Btimmer

Thanks to @hogladyrider and @Cruise Suzy for correcting the link. It's tough to edit with the internet onboard having significant delays.

Thanks for following along. Be sure to follow my daily blog as there will be lots more information in it. For this "Almost Live" thread, I'll tend fo cover breaking news and a few pictures from time to time as well as answer any questions asked of me. My daily blog is found at: Https://timmer20240sa.blogspot.com

At 11am this morning, Captain Kevin Bairnaert hosted a very full session in the Main Stage to address the embarkation delays and answer any other questions. As he started his presentation he told a story of being a new 2nd officer on a cruise ship and being on an airplane flying home from his assignment. They were boarded on an airplane and ended up setting for a long period of time with no explanation from the Captain as to what was going on. In the end, it was disclosed the that delay was due to Air Force One's arrival, In those cases, all other airline traffic is stopped. Captain Kevin made a pledge to never let that happen when he became in command. He would be transparent with his passengers which promotes happy passengers. He went on to say that the reason for the departure delay was due to two factors: weather and 213 passengers who had delayed connections in arriving into Santiago and transfers to San Antonio. But the biggest issue was the weather issue. He showed us copies of internal emails from the port and screen shots from the weather maps on the bridge. This port is apparently a tricky one to sail into when the weather conditions exceed 15 knots and the swell is over 1.5 meters. There is also a requirement that two tugs be attached to any vessel when arriving or departing regardless of whether the ship has its own maneuverability like the Oosterdam has with azipods and thrusters. The required tugs cannot safely operate in the weather conditions I described above. The soonest that the port would re=open was 4am. As for the delayed passengers, 90 some got on between midnight and 3am. He didn't comment on the others. As far as departures are concerned, the cargo ships have priority. Therefore the container ship Volga was allowed to leave first. Then the Oosterdam was allowed to leave which is did starting just before 7am. He then went on to describe why we were missing Puerto Montt. That had to do with the tide levels under a major power line. The ship can only pass under it at certain times and in certain tidal conditions. Additionally the ship did not have enough speed to make it to the proper point given a late departure and the time at which the ship needed to pass under the cable. So the decision had to be made to skip the port and head directly to Chacabuco. I really appreciated the transparency that the Captain displayed and the audience seemed to as well. As I write this we're cruising along at 18.5 knots. We've met a few people from Cruise Critic at the M&G and had lunch with one of the couples. We're looking forward to a good remainder of the cruise.

Also we are at nearly full capacity at around 1800 guests.

Now that we at sea, the internet speeds have picked up dramatically. 30 seconds for this post from opening to sending.

Thanks, but it's not necessary. It is good to be underway. We'll now have two days at sea. If you want to track for your own information, please feel free to do so.

Yes we are finally backing out which I can see on the bow camera. The Internet connection continues to be horrible. This short post too nearly 3 minutes to complete

It's 6:30am local time Monday morning in San Antonio, Chile and we are still moored at the dock. We were supposed to leave at 4am. The Volga, a container ship moored behind us, has just backed out with normal tug assist. It will be a very interesting Q&A with the Captain this morning. It's a scheduled event. So far the WiFi in this cabin has been horrible. I paid for the top level package and video is unwatchable and just checking email is painfully slow. I don't yet know what is the issue I'd but will pursue it later today. Up in the Lido I could watch video but it was slow.

There was a Mariner's reception (no lunch), but unfortunately it was held ending at 3pm and we didn't board until after then. They really need those to be on the first sea day so all can make them. We've never been to a Mariner's lunch on embarkation day in over 800 days of cruising on HAL.

The Captain just announced that due to strong winds that the port is closed and we'll be unable to depart until 4am tomorrow morning. Additionally a number of passengers have delayed flights and he wants to wait for them. As a consequence our first port stop at Puerto Montt has been cancelled and replaced by a sea day. It's certainly not the news everyone wanted. But we will still choose to enjoy the voyage.

We boarded an hour early with no lines. It feels great to be back on the Oosterdam. Here's a few stateroom pictures and my first meal of nachos. We're about two hours from departure at 6pm. On the intra port shuttle Our view - Stateroom 4107 Desk area Usb outlet at bedside (one each side) Deck 3 Later checkins means the Lido is closed and we miss the Mariner reception.

We're about to board the Oosterdam. We spent the morning and early afternoon down on the waterfront. It's about 70°f and sunny. Oosterdam in the background Dancers on the esplanade

My daily written blog is now up and can be found at: Https://timmer2024osa.blogspot.com Here's a few pictures from walking on the esplanade today. from about 3' away

It's just a bedroom with a bathroom and pretty small (about the size of a ship stateroom). It's pretty old and some evidence of mildew or mold and it's got a tired appearance. Outside pictures make it look charming and it's really close to the port. If you want more info, write me at tkbowman@gmail.com I do highly recommend staying in San Antonio and experiencing the waterfront esplanade. It's happening place.

We're hanging out down on the waterfront esplanade and about enjoy some ceviche. We just watched sea lion's gorge themselves on fish cleanings and toured the local fish market.

I wish I had a secret. What works for me is to get what sleep I can on the plane and then try to get a long sleep as soon as I can at the destination. Eastbound tends to be the hardest on me. So far age hasn't seemed to have an effect. Thanks for following along.

For those who wish a more detailed daily description of this voyage and particularly how it compares to a grand voyage, below is the link to my blog site. Https://timmer2024osa.blogspot.com If you have any questions about the voyage, feel free to post them here. Thanks for following along.

After an overnight flight from Atlanta and a 1 1/2 hour taxi ride, we made it to our casita at San Antonio. Chile. It's not the Ritz Carlton, but has a great location and is cute. A 5 hour nap then happened before we ventured out to the nearby mall and walked the waterfront. We'll take it easy tomorrow likely returning to the waterfront. Here's a few pictures from today.

We're in leg one to Atlanta. Luggage is with us.

We depart Seattle at 8:45am tomorrow (1/4); arrive Atlanta at 4:30pm. Then Delta to Santiago at 7:45pm arriving around 7am. Transferring to our hotel in San Antonio for a couple days stay to board the Oosterdam on Sunday, 1/7. We have an obstructed window cabin on deck 4 starboard which is perfect for us. It's getting real now! Stay tuned.

After I submitted my first requests on the Stockperks app today, I received confirmation within 2 hours that they had been posted to my HAL account and my Princess account. Interestingly, I received email confirmation from HAL World Cruise Reservations regarding my HAL confirmation while the Princess confirmation came from Stockperks. This is the fastest confirmation I've ever received.

On the 2023 Grand South America we had George & Claire, a married couple, who performed daily classical music in the Explorer's Lounge (formerly Lincoln Center Stage). In their coffee chat they noted that this was their last contract with HAL. Next week I'll report from the Oosterdam what the music offerings are for our Antarctica cruise.

This thread answers the question why I never received a reply from HAL for the OBC I requested in November for a January, 2024 cruise. They didn't even reply that I needed to use a new method. So I downloaded the APP and I elected to use the PLAID method for verification. It went smoothly and I submitted my application for credit for the January 7, 2024 cruise on HAL. It was accepted and now I'll wait for it to be applied. If it's not applied by the time I board, I'll work it out with the onboard guest relations staff. I'll also now submit requests for a couple of upcoming Princess Cruises.

See you onboard. This will be our 3rd time to Antarctica; the two prior voyages were on the Zaandam.

We are headed back to Antarctica starting January 7, 2024 in San Antonio, Chile. Some of you may recall that we were just there on the Zaandam's Grand South America (GSA) which ended last week. Thanks for following along on that thread. Why would we return? There are several reasons. 1. Antarctica is a very cool place to visit and we want to get deeper into Antarctica since this voyage will be later in their summer. 2. We missed the Falkland Islands and want another opportunity to see the King Penguins. 3. It's a slightly different itinerary but includes Puerto Madryn, Argentina which is home to another large penguin colony. 4. We have another opportunity to visit Punta del Este, Uruguay which we also missed on the GSA. 5. We booked this cruise while on the GSA. It's fairly inexpensive at just over $100/day for an obstructed window room. 6. A chance to be back on the Oosterdam which we have sailed on a couple of times. 7. A possible opportunity to visit Iguazu Falls at the end of the cruise without the pressure of getting back to the ship. 8. We will not be leading or planning any group excursions and will enjoy visiting ports without outside pressures. We are participants on excursions in a couple of key ports to be able to see penguins. 9. Because we can. I'll post a few pictures here and make comments comparing what it's like to do a Grand cruise and compare it with a "regular" cruise as the route is quite similar. I'll also do one of my daily blogs that I'll later provide a link. If you have any questions about this cruise or comparing it to the GSA, please post the question on this thread. I'll try to answer as best as I can.