Our flight to Ushuaia took off at 11:20, an hour and a half late. Okay, so maybe we got off to a bit of a rocky start.
Did we really need to leave the hotel at 7AM, to spend over 3 hours in a domestic airport that only had unappealing snacks? After we landed in Ushuaia, I realized it was truly a minor inconvenience, soon to be forgotten.
The above photo was taken on our 2011 trip, but the experience hasn’t changed at all. It was every bit as harrowing as the first time. We popped through dense clouds, in between the mountains, to make a bumpy, rather exciting landing.
But enough about the downside of travel. The Endeavor, our ship is exquisite!
While it was being cleaned and readied for our arrival, we had a late lunch, while we cruised thru the Beagle Channel on a catamaran.
I didn’t take any photos, because I knew I couldn’t top the ones from 2011. Today, 15 years later, I didn’t see a single seal, which made me sad. I hope climate change didn’t do them in—perhaps they were just frolicking elsewhere.
Everyone that I have met so far, both in the hotel and on the ship, is really friendly, interesting, and well traveled. I am delighted that I will have time to get to know many of them over the coming weeks.
The ship’s management very thoughtfully arranged for us single travelers to meet for dinner. Mark for Boston is the only man traveling solo. He doesn’t seem to mind being outnumbered.
So many people have asked me “ what do you do on a trip like that”?
Well, there is no shortage of activities. So far, I’ve missed the 7AM stretching class, and I haven’t made it to the gym or sauna, but I plan to take advantage of all of them really soon.
I HAVE attended the very informative lectures, such as this one on Seabirds. This lecture focused on petrels and albatross. Quite honestly, I don’t really care about the 126 different species! Fortunately, meither did the lecturer.
I won’t bore you with the details, other than to tell you that the way to differentiate between those two species is by the number of nostrils they have. If you want to know more, you have to either come on an Antarctica cruise or ask me yourself.
Tomorrow we expect to be clear of the Drake, and will be able to enjoy our first landing on Antártica.
Destination NOW 