scubacruiserx2

We did do our longest single cruise from Alaska to Ft. Lauderdale which included the original Canal and lasted 6 weeks . You may like to read about it and get some ideas if you would like . You can find it here but on a different cruise line , HAL .

Whale bone graveyard and the Christ Church Cathedral The Whalebone Arch https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ_Church_Cathedral_(Falkland_Islands)

After our walk on the beach we decided to make one last trip to the Kings round table to look for eggs or chicks before grabbing our box lunch and heading back to the Stanley . Some of the penguins were still napping oddly . We did spy this one checking it's egg More people were crowding in so we had hoped to head back . Even the Kings seemed to feel crowded and 3 of them engaged in a 3 way slap fest . We drove back a different way near the water

Have you been through the Panama canal before ? On our last trip through it in the Fall we saw these guys a couple of times on the ship . This song reminded us of some friends of ours from the Isle of Mann that we first met on the NCL Dream in South America in 2007 . When we went to London later we met them and saw the Phantom and Jersey Boys both in London .

A South Georgia Pipit Sea Cabbage Gentoo on the beach More people than Penguins on the beach

A penguin panorama Queen of the Kings A watering hole The amazing penguins . Kings can dive to the depth of 300 M ( 900 feet ) to search for food ! A pair of Kings A bumpy walk to the beach

We've noticed that we have digressed with previously used photos so we will get back to our most recent visit in Stanley , Falkland Islands . Some Gentoo some of which we woke up A family outing Someone needs a hug Returning home from fishing Buzzard strut

It sounds wonderful . We heard it through the grapevine that the Captain on the Star had changed the hours by shortening the time of future visits especially Antarctica which caused some frustration on various social platforms like CC . The Star's response was to allegedly turn off the WIFI . We have no live thread as you have , so who knows ? They appear to be entering Glacier Alley and Ushuaia at a good time early in the morning with good weather and slight winds currently as we had in 2013 .

Yes , it was long and wavy . 🙂 😊

Thanks guys , any cruise plans in the works ?

Thank you sir . It appears like you are on the way back to South America . How was Antarctica for you and Rosie ? Best wishes for a smooth ride back . Have you tried the Pisco sour ? They repackaged it and you can get it at the store in Chile , just chill and shake .

The Torres del Paine means towers of Blue and refer to the 3 towers of granite . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torres_del_Paine_National_Park Here are the 3 towers Most of the roads are gravel but they were building concrete roads when we were there last month The Paine River falls The tour included lunch here I excused myself to take some photos while lunch was prepared We had to cross this bridge to get to the hotel The beach had volcanic sand The view of the Cuernos or Horns The salad had hearts of palm like we have here in Florida

We had hoped that maybe we would change planes on the way back . This was our ride for the day - about half full . After making a deposit at the airport's wash room we were all ready to go . We did not have to show our passports in Chile since the ship had them . We would recommend that you have copies with you since the ship confiscates them when you board and doesn't return them until just before the cruise ends . Our first wildlife sighting Mr. and Mrs. Condor grounded A Caracara A Rhea

Thank you . Please refresh my memory , any cruises planned ?

We have not been there yet but our friends Mic and Rosie are currently on the Oosterdam in Antarctica as we speak have . They advised us to do both sides of the falls which involves spending the night and a Brazilian Visa if you can do that . BTW we don't usually put it all on the Card but we did this trip . So we have an interest free loan until the end of this year , so we did over indulge a bit . But we think that this may have been our last trip there .

We had hoped the fly on the larger Otter But we wound up on the smaller Cessna and I was glad that we had an experienced pilot I had explained that I was a retired Paramedic and had some experience on Air Rescue . But we use Bell 412 helicopters quite a different animal . Still he wanted me up front so this was my view . And my wife's view We were pleased that the lady on the right foreground was married to a Ship's officer so we hoped that he might arrange the safer flight for her . The 1 hour flight was raining all the way so it was all IFR .

Thank you for sharing that site . It's a well done and much better site than I have found stateside . We saw some King eggs this time at the Falkland Islands so you may see some fuzzy King chicks at that date . We did notice that the Torres del Paine trip is included at 1024 BPS . That's $ 1293 American . We would pounce on that if you can afford it . Would you mind if we hijack our thread to show that trip ? It was on another cruise line but we believe that it would be the same or a similar trip .

Unfortunately I may take too many photos and forget to just take it all in sometimes . Stop and smell the roses ( or fertilizer ) as the case may be . Thank you I do enjoy taking photos of the Lord's creation as it keeps me in Awe of Him .

The 2 rules were don't cross the white rock circle and don't impede or harass the penguins Will walk for food Mister and Mrs. Upland Geese Synchronized sleeping Living in my parents shadow Breakfast is served

We don't know and we did not take a photo of her . But we believe that she is from Eastern Europe perhaps Slovenia or Slovakia .

Would we make the Falkland Islands ? We had already missed Punta Arenas because of tenders . We were up at 0430 which was the time that I had to leave home for work in Miami at 0700 . I did this for over 20 years so this was nothing new . The disappointment for us was that the suite breakfast didn't start until the 1st tender was due to leave . We went to O'Sheehan's which is open 24 hours in hope of a corned beef hash and eggs to start the long day . We were seated by the window at about 05:15 but received no service . People in the first row away from the window received service and when we asked if we could order we were told that we were not in his row .We asked him to please send our server so that we could order breakfast . He told us that breakfast would not be served until 0600 . The guy across from us had a smirk as he received his order . The buffet looked like a Rugby Strum so we opted for fiber bars and bagged nuts to go for breakfast from our stash . The tenders were in the water by now . The concierge , Monica was waiting for us at Gatsby's and took us down to the first tender . Fortunately , J and M our traveling companions , were also on the 1st tender and we were off for the 20 minute ride . We met with our driver and guide , Neil , and we were off in our 4x4 . I was riding shotgun and requested a photo shot out of the window when showed us some helicopter wreckage from an Archie helicopter shot down during the War in 1982 . I chuckled to myself as I thought of the old comic book series with Veronica and Jughead . I also remember the old song Sugar , sugar sung by the Archies . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugar,_Sugar And after about 2 hours of doing the bump and grind we had made it . We knew that we were the first one's there as we had the pleasure of opening and walking across the red sea foot bath before we could walk among the penguins .

Dinner for breakfast ? Appetizers hers And his Soup Mains Double wide lamp chops ( sorry Sheri Lewis ) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shari_Lewis Small Filet cooked properly Veggies Always room for the 7 layer cake And after a dinner like this it was a good thing that we would have the Drake lake on the way to the Falklands .

I noticed that the Star is currently in Punta Arenas today and that they may tender in . We didn't make it in because of high winds . Today looks much better with current winds WNW of 11 mph and gust to 27 mph . These are much more favorable for a landing . https://www.cruisemapper.com/?imo=9195157 We have been there 4 times including a trip to the penquin Island which is very bumpy and long . We also flew to Puerto Natales , Chile to bus to Torres Del Paine . This cost more but it was by far the best cruise excursion that we have ever done ! ! If the option is available we would recommend that you take it and the weather there is very favorable there currently unlike the 62 mph that we had when we drove over after our cruise . A drive took all day and required a double - double passport control on land which was a beast and a time killer .

Perhaps , but we have found that if we do big trips all at once that it overwhelms us . So we break it up into smaller bite size pieces , a day at a time and frequent stops . I used to be a hare when I was young but we are more like a Tortoise now .

This map shows where the Oosterdam is and where they have been in Antarctica just zoom in or out . https://www.cruisemapper.com/?imo=9221281