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Silver Cloud #1001 - Ushuaia RT via South Georgia - January 4, 2020


jpalbny
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Well, it's a few hours to 2020, and we are officially on vacation! So, time to get this thread started.

 

Work wasn't too bad today and we got home early enough to get in one last run on the treadmill before dinner. Actually, we have decided to clean the aquarium before dinner as well. So hopefully that won't take us too long, and we don't starve. Chris is finishing up with her run now, and I will make her a recovery Gin and Tonic to reward her efforts. That will make the cleaning much more pleasant.

 

We have some petite filets and some king crab legs for tonight's New Year's Eve dinner. And I will pop the cork on a bottle of Dom rose which we brought back from her birthday trip to South America this past January. Should be great. Getting hungry thinking about it!

 

Packing is done and we are traveling with a bit more than usual. Fifteen days is a long cruise, and we packed a decent amount of stuff. We each put our nicer evening clothes in a rollaboard, and we put our boots and expedition / colder weather gear in a duffel bag. There is a fair amount of room just in case things expand for the trip home. Our backpacks are holding some warmer clothes for the pre-cruise time in Santiago. So we will actually check bags on this trip! 

 

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We have been looking forward to a return to Antarctica, with a side trip to South Georgia, since we booked this cruise over two years ago in December 2017! It's a unique itinerary that includes South Georgia but not the Falklands, so it's "only" 15 days. We just can't swing an 18-day cruise yet so this fits the bill for us. The trade-off is a little less time in Antarctica proper, but we have been there in 2009 so it (hopefully) will be worth the trade.

 

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We fly out tomorrow (NY Day) via Atlanta to Santiago, landing in the morning of 1/2. We have a tour guide who we've used twice previously for the two days. Really looking forward to seeing her again! Then on 1/4 we fly to Ushuaia with friends old and new to embark on this great adventure.

 

More to follow. Hoping that others feel free to join in, make themselves at home on this thread, and share this adventure with everyone. We welcome contributions from anyone else - this isn't just "my" thread here. The more, the merrier!

 

And, Happy New Year everyone!

 

Edited by jpalbny
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We are also headed to Antarctica, but on Azamara so it won't be the same, no setting foot on the continent. We were supposed to be on the Cloud last Jan, but DH needed spine surgery and we had to cancel--thank goodness for insurance. I'll be following along with you. Thanks in advance.

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We came down to Buenos Aires to spend New Years Eve before heading over to a Santiago later this week to join in the funl!  Thanks for starting the thread JP.

 

It’s 2:15a now, so the clubs are finally starting to open.  We hear the locals go until 7:00a - 10:00a in the morning, so we’ll see how we do. 😉  The celebration at midnight was the most low key event we’ve ever seen, especially for such a large metropolitan area.

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We are at TUL fixing to take off.  Since I used miles for this trip, our route is somewhat circuitous.  We fly to Charlotte then Miami today.  We have all day to spend tomorrow in Miami (planning on going to the zoo) then fly to Santiago tomorrow evening.  After a day in Santiago, we will meet up with our friends and fly to Ushuaia where we board the Silver Cloud for what promises to be a fun and exciting 15 days.

 

George actually brought his waterproof pants this time, and he has a new cowboy hat for the occasion which he will NOT be allowed to wear onboard the zodiac.  I have 7 pairs of shoes, a bunch of sparkly dresses and a lot of layers.

 

 

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47 minutes ago, RachelG said:

I have 7 pairs of shoes, a bunch of sparkly dresses and a lot of layers.

 

Impressive! I think we have five pairs between the two of us. And add two pairs of boots to make seven. Not sure how well Chris's boots will go with her cute dresses but it might just be a new fashion look that catches on!

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7 hours ago, RachelG said:

I have 7 pairs of shoes...

 

6 hours ago, jpalbny said:

I think we have five pairs between the two of us.


Ah heck JP, I have 6 pairs myself!  And, if I’m allowed to include rental boots in the count, then the number ties Rachel.  Congratulations to me!


A man’s feet have to be properly outfitted with warm breakfast slippers when sailing the Drake, let alone appropriate flip-flops for trips to/from the hot tubs. 😆

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1 hour ago, Stumblefoot said:

 


Ah heck JP, I have 6 pairs myself!  And, if I’m allowed to include rental boots in the count, then the number ties Rachel.  Congratulations to me!


A man’s feet have to be properly outfitted with warm breakfast slippers when sailing the Drake, let alone appropriate flip-flops for trips to/from the hot tubs. 😆

Don't forget the matching scarf and hip waders for fishing bare handed

Edited by spinnaker2
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2 hours ago, Stumblefoot said:

 


Ah heck JP, I have 6 pairs myself!  And, if I’m allowed to include rental boots in the count, then the number ties Rachel.  Congratulations to me!


A man’s feet have to be properly outfitted with warm breakfast slippers when sailing the Drake, let alone appropriate flip-flops for trips to/from the hot tubs. 😆

The seven is not including boots, which we are renting.

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Got into Santiago this morning about 40 minutes early, touching down at 9:15. It was a smooth flight and we both got some sleep. The prior flight from Albany to Atlanta was early as well, so we'd had to endure a 6-hour layover. Better than missing a connection. 

 

It was almost a 15 minute walk to immigration and the lines were moderate. After about 10 minutes they opened up extra gates and we were the second ones through the new line. Luggage had already arrived so we were through customs and meeting our tour guide by 10:00.

 

We picked up our friends William and Luisa at their airport hotel and headed to the city for a tour. Hot and sunny, over 80 degrees, but a nice breeze made it very pleasant. 

 

Some graffiti and signs of damage were easily seen. But no rioting going on.

 

We walked around some of the sights and saw a few changes since 2017. This wasn't here...

 

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This statue is a classic, Pedro de Valdivia.

 

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The cathedral shone brightly in the bright sunshine.

 

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Outside, these two beautifully attired in traditional dress. I think they were dancers.

 

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After a bit more sightseeing, time for lunch! A beer from our next destination. 

 

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And sausage. With fries. No light meals here.

 

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I left a few of the fries so we had room for ice cream at a shop next door. There was a neat hotel near the shop.

 

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Off to the Mirador of the Condor. A little haze.

 

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Then a stop at Bicentenario Park. Flamingos and other waterfowl, but the views were better.

 

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Finally we checked into our hotel. I got a super rate on the extra night through AMEX, and I had asked to keep the same room for the second (Silversea) night. So we confirmed those arrangements, and were shown to our really nice 14th floor room - with a view.

 

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We made dinner plans and then relaxed a bit. We will be meeting our guide for dinner in a few minutes, so that's all for now.

Edited by jpalbny
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Arrived at JP’s hotel @ 10:10p and immediately were escorted to Senso for dinner as the kitchen closes @ 10:30p.  Although no one is seen dining inside, it took 10-minutes to be greeted and presented menus.  40-minutes later the first course arrived @ 11:15p.  I pray our mains get here before 11:30p and that breakfast goes better once all of our fellow South Georgia cruisers join us.

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8 hours ago, Stumblefoot said:

Buenos Aires taxi drivers are incredible luggage engineers as witnessed by these shots on our way to EZE.

 

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The flight over the Andes into Santiago was stunning.

 

 

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Stumbles, was this a group transfer? That's a lot of luggage!

 

Sitting in the room after breakfast with a nice view from here.

 

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Breakfast at Senso was efficient. Got there just after 7 and we were the first ones. Nice buffet and plenty of coffee. The view was tasty too.

 

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Dinner last night with Jeanette at the Peruvian-Japanese restaurant at our hotel. Lots of ceviche to start, just one example.

 

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Then we switched from Sauvignon blanc to Carmenère and had duck confit, and of course some lomo saltado. Yummy!

 

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Heading out for the day soon. Plan to go to the mountains for a horseback ride, then a nice picnic somewhere with a view. Hope to be back in time for the Silversea briefing tonight at 6:00.

 

Our transfer to the airport is at 7:45 tomorrow morning. Very civilized! 

 

Mountains.to.Sea, contact Esteban from privatetours.cl if you need to be set up with anything here. Email info@privatetours.cl. He is a great organizer. He's put together a lot of tours for us in the 3x we've been here. And ask to have Jeanette be your tour guide. She's awesome! 

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Checking in quickly.  We have arrived in Santiago.  Uneventful flight from Miami.  Our cab driver from the airport to hotel could qualify for NASCAR.  I was happy to be in the back seat.

our tour guide for the day just texted me and said he will be here in 10 minutes—early, but fortunately they had our room ready, and I was able to freshen up.

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