February 21 & 22, 2012

This is our final day where we will be cruising all day.  There was a time zone change as we sail north east toward Uruguay.  The dining room is eliminating breakfast and lunch today in favour of brunch from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. We awoke to feel the ship gently rolling. We are on Deck 3, mid-ship and on the inside, so if we can feel motion the seas are rough.  There were posters on the Deck 4 doors to remain inside due to rough conditions.  There was rain, wind and waves 2 to 3 meters high.  We went to Deck 11’s outside track, but, due to the conditions, slippery decks, strong winds and rolling ship, we walked our three miles on the gym’s treadmills. At brunch, the center of the dining room was filled with six or seven ice sculptures; there were champagne, champagne mixtures, or wine to start brunch.  There were many food stations each dedicated to a different food - omelets, pancakes, waffles, pancakes, breads, quiches, bacon, ham, scrambled eggs, salads, fruit, vegetables and desserts. This morning we missed Rod Jory’s lecture, on Spanish Colonization of South America, so we watched it on the closed circuit TV. This afternoon we watched the crew variety show which included a dance routine from the passengers who joined the Guest Dance Club group and practiced each at sea day.  They did a four minute group routine that was quite entertaining. When we left the theater the sea was calmer, the rain had stopped, the wind was a bit lighter and the sky was brighter. Then we went to watch the finals of the team trivia games held each at sea day in the Rendez-vous Lounge.  Next, we went up to Deck 10 to choose from seven ship made flavours of ice cream or soft-serve ice cream. When we finished, we returned to the stateroom to read the daily Canadian News Update and relax with a glass of wine before going to the Casino.  The group had a cocktail party on Deck 11 in a part of the Constellation Room before the last formal night dinner.  There was a special dessert – Baked Alaska and a tribute to the chefs and serving staff of the dining room. We got instructions for the group tour to a gaucho ranch on Saturday, for disembarkation from the ship on Sunday morning and the city tour and Tango evening in Buenos Aires on Sunday. After dinner, we danced until the show.  Tonight the ship’s dancers and singers were featured.  The show ended at 10:15 p.m. and we returned to the stateroom.  We have to be ready about 8 a.m. to be tendered to the dock for our tour.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

We have arrived at Puerto Madryn. Today is Mardi Gras, Fat Tuesday, in Roman Catholic countries.  There may be different activities on the streets of Puerto Madryn.  The main industry is the manufacturing of aluminum.  We are docked at a commercial dock and need to be shuttled into the town of 60,000 when we want to explore the Puerto Madryn. The excursions to penguin rookeries are 180 to 200 kilometers away which take over six hours. The scenery is scrub land and we were advised to sleep or read until the rooky is reached so we chose not to go but to explore the city. After breakfast and a short track walk, we took the shuttle bus into Puerto Madryn and were dropped off on the main street Julio A. Roca.  We looked for a money exchange to buy Argentine pesos; we looked in at shops as we walk to the Oceanographic and Natural History Museum in a restored mansion of one of the settlers.  Some of the shops closed from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. for the afternoon break. We walked back to the main street and stopped at several shops before returning to the shuttle bus waiting area and returned to the ship by 3.  We stopped on Deck 10 for ice cream and then down to Deck 5 for Cappuccino. Passengers were to back on the ship at 4:45 for the 5 p.m. sailing, so Larry went up to Deck 4 to watch the preparations to cast-off.  From 4:30 to 6 p.m. the Sunset Bar at the back of Deck 10 was offering Margarita Tasting.  After the ship left port, we went to the Sunset Bar to enjoy six different 60 ml sample Margaritas. Our favourite was the Cayote Margarita – Tequila Gold, Peach mix, Triple Sec and Lemon juice. Needless to say, we did not order wine with dinner.  We have had another couple join our table when two seats are free, so we joined one of group’s other tables with three other couples, when their fourth couple decided to eat on Deck 10 tonight.  After dinner we danced until the show.  Tonight featured Steve Carte, a juggler and comedian.  He was hilarious for his full 60 minute show. People were nearly rolling in the aisles. After the show the cruise director gave us the highlights of tomorrow’s at sea schedule and reminded us to move our watches ahead one hour for the new time zone for tomorrow and Thursday. After the show, there was Casino Royale in the casino with one complimentary draw ticket for anyone who passed through or stayed in the casino.  The draw for prizes was at 10:30.  Larry stayed for poker and I went to the stateroom to write the blog.  In the stateroom was a certificate signed by the captain for each of us stating that we had rounded Cape Horn.