Buckeye94 as LIVE as I can be: Infinity 2 Jan 2023 Patagonia and Argentina

[Jim_Iain]

Your cruise can't be over yer.   I think you have to go down and book the next cruise.  I've really been enjoying live post.  

 

I really love your attitude about traveling alone.   I've often wondered if I would continue cruising if something should ever happen to Iain and he couldn't cruise.    I know when traveling most of my life on Business Solo I found it difficult to not isolate in my room and force myself to go to a nice dinner by myself and usually opted for McDonald's or Pizza.

[mahdnc]

38 minutes ago, Buckeye94 said:

Good news, if you ask for a lobster tail in addition to your steak entree, for example, no charge. Only a charge for 2+ lobster tails/entrees.

 

That will become my work around in the future.  Or if I have to score two free lobster tails for dinner, have my wife order a lobster tail in addition to her non-seafood entry to give to me as my 2nd.

[GenerationX]

I share Jim’s regret that your trip is coming to a close!  This has been a fantastic read and thanks to you I’ve added this itinerary to my travel checklist. You’re a natural live reviewer. 😁

 

I agree with all your comments on solo travel. Especially the “bravery” remarks and shock.  I get the extra layer of disbelief from some fellow passengers when they find out that I’m married and traveling alone by choice.  I always point out that there was nothing in my wedding vows about promising to take my husband with me every single place I go. 😂

 

I’ve also noticed that it is often a husband who expresses the most shock that a married woman would cruise alone, as I catch a quick glimpse of a look of longing for 7 nights of nonstop pure “me time” and pampering on his wife’s face. 😂

[abbydancer2003]

2 hours ago, Buckeye94 said:

 

 

4. The closet is all yours! The cabin is all yours! I sailed with my sister once, the only time I've shared a cabin. I love her dearly, and we've traveled together but separately since then, but never again I the same room. Favorite quote from that trip: (at JFK on the way home; dramatically drop bags and face off) "Let's agree right here, right now that we will NEVER do the Amazing Race together!" "AGREED!" 😀 I love her! We really are good friends! 😍

 

 

I sail with my sister, but we're good sharing a room.  (We leave DH at home - she's divorced).  That said, we also have agreed we'd never do the Amazing Race together.  Mostly we'd fight over who has to do the gross food challenges.

[Buckeye94]

50 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

 

That will become my work around in the future.  Or if I have to score two free lobster tails for dinner, have my wife order a lobster tail in addition to her non-seafood entry to give to me as my 2nd.

Ah, that's some strong thinking, and now I need to add a negative to my solo travel post. 🤔 Hmm, or find a friend...or table of friends who don't like lobster! Problem solved

[goofysmom99]

2 hours ago, Buckeye94 said:

 

I love sailing solo!

 

Some musings...

1. I am free to do what I want when I want. I can't tell you how many couples or groups I've seen at breakfast planning their day trying to agree on activities. Or, the time I traveled with a group and while they debated excursions on our planning conference call, I booked what I wanted to do before they sold out. Note to those people: Just do your own thing and share stories at dinner. Decide what experiences you must share and then explore and share.

 

2. I can choose to dine alone or share a table. I've met wonderful people at shared tables, but sometimes I like to dine alone. I'm an introvert and it can be overwhelming to be in constant group conversation. Another benefit of dining alone? You get the whole butter and dip tray to yourself so double dip and take all the breadsticks! 😀 (I am composing this at dinner as I take ALL the parmesan spread.)

 

3. Tip: Bring something with you to hold your table. A sweater, a notepad, a book, something. When you score a prime table on the aft deck, but want to grab a waffle, you need a way to hold your space.

 

4. The closet is all yours! The cabin is all yours! I sailed with my sister once, the only time I've shared a cabin. I love her dearly, and we've traveled together but separately since then, but never again I the same room. Favorite quote from that trip: (at JFK on the way home; dramatically drop bags and face off) "Let's agree right here, right now that we will NEVER do the Amazing Race together!" "AGREED!" 😀 I love her! We really are good friends! 😍

 

5. You are motivated to meet new people whether at the bar, dinner, Roll Call (Hi, Jan!), or on excursions. 

 

6. Someone is expecting you back. This gives my family some peace. If I was traveling around Europe by myself, they would rely on my communications home. If I don't return to the ship, my sister will get a call as my emergency contact.

 

7. Cruising is ideal for solo travel. As much as I'd like to spend time traversing Europe. The idea of navigating trains alone with my luggage, or driving, or a bus tour (shore excursions are enough), raises my anxiety, especially with my limited Spanish and German language skills). The  Captain does the "driving" and I can retreat to my balcony whenever I want. 

 

8. Be prepared for people to be surprised and express how brave you are. I'm not brave. I'm single. What's the alternative? I'm not waiting around to live life. And that's really it. Don't be afraid. Embrace the opportunity. See the world. Bring a good book.

 

Now, about that solo supplement...ugh.

One of my all-time favorite cruises was a TA where the maitre d' put together a table of six experienced solo cruisers (Elite, Elite+ ladies, and Zenith gent) at late seating.  We all agreed we preferred set dining to select so we could sit with others.  We compared war stories one of which was of how old it got every time we heard "I could never travel alone."  It was truly refreshing to be with others who "get it" and we shared our solo travel hacks on both land and afloat.  I still keep in touch with two and we've visited.  BTW, land travel in Europe/on trains is easy with a rollaboard, backpack, and a retractable bicycle lock (and cell phone for GPS and translation😉 - wifi is everywhere, including trains). 

Edited January 12, 2023 by goofysmom99

[Buckeye94]

Somehow my Puerto Madryn draft disappeared. 

 

Penguins, seals, views, and gravel roads! 

 

Today, I took a Celebrity excursion, Peninsula Valdes Nature & Wildlife. There are two versions of this, or with a box lunch and one with a sit down lunch. I did the box lunch one - ham and cheese sandwiches, salad, wonderful plums, a spinach empanada, and a sweet corn muffin. While the grilled meat and wine sounded lovely, it cost significantly more and I have more Argentinean food and wine coming up. I don't know if the full lunch group skipped one of our stops, but we all got back just in time for sail away. It was an early on board time of 3:30.

 

Our tour took us to a visitor center at Carlos Ameghino Isthmus. There was a observation tower, a museum, and restrooms. From there, we headed onto Peninsula Valdes. Sheep farms comprise the peninsula. We saw a couple farmhouses,but it was very desolate. The only indication that you were moving between farms was a fence and livestock grate on the road. It had rained the night before, so none of the dust that they warned us about but the windows had some mud splatter by the end. 

 

 

(Not so) Fun Fact: Being a desert, they have to truck water in every day.

 

Crazy to believe that we were just seeing mountains and glaciers and now flat desert.

 

We made stops to view penguins and elephant seals along Caleta Valdes. If you watched the CNN series, "Patagonia: Life on the Edge of the World" this is one of the locations featured. Many of the episodes featured locations that we couldn't explore on this cruise, but the one on Peninsula Valdes prepared me for what we experienced.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The pier is very long, but the tours picked up and dropped off right at the ship. I'm glad I did the short hike for views of the caleta/cove. Since we docked at 10 and on board by 3:30 this didn't allow us any time to visit the port city or to exchange our money before BA as CD Alejandro suggested.

 

Today, is our last sea day. 😢 Tomorrow, Montevideo then BA...Then, back to work. I'm going to enjoy this view with another Paris Screwdriver to put that thought away for now! I'm going to miss this view.

 

[Buckeye94]

Oh, and people gonna people. 🤔 🙄 😢

 

[AstoriaPreppy]

56 minutes ago, Buckeye94 said:

Somehow my Puerto Madryn draft disappeared. 

 

Penguins, seals, views, and gravel roads! 

 

Today, I took a Celebrity excursion, Peninsula Valdes Nature & Wildlife. There are two versions of this, or with a box lunch and one with a sit down lunch. I did the box lunch one - ham and cheese sandwiches, salad, wonderful plums, a spinach empanada, and a sweet corn muffin. While the grilled meat and wine sounded lovely, it cost significantly more and I have more Argentinean food and wine coming up. I don't know if the full lunch group skipped one of our stops, but we all got back just in time for sail away. It was an early on board time of 3:30.

 

Our tour took us to a visitor center at Carlos Ameghino Isthmus. There was a observation tower, a museum, and restrooms. From there, we headed onto Peninsula Valdes. Sheep farms comprise the peninsula. We saw a couple farmhouses,but it was very desolate. The only indication that you were moving between farms was a fence and livestock grate on the road. It had rained the night before, so none of the dust that they warned us about but the windows had some mud splatter by the end. 

 

 

(Not so) Fun Fact: Being a desert, they have to truck water in every day.

 

Crazy to believe that we were just seeing mountains and glaciers and now flat desert.

 

We made stops to view penguins and elephant seals along Caleta Valdes. If you watched the CNN series, "Patagonia: Life on the Edge of the World" this is one of the locations featured. Many of the episodes featured locations that we couldn't explore on this cruise, but the one on Peninsula Valdes prepared me for what we experienced.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The pier is very long, but the tours picked up and dropped off right at the ship. I'm glad I did the short hike for views of the caleta/cove. Since we docked at 10 and on board by 3:30 this didn't allow us any time to visit the port city or to exchange our money before BA as CD Alejandro suggested.

 

Today, is our last sea day. 😢 Tomorrow, Montevideo then BA...Then, back to work. I'm going to enjoy this view with another Paris Screwdriver to put that thought away for now! I'm going to miss this view.

 

 

Q: Did you book this excursion online, or onboard? We're on the 23 March sailing, and there's zero Peninsula Valdes excursions... but lots of dino museum and Welsh teatime. Maybe it's a shoulder season thing since we're essentially the last cruise of the season for Patagonia sailings? 

[beachluver9]

ok, so I have to ask...what is a paris screwdriver?

 

[Barwick Cruiser]

Am so loving this review and will be very sorry for you to go home 😉 Love the pics of the penguins…please tell me those were taken with your iPhone? You really do have a special knack for travel reporting! And I loved your list of the pros of solo sailing…would love to do that as well however my DH would catch on too quickly and I’d end up finding him in the seat beside me in the plane…

[Jim_Iain]

Didn't you love the Penguins?       They really were a highlight of our trip.   We took the excursion to the same preserve.

[Buckeye94]

2 hours ago, beachluver9 said:

ok, so I have to ask...what is a paris screwdriver?

 

Vodka, orange juice, and sparkling wine. It's on the Sunrise Cocktails menu (because vacation) at Oceanview Cafe and Sunset Bar. 

[Arubamoose]

21 hours ago, Buckeye94 said:

Cruise Director Alejandro told us all about your free cruise back to the California! There are pictures! 😂😜

 

"Ale-handsome" has been great! He gave a morning presentation discussing how Celebrity handled that last cruise. Eclipse was the only ship with passengers! And, on March 30 when most passengers disembarked, the Argentinean passengers couldn't until their visa situation was resolved. 

 

I was very impressed by the way Celebrity and a whole host of countries helped as they could during a very difficult time.

 

In the afternoon, he shared his path to becoming a Cruise Director. Very funny, engaging guy. I think I've sailed with him before and found him to be a bit much, but he's much more balanced now. 

 

I love Ale-Handsome!!  He was awesome.  And Captain Leo was amazing - especially under that pressure.

[Buckeye94]

2 hours ago, Barwick Cruiser said:

Am so loving this review and will be very sorry for you to go home 😉 Love the pics of the penguins…please tell me those were taken with your iPhone? You really do have a special knack for travel reporting! And I loved your list of the pros of solo sailing…would love to do that as well however my DH would catch on too quickly and I’d end up finding him in the seat beside me in the plane…

All of my photos were taken with a Samsung Galaxy S8. 

 

I had intended to upgrade my phone before the trip to have a better camera, but I ran out of time. I think it's worked out okay! 😉

[Iriel]

Your pics are amazing! I loved the penguins, I'm dying to see them again!

 

Also, I'm absolutely trying a Paris Screwdriver 😂

[Redking]

3 hours ago, AstoriaPreppy said:

 

Q: Did you book this excursion online, or onboard? We're on the 23 March sailing, and there's zero Peninsula Valdes excursions... but lots of dino museum and Welsh teatime. Maybe it's a shoulder season thing since we're essentially the last cruise of the season for Patagonia sailings? 

Did you want to see penguins? If so, Magdalena Island from Punta Arenas is a great trip. Looks like tours run until April.

[abbydancer2003]

3 hours ago, AstoriaPreppy said:

 

Q: Did you book this excursion online, or onboard? We're on the 23 March sailing, and there's zero Peninsula Valdes excursions... but lots of dino museum and Welsh teatime. Maybe it's a shoulder season thing since we're essentially the last cruise of the season for Patagonia sailings? 

You might check some of the third party groups, such as shore excursion group (we're going with them on the previous cruise), or Viator, etc.

[Buckeye94]

4 hours ago, AstoriaPreppy said:

 

Q: Did you book this excursion online, or onboard? We're on the 23 March sailing, and there's zero Peninsula Valdes excursions... but lots of dino museum and Welsh teatime. Maybe it's a shoulder season thing since we're essentially the last cruise of the season for Patagonia sailings? 

I booked this excursion online. 

 

You might have luck finding an independent tour, BUT if I'm remembering the guide, the magellanic penguins begin their migration mid-March. It would be a very long drive out to the peninsula for them to have left already.

[Buckeye94]

Funny (twisted, dark) story. I'm not even sure what kind of warning to put on this post. Please don't report me! Please understand my immense shock that this is the impression someone had of my home state and laugh at the situation. 

 

One evening I was seated at a table in the MDR serviced by Hanadi as the Assistant Waiter. She exudes joy! She's from Bosnia and Herzegovina and asked where I was from. I said, "the United States, the state of Ohio." Her face lit up!

 

H: I know Ohio! My favorite movie is Gummo. Do you know it? 

Me: Hmm, no.

H: Bunny Boy? 

Me: (thinking something is seriously lost in translation) Umm, sorry, no.

 

She leaves, and I immediately search imdb! My reactions:😳 😬🙅The synopsis reads like a Stefon SNL skit!

(from imdb.com) "Teen friends Tummler (Nick Sutton) and Solomon (Jacob Reynolds) navigate the ruins of a tiny, tornado-ravaged town in Ohio that is populated by the deformed, disturbed and perverted. When not gunning down stray cats for a few bucks, the boys pass their time getting stoned on household inhalants. Elsewhere, the mute Bunny Boy (Jacob Sewell) dons rabbit ears and is bullied by kids half his age, and sisters Dot (Chloe Sevigny) and Helen (Carisa Glucksman) dodge a pedophile.

 

...and even more Stefon-like from the Wikipedia page. "This movie has EVERYTHING...." 😯😳 "A number of other scenes are interspersed throughout the film, including: an intoxicated man flirting with a gay dwarf; a man pimping his disabled sister to Solomon and Tummler; the sisters encountering an elderly child molester; a pair of twin boys selling candy door-to-door; a brief conversation with a tennis player who is treating his ADHD; a long scene of Solomon eating dinner while taking a bath in dirty water; a drunken party with arm- and chair-wrestling; and two skinhead brothers boxing each other in their kitchen."

 

Me: (thinking) WHAT THE WHAT? ....Seriously, WHAT???? 

Me: Hanadi! Ohio is not like that...at all! 

H: smiles, laughs

 

Needless to say, this is NOT a movie being shown on the in-room entertainment system! 

 

😳

 

 

 

 

Edited January 12, 2023 by Buckeye94
Clarity

[Buckeye94]

I don't remember who wanted to know, but I found Adi at Martini Bar tonight. Unfortunately, he's not staying on for the next cruise.

 

Many crew members are leaving. My room steward is leaving tomorrow in Montevideo.

 

You will be well taken care of, but I know how nice it is to see crew that you've met before.

[AC Stew]

Awesome photos, thank-you so much for sharing!

 

Question: Do you know if Alejandro is staying on for the next couple of months? We'll be on the February 11 sailing. (He's one of my faves.)

 

Thanks!

[joandian]

I have enjoyed reading your review and your lovely photos. We are joining Infinity in March and I have a few questions about disembarking in BA. Are you please able to tell me what time they start disembarkation and are you able to carry your own bags off?  Are the shuttle buses there waiting to take you to the Terminal and do you have to go through customs and immigration?

 

thank you in advance for any information. 

Edited January 13, 2023 by joandian

[AstoriaPreppy]

18 hours ago, Buckeye94 said:

I booked this excursion online. 

 

You might have luck finding an independent tour, BUT if I'm remembering the guide, the magellanic penguins begin their migration mid-March. It would be a very long drive out to the peninsula for them to have left already.

 

That makes a lot of sense. 

[AstoriaPreppy]

19 hours ago, Redking said:

Did you want to see penguins? If so, Magdalena Island from Punta Arenas is a great trip. Looks like tours run until April.

 

Online, our sailing is only offering a ~$700 pp excursion to Magdalena island... and it looks like all of the other providers in the area aren't offered that day, or are already sold out.

 

To be honest, I'm somewhat surprised at the general lack of excursions offered for this sailing? Outside of Ushuaia and Montevideo, we've only got 6 or 7 excursion options in each port. We've booked stuff for every stop already, but I'm curious to know if more will be offered onboard.