We woke up to miserable weather with fog, rain, and overcast skies. Our itinerary showed that we were supposed to be scenic cruising of Amalia or Brujo Glaciers, then later, cruising the Sarmiento Channel. However, we watched all day either from the promenade deck or our veranda. No glaciers that we could see on either side of the channel we were in. We were surrounded by a series of islands with tons of wind which was not as bone-chilling as Antarctica, but somewhere in the 50-degree range. Humidity was up due to the rain, and the winds were listed as 14.3 mph. Somehow we think that windspeed was not correct.
During his noon talk, the Captain said something about the very shallow waters we were in and he needed to maintain a speed of 19 knots to keep in deeper waters. At least that was the way we interpreted his message. We did see several islands with some little waterfalls. Surprisingly, there were few birds here. And scanning the islands, some of which were large, there was no sign of life at all.
At one point as we got into more open waters, we did spot a black-browed albatross or two and some gulls.
There were the usual suspects for activities including continuing talks by the guest lecturers. Iain Miller is still onboard with more Antarctic trivia, and Vonda Cummings spoke about science diving and research in the icy depths. Brrrr…. Dr. Miller spoke all about the glaciers of the Patagonian fjords which we still hope to see tomorrow.
At one point in the late afternoon, the ship went out of the protection of the islands and out into open waters. Instantly, we felt the motion of the ocean, which we suspect will last all evening.
Tonight's dress suggestion was "50's style". Do they suggest poodle skirts and white t-shirts with the sleeves rolled up? We did see the white t-shirt in the dining room tonight. We may have missed the poodle skirts, but polka-dotted ribbons in the hair seemed to be popular with the ladies.
The menu was cute with lunch-type appetizers and mains. We ordered the typical salad with tomatoes and cucumbers, and one little pulled pork appetizer with BBQ sauce. One of us had the HAL burger topped with cheese, tomatoes, and a thin slice of ham. The best way to eat it was by using the knife and fork or else it would have been messy. Skinny fries came with it. The other entrne was a Philly steak sandwich on a soft roll. Instead of Swiss cheese, they smothered it with melted cheddar cheese without warning. Sometimes the kitchen runs out of something, like the Swiss cheese and they substitute a different type. We suspect that no one ordered it at the first seating in our area of the dining room, and our waiters did not know about the switch. Next time, we will ask first. If the change had been bleu or gorgonzola cheese, we would have sent it back.
There was no show in the World Stage tonight, but a Sock Hop inviting the guests to roll back the clock to rock and roll music, poodle skirts, and leather jackets. Sounds like the set of Happy Days.
We are hoping that we do some scenic cruising tomorrow with the Chilean Fjords. Back in 2020, the scenery was fantastic. Guess we were lucky and did not know it.
Bill & Mary Ann
