The country of Chile was our destination today starting with the city of Punta Arenas. The capital of this South American country is Santiago and the population is around 17 million people that speak Spanish. The Chilean pesos are 857.50 to $1 USD. Many vendors and shops will take credit cards and US dollars. This country is long and thin and has it all such as the driest desert on earth, glacial fields, sand dunes, fertile valleys, volcanoes, and ancient forests.
The weather this morning was still cold but not as bone-chilling at 52 degrees F. The humidity was 50 % and the winds were listed at 24 mph. Truthfully, the wind was blowing a gale so much that after we docked, the waves bombarded the port hull and made the ship bounce. It was apparent they were having problems getting the ropes secured, because we went beyond the 9am docking time. We also witnessed two local tugboats pushing against the ship's hull forward and aft to keep it in place.
There was conflicting info regarding whether or not we were docking or dropping anchor and tendering. The Daily newsletter said docking, while the map said tendering to shore. Nothing was said to clarify the confusion, since we were already docked. The ship was cleared by 9:20am, and everyone was required to walk the long and very windy pier to the terminal building. No food or drinks were allowed off except water. And we all had to carry the affidavit we filled out for the Chilean authorities. In case someone asked to see it, we had it available.
Even the tour buses were not allowed to come to the ship to pick up their guests. There were 12 excursions today starting with the sights of Punta Arenas for 3 hours and $96. A voyage into the past with the Magellan discovery was 3 hours and $100. Two excursions for $130 were Punta Arenas on foot for 3 hours and the other was Fort Bulnes and colonization of Patagonia for 4 hours. The tycoons of Patagonia was 4 hours and $140, while hiking the Straits of Magellan was 4 hours for the same price. Kayaking the Straits was 4 hours and $200 (doubt this was possible today), and hiking the Straits was 4 hours for $140. Flight of the condor – a close-up encounter was 4 hours for $270. Punta Arenas sights & Patagonia with a BBQ lunch was 8 hours for $280. Magdelana Penguin reserve was 5 hours for $310 and a taste of Patagonia was 3 hours and $370. Last was Magdelena Island & penguin preserve in a speedboat was $$390 for 4 hours.
Another crew drill began after 9:30am, so we headed off by 9:45am. Like we stated, the walk on the very busy and windy pier took us to a terminal where we had to go through xray to enter the town. Tour buses and private guides were there picking up their customers. We wondered how many people lost their scarves, glasses, and baseball caps in the extreme wind? Oh well, we had been warned.
We did pick up a city map with more detail than the ship's map. Have you ever noticed that when you are standing in a line to get local info, some rude people step right in front of you as if you are invisible? That happened today, but we were able to close up the ranks and keep our place in line. All aboard today was 7:30pm, so what's the rush to get into town? This terminal also had a desk where folks were boarding the Ventus Australes, a small luxury expedition vessel with 4-to-7-night round-trip itineraries with zodiac landings. It is all-inclusive. They travel around Cape Horn, the Beagle Channel, and all of the nearby glaciers. They do not head to Antarctica that we could see.
It would be a walking day for us, locating some of the familiar sights we recalled from 6 years ago and before that. The last time we visited here, we docked at a different place and were provided a shuttle to the Plaza De Armas. Docked at the Muell Arturo Pier, we were within walking distance of that same central plaza. Making our way along the waterfront, we crossed the street and went inland about ? mile from the pier. This central square has a statue of Magellan where many tourists touched the foot of the lowest male statue. The bronze foot was worn smooth from the constant touching. We even saw one man kiss the toes. So what's the significance of this? We guessed perhaps it was the chance of returning here in the future, or a fertility wish. Nope, not the last one since there were too many elderly people doing it. Doing some research later, it turned out to be for good luck, of course.
The statue was surrounded with plenty of benches, and we took one of them to watch the activity. The best was a group of youngsters on a field trip. The little ones sure had a lot of energy….fun to watch. Two policemen arrived on horseback, to patrol the square we guess. There were police vehicles parked there and also a drone they were setting up. The drone was much larger close-up than we imagined. It was then we wondered why so much security. Even the patrol vehicles had every window covered with heavy screening, preventing the bad people from breaking the glass.
We located the street that continued uphill to Cerro La Cruz, or the viewpoint. A wonderful view of the Straits of Magellan, Tierra del Fuego, and surrounding peaks can be seen from here. New benches had been added to a flower-planted median strip on the main drive here, so we stopped for a while sitting in what sun there was. In order to access the viewpoint, one had to climb some very steep steps to the upper road. One of us did that hike 6 years ago, while the other sat down below visiting with some local cats. Today, both of us stayed on the lower street because it appeared the cypress trees were half blocking the view anyway. Other passengers we know also choice the same path and recommended we take photos of the house Shackleton lived while plotting his plan to rescue his stranded men. The house resembled a small castle and the name is Captain Milward's House….not opened to the public.
Heading back downhill, we passed by a church and more historic buildings, some under remodeling. Back to the central square, we discovered that many of the local restaurants were not opened. Lunch in town would not happen today. On the corner of the square was a famous hotel, The Sara Braun Palace. We toured this icon on a past visit and discovered a nice restaurant on the side. It was more of a glass atrium, but today, it was not opened to the public. By now, it was high noon, and every church or cathedral was sounding their bells. We checked out the items being sold from several street vendors, but everything was the same. Lots of magnets, knit items, or trinkets were offered for sale. And you never know if you might need one of those mate tea cups and metal straws. Honestly, we could live without them.
Making our way back to the waterfront, we hiked all the way to the monuments that face the Straits of Magellan. There is a sculpture of a ship's bow with immigrants and soldiers coming to this part of the world. It resembled what we saw in Lisbon Portugal last year. Further up the promenade is another sculpture resembling the Arctic Circle monument of a globe and a ship. It represents Magellan's circle the world venture we read later. Looking for restaurants along this strip was not working. We did see a waterfront building that had marvelous murals painted on the walls.
We took photos all the way back to the hotel we had passed earlier in the morning. Going inside, we saw they did have a small serve-yourself caf?, but not a real lunch venue. We went back to the terminal and got back on the ship by 2pm, wind-blown and ready for a room service lunch. We ordered a salad, a hot bowl of soup and mini burger sliders, the best little hamburgers on the ship. The wind and waves were still hitting the hull and bouncing as if we were sailing in a rough sea. If anyone had an afternoon nap in mind, it wasn't happening today. It was a good time to work on pictures and research for the rest of the afternoon.
It was around 8pm before the ship finally left the dock and headed back into the Straits of Magellan. Watching from our table on deck 5, we held our breathes until the ship cleared the dock. Also leaving ahead of us was the Ventus Australes heading for Cape Horn we assume. Dinner included salad, soup and chicken Kiev with risi-bisi. We had one slice of key lime pie, and called it a night.
Now we will have 2 days of scenic sailing….maybe.
Bill & Mary Ann
