees that are home to some singing birds(in the early morning of course). Best of all, we have 2 sets of closets. The Hotel offered us a remodelled room on the top floor facing the beach but it had a few small drawers and closet space for only 4 hangers. They thought we were nuts to turn it down but it just did not have enough storage for 2 women for 7 days! However, we really appreciated the thoughtfulness of offering us such a trade at no extra cost. Barb thinks she saw a couple with all their belongings in plastic bags chortling as they moved to the top floor.
The Debret is undergoing a renovation programme that is beyond our understanding. They refaced one side of the building but not the other. They fixed the roof so we are back eating breakfast at the top of the building with a spectacular view of the beach. The second floor is being remodelled extensively, but they are still trying to rent some rooms there. The 10th floor (there are 11 floors) has some remodelled rooms and at this rate it will take 5 years to complete.
When we returned to Rio, the weather was lovely but we were tired from the trip. So the next day we decided to take a bus to Barra da Tijuca, which is a suburb of Rio. It looks like any burb of a big city and would fit in at home. They have a very large shopping centre, which was AIR CONDITIONED! The bus ride took us past many interesting sites in Rio and took 60 minutes so it was like a mini tour. Our ride back to the hotel proved to be extremely interesting. We went into Sao Conrado where both the Hotel Intercontinental and the Hotel Sheraton are located. There is a major project underway there with construction of luxury condominiums. It was surprising to see Canadian firms Brascan and Brookfield Properties as developers. We drove past the Botonical Gardens, the Race Track known as The Jockey Club, the Fashion Mall (which we were told was in outer space when it came to prices), the Planetarium all of which we did not have time to visit.
There is a huge slum, called a favella, overlooking these hotels and condos. It is one of the largest slums in Rio. The favellas are, we think, the most famous slums in the world. One of our guides remarked that they are the real Rio. We had an idea that because the favellas are squatters, that they would have no water, plumbing, etc. The favellas are built on the hills behind the flats that border the seashore. In fact, they have full services plus paved roads. They even have taxis to the top of the mountain! The taxis are motorcycles. We remember seeing in Vietnam whole families riding one motorcycle, mother, father and 3 kids. In some very lovely residential areas, the favellas are the next door neighbours. While many of the hilltop mansions were built first, it was impossible to control the construction of the favellas due to the huge numbers of people moving to the city. As a matter of fact, if we look left out of our window rather than right to the beach, there is a large favella behind us up the hill.
On our ride back from Barra, we drove through a section of road perched on the cliffside next to the ocean with the favella up the hill. As we neared Rio, we passed an enticing hotel next to the favellas called The Sinless Hotel with rates starting at 48 Reals per night. What a deal.
The weather turned very muggy in high twenty´s and low 30's with occasional rain during our bus ride, sometimes just pouring. When we got into Ipanema, we got caught in such a deluge but managed to find a bus to take us to Copacabana Avenue. We arrived back quite wet.
We saved the Corcovado (Statue called Christ the Redeemer)and Sugar Loaf Mountain tours for our last week and lucked out as we had a lovely day for the tour. Wow, both are very high up and most of Barb´s friends know how she loves heights!! But she persevered when Lynne insisted Sugar Loaf Mountain, which is two peaks connected by 2 differnet sets of cable cars, is a must. As she pointed out, Barb rode a cable car in Hong Kong up to a peak to see the great Buddah and she could do the same to see the great Sugar Loaf. Our tour also included a stop at the factory that is busy making all the costumes for the 2010 Carnival. All top secret so we couldn´t get in, but we did see last years and for 5 Reals you can get your picture taken in one of the costumes--no we didn´t. We also saw the area where they march out in costume to parade for the crowds. It is like a stadium, only it looks like 2 street blocks with the 'Suites' being closer to the street and air conditioned. The guide stated it was very expensive to attend and it was more for the tourists and the 'Cariocas' the citizens of Rio, don't go.
Another part of the tour included a stop in LeBlon, the last of the areas along the strip of beaches and an up and coming area, where we were told several of their soap operas as filmed are very popular with the other countries of South America and are a high demand export.
We toured another top jeweller in Rio--'Amsterdam, Sauer', but Barb still isn´t buying. She had hoped for a ring with the stones of Brazil, but knowing she still has 6 weeks of vacation left, decided to postpone such a purchase.
On December 30 it started to pour...such a torrent of water, we were worried there would be no New Year's Eve celebrations. By noon on December 31, the downpour started to disappear and low and behold - a pleasant Dec 31 on the beach. We planned our own New Year´s Eve meal as most places charged upwards of $300 (not Reals)so we picked up some goodies at our favourite dining location, a split of champagne and had our own celebration. We dressed up in the traditional white and joined the throngs of people (about 2 million) on Copacabana Avenue for the music and the fireworks. It was great!
We have been having a difficult time with the TV...STARVED for English. But must say, we are continuing to add to our Portugese vocabulary having discovered Fashion Week on television along with Jeannie Becker, of all people!
We have been wandering through grocery stores here as we are always buying water to drink. We noticed that prices are very high. Cherries are $6 lb and they come from Chile. Most of the produce is priced no differerent than at home and we found this very surprising. There are never fresh muchrooms on the shelves (must be the weather). It must be very difficult for people who live here as the minimum wage is $200 a month which is impossible to live on. We think a lot of families have several peope working at jobs one never sees at home. People sitting on a stool and punching floor numbers in a fully automatic elevator and 2 people per bus, one to drive and one to collect fares.
We have found a perfect place to eat that we call buffeteria. A huge selection of food sold at prices ranging from $1.59 to $3.49 per 100 grams. At every one, there is someone at the door to give you a blank bill, all sorts of people running around filling the food trays, selling water, beer etc., cashiers and one person to collect your receipt as proof of payment. We never see so many people running around at home.
We have set up our own little buffeteria in our room with Lynne's portable coffee maker and our own supply of tea bags and cookies for that well balanced evening snack with coffee cups, plates and cutlery from our breakfast room.
CURVES GALS: we took pictures of the Curves location on Rua Migel Lemos 21 in Copacabana and will bring them in when we get home.
We are very glad we came to Brazil and spent enough time here to get a feel for the country. There is a sense of energy and optimism everywhere and if they can solve the problem of employment at meaningful wages, they will be well on their way to general prosperity.
We found the weather a trifle too hot for us (heading to 45 by full summer) and too humid as well. Thank goodness for air conditioning.
We are leaving for Peru tomorrow and are packing now...although Barb managed a couple of hours on the beach this morning. We took our last free hour to update our blog and are not sure when we will be able to post again. But keep in touch.
We anticipate a big change in climate once we head into the Andes.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Thursday, December 24, 2009
BUZIOS THE BEAUTIFUL
December 21 - 27
We bought a pig in a poke and got a silk purse.
If you want a runaway week, come here. It is a little bit of the Mediteranean and feels like the Greek Islands or St. Tropaz! There is a miriad of bushes and flame trees in bloom with sweet scents in the air. Buzios is a peninsula,feels like an island, and is great for fishing, snorkeling, surfing, swimming, walking, suntanning and general lazing around.
We were picked up Monday a.m. by our interpreter Rakel, her 2 sons and their 2 friends, and our driver and headed to Buzios. Her boys had never been to Buzios and she planned to kill 2 birds with 1 stone. Our return trip will just be us, her and a driver.
It was a 2 1/2 hour drive through beautiful country and another 1 hour trying to find our hotel. It was worth the scavenger hunt as we landed in a pot of jam called the Posada Vila D'Este (www.viladeste.com.br) The photos don't do it justice.
This is a charming boutique hotel with 15 rooms that is built into the side of a hill overlooking Buzios Bay with two tiers of swimming pools (hot and cold) with jacuzzi and sauna, a wonderful dining room overlooking the bay and fantastic staff, not to mention outstanding food. Our roon is surrounded by beautiful flowering trees and a multitude of birds.
We are a 5 minute walk to the central part of town and a 15 minute walk to a wonderful little beach that sells great pina coladas, cerveja and grilled European sausage on a bun. We can also buy 600 ml of cold beer for 3 Reals which is about $2.
Buzios was a fishing village until Bridgitte Bardot came here in 1964. Although she never returned after 1969, the locals revere her memory as she put Buzios on the tourist map and the locals have memorialized her by naming many bars and streets after her. Today it is a popular resort. Since Punta del Este in Uruguay is getting so expensive, Buzios seems to be picking up as a destination stop. We have seen 7 cruise ships in our short stay...3 Royal Caribbean,2 MSC, 1 Ibero, and 1 french ship that holds 196 passengers and plies the water from B.A.to Venezuela.
We found an Argentinian restaurant called Don Juan and were fortunate that we were here for their Tuesday night Tango show. The steak was also great. In fact, their grilling methods are so good we went back for beef ribs which are cut totally differently than what we call beef ribs. You can spend as little or as much as you want for a meal and we have.
The Tango show was a bit of a disappointment as the place was so full of people, there was too little space for the dancers. The singer was good. Can someone tell us why all tango singers sound like Charles Azenouv?
Christmas in Brazil is very different from North America. Here, Carnival is the big deal. Except for an evangelical church with loudspeaker, there were few indications of the frenetic activity that marks N.A. We spent December 24 at our hotel. We started with a fantastic massage in the garden and then into the dining room for a mouth watering meal. We also tried the local lime drink called "caipirinha". Barb liked it once she got over the lime flavour, Lynne stuck with the cerveja. We are told the Dec. 24 family dinner is more important than Dec. 25. Some of the retail stores opened up about 3 pm on Dec 25 so the biggest thing going on for the 25th were the 2 cruise ships that came in. We got off the street and spent the day by our pools.
We added to our Portugese vocabulary such words as cocktail, happy hour and shopping not to mention garagem, Fordje and Fiatje. Like the French, the Brazilians like to make foreign words "Brazilian."
Another thing we noticed is all the dogs. They are everywhere and no one cleans up after them. Some people have 2 living with them in their apartments. So far we have only seen 1 cat.
There is a unique gift store in town that sells resin based art jewellery, evening bags and, would you believe - a bejewelled toilette seat?
We took a walk on the beach past the Centro commercial district and into a residential area where we noted a number of dwellings being rehabilitated. Lynne thinks they are or are being turned into boutique hotels and that this is an investment that will pay huge dividends in 5 years. It appears that the first properties to be snapped up are on or very near the waterfront near Centro. There are a lot of properties for sale and one would have to be careful not to make a costly mistake.
There is a surplus of commercial property and some look like they have been vacant for quite a few years. One former 2 storey restaurant facing the beach would probably make a great posada. A couple of guys from New York staying at the D'Este told us they walked past a vacant storefront and saw 2 dozen turkeys inside so we walked by in daylight....sure enough, 18 turkeys! Guess, some went for Xmas dinner and the rest probably will be a New Year's day feast.
This place is filling up fast with families coming in for New Year. It's out guess that all the decent places are fully booked.
We took an open air bus tour today and got a good look at several other popular spots on the peninsula. Many 5 star hotels, bays that specialize in snorkeling and a very tony and popular horseshoe shaped bay with the priciest homes in Buzios. Most of these locations we would find boring as without a car you are stranded. We are convinced we have the perfect location.
We plan to spend our last morning around the pools enjoying the view and are sorry to be leaving this delightful hotel but are looking forward to our next adventure.
We bought a pig in a poke and got a silk purse.
If you want a runaway week, come here. It is a little bit of the Mediteranean and feels like the Greek Islands or St. Tropaz! There is a miriad of bushes and flame trees in bloom with sweet scents in the air. Buzios is a peninsula,feels like an island, and is great for fishing, snorkeling, surfing, swimming, walking, suntanning and general lazing around.
We were picked up Monday a.m. by our interpreter Rakel, her 2 sons and their 2 friends, and our driver and headed to Buzios. Her boys had never been to Buzios and she planned to kill 2 birds with 1 stone. Our return trip will just be us, her and a driver.
It was a 2 1/2 hour drive through beautiful country and another 1 hour trying to find our hotel. It was worth the scavenger hunt as we landed in a pot of jam called the Posada Vila D'Este (www.viladeste.com.br) The photos don't do it justice.
This is a charming boutique hotel with 15 rooms that is built into the side of a hill overlooking Buzios Bay with two tiers of swimming pools (hot and cold) with jacuzzi and sauna, a wonderful dining room overlooking the bay and fantastic staff, not to mention outstanding food. Our roon is surrounded by beautiful flowering trees and a multitude of birds.
We are a 5 minute walk to the central part of town and a 15 minute walk to a wonderful little beach that sells great pina coladas, cerveja and grilled European sausage on a bun. We can also buy 600 ml of cold beer for 3 Reals which is about $2.
Buzios was a fishing village until Bridgitte Bardot came here in 1964. Although she never returned after 1969, the locals revere her memory as she put Buzios on the tourist map and the locals have memorialized her by naming many bars and streets after her. Today it is a popular resort. Since Punta del Este in Uruguay is getting so expensive, Buzios seems to be picking up as a destination stop. We have seen 7 cruise ships in our short stay...3 Royal Caribbean,2 MSC, 1 Ibero, and 1 french ship that holds 196 passengers and plies the water from B.A.to Venezuela.
We found an Argentinian restaurant called Don Juan and were fortunate that we were here for their Tuesday night Tango show. The steak was also great. In fact, their grilling methods are so good we went back for beef ribs which are cut totally differently than what we call beef ribs. You can spend as little or as much as you want for a meal and we have.
The Tango show was a bit of a disappointment as the place was so full of people, there was too little space for the dancers. The singer was good. Can someone tell us why all tango singers sound like Charles Azenouv?
Christmas in Brazil is very different from North America. Here, Carnival is the big deal. Except for an evangelical church with loudspeaker, there were few indications of the frenetic activity that marks N.A. We spent December 24 at our hotel. We started with a fantastic massage in the garden and then into the dining room for a mouth watering meal. We also tried the local lime drink called "caipirinha". Barb liked it once she got over the lime flavour, Lynne stuck with the cerveja. We are told the Dec. 24 family dinner is more important than Dec. 25. Some of the retail stores opened up about 3 pm on Dec 25 so the biggest thing going on for the 25th were the 2 cruise ships that came in. We got off the street and spent the day by our pools.
We added to our Portugese vocabulary such words as cocktail, happy hour and shopping not to mention garagem, Fordje and Fiatje. Like the French, the Brazilians like to make foreign words "Brazilian."
Another thing we noticed is all the dogs. They are everywhere and no one cleans up after them. Some people have 2 living with them in their apartments. So far we have only seen 1 cat.
There is a unique gift store in town that sells resin based art jewellery, evening bags and, would you believe - a bejewelled toilette seat?
We took a walk on the beach past the Centro commercial district and into a residential area where we noted a number of dwellings being rehabilitated. Lynne thinks they are or are being turned into boutique hotels and that this is an investment that will pay huge dividends in 5 years. It appears that the first properties to be snapped up are on or very near the waterfront near Centro. There are a lot of properties for sale and one would have to be careful not to make a costly mistake.
There is a surplus of commercial property and some look like they have been vacant for quite a few years. One former 2 storey restaurant facing the beach would probably make a great posada. A couple of guys from New York staying at the D'Este told us they walked past a vacant storefront and saw 2 dozen turkeys inside so we walked by in daylight....sure enough, 18 turkeys! Guess, some went for Xmas dinner and the rest probably will be a New Year's day feast.
This place is filling up fast with families coming in for New Year. It's out guess that all the decent places are fully booked.
We took an open air bus tour today and got a good look at several other popular spots on the peninsula. Many 5 star hotels, bays that specialize in snorkeling and a very tony and popular horseshoe shaped bay with the priciest homes in Buzios. Most of these locations we would find boring as without a car you are stranded. We are convinced we have the perfect location.
We plan to spend our last morning around the pools enjoying the view and are sorry to be leaving this delightful hotel but are looking forward to our next adventure.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
RIO REDUX
December 16 to 21.
After Iguacu, we returned to Rio for 5 days to recuperate from all our running around to fabulous news....Barb's lost luggage was found. Luckily, the baggage claim office was not far from the Debret so we walked over and claimed it.
Barb made arrangements for a tour to the jewellry factory of H. Stern. They have an intense sales programme which includes picking up tourists at their hotel and taking them to the Stern Factory and Sales Floor. Lynne left Barb with a charming salesman but she is sales-proof. Both of us toured the museum and private collection of H. Stern's toramaline gemstones.
When inquiring about bus routes, they kindly arranged for the Stern van to drop us off acrosssthe city at the CARMEN MIRANDA MUSEUM.
It is a small museum and houses pictures, clothing, jewellery, hats and those fabulous platform shoes that are back in style. They also have a small viewing area where Carmen's movies are on a continuus loop. How many of you remember this lady who we just found out was originally from Portugal not Brazil!
We woke up one morning to clear sunny skies (the first in 2 weeks!) and rushed to the beach for a sun burn..Yeah for us. Some of the police boats, helicopters and water bombers were out practicing for what we believe are New Year's Eve festivities.
Other than the factory tour and the return buses from the museum and one large shopping centre, we are walking everywhere.
We discovered a couple of very nice places to eat. Like the cuccinas in Mexico, there are buffets all through Copacabana where they sell food by the 100 grams. Many are just regular buffets but some contain grills where you can also choose steak, chicken, seafood, etc. right off the grill. We discovered one that is spotlessly clean and with a very wide selection so we can try a teaspoon of a local dish to see if we like it. Our way of pretending we are being concerned over what and how much we are eating.
Brazilians are futebol crazy. One evening, our hotel filled up with dozens of people wearing red and black striped jersies. One man was walking around with a stuffed Tucan on his head. Turns out there was a final game to determine who would represent Brazil in the World Cup to be held in South Africa in 2010. These people were Flamingo fans. The game was held on a Sunday and as we walked by a local bar, we noticed about 100 people standing in the street staring at a wall mounted TV in a local bar. The Flamingos won and the fans went nuts....firecrackers, group hugs in the middle of the street etc.
After Iguacu, we returned to Rio for 5 days to recuperate from all our running around to fabulous news....Barb's lost luggage was found. Luckily, the baggage claim office was not far from the Debret so we walked over and claimed it.
Barb made arrangements for a tour to the jewellry factory of H. Stern. They have an intense sales programme which includes picking up tourists at their hotel and taking them to the Stern Factory and Sales Floor. Lynne left Barb with a charming salesman but she is sales-proof. Both of us toured the museum and private collection of H. Stern's toramaline gemstones.
When inquiring about bus routes, they kindly arranged for the Stern van to drop us off acrosssthe city at the CARMEN MIRANDA MUSEUM.
It is a small museum and houses pictures, clothing, jewellery, hats and those fabulous platform shoes that are back in style. They also have a small viewing area where Carmen's movies are on a continuus loop. How many of you remember this lady who we just found out was originally from Portugal not Brazil!
We woke up one morning to clear sunny skies (the first in 2 weeks!) and rushed to the beach for a sun burn..Yeah for us. Some of the police boats, helicopters and water bombers were out practicing for what we believe are New Year's Eve festivities.
Other than the factory tour and the return buses from the museum and one large shopping centre, we are walking everywhere.
We discovered a couple of very nice places to eat. Like the cuccinas in Mexico, there are buffets all through Copacabana where they sell food by the 100 grams. Many are just regular buffets but some contain grills where you can also choose steak, chicken, seafood, etc. right off the grill. We discovered one that is spotlessly clean and with a very wide selection so we can try a teaspoon of a local dish to see if we like it. Our way of pretending we are being concerned over what and how much we are eating.
Brazilians are futebol crazy. One evening, our hotel filled up with dozens of people wearing red and black striped jersies. One man was walking around with a stuffed Tucan on his head. Turns out there was a final game to determine who would represent Brazil in the World Cup to be held in South Africa in 2010. These people were Flamingo fans. The game was held on a Sunday and as we walked by a local bar, we noticed about 100 people standing in the street staring at a wall mounted TV in a local bar. The Flamingos won and the fans went nuts....firecrackers, group hugs in the middle of the street etc.
There are some things you should definitely know if you travel in South America. Society is organized so that there is a little job for everyone. This means that little conveniences that we take for granted are not available and they can drive you crazy! Even so, things are pretty technologically savy. For example, in our hotel in Iguacu, the lights, A/C and TV could be controlled by buttons on the telephone.
- Bring an emersion rod or travel sized coffee/tea maker with you. Even if you stay in a 5 star hotel, there will be no coffee maker in your room.
- Bring a travel iron. The hotels hire people to work in a laundry so will not provide an iron.
- Bring an electrical adapter.
- We hate to say it, but bring instant coffee.
- Bring kleenex.
- There is often no toaster and there is always cake for breakfast.
- Tea here is most often herbal so if you want regular tea, pack tea bags.
- Do not expect people to speak English outside tourist facilities. Make an effort to learn some common courtesies in the local language. This and sign language goes a long way. Not to mention a smile and some patience.
- Adjust your budget to purchase lots of drinking water. The water is safe for bathing and brushing your teeth but NOT for drinking. It is hot and you will drink lots.
- The plumbing systems in Central and South America are not as accommodating as we are used to and do not generally accept toilet paper as a desposit!
We ended this round of "Rio days" with a fabulous brunch at the Marriott which included all the water and champagne we could drink. And we polished off at least one bottle of the bubbly.
We are so looking forward to the resort of Buzios.
Friday, December 18, 2009
IGUACU - One of the world's great wonders.
December 14 - 16
We had a sensible departure time for Iguacu - spelling Iguassu, Iguazzu etc - but we are using the name as spelled at their airport. Instead of a taxi, we took the Real bus and had a little tour of Rio on the way to the International Airport for one tenth the cost of a taxi.
Our flight was pleasant and uneventful and we were actually given a hot sandwich gratis! We also learned this country is cola crazy - no gingerale, no 7-up.
We arrived in Foz do Iguacu (ig-wa-SUE) on a hot day with only a few clouds and were met by our young guide, Luiz. He is a University student studying ecology, etc. Business seems to be slow as this was another tour with few customers...in this case just us.We started tour of the Falls on the Brazilian side.
The next day we journied to the Argentinian side. As we approached the falls, we could see the spray of the largest section of the falls which is referred to as the `"Devil´s Throat. ' Iguacu (in the native dialect meaning the end of the big waters), consists of 275 individual waterfalls in varying layers and sizes. It is very impressive and we must say, beats Niagara Falls. The Brazilian and Argentinian governments have created a huge national park system with amazing walkways that go over parts of the river and also contain balconies for photo taking. The river separates the two countries and also produces the world's second largest hydro electric power in one location.
After finishing our viewing and picture taking, we took a trail to the bottom of the falls where we boarded a jet boat for our Gran Adventura tour with over 35 university students (all singing the local soccer cheer) for a trip into the bottom of the falls (not once but 3 times) getting thoroughly soaked. The kids could hardly wait for the run under the falls. We knew it was coming and saved our raincoats from our Amazon jungle walk just for this. After the dunking, we headed down the river to a truck that was waiting to take us on a 20 minute ride through the jungl.e with a guide who specialized in local fauna and flora.
The entire park area is filled with millions of the most beautifully coloured butterflies we have ever seen ranging from clear yellows, reds, and blues to irridescent colours and many with multi-patterned wings.
WOW!!!! Until we started planning this trip Barb had not heard of these falls. So glad we got to see a UNESCO Heritage Site. Our pictures will say more than words can describe.
We stayed at the Continental Inn. Again a wonderful hotel with a great pool area and of course cold beer. We actually had time to walk to a large shopping centre which was air conditioned and offered a variety of stores selling Brazilian wear.
Flight back to Rio uneventful as was the bus ride, other than we got the slow ride to our Hotel.
We had a sensible departure time for Iguacu - spelling Iguassu, Iguazzu etc - but we are using the name as spelled at their airport. Instead of a taxi, we took the Real bus and had a little tour of Rio on the way to the International Airport for one tenth the cost of a taxi.
Our flight was pleasant and uneventful and we were actually given a hot sandwich gratis! We also learned this country is cola crazy - no gingerale, no 7-up.
We arrived in Foz do Iguacu (ig-wa-SUE) on a hot day with only a few clouds and were met by our young guide, Luiz. He is a University student studying ecology, etc. Business seems to be slow as this was another tour with few customers...in this case just us.We started tour of the Falls on the Brazilian side.
The next day we journied to the Argentinian side. As we approached the falls, we could see the spray of the largest section of the falls which is referred to as the `"Devil´s Throat. ' Iguacu (in the native dialect meaning the end of the big waters), consists of 275 individual waterfalls in varying layers and sizes. It is very impressive and we must say, beats Niagara Falls. The Brazilian and Argentinian governments have created a huge national park system with amazing walkways that go over parts of the river and also contain balconies for photo taking. The river separates the two countries and also produces the world's second largest hydro electric power in one location.
After finishing our viewing and picture taking, we took a trail to the bottom of the falls where we boarded a jet boat for our Gran Adventura tour with over 35 university students (all singing the local soccer cheer) for a trip into the bottom of the falls (not once but 3 times) getting thoroughly soaked. The kids could hardly wait for the run under the falls. We knew it was coming and saved our raincoats from our Amazon jungle walk just for this. After the dunking, we headed down the river to a truck that was waiting to take us on a 20 minute ride through the jungl.e with a guide who specialized in local fauna and flora.
The entire park area is filled with millions of the most beautifully coloured butterflies we have ever seen ranging from clear yellows, reds, and blues to irridescent colours and many with multi-patterned wings.
WOW!!!! Until we started planning this trip Barb had not heard of these falls. So glad we got to see a UNESCO Heritage Site. Our pictures will say more than words can describe.
We stayed at the Continental Inn. Again a wonderful hotel with a great pool area and of course cold beer. We actually had time to walk to a large shopping centre which was air conditioned and offered a variety of stores selling Brazilian wear.
Flight back to Rio uneventful as was the bus ride, other than we got the slow ride to our Hotel.
AMAZING AMAZON
December 8
We flew to Manaus (manOUSE) which turned out to be a long flight with a transfer in Brazilia. We were picked up at the airport and our guide gave us an interesting tour of the downtown area and their famous opera house. There are about 3 million people there as it is a major tax free zone with manufacturers like Phillips and LG etc. The city is growing at 20% a year and they are finally doing something about their favelas (slums) in order to clear up major pollution on the river Rio Negro.
We were delivered to a fabulous 5 star hotel, the Tropical, a chain of deluxe resort hotels in Brazil and waited for our tour to begin. It was tough lounging around the pool!
We must have brought a little Canadian weather with us. Previous to our arrival, Manaus had 2 months of 45C weather. When we arrived the temperature dropped 20 degrees and it started to pour. We had left Rio in a tropical downpour but found the skies clear in Brazilia and hoped for better things to come. No such luck.
On December 9, our tour guide gathered together his little tour of 9 passengers....5 Spaniards, 1 Aussie, 1 French woman and 2 intrepid travellers. We traipsed down the hill behind the hotel to cross a sandy beach and into a motorized canoe for a quick jaunt to the Amazon Clipper. The boat is exactly as pictured and normally carried 32-35 passengers. Not the 9 that were on this tour.
It rained so hard that our first nights tour was cancelled. The next day the birds, the animals and the Spaniards went on strike. But our fearless foursome started out to tramp through the jungle in plastic raincoats and running shoes...no one had ever told us that a pair of rubber boots was essential gear....just in case! We walked on a sponge of dead leaves which will be the floor of the river in the rainy season which is just starting. The trees also will be under the river. Last year the river was so high it reached over 21 metres high.
We felt like millionaires with our own private yacht as we could sit on the deck in glorious isolation and pretend we were alone.
One of our tours took us into the river islands at sunset and we saw caiman (crockadiles) and the guides found an anaconda snake which they managed to bring down on a long stick and brought it over to show us....yeach! One tour was an early morning fishing trip (for pirranahs) at which time the 2 canadians and the french went on strike. The cook prepared the fish for dinner and they were delicious. As a matter of fact the food was outstanding and could match what we had on the Veendam any day. No movies, radio or TV.
We were confused as the tour material provided to us did not match what we were doing. The guide said the tour we had was 20 years out of date. However, we had a wonderful time...just a different wonderful time than we expected.
One of our night tours down a tributary of the Amazon ended at a hotel where the true explorers stay..the Jungle Lodge. We finally saw an animal!!! The squirrel monkey--cute but no cupíe doll and certainly no 3 toed Sloth. Our poor guide Hugo, no matter how hard he tried we didn`t see anything else. What birds we did see were quite something, but didn`t see as many has he had hoped.
The day before we returned, we stopped at a village located on one of the many islands for an introduction to their practices and traditions. Who knew an indiginous tradition was having television and electric guitars. The plan was to stroll through the village, stop to watch them make flour, have the children sing a few songs and then head back to the ship. Well we were about 20 minutes into the tour when we realized Lynne was not taking the heat and humidity well, so we missed the flour making part. While we waited for the rest of the gang to meet at the communict arena, Barb doused Lynne with wonderful cold spring water which is now pumped into their homes.
They have a school house in which they are learning their AB C´s as well as two languages...their own dialect from a mixture of several cultures living in the village and Portugese.
Our final day was spent lounging on the deck as the others went for one last walk in the jungle. When they returned we cruised to what they call ¨the meeting of the waters¨where the Rio Negro and the Amazon meet. You can see the way the two rivers butt up against each other..the black and the muddy.
December 12.
Our return flight was another adventure. The schedule was Manous to Rio through Sao Paulo leaving at 3:20. The flight was delayed almost an hour and shortly before we were to land we were advised over the PA system that due to the traffic at the airport we were being diverted back to Brazilia where we refueled. After 30 minutes on the ground, we continued our flight to Sao Paulo. However, by that time we had missed our connection to Rio. Fortunately for us a delightful young Mexican gentleman tanslated the communications to us and we found out that the plane we were on was being renumbered and was to be our intended connection to Rio, so we just changed seats after we bid him a safe journey home. His flight to Mexico was to leave at midnight and we don`t know if he made it or not.
We finally made it back to our hotel around 2:30 a.m. after an 80 Real taxi ride. This time our room was a sideview and nothing to brag about but we were only staying 2 nights so no complaint.
We flew to Manaus (manOUSE) which turned out to be a long flight with a transfer in Brazilia. We were picked up at the airport and our guide gave us an interesting tour of the downtown area and their famous opera house. There are about 3 million people there as it is a major tax free zone with manufacturers like Phillips and LG etc. The city is growing at 20% a year and they are finally doing something about their favelas (slums) in order to clear up major pollution on the river Rio Negro.
We were delivered to a fabulous 5 star hotel, the Tropical, a chain of deluxe resort hotels in Brazil and waited for our tour to begin. It was tough lounging around the pool!
We must have brought a little Canadian weather with us. Previous to our arrival, Manaus had 2 months of 45C weather. When we arrived the temperature dropped 20 degrees and it started to pour. We had left Rio in a tropical downpour but found the skies clear in Brazilia and hoped for better things to come. No such luck.
On December 9, our tour guide gathered together his little tour of 9 passengers....5 Spaniards, 1 Aussie, 1 French woman and 2 intrepid travellers. We traipsed down the hill behind the hotel to cross a sandy beach and into a motorized canoe for a quick jaunt to the Amazon Clipper. The boat is exactly as pictured and normally carried 32-35 passengers. Not the 9 that were on this tour.
It rained so hard that our first nights tour was cancelled. The next day the birds, the animals and the Spaniards went on strike. But our fearless foursome started out to tramp through the jungle in plastic raincoats and running shoes...no one had ever told us that a pair of rubber boots was essential gear....just in case! We walked on a sponge of dead leaves which will be the floor of the river in the rainy season which is just starting. The trees also will be under the river. Last year the river was so high it reached over 21 metres high.
We felt like millionaires with our own private yacht as we could sit on the deck in glorious isolation and pretend we were alone.
One of our tours took us into the river islands at sunset and we saw caiman (crockadiles) and the guides found an anaconda snake which they managed to bring down on a long stick and brought it over to show us....yeach! One tour was an early morning fishing trip (for pirranahs) at which time the 2 canadians and the french went on strike. The cook prepared the fish for dinner and they were delicious. As a matter of fact the food was outstanding and could match what we had on the Veendam any day. No movies, radio or TV.
We were confused as the tour material provided to us did not match what we were doing. The guide said the tour we had was 20 years out of date. However, we had a wonderful time...just a different wonderful time than we expected.
One of our night tours down a tributary of the Amazon ended at a hotel where the true explorers stay..the Jungle Lodge. We finally saw an animal!!! The squirrel monkey--cute but no cupíe doll and certainly no 3 toed Sloth. Our poor guide Hugo, no matter how hard he tried we didn`t see anything else. What birds we did see were quite something, but didn`t see as many has he had hoped.
The day before we returned, we stopped at a village located on one of the many islands for an introduction to their practices and traditions. Who knew an indiginous tradition was having television and electric guitars. The plan was to stroll through the village, stop to watch them make flour, have the children sing a few songs and then head back to the ship. Well we were about 20 minutes into the tour when we realized Lynne was not taking the heat and humidity well, so we missed the flour making part. While we waited for the rest of the gang to meet at the communict arena, Barb doused Lynne with wonderful cold spring water which is now pumped into their homes.
They have a school house in which they are learning their AB C´s as well as two languages...their own dialect from a mixture of several cultures living in the village and Portugese.
Our final day was spent lounging on the deck as the others went for one last walk in the jungle. When they returned we cruised to what they call ¨the meeting of the waters¨where the Rio Negro and the Amazon meet. You can see the way the two rivers butt up against each other..the black and the muddy.
December 12.
Our return flight was another adventure. The schedule was Manous to Rio through Sao Paulo leaving at 3:20. The flight was delayed almost an hour and shortly before we were to land we were advised over the PA system that due to the traffic at the airport we were being diverted back to Brazilia where we refueled. After 30 minutes on the ground, we continued our flight to Sao Paulo. However, by that time we had missed our connection to Rio. Fortunately for us a delightful young Mexican gentleman tanslated the communications to us and we found out that the plane we were on was being renumbered and was to be our intended connection to Rio, so we just changed seats after we bid him a safe journey home. His flight to Mexico was to leave at midnight and we don`t know if he made it or not.
We finally made it back to our hotel around 2:30 a.m. after an 80 Real taxi ride. This time our room was a sideview and nothing to brag about but we were only staying 2 nights so no complaint.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL
Decemer 5
Our arrival here after 2 days at sea was a symphony of disasters, beaurocracy run amok and general frustration. Due to an outbreak of GIF on the ship, the Brazilian Medical Officer showed up and would not let anyone decamp until he checked all the passenges and crew who had been sick. This took about 5 hours. Finally, the Immigration Officers came on board to check Visas and passports and that took another 5 hours. We finally got off the ship at 5:30 pm and to our hotel by 6pm. At least we had a room waiting! Unfortunately one of Barb´s carry on bags was not with our stuff and she is suffering trying to figure out what was in the bag.
The Hotel Debret is a european hotel with all its pluses and minuses. They seem to be in the midst of a renovation project that will take years. When we went outside to look for the balcony rooms, we discovered that all the balconies had been removed and that side of the hotel restuccoed (but not the front facing the ocean). The dining room had a hole in the roof and so our breakfast is in a temporary room on the main floor. But the staff is accommodating. Our room for this first leg of our stay has a fabulous view directly overlooking the beach.
We are enjoying the atmosphere and walking along avenue Atlantica which fronts the ocean. Watched an indiginous band performing and selling CDs. Two of their group danced and you can certainly see they are cousins of the Cree. Their beading is lighter and brighter and the feather head dresses contain some of the colourful feathers that South American birds sport. They also included a pan pipe which make the sound very distinct and pleasant.
We are finally eating sensibly....and can barely do up our pants so have a lot of incentive to walk more and eat less.
We are leaving for Manaus in the Amazonus on Tuesday, December 8 and will keep everyone updated as time allows.
For some reason time is in short supply. Could be because we are having a fabulous time!
Our arrival here after 2 days at sea was a symphony of disasters, beaurocracy run amok and general frustration. Due to an outbreak of GIF on the ship, the Brazilian Medical Officer showed up and would not let anyone decamp until he checked all the passenges and crew who had been sick. This took about 5 hours. Finally, the Immigration Officers came on board to check Visas and passports and that took another 5 hours. We finally got off the ship at 5:30 pm and to our hotel by 6pm. At least we had a room waiting! Unfortunately one of Barb´s carry on bags was not with our stuff and she is suffering trying to figure out what was in the bag.
The Hotel Debret is a european hotel with all its pluses and minuses. They seem to be in the midst of a renovation project that will take years. When we went outside to look for the balcony rooms, we discovered that all the balconies had been removed and that side of the hotel restuccoed (but not the front facing the ocean). The dining room had a hole in the roof and so our breakfast is in a temporary room on the main floor. But the staff is accommodating. Our room for this first leg of our stay has a fabulous view directly overlooking the beach.
We are enjoying the atmosphere and walking along avenue Atlantica which fronts the ocean. Watched an indiginous band performing and selling CDs. Two of their group danced and you can certainly see they are cousins of the Cree. Their beading is lighter and brighter and the feather head dresses contain some of the colourful feathers that South American birds sport. They also included a pan pipe which make the sound very distinct and pleasant.
We are finally eating sensibly....and can barely do up our pants so have a lot of incentive to walk more and eat less.
We are leaving for Manaus in the Amazonus on Tuesday, December 8 and will keep everyone updated as time allows.
For some reason time is in short supply. Could be because we are having a fabulous time!
BUENOS AIRIES, ARGENTINA
December 1
We arrived in Buenos Airies (fair winds in spanish) on a beautiful day. Come to think of it, we had generally cool weather until Montevideo. We had arranged to meet Monica and Augustina for lunch and decided we could walk through Calle Florida (the Rodeo Drive of South America) and into San Telmo to meet them. We walked for 3.5 hours and arrived early and thirsty. We sat down at an outdoor table under a tree and enjoyed a beer while waiting. A tour bus loaded with our ship passemgers drove by and we waved while they took pictures. I can just imagine someone developing their pictures and wondering ¨who are those old broads...they look like two women we saw on the ship!
We had a wonderful visit but our hostesses had to get back to work. They called a taxi for us and we journied on to Carmenito, the outdoor museum, in La Boca. We regretted our lack of time but managed to get back to San Telmo for a look around and walked back to H. Stern tograb their shuttle to the Port.
Our stay in B.A. was cut short as the ship had to leave several hours earlier than schedule on Dec. 2 and most of the passengers were quite annoyed as 1.5 days in B.A. is certainly not enough time.
It you are looking for a winter get away this is the city to shop in. You can buy a smallish pied a tiere here for about $18,000 US and fix it up for about half that again!
This is definitely a city to visit and stay a couple of weeks...maybe longer.
We left with regrets.
We arrived in Buenos Airies (fair winds in spanish) on a beautiful day. Come to think of it, we had generally cool weather until Montevideo. We had arranged to meet Monica and Augustina for lunch and decided we could walk through Calle Florida (the Rodeo Drive of South America) and into San Telmo to meet them. We walked for 3.5 hours and arrived early and thirsty. We sat down at an outdoor table under a tree and enjoyed a beer while waiting. A tour bus loaded with our ship passemgers drove by and we waved while they took pictures. I can just imagine someone developing their pictures and wondering ¨who are those old broads...they look like two women we saw on the ship!
We had a wonderful visit but our hostesses had to get back to work. They called a taxi for us and we journied on to Carmenito, the outdoor museum, in La Boca. We regretted our lack of time but managed to get back to San Telmo for a look around and walked back to H. Stern tograb their shuttle to the Port.
Our stay in B.A. was cut short as the ship had to leave several hours earlier than schedule on Dec. 2 and most of the passengers were quite annoyed as 1.5 days in B.A. is certainly not enough time.
It you are looking for a winter get away this is the city to shop in. You can buy a smallish pied a tiere here for about $18,000 US and fix it up for about half that again!
This is definitely a city to visit and stay a couple of weeks...maybe longer.
We left with regrets.
MONTEVIDEO, URUGUAY
November 30
After 2 days at sea, we arrived in beautiful Montevideo. The portuguese numbered their discoveries and Mont refers to hills Vi is the number 6 and Deo is day...we discovered 6 hills today.
There are many lovely old buildings, modern skyscrapers and fabulous beaches not to mention 2 notable golf courses. The Uruguans are soccer mad and their team made it into the finals for the World Cup.
This is the first place since San Diego that we noted quite a few street people.
Jose Gurvich is a noted painter who originated here and we went to the museum set up by his widow. He died very young in New York preparing for an exhibit. His widow arranged for him to be buried in Israel and she brought his collection back to Montevideo for public viewing.
We spoke to many passengers who really loved the look and feel of this city including us.
After 2 days at sea, we arrived in beautiful Montevideo. The portuguese numbered their discoveries and Mont refers to hills Vi is the number 6 and Deo is day...we discovered 6 hills today.
There are many lovely old buildings, modern skyscrapers and fabulous beaches not to mention 2 notable golf courses. The Uruguans are soccer mad and their team made it into the finals for the World Cup.
This is the first place since San Diego that we noted quite a few street people.
Jose Gurvich is a noted painter who originated here and we went to the museum set up by his widow. He died very young in New York preparing for an exhibit. His widow arranged for him to be buried in Israel and she brought his collection back to Montevideo for public viewing.
We spoke to many passengers who really loved the look and feel of this city including us.
THE FOLLY OF THE FALKLANDS
November 27
After all our good luck on the seas, we really thought we would make Port Stanley. While we came and saw we could not land. In this, we joined 3 out of 4 cruisers who do not manage to land in the Falklands.
The captain had warned us the night before that the winds were 40 knots and they need to be less than 20 for us to tender in. The wind did not abate and it was bad timing on our part that we were not part of 199 passengers who got off as soon as we arrived and before the wind picked up. There were many other disappointed passengers who had planned to view old wrecks, wreckage of the war and penguins.
After all our good luck on the seas, we really thought we would make Port Stanley. While we came and saw we could not land. In this, we joined 3 out of 4 cruisers who do not manage to land in the Falklands.
The captain had warned us the night before that the winds were 40 knots and they need to be less than 20 for us to tender in. The wind did not abate and it was bad timing on our part that we were not part of 199 passengers who got off as soon as we arrived and before the wind picked up. There were many other disappointed passengers who had planned to view old wrecks, wreckage of the war and penguins.
ROUNDING CAPE HORN
November 26
After leaving Ushuaia, we headed toward Cape Horn. The ship had been installing emergency lighting for some time and we had visions of the crew lashing the outside doors shut with chains while we strapped into out beds trying not to hit the ceiling! It did not happen....no grand adventure at all as we rounded the Horn as the sea was smooth for this section of water. However, it was very windy on the decks for the picture takers.
Of all the famous mariners - Magellan, Sir Francis Drake, Cook and anyone else you can think of who had places named after them, it is La Maire and the Schouten brothers of the Netherlands who discovered and first sailed around this cape which they named after Hoorn, their city of origin.
After leaving Ushuaia, we headed toward Cape Horn. The ship had been installing emergency lighting for some time and we had visions of the crew lashing the outside doors shut with chains while we strapped into out beds trying not to hit the ceiling! It did not happen....no grand adventure at all as we rounded the Horn as the sea was smooth for this section of water. However, it was very windy on the decks for the picture takers.
Of all the famous mariners - Magellan, Sir Francis Drake, Cook and anyone else you can think of who had places named after them, it is La Maire and the Schouten brothers of the Netherlands who discovered and first sailed around this cape which they named after Hoorn, their city of origin.
USHUAIA, ARGENTINA
November 25
Ushuaia, 55 degrees latitude, is in Tiera del Fuego and while most of the mainland belongs to Chile, this town is in Argentina. It has a sort of Alpine/Wild West atmosphere. The average winter temperature is about 5 but nearly 70% of the time there are winds blowing. The locals wear ski jackets and jeans and drive 4x4s. You cannot tell the big wigs from the small fries by the way they dress. The indegenous people, the Yahgan and Alaculufes (Canoe Indias), wore little or no clothes at all and kept warm from the constant fires they built. Wow!
The seas were very rough and it looked for a while like we would not be able to land. However, the captain managed when the winds fell below 20 knots. The town is very hilly and is a popular hunting and fishing destination.
On our way back from touring the city we walked into an H. Stern Jewellry store so Barb could drool. As we left the shop Barb told the sales rep she was very sorry but ¨I can´t afford me¨.
Ushuaia, 55 degrees latitude, is in Tiera del Fuego and while most of the mainland belongs to Chile, this town is in Argentina. It has a sort of Alpine/Wild West atmosphere. The average winter temperature is about 5 but nearly 70% of the time there are winds blowing. The locals wear ski jackets and jeans and drive 4x4s. You cannot tell the big wigs from the small fries by the way they dress. The indegenous people, the Yahgan and Alaculufes (Canoe Indias), wore little or no clothes at all and kept warm from the constant fires they built. Wow!
The seas were very rough and it looked for a while like we would not be able to land. However, the captain managed when the winds fell below 20 knots. The town is very hilly and is a popular hunting and fishing destination.
On our way back from touring the city we walked into an H. Stern Jewellry store so Barb could drool. As we left the shop Barb told the sales rep she was very sorry but ¨I can´t afford me¨.
IN THE WAKE OF CHARLES DARWIN
November 24
Still in Punta Arenas: went to a beautiful old mansion that the Braun-Menendez family donated to the City and has been turned into a museum. The furniture is lovely French Provincial stuff. It was surprising to see it in the middle of nowhere! This museum reminded both of us of the Biltmore House in Ashville, North Carolina. There were some people who made a great deal of money in this part of the world.
On leaving Puna Arenas we backed down the Strait of Magellan into the Beagle Channel. This was a stark, icily beautiful channel with tidewater glaciers to the east. There are five named glaciers that very, very blue. There were no birds visible and the glaciers are calving into the channel. We sat in the Crowsnest Lounge which has a 210 degree view. It stretches the mind to try and imagine the Beagle sailing through this channel in its exploratory voyage nearly 200 years ago.
Still in Punta Arenas: went to a beautiful old mansion that the Braun-Menendez family donated to the City and has been turned into a museum. The furniture is lovely French Provincial stuff. It was surprising to see it in the middle of nowhere! This museum reminded both of us of the Biltmore House in Ashville, North Carolina. There were some people who made a great deal of money in this part of the world.
On leaving Puna Arenas we backed down the Strait of Magellan into the Beagle Channel. This was a stark, icily beautiful channel with tidewater glaciers to the east. There are five named glaciers that very, very blue. There were no birds visible and the glaciers are calving into the channel. We sat in the Crowsnest Lounge which has a 210 degree view. It stretches the mind to try and imagine the Beagle sailing through this channel in its exploratory voyage nearly 200 years ago.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
UNSEEN BY MILLIONS
We are really enjoying this cruise. There are many very nice people and we have been fortunate in meeting a great many of them. We have an entertaining dinner table ensemble and are surprised by how many Albertans and Canadians are on board for the full 35 days. As everyone knows, Canadians like value for our money!
Our entertainers are total unknowns to us but many are excellent and make a living on the cruise ship circuit. They come from Australia, UK, Europe, USA etc. and we have missed very few evening performances.
We must confess - we have yet to see the midnight sky! What is it about heading south of the equator that exhausts us by 9 pm?
We must admit that our knowledge of geography was abysmal!! Do look up a proper map of Chile and take a good look at the southern tip. We have been sailing through some very complicated scenery - fjiords, islands, narrow channels that are all part of Chile.
By the way, Punta Arenas is somewhat further south (they claim) than Ushuaia, Argentina where we are headed next and which everyone assums is the most southerly city in South America.
Our entertainers are total unknowns to us but many are excellent and make a living on the cruise ship circuit. They come from Australia, UK, Europe, USA etc. and we have missed very few evening performances.
We must confess - we have yet to see the midnight sky! What is it about heading south of the equator that exhausts us by 9 pm?
We must admit that our knowledge of geography was abysmal!! Do look up a proper map of Chile and take a good look at the southern tip. We have been sailing through some very complicated scenery - fjiords, islands, narrow channels that are all part of Chile.
By the way, Punta Arenas is somewhat further south (they claim) than Ushuaia, Argentina where we are headed next and which everyone assums is the most southerly city in South America.
CHILE
COQUIMBO/LA SERENA
Wednesday, Nov. 18
After two days at sea we arrived at the first of 3 stops in Chile. We decided not to do an organized tour and took the local bus for $1 US each way to La Serena which is about 8 km away from the port. The bus driver was very helpful and made sure we knew which bus to take home. We had lots of help from non-English speakers.
La Serena is a popular holiday destination for Chileans.
We did not find our internet cafe or a salon for a pedicure and manicure, but did walk through a lovely park with a jazz band playing great music. There was the usual local market.
We are now into wearing warmer clothes as the temperature is dropping the farther south we go. Small cities, but clean. Coquimbo has these great winding sidewalks going up the hills.
We are struggling with our Spanish as few of the locals speak English, as it should be, as we are visiting them. Very surprised that the ship is not offering Spanish lessons and Barb´s books are still in her suitcase.
This is the point when we realized that the days were getting longer.
VALPARISO/SANTIAGO
Thursday, November 19
This was the off and on city for the cruise. The end for those that got on in San Diego and the start for the second part of our adventure for the ¨newbies¨. 600 people took the entire 35 day cruise!
Again, we decided not to do an oganized tour and grabbed a cab to the Plaza Sotomayor in the town centre. We walked around and discovered towering hills, a maze of winding streets and alleys, sloping staircases and funiculars. We took a funicular built in 1883 to the top of Concepcion, the historic centre which overlooked the city. What a view. We later discovered this is another UNESCO World Heritage Site.
There are 15 ascensors (funicular) connecting the shore with the hillside residential areas. Some are in very poor condition and American Express has provided a cash grant to help maintain them.
From there we realized the port was very close and decided to walk back. We desparately needed to walk as our great plans to eat less and walk more were not becoming a reality. The walk was around 40 minutes which was fine with us. When we got back to the ship we realized that if the railroad was not directly in front of the port we could have walked into town.
November 20 and a very rough day at sea. Barb actually had to take a gravol.
PUERTO MONTT
November 21
This is a large fishing port but we took a tour to two cities created by the German settlers which are situated on Lago Llanquihue (Lake Yang-kee-way). Puerto Varas..City of Roses and Frutillar..little black forest. It was quite cold but lovely and definitely tourist places. Beautiful hotels on the lake with wonderful restaurants and a casino. Many people come here for vacation. Actually, there is a growing internationa classical music competition in Frutillar with a large new music hall being built on the lake and blocking the view of all sorts of local people.
The tour said 4 hours but by the time we got off the ship, were tendered into port, boarded the bus, etc., etc., etc., we actually only had about 20 minutes in each city. That didn´t give us much time to really see much, but we enjoyed what we saw. We did have time for apple kuchen and coffee. We also picked up a bottle of the local liquor--Pisco Sour--which is not lasting as long as it should.
Pisco Sour is claimed as the national drink of Peru. Pisco Sour is claimed as the national drink of Chile. Peru and Chile fought a war in 1941 - do you think it was over Pisco Sour?
Nov. 22 and 23 - 2 days at sea cruising through Darwin´s Channell, the Chilean Fiords and early on the 24ths cruising up the Straight of Magellan into Punta Arenas, the Capital of Patagonia.
We headed up the the Amelia Glacier on Nov. 23. WOW, just like Alberta in the winter... snow, ice and sunshine only not quite as spectacular as our Rockies, but then what can compare to those peaks. This part of the cruise is the South American version of the Alaska Cruise.
Today we are on our own again strolling through PUNTA AREANAS. We finally got our manicure and pedicure, found the internet and when done, we are off to....you guessed it...eat.
Barb finally broke down and bought a lovely alpaca cardigan - the first time !
Having a great time. It is turning into a real education as one realizes the world is upside down.
Every once in a while we stumble on an english speaker but we are managing to communicate anyway.
Wednesday, Nov. 18
After two days at sea we arrived at the first of 3 stops in Chile. We decided not to do an organized tour and took the local bus for $1 US each way to La Serena which is about 8 km away from the port. The bus driver was very helpful and made sure we knew which bus to take home. We had lots of help from non-English speakers.
La Serena is a popular holiday destination for Chileans.
We did not find our internet cafe or a salon for a pedicure and manicure, but did walk through a lovely park with a jazz band playing great music. There was the usual local market.
We are now into wearing warmer clothes as the temperature is dropping the farther south we go. Small cities, but clean. Coquimbo has these great winding sidewalks going up the hills.
We are struggling with our Spanish as few of the locals speak English, as it should be, as we are visiting them. Very surprised that the ship is not offering Spanish lessons and Barb´s books are still in her suitcase.
This is the point when we realized that the days were getting longer.
VALPARISO/SANTIAGO
Thursday, November 19
This was the off and on city for the cruise. The end for those that got on in San Diego and the start for the second part of our adventure for the ¨newbies¨. 600 people took the entire 35 day cruise!
Again, we decided not to do an oganized tour and grabbed a cab to the Plaza Sotomayor in the town centre. We walked around and discovered towering hills, a maze of winding streets and alleys, sloping staircases and funiculars. We took a funicular built in 1883 to the top of Concepcion, the historic centre which overlooked the city. What a view. We later discovered this is another UNESCO World Heritage Site.
There are 15 ascensors (funicular) connecting the shore with the hillside residential areas. Some are in very poor condition and American Express has provided a cash grant to help maintain them.
From there we realized the port was very close and decided to walk back. We desparately needed to walk as our great plans to eat less and walk more were not becoming a reality. The walk was around 40 minutes which was fine with us. When we got back to the ship we realized that if the railroad was not directly in front of the port we could have walked into town.
November 20 and a very rough day at sea. Barb actually had to take a gravol.
PUERTO MONTT
November 21
This is a large fishing port but we took a tour to two cities created by the German settlers which are situated on Lago Llanquihue (Lake Yang-kee-way). Puerto Varas..City of Roses and Frutillar..little black forest. It was quite cold but lovely and definitely tourist places. Beautiful hotels on the lake with wonderful restaurants and a casino. Many people come here for vacation. Actually, there is a growing internationa classical music competition in Frutillar with a large new music hall being built on the lake and blocking the view of all sorts of local people.
The tour said 4 hours but by the time we got off the ship, were tendered into port, boarded the bus, etc., etc., etc., we actually only had about 20 minutes in each city. That didn´t give us much time to really see much, but we enjoyed what we saw. We did have time for apple kuchen and coffee. We also picked up a bottle of the local liquor--Pisco Sour--which is not lasting as long as it should.
Pisco Sour is claimed as the national drink of Peru. Pisco Sour is claimed as the national drink of Chile. Peru and Chile fought a war in 1941 - do you think it was over Pisco Sour?
Nov. 22 and 23 - 2 days at sea cruising through Darwin´s Channell, the Chilean Fiords and early on the 24ths cruising up the Straight of Magellan into Punta Arenas, the Capital of Patagonia.
We headed up the the Amelia Glacier on Nov. 23. WOW, just like Alberta in the winter... snow, ice and sunshine only not quite as spectacular as our Rockies, but then what can compare to those peaks. This part of the cruise is the South American version of the Alaska Cruise.
Today we are on our own again strolling through PUNTA AREANAS. We finally got our manicure and pedicure, found the internet and when done, we are off to....you guessed it...eat.
Barb finally broke down and bought a lovely alpaca cardigan - the first time !
Having a great time. It is turning into a real education as one realizes the world is upside down.
Every once in a while we stumble on an english speaker but we are managing to communicate anyway.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
CALLO/LIMA
On November 14 we arrived in Callo but decided to stay on board ship until Sunday when we took the shuttle into Lima and into Miraflores. We took one look and knew we would be very happy here when we return in January.
The ride in gave us a chance to see a lot of the shore line. The shops were closed but on the way back we noticed a shopping centre in a town between the port and Lima which was open. Apparently, many shops open after church.
Callao was established in 1537 to transship items looted from the Inca and is still a major port.
We will post more info upon our return.
The ride in gave us a chance to see a lot of the shore line. The shops were closed but on the way back we noticed a shopping centre in a town between the port and Lima which was open. Apparently, many shops open after church.
Callao was established in 1537 to transship items looted from the Inca and is still a major port.
We will post more info upon our return.
PERU
PUERTO SALAVERRY/TRUJILLO - Nvember 13
This was the resting place along the Spaniards route between Lima and Quito.
We took a terrific tour to several archaeological sites that they are just starting to promote. They started with a few thousand visiters per year and are now up to about 300,000 annually.
The first temples we saw were built by the Moche Indians were abandoned the site about 1300 AD before the Inca Empire. The Huacas del Sol is the largest preColumbian structure in the Americas and was the administrative headquarters. The Temples of the Moon and Sun are aged to around 600 BC. They are still digging and uncovering. It took 140 million mud bricks tol build the Temple of the Sun. Because of the location of the Temple of the Moon, the original coloured wall paintings, etc. are still intact. The temple is around 5 stories high.
We then took off to Chan Chan another fantastic UNESCO World Heritage Site and consists of 9 governors palaces and 35 intermediary complexes. This was a town of around 35,000 with the Palace being the centre of everything. They are still trying to uncover areas and in some rooms they have duplicated the scultures and are covering the originals to save them. This palace was built as a maze.
From there, we went..you guessed it....to eat. They took us to Huanchaco a beautiful seaside town known for surfing and where we had a fabulous buffet of fish, veggies, breads and local beer. The restaurant was beautiful, the view delightful, the food excellent.
The sea was rough at this time of year and the waves were terrific to see. Some of the fishermen still use their reed boats which they handmake themselves. They last around 2 or 3 months and then they are too waterlogged to use.
It was a wonderful day and warm enough to not need our jackets.
This was the resting place along the Spaniards route between Lima and Quito.
We took a terrific tour to several archaeological sites that they are just starting to promote. They started with a few thousand visiters per year and are now up to about 300,000 annually.
The first temples we saw were built by the Moche Indians were abandoned the site about 1300 AD before the Inca Empire. The Huacas del Sol is the largest preColumbian structure in the Americas and was the administrative headquarters. The Temples of the Moon and Sun are aged to around 600 BC. They are still digging and uncovering. It took 140 million mud bricks tol build the Temple of the Sun. Because of the location of the Temple of the Moon, the original coloured wall paintings, etc. are still intact. The temple is around 5 stories high.
We then took off to Chan Chan another fantastic UNESCO World Heritage Site and consists of 9 governors palaces and 35 intermediary complexes. This was a town of around 35,000 with the Palace being the centre of everything. They are still trying to uncover areas and in some rooms they have duplicated the scultures and are covering the originals to save them. This palace was built as a maze.
From there, we went..you guessed it....to eat. They took us to Huanchaco a beautiful seaside town known for surfing and where we had a fabulous buffet of fish, veggies, breads and local beer. The restaurant was beautiful, the view delightful, the food excellent.
The sea was rough at this time of year and the waves were terrific to see. Some of the fishermen still use their reed boats which they handmake themselves. They last around 2 or 3 months and then they are too waterlogged to use.
It was a wonderful day and warm enough to not need our jackets.
MANTA, ECUADOR
So, what do you think the temperature was in Ecuado...35C maybe...guess again. We landed in Manta on November 11 and found ourself in 16C temps. We were cold. It turns out that the average temperature in the coastal region of Ecuador is 20C all year round.
The Humbolt current touches against Ecuador and northern Peru which brings cooler temps and lots of fish. We vaguely remember this from school but that was so many decades ago that we do not care to go that far back.
We were unpleasantly surprised to find the ship failed to commemorate November 11 rememberance day as there were many veterans from Canada, Britain, Australia and the USA on board. They tried to make up for it the next day but after the fact is never timely.
We took a tour here and found out that Panama Hats originated in Ecuador and because they were sold to the Panama Canal engineers they became known as Panama Hats. If we were not off and on a 3 month jaunt, we would have purchased one each.
On the way to the hat market the bus got stopped by a religious procession and he backedthe bus up on a steep hill. Great drivers here.
Ecuador is very poor but they are much better off than most of Central America. They are workingvery hard at trying to develop environmentally sensitive industries besides fishing and flowers which they ship all over the world. One is vegetable ivory from Tagua pronounced Towa. This is from the same plant as tequilla but a different variety. They dry the flower pods for 2 months and then slice it into discs from which they make buttons and sell to the Chinese. They also carve from it such things as small birds, animals, jewellery etc.
On our way back to the ship, we spotted many monuments to the tuna and our favourite was a large scuplure in the middle of a traffic circle which Barb dubbed ODE TO A TUNA
There was a tour to Quito, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but it was cancelled due to the plane requiring servicing. How on earth do you not service a chartered plane.....
The Humbolt current touches against Ecuador and northern Peru which brings cooler temps and lots of fish. We vaguely remember this from school but that was so many decades ago that we do not care to go that far back.
We were unpleasantly surprised to find the ship failed to commemorate November 11 rememberance day as there were many veterans from Canada, Britain, Australia and the USA on board. They tried to make up for it the next day but after the fact is never timely.
We took a tour here and found out that Panama Hats originated in Ecuador and because they were sold to the Panama Canal engineers they became known as Panama Hats. If we were not off and on a 3 month jaunt, we would have purchased one each.
On the way to the hat market the bus got stopped by a religious procession and he backedthe bus up on a steep hill. Great drivers here.
Ecuador is very poor but they are much better off than most of Central America. They are workingvery hard at trying to develop environmentally sensitive industries besides fishing and flowers which they ship all over the world. One is vegetable ivory from Tagua pronounced Towa. This is from the same plant as tequilla but a different variety. They dry the flower pods for 2 months and then slice it into discs from which they make buttons and sell to the Chinese. They also carve from it such things as small birds, animals, jewellery etc.
On our way back to the ship, we spotted many monuments to the tuna and our favourite was a large scuplure in the middle of a traffic circle which Barb dubbed ODE TO A TUNA
There was a tour to Quito, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but it was cancelled due to the plane requiring servicing. How on earth do you not service a chartered plane.....
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
CENTRAL AMERICA
The Bridge from where we were to where we are going.
We left Mexico and headed into rough waters because of the winds coming into the Pacific Ocean from the Caribbean side.
Prior to landing on Saturday, Nov. 7 in PUERTO QUETZAL, GUATEMALA we had planned to do independent touring. However, after hearing that the 3 central american countries we were headed to were working ports, we signed up for a tour to ANTIGUA, a World Heritage Site established by the Spaniards in 1570. The city of Antigua is wonderfully preserved with many excellent restaurants (Lynne satisfied her urge to taste Mole.)
Guatemala obtained independence from Mexico in 1823 and in 1906 the United Fruit Company established the first banana plantations. In 1952, the government distributed private land to landless peasants. In 1992, Guatemala President, Rigoberta Menchu was award the Nobel Peace Price for human rights works.
The country is obviously very poor but amazingly, houses in Antigua can sell for $1,000 /M2!
We went to a jade factory established by an American woman in the 1960´s when no one in the world thought there were jade deposits in the country...including the government! Didn´t she prove everyone wrong and does not hesitate to say so.
Our tour guide was born in Antigua spent some time in the USA but returned to her homeland at about 9 years of age. When she relearned English, she spoke with no accent! She was very knowlegable and we enjoyed her very much.
CORINTO, NICARAGUA was our next port of call. This part of central america was inhabited by the Niquirano people, influenced by the Aztecs, and were unified in small clan-based groups. Columbus made a brief visit to the Moskito Coast in 1502. The conquistadors subjegated the local people a few decades later. The Amerindians were enslaved and the Spanish built a grand colonial city at Leon.
We signed up for a tour which turned out to be NOT what we thought. While disappointed in the tour, the tour guide was passionate about his country which is the poorest of them all.
PUNTARENAS, COSTA RICA was our last central american stop. We were supposed to go to PUERTO CALDERA but were rerouted to Puntarenas. What a beautiful country! It is so obviously doing much better than the others that we asked the tour guide why. She said that when they obtained independence, their first president was a teacher and not a military dictator and that made all the difference. We were again fortunate with our wonderful tour guide whose English was teriffic and pride in country was evident. We stopped at a wonderful factory in Sarchi that produces painted oxcarts. The company dates back to 1903 and provides a distinctive indigineous industry. They ship these carts, in sizes from patio planters and bars to fidge magnets.
In 1502 Christopher Columbus anchors, in 1506 Spain began to colonize and 1821, Costa Rica gained its independence. The first president was elected in 1824 and he established fair courts, expanded education and coffee plantations. In 1890, he made a deal with the United Fruit Company to build a railroad and in exchange gave them a 99 years lease on the land bordering the rail lines to grow bananas.
VOLCANOES. There is a lot of volcanic activity throughout central america and from time to time it has devestated these countries. It takes a lot of time to rebuild after these disasters. Nevertheless, they do.
We had a wonderful Neptune Ceremony yesterday for passing the equator. The crew put on a fabulous ¨Kiss the Fish¨performance and the Lido deck was absoluted crowded with passengers. Some dedicated souls played bridge and refused to come on deck...what sour pusses!
We are looking forward to our next ports of call and will fill you in as we find Internet access.
We left Mexico and headed into rough waters because of the winds coming into the Pacific Ocean from the Caribbean side.
Prior to landing on Saturday, Nov. 7 in PUERTO QUETZAL, GUATEMALA we had planned to do independent touring. However, after hearing that the 3 central american countries we were headed to were working ports, we signed up for a tour to ANTIGUA, a World Heritage Site established by the Spaniards in 1570. The city of Antigua is wonderfully preserved with many excellent restaurants (Lynne satisfied her urge to taste Mole.)
Guatemala obtained independence from Mexico in 1823 and in 1906 the United Fruit Company established the first banana plantations. In 1952, the government distributed private land to landless peasants. In 1992, Guatemala President, Rigoberta Menchu was award the Nobel Peace Price for human rights works.
The country is obviously very poor but amazingly, houses in Antigua can sell for $1,000 /M2!
We went to a jade factory established by an American woman in the 1960´s when no one in the world thought there were jade deposits in the country...including the government! Didn´t she prove everyone wrong and does not hesitate to say so.
Our tour guide was born in Antigua spent some time in the USA but returned to her homeland at about 9 years of age. When she relearned English, she spoke with no accent! She was very knowlegable and we enjoyed her very much.
CORINTO, NICARAGUA was our next port of call. This part of central america was inhabited by the Niquirano people, influenced by the Aztecs, and were unified in small clan-based groups. Columbus made a brief visit to the Moskito Coast in 1502. The conquistadors subjegated the local people a few decades later. The Amerindians were enslaved and the Spanish built a grand colonial city at Leon.
We signed up for a tour which turned out to be NOT what we thought. While disappointed in the tour, the tour guide was passionate about his country which is the poorest of them all.
PUNTARENAS, COSTA RICA was our last central american stop. We were supposed to go to PUERTO CALDERA but were rerouted to Puntarenas. What a beautiful country! It is so obviously doing much better than the others that we asked the tour guide why. She said that when they obtained independence, their first president was a teacher and not a military dictator and that made all the difference. We were again fortunate with our wonderful tour guide whose English was teriffic and pride in country was evident. We stopped at a wonderful factory in Sarchi that produces painted oxcarts. The company dates back to 1903 and provides a distinctive indigineous industry. They ship these carts, in sizes from patio planters and bars to fidge magnets.
In 1502 Christopher Columbus anchors, in 1506 Spain began to colonize and 1821, Costa Rica gained its independence. The first president was elected in 1824 and he established fair courts, expanded education and coffee plantations. In 1890, he made a deal with the United Fruit Company to build a railroad and in exchange gave them a 99 years lease on the land bordering the rail lines to grow bananas.
VOLCANOES. There is a lot of volcanic activity throughout central america and from time to time it has devestated these countries. It takes a lot of time to rebuild after these disasters. Nevertheless, they do.
We had a wonderful Neptune Ceremony yesterday for passing the equator. The crew put on a fabulous ¨Kiss the Fish¨performance and the Lido deck was absoluted crowded with passengers. Some dedicated souls played bridge and refused to come on deck...what sour pusses!
We are looking forward to our next ports of call and will fill you in as we find Internet access.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
ADIOS MEXICO
ZIHUATANEJO-IXTAPA
We arrived November 4 and walked into Zihuatanejo. Loved this town. It is a real Mexican community with real people and stores that cater to the locals as well as tourists. Nice atmosphere and definitely a go-to place. The beach is right by town and we stopped for a beer and chips in a restaurant with a lovely interior garden. Took photos and if either of us could figure out how to drop a photo into this blog directly from our cameras, we would do so! Did not bother to go to Ixtapa which is only a 50 cent bus ride away as Barb had been there before and Lynne´s theory is that one big American resort is like another and you cannot tell where in the world you are when you are in one!
We recommend this place for a winter vacation.
ACAPULCO
Next stop, next day, was Acapulco....eugh! 2,000,000 people, 3,000,000 cars and all on the road at once! Big plans to double the population in the next decade or so and many very expensive vacation homes built and planned.
We went to TEHUACALCO RUINS - a wonderful tour. The Mexican government decided to fund the archeological dig in 2002 and it opened to the public in 2008. It was a 1.5 hour ride each way. The scenery was lovely and over a brand new toll highway. We climbed to 1500 metres and it was a good thing we were in a small van as no bus could navigate the turns into the ruins.
The ruins total 65 acres but only 10% has been excavated. We saw their sacred ball court, two ritual pyramids and the plaza where the ordinary people congregated. The guide showed us glyphs carved into a large rock which were the Mayan calendar based on the moon. Barb climbed to the very top and then discovered she had to go down sideways! The steps are narrow because you go up and down sidways as it not allowed to face either forward or backward from the Gods. This tour was marked average but it was strenuous and several people were not able to climb the 75 stairs at the entry. Well worth the time and effort.
HUATULCO (pronounced watelco)
November 6 and we docked right at the most beautiful beach!. We walked around on our own and took a $2 taxi ride up into the town. It was very clean with a nice park in the centre. Checked out a couple of hotels at $20 night and up - monthly rates negotiable - and decided that the Canada Hotel by the beach looked pretty good to us!
We had breakfast of beer and nachos at 9 am under a palapa on the beach and followed up with $1 foot massage. Barb actually went into the ocean and the water was wonderful - she says! This resort is being developed with the ecology in mind and looks like it will be another go-to place for a winter break.
Next stop Guatamala and we will post whenever we can find an internet cafe.
We arrived November 4 and walked into Zihuatanejo. Loved this town. It is a real Mexican community with real people and stores that cater to the locals as well as tourists. Nice atmosphere and definitely a go-to place. The beach is right by town and we stopped for a beer and chips in a restaurant with a lovely interior garden. Took photos and if either of us could figure out how to drop a photo into this blog directly from our cameras, we would do so! Did not bother to go to Ixtapa which is only a 50 cent bus ride away as Barb had been there before and Lynne´s theory is that one big American resort is like another and you cannot tell where in the world you are when you are in one!
We recommend this place for a winter vacation.
ACAPULCO
Next stop, next day, was Acapulco....eugh! 2,000,000 people, 3,000,000 cars and all on the road at once! Big plans to double the population in the next decade or so and many very expensive vacation homes built and planned.
We went to TEHUACALCO RUINS - a wonderful tour. The Mexican government decided to fund the archeological dig in 2002 and it opened to the public in 2008. It was a 1.5 hour ride each way. The scenery was lovely and over a brand new toll highway. We climbed to 1500 metres and it was a good thing we were in a small van as no bus could navigate the turns into the ruins.
The ruins total 65 acres but only 10% has been excavated. We saw their sacred ball court, two ritual pyramids and the plaza where the ordinary people congregated. The guide showed us glyphs carved into a large rock which were the Mayan calendar based on the moon. Barb climbed to the very top and then discovered she had to go down sideways! The steps are narrow because you go up and down sidways as it not allowed to face either forward or backward from the Gods. This tour was marked average but it was strenuous and several people were not able to climb the 75 stairs at the entry. Well worth the time and effort.
HUATULCO (pronounced watelco)
November 6 and we docked right at the most beautiful beach!. We walked around on our own and took a $2 taxi ride up into the town. It was very clean with a nice park in the centre. Checked out a couple of hotels at $20 night and up - monthly rates negotiable - and decided that the Canada Hotel by the beach looked pretty good to us!
We had breakfast of beer and nachos at 9 am under a palapa on the beach and followed up with $1 foot massage. Barb actually went into the ocean and the water was wonderful - she says! This resort is being developed with the ecology in mind and looks like it will be another go-to place for a winter break.
Next stop Guatamala and we will post whenever we can find an internet cafe.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
CABO SAN LUCAS
When the missionaries first discovered Cabo, the local residents were unimpressed...they did not want to wear clothes and they did not want to be monagamous!
If local traditions had survived, Cabo would be more interesting than it is today. It is nothing but hotels, resorts, timeshares, condos, bars and pharmacies whose prime inventory seems to be vanilla and viagara.
If local traditions had survived, Cabo would be more interesting than it is today. It is nothing but hotels, resorts, timeshares, condos, bars and pharmacies whose prime inventory seems to be vanilla and viagara.
BOARDING THE VEENDAM
We boarded the Holland America Veendam with minimum fuss except for the usual 90 minute lineup!
Our portside cabin is roomy, has a large window and boasts a 4 piece bathroom. The bed and pillows are fantastic. The storage is perfect for 2 women. We are aft on deck 5 and the location is good.
We finally got assigned seating and are at a table for 10 with only 7 guests all of whom are staying on this cruise until we get to Rio. The portions are generous so we are walking up and down stairs. Barb has joined Pilates and Lynne has joined the library.
We met quite a few present and former Edmontonians...who would have thought!
We are late posting to our blog because the ship´s internet was broken and could not be repaired until Cabo San Lucas. Then, although we had signed up, we discovered there was no Word on the internet terminals so we are using land based internet cafes. The money we are saving on ship´s internet rates should treat us to a Wine Card (20 glasses of wine for $60...and nobody told us about that!)
Although, we cheated and brought 3 litres of wine on board with us!
We are starting to actually relax and sleep until 6am.
Our portside cabin is roomy, has a large window and boasts a 4 piece bathroom. The bed and pillows are fantastic. The storage is perfect for 2 women. We are aft on deck 5 and the location is good.
We finally got assigned seating and are at a table for 10 with only 7 guests all of whom are staying on this cruise until we get to Rio. The portions are generous so we are walking up and down stairs. Barb has joined Pilates and Lynne has joined the library.
We met quite a few present and former Edmontonians...who would have thought!
We are late posting to our blog because the ship´s internet was broken and could not be repaired until Cabo San Lucas. Then, although we had signed up, we discovered there was no Word on the internet terminals so we are using land based internet cafes. The money we are saving on ship´s internet rates should treat us to a Wine Card (20 glasses of wine for $60...and nobody told us about that!)
Although, we cheated and brought 3 litres of wine on board with us!
We are starting to actually relax and sleep until 6am.
SAN DIEGO
Much to our surprise, the Pilot announced that it was 19 in San Diego but the wind was brisk! We arrived in layers of clothing (it was snowing on the drive to airport) which we did not discard for two days. It was amazing how cold we were until Friday! Finally warmed up Friday morning.
Barb found a cute hotel in Little Italy called the Porto Vista which allowed us to walk everywhere... Downtown, the sea walk, Seaport Village, etc. The hotel had a decent dining room with lovely view of the bay. She treated Lynne to The Lion King as a birthday present and the show was fantastic . The woman who designed the costumes received a Tony Award for them and did she deserve it!
Only took the public transit one day--to the famous San Diego Zoo where we took a double decker bus on a grand tour and rode the Skyfari. Both were fantastic!! Also saw Old Town--not bad - where we had a dreadful Mexican meal.
We had a wonderful Italian dinner in Little Italy and also discovered a Farmers´Market a block from our hotel on our departure day. There is nothing like strolling through a street market sampling the goodies!
Barb loves San Diego. So does Lynne.
Barb found a cute hotel in Little Italy called the Porto Vista which allowed us to walk everywhere... Downtown, the sea walk, Seaport Village, etc. The hotel had a decent dining room with lovely view of the bay. She treated Lynne to The Lion King as a birthday present and the show was fantastic . The woman who designed the costumes received a Tony Award for them and did she deserve it!
Only took the public transit one day--to the famous San Diego Zoo where we took a double decker bus on a grand tour and rode the Skyfari. Both were fantastic!! Also saw Old Town--not bad - where we had a dreadful Mexican meal.
We had a wonderful Italian dinner in Little Italy and also discovered a Farmers´Market a block from our hotel on our departure day. There is nothing like strolling through a street market sampling the goodies!
Barb loves San Diego. So does Lynne.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
AT LAST - A CONFIRMED ITINERARY
Oct. 28 Depart Edmonton for San Diego
Oct. 31 Board Vandeem
Nov. 1 Lynne's Birthday
Nov. 2 Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Nov. 4 Xihuatanejo
Nov. 5 Acapulco
Nov. 6 Huatulco
Nov. 7 Puero Quezal, Guatamala
Nov. 8 Corinto, Nicaragua
Nov. 9 Puerto Calder, Costa Rica
Nov. 11 Manta, Ecuador
Nov. 13 Salaverry, Peru
Nov. 14 & 15 Lima
Nov. 18 Coquimbo, Chile
Nov. 19 Valparaiso
Nov. 21 Puero Mont
Nov. 24 Punta Arenas
Nov. 25 Ushuaia, Argentina
Nov. 27 Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
Nov. 30, Montevideo, Uruguay
Dec. 1&2, Buenos Airies, Argentina
Dec. 5 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Dec. 8-12 Maunus (Amazon River Cruise)
Dec. 14-16 Iguazu Falls, Argentina/Brazil
Dec. 20-27 Buzios, Brazil
Dec. 27-Jan 2 New Year Revels in Rio
Jan. 3 Depart for Lima
Jan 4-10 Machu Picchu, Inca Trail, Lake Titacaca
Jan 10-31 rental apartment in Lima
Feb. 1 Fly Home (broke but happy)
Oct. 28 Depart Edmonton for San Diego
Oct. 31 Board Vandeem
Nov. 1 Lynne's Birthday
Nov. 2 Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Nov. 4 Xihuatanejo
Nov. 5 Acapulco
Nov. 6 Huatulco
Nov. 7 Puero Quezal, Guatamala
Nov. 8 Corinto, Nicaragua
Nov. 9 Puerto Calder, Costa Rica
Nov. 11 Manta, Ecuador
Nov. 13 Salaverry, Peru
Nov. 14 & 15 Lima
Nov. 18 Coquimbo, Chile
Nov. 19 Valparaiso
Nov. 21 Puero Mont
Nov. 24 Punta Arenas
Nov. 25 Ushuaia, Argentina
Nov. 27 Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
Nov. 30, Montevideo, Uruguay
Dec. 1&2, Buenos Airies, Argentina
Dec. 5 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Dec. 8-12 Maunus (Amazon River Cruise)
Dec. 14-16 Iguazu Falls, Argentina/Brazil
Dec. 20-27 Buzios, Brazil
Dec. 27-Jan 2 New Year Revels in Rio
Jan. 3 Depart for Lima
Jan 4-10 Machu Picchu, Inca Trail, Lake Titacaca
Jan 10-31 rental apartment in Lima
Feb. 1 Fly Home (broke but happy)
Friday, September 11, 2009
And from a hill, a mountain grew!
We started off with a great deal on a 5 week cruise! So how did it grow into a three month expedition?
When Barb redid her bathroom, she decided she might as well do her half bath and then she might as well do her kitchen backsplash. Lynne said if we are going to Rio de Janeiro, we might as well do Maunus, and we might as well do Iguazzu Falls and might as well go to Buzios too. Barb said we might as well do New Year's in Rio. So our stay in Brazil expanded from one week to a month.
Since we ran into problems doing Machu Pichu off the ship, we decided to do Peru after Brazil - and since it was January, we might as well stay there until the end of the month! Who wants to be in Edmonton in January if one can avoid it?
So here we are - booked, Visad, innoculated and starting to get excited.
When Barb redid her bathroom, she decided she might as well do her half bath and then she might as well do her kitchen backsplash. Lynne said if we are going to Rio de Janeiro, we might as well do Maunus, and we might as well do Iguazzu Falls and might as well go to Buzios too. Barb said we might as well do New Year's in Rio. So our stay in Brazil expanded from one week to a month.
Since we ran into problems doing Machu Pichu off the ship, we decided to do Peru after Brazil - and since it was January, we might as well stay there until the end of the month! Who wants to be in Edmonton in January if one can avoid it?
So here we are - booked, Visad, innoculated and starting to get excited.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Getting Organized!
We are finalizing our great expedition and are awaiting confirmation on our many airline tickets, tours, hotels and apartments. Once notified, we will post our itinerary.
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