Live From!: South America - Rio to Santiago

[Colo Cruiser]

[bvm49]

Thanks for the live postings - we're on the 49 night Ruby Princess cruise in 3 weeks.

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

Oh man! Big lunch and no dinner make for an unpleasant morning! If you ever see me on a cruise and I tell you that I MUST go to the casino, please take me back to my cabin! Ouch!

 

But let’s back up. We were awoken (is that a word) by thunder as we approached Buenos Aires. We passed Montevideo around dinner time last night and the slowly (I mean REALLY slowly) crept down the river to Buenos Aires. One word: GO! Probably one of the best cities that I have ever visited. If you can’t get there by cruise ship, take a plane, a car a water taxi and go! A really wonderful city.

 

It does take a while to dock after we crept down the “river”. A very wide river but I’ve been told that the water coming off the Iguazu falls (spell check says that’s right but I kind of doubt it and too lazy to look it up) ends up in what I’ll call the BA Bay but they tell me that it’s a river. Anyway, we dock in a working port with TONS of cargo containers a round so they bus us from the gangway to the end of the port. No big deal and there are lots of buses. They open deck 6 and deck 5 to let people off. We all wait in line to exit deck 6 while they take the excursion folks off of deck 5. Could we have gone down to deck 5 and walked right off? Probably. But we are all about patient line waiting this cruise. Maybe someone else can offer advice about whether jumping the line and going down to deck 5 was advantageous. We stayed in the line and got off the ship at 9:30 (the line started at 9:00 when we were cleared and we got in line right at 9). Our private guide was there with a sign with my name on it and off we went.

 

We hit the touristy places as evident by the tour buses outside but we always seemed to stay just ahead of them. And then we went to places where no one was and that was awesome. As someone who has been singing “Don’t Cry for me Argentina” for the last 3 days, I have to say that Evita’s grave was anti-climatic compared to the entire cemetery. I could have spent the entire day there. Make sure to check out the stained glass windows. They are meant for those INSIDE the mausoleum and not us on the outside. What looks like a plain glass window is absolutely amazing from the view inside. Please find as many as you can where you can see the view from inside and take a peak. Again, I could have spent all day here.

Also do not miss the memorial to those that went missing during the revolt of the early 70s. Such a sad story and a great memorial.

One thing to note, bring USD with you. We had pesos to pay for lunch and tip the tour guide but lunch ended up being more than we thought so we ended up using our credit card and then spending the cash on the tip. But we could have paid the meal in USD and got a good rate as well. And then we had no money to spend on souvenirs as the items we were looking at were at such a low price as to not use credit. Also didn’t want to risk giving my number out very often. We left all our USD in the cabin thinking that we wouldn’t need it only to then be worried about not having enough local currency.

 

We had a HUGE Argentinian lunch (ie STEAK) at the local tour guides favorite café. Much nicer than the touristy places. But that then stopped us from having dinner on the ship as we were still full. Let’s just say that the pretzels and peanuts at The Wheelhouse do not counter the many martinis we had there! We have met a nice couple and spent the entire night laughing with them. But none of us ate and while they all (smartly) went to bed, I thought it would be a good idea to go to the casino! And I was up. I was up big. For a while. :) But I had fun and wasn’t too hurting in the morning so all is good.

 

Again, lots of dancing in The Wheelhouse late night which is so unlike Princess. It’s good to see.

 

The weather was raining and low 80s with a prediction of sunny and 70s in Montevideo. The crew keeps warning us that it’s about to get much colder so I’ll keep you informed.

[Posaune]

Having toured as an entertainer in Brasil long ago I can tell you late evenings are the norm. We would start performing way past my normal bedtime! The disco is probably hopping until early in the morning. You should not have much of a crowd in Horizon for breakfast!

[Rassa]

Thanks Sox Fan Cruiser for the updates on your SA cruise. We are on the Golden end of February for 5 weeks doing BA to LA.

 

You have actually got me looking more forward to the cruise with your reporting as the plane trip to BA and the thought of 5 weeks on the ship was taking away some of the thrill of the holiday for me. But I always thought, once I got there, I would be OK. The info on using US money in BA was very helpful as I had read that. I doubt there will be as many families on our cruise at end of Feb, but it was great to hear about the bands they have on board.

 

Please let us know the weather after BA as I probably need to pack more warm layered clothing.

 

Apart from Moonraker (which my husband can watch over and over again) what are they showing on MUTS?

Rosie

[PatriciaF]

Thank you for your post.

 

My husband and I will be getting on the Golden when you are getting off!

 

We booked this cruise back in June 2013 and can't believe it is almost here!

 

My husband is a native Spanish speaker, so he will love being able to talk to other Spanish speakers. Our first cruise together was on the Golden and one of the Spanish TV Networks was having a meeting on it. He enjoyed getting to talk to people from all over the Spanish speaking world.

 

We have four days in Buenos Aires before we come home--we are really looking forward to it.

[lovevacadays]

Thank you for your live from thread. I'm enjoying it.

 

 

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[satxdiver]

`Thank you for the commentary and keep it coming. We will be boarding the ship in Valparaiso one week from Saturday. It all sounds wonderful. I had not considered South Americans being on the ship so that is really enticing. The closest we have come to something like that was when we cruised out of Puerto Rico and the predominate language was Spanish. Yes they do like their late night entertainment so no more being in the bar with just the bartender and staff. Keep it coming.

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

Another beautiful day in South America for us. Bright and sunny with temperatures in the mid 70s was the theme of the day. We had another private tour with the guide picking us up right outside of port.

 

Disembarkation was very easy today as we didn’t need a bus to get out of the pier. We could just walk off and proceed 100 yards or so to the port entrance. Montevideo is a beautiful seaside city with water almost everywhere. As expected there was much less to see than in Buenos Aires but it was still a nice tour. You MUST see the parliament building as it was spectacular!

 

As I’m typing this (I always do it the next day) I am hanging out on my balcony with long pants and a sweatshirt on. While not cold yet, it was cool enough with the wind to switch out of shorts. I’ll let you know when we go above deck as to whether it’s warmer in the sun.

 

There has been very little movement of the ship other than the first day that I mentioned. It has been a very flat sailing so far. A little too flat for me! I like laying in bed at night and feeling the motion of the ship.

 

Also, the evening on this sailing really comes fast as I have mentioned before. It doesn’t get dark until well after 9pm and we often find ourselves not getting to dinner until after 8:30. In the Caribbean our schedule has us at The Wheelhouse right at 7 and in the dining room at 8.

 

The next two days are more sea days before we hopefully arrive at the Falkland Islands. I really want to see some penguins!!

 

As I try and log in to post this, I will say that the internet is extremely slow now. Even inside the cabin on my laptop (which is where I get the best speed) is very very slow. My posts may take a little longer to get to you…

 

(I'll answer the questions posted in my next update. Already using up a lot of my "free" internet minutes so trying to be on sparingly. Don't worry, if I run out, I'll buy some more and keep this going.)

[vickie_bernie]

we did the Rio to San Francisco three years ago and it had many passengers from South America on each leg.

 

We did the full 49 days FLL to LA last year and much fewer South Americans, mainly Americans with a scattering of Canadians and Australians.

 

It was odd how different they felt. Both were good but different.

 

 

We'll be on the Ruby from FLL to Santiago in a couple of weeks, so this is going to be quite helpful. I have posted the link to this thread on the roll call.

 

Thanks for the warnings about the heat and the sun! I will definitely be packing some summer clothes AND my sunscreen, since we will have 5 ports in the Caribbean before starting down the SoAm coast!!

 

I'll be looking for info about the weather and temps for the "Around the Horn" portion when you get to that part of your cruise!

 

 

Re the weather, the only time we really needed warm weather clothes was about day two out of Montevideo until Port Montt. A light jacket was needed in Port Montt and Valparaiso.

 

It was HOT HOT HOT most of the other time, especially all of Brazil and Peru.

 

enjoy your trip!

[Colo Cruiser]

Sounds like a great day. Enjoy! :)

[shredie]

I am on this cruise too. After embarkation in rio things improved. The entertainment has been great. I must say that embarkation was the worst I ever saw.

[Colo Cruiser]

I am on this cruise too. After embarkation in rio things improved. The entertainment has been great. I must say that embarkation was the worst I ever saw.

 

 

Have you seen the great BM? :D

[shredie]

Have you seen the great BM? :D

 

 

Can't wait!

[DougH]

I'm sure its way too late but if you have the chance in the Falklands be sure and try to take the penguin tour with Patrick Watts. He usually books up months in advance but if you see him shoreside when you get off the tender he might have some last minute cancellations. Absolutely the best tour I've taken anywhere.

[GenoaAspenGirl]

Thank you for the great review! I stumbled upon it while getting ready for our Emerald Princess cruise this month. We did BA to Rio several years ago and loved it. (Radiance of the Seas) I'm trying to talk my DH into going around the horn. He is concerned about the weather and rough seas. Thank you again for taking the time to do this!:-)

 

 

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[PathfinderEss]

Enjoying following along on your live cruise report.

[GoldieJ]

I am enjoying every minute of your cruise :)

 

Reading your review just makes it more fun looking forward to our upcoming cruise on The Golden.

[Colo Cruiser]

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

So where did we leave off? Oh yes, I’m on my balcony have coffee and wearing jeans and sweatshirt. Well, as soon as I closed my computer a pod of about 50 dolphins (probably more like porpoises due to their size) came swimming up to the side of the ship. We watched them for about 20 minutes until they had enough of us and swam on by.

 

So with coffee in hand we head topside to see what people are up to. Again we head aft and can’t believe that there are people in their swim trunks laying out in the sun! So we grab a couple of deck chairs in the sun at the top deck and start reading our books. Well, soon after that the sweatshirt comes off. And some time after that hubby is heading back to the cabin to get our shorts. It ended up being an absolutely gorgeous day! The captain came on the loud speaker at noon and said it was 65. I’m sorry sir, but I must disagree. It seemed more like 75!! We spent most of the day up there just reading and relaxing, stopping only once to watch a few whales go by. A truly wonderful (and warm!) day.

 

Two words though: SUN SCREEN! We lathered up with SPF 30 and I still got a burn on my face on top of the burn from the first sea day. Be very very careful out here in this sun. The tour guide in Montevideo said that the hole in the ozone is right above them so we must be very careful. I pass that wisdom on to you all.

 

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful as that is exactly what you want from a sea day. We have started making new friends on board and spent most of the day and evening chatting with them. As it was formal night, dinner was in Sabatinis. And while it was a great meal, I am starting to get tired of large meals every night. I think tonight’s dinner will be at Vines with small portions!

 

Speaking of formal night, I will say that most people do dress up. While there weren’t as many tuxes on the men, they were still dressed in jackets and ties. We are just over that so we hit the specialty restaurants instead.

Oh and a very interested sign outside the Captain’s Circle reception stated that “Shaking of hands is politely discouraged.” I hope we aren’t on the brink of a Noro incident and that that sign is just common place now.

The night ended watching folks dance the night away in the Wheelhouse, listening to wonderful music and laughing with friends.

 

Again the day brings me sitting on my balcony in jeans and a sweatshirt but it is beautifully sunny again so maybe I end up in shorts for one last day. I’ll let you know tomorrow.

 

As to the movies being shown on MUTS, here is the list from day one of the Patter:

Blended

Delivery Man

Dolphin Tale 2

Edge of Tomorrow

Gravity

Grudge

The Lucky One

If I Stay

Veronica Mars

The Lone Ranger

Oz, The Great and Powerful

Guardians of the Galaxy

The LEGO Movie

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

Winter’s Tale

When the Game Stands Tall

 

Not sure that I am familiar with most of these. I also didn’t list the movies shown during the day (like Moonraker) but can peruse the different Patters and provide that list tomorrow.

 

As for the adult pool, I didn’t see many kids there but I also don’t see the “Adults Only” sign up. I think they just moved back to the main pool and the covered pool as the aft pool was mostly in the shade. The covered pool was definitely where most of the kids have decided to swim.

 

There are a lot of families from South America because this is their summer vacation time. Not sure about February but they are not back to school yet so you might still have a lot of families.

 

Until next time…

[Sox Fan Cruiser]

And yes, we are booked with Patrick Watts for the penguin tour. Can't wait!

[Woobstr112G]

And yes, we are booked with Patrick Watts for the penguin tour. Can't wait!

 

Enjoy the tour.....:):):)

 

Bob

[PRINCESSTHE BEST]

.

 

 

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[flamomo]

Sox Fan .... if you are not already doing so, you might want to consider typing your missives in Word, or some similar program, before you log into the internet, and then copy and paste it into a CC post.

I use that method to conserve my "free" minutes, and have never disembarked without having at least a third of my minutes still available no matter what the length of the cruise is.

 

Just a thought!!

 

Thanks for the tip about being able to use USD.

[AE_Collector]

Internet has slowed way down. I type this offline and copy it in. I’ll then grab the questions and answer them on the next day.

 

From post #12. It just burns up the minutes reading everything posted to the topic during the day and trying to quickly answer those questions and comments.

 

The worst is when you are online and lose the wifi signal! We had poorer than normal wifi signal in our cabin on our December Caribbean cruise on Ruby. I could frequently be seen running down the hall toward the elevators to get the wifi connection back so that i could finish and/or disconnect properly. First World problems I guess.

 

Terry

Edited January 9, 2015 by AE_Collector