Another day in Chile. I thought we were going to be coming into Santiago, but I was mistaken.  Our port of call was actually San Antonio and we actually drove about 90 minutes away to Valparaiso where we spent the day.  We drove to the scenic outlook overlooking the city and saw so many beautiful murals painted on buildings.  The town has 42 hills and was an array of fine mansions, tattered houses and shacks.  We saw the Naval Headquarters, the bank district, the Monument to the Heroes of Iquique, the stock exchange, and the cathedral at Plaza Victoria. We also had the opportunity to ride in two different funiculars.  That was quite an experience; mom said it reminded her of the tram she rode in to get to the Shadowbrook resteraunt in Santa Cruz, Ca.  We toured inside the La Sebastiana museum, home of Noble Prize winner Pablo Nerunda.  We had a delicious lunch at the hilltop overlooking the city and what they call the “bay area”.   We then had a 90-minute bus ride back to the ship.  We spent too much time on the bus today for my taste.  But it was still a wonderful day.  It was the first time I was able to wear shorts in a long time.  Still needed a sweatshirt today, as it was mostly overcast.  But it reminded us of the weather at home.  So now our adventure will take us 2000 miles out into the open sea as we travel west to Easter Island.  We have four seas days ahead of us before we will touch land again. Are average speed is said to be around 30 knots and we can already feel the swells just a short distance out of port. We also finally give an hour back tonight so starting tomorrow we are only four hours time difference from our loved ones in California.  Valerie put on her seasickness patch and I am going to take a shower, it’s ok, there’s lots of grab bars in there.  Here’s to a gentle rocking and a peaceful nights rest.  Adios Chile!  Debra

Sea Day.  As we sail our way north to Santiago, Chile, we had a relaxing yet extremely foggy day.  We woke up to fog and it hung around all day (pun intended).  But as usual there is so much to do on the ship to keep us busy that sometimes we don’t even know where the day went.  We started our morning with a nice sit down breakfast, all four of us, and mimosa’s for mom and I.  Then Megan and I went to crocheting class till noon.  At noon I met back up with the girls in my cabin to correct last weeks homework and go over this coming week’s lessons.   At 1:00 Valerie was off to her Algebra tutor and Megan worked on school while I got my blog post all done from yesterday.  Then at 2:30pm all four of us went to arts and crafts class. I’ll have to take some pictures of all the wonderful projects we have made.  Each craft session comes with a lesson and all the supplies needed to complete it. It can usually be completed within a half hours time and it makes a great souvenir.  Lots of beautiful jewelry, bead work, chainmail, sewing projects, charm bracelets….Megan has quite the collection of art as she has been going almost since day one.  We had another amazing dinner in the main dining room tonight and then we went off to see the Holland America performers dazzle us with another performance. Tonight’s theme was country western and it was right up our alley.  I had to bite my tongue pretty hard not to sing along out loud.   We also got a zip drive today of every picture we have had taken since boarding the ship. I will post a few of my favorites below. Feeling blessed to be all together with the ones I love.  Missing those who are not here with us, but you are all still in our thoughts, our hearts, and our minds.  Blessings, Debra

Welcome to PuertoMontt, Chile.  Today we got to take a tour around Puerto Montt,  the town of Puerto Varas (the city of roses), and Lake Todos los Santos.  We also took a small hike and saw the Petrohue Falls. It was another panoramic day.  We went on a ferry ride around the lake and got to spend about 45 minutes enjoying the views.  We had some amazing views of the Andes Mountains and saw it’s tallest peak in Chile, Thunder Mountain.  Yes, the irony of the Disney reference did not escape us.  We loved the nod to one of our favorite places on earth.  It was about 64 degrees and they are in the heart of their summer vacation.  We saw people swimming in the lake and thought they were a little crazy.  But this is their hottest time of the year here. We had a lovely salmon lunch over looking the lake with a complimentary Pisco Sour.  A Chilean cocktail made with locally produced Pisco brandy.  It was strong and yummy.  Then they served us Chilean wine; it was a fuzzy afternoon LOL. Lastly, we had time to do a little (buzzed) shopping.  The girls got a good laugh at seeing the “Back to School” sale signs in the shop windows.  The locals will be going back to school in mid March.  We did find a place selling alpaca yarn and Megan was super excited to make a purchase to make her our souvenir.  We also had a chance to drive part of the Pan America highway.  This highway starts in Fairbanks Alaska and you can drive it all the way to the end of the world in Argentina.  Tomorrow is another sea day as we travel North to Santiago. Weather is warming up and the expected high at our next port of call is 73 degrees.  Yeah for warm weather again!!  There is an Oscar viewing party tonight but it doesn’t start till 10:00pm so we won’t be attending.  May the best movie and performers win. Sweet dreams to you all.  Debra

Another glorious day at sea. All the announcements we heard today from the captain, the cruise director and the shore excursions coordinator ALL commented on how glorious sour weather is and how completely NOT normal this is.  Smooth sailing and gorgeous weather.  Beyond what we could have asked for or expected.  It is currently in the low 60’s at 8:00pm at night and the sun is still fully in the sky.  We are sailing through the Chilean Fjords and the views are beautiful.  Today was another great day of activities.  We did schoolwork, arts and crafts class, tutoring and a lecture on Santiago, Chile.  Then tonight was a wonderful gala night.  The theme was Paparazzi, we all got to walk the red carpet as we entered the dining room and have our pictures taken.  They have 2020 Academy Award Ballots available at guest services to complete and we can enter for the forecast competition.  Many people have been asking us and today the captain addressed the issue of the Coronavirus to the entire ship.  We have been informed that Holland America is in close communication with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO). Extra precautious are being taken such as anyone who step on our ship; new passengers, immigration employees, pilots,…, all have to go through a health screening before they come on board. Extra sterilization is being used on the ship and outside the ship at embarkation and disembarkation for excursions. We have been told that we may be subjected to additional health screening as we get off at future ports for our excursions, but nothing has been confirmed to date.  We may also miss future ports based on our health and safety, but nothing has been confirmed at this time regarding that either.  Lastly, any crewmembers from Mainland China are not being permitted to join any ship till further notice.  We were also told that getting a seasonal flu shot reduced our risk of infection and we all had our flu shots prior to sailing so we are already protected as best as we could be.  Other then that we are using every other precaution; hand washing, hand sanitizer, cover your mouth when you cough, etc, to keep healthy and from spreading germs. That’s all I have for today.  Hope you are all staying healthy wherever you are. Take care of yourself and one another. Get enough rest and drink plenty of water.  That’s my daily mantra to the kids and I share that mommy wisdom with you all.  Hugs…Debra

Sea Day.  We are between two ports of call in Chile for two days.  Yesterday we left Puenta Arenas and on Sunday we will be in Puerto Montt.  Today was a lovely sea day.  Calm seas and smooth sailing.  We slept in late and recuperated from two busy shore days.  We walked over five miles yesterday and I guess that took more out of us then I thought it did.  We spent the morning hanging around the room, tidying up and sending out our laundry.  Megan and I worked on homework till 2:00pm when we went to Arts and Crafts class together. She had been asking me to go with her for about a week now and there was no lecture today so I jumped at the chance to do it with her. Valerie had tutoring today and then had choir practice. Mom and I spent the afternoon hanging out while Megan went swimming with the other kids and Valerie went to work on her homework.  We all met up at 5:15pm for a hosted dinner tonight.  Cruise Specialist travel company generously hosted another event for about 40 passengers tonight.  They must be doing it in groups to give all the 275 guests a time to enjoy their hospitality.  We had dinner in the Canaletto resteraunt.  It has an Italian themed menu and they hosted wine for all the guests as well.  It was a nice chance to visit with our ship hosts Wendy and her husband Steve and Tom and to get to know them better.  We have several excursions booked with Cruise Specialist and one of them always accompanies us and takes extra special care of us. I am trying so hard to get my posts up to date and the internet on the ship is not cooperating, although by the time you get to read this you will know it is now cooperating.  LOL!!  Today we just enjoyed one another.  Time for family, fellowship and amazing scenic cruising through the straights and channels as we head back out to the Pacific Ocean side of South America.  It has been beautiful and the snow-capped mountains are decreasing each day.  It is currently 60 degrees outside.  We have our windows open and the sun is just starting to set and it 9:00pm at night.  Tomorrow-another sea day to be with one another and see what the day brings.  Whatever it is, I am with ones I love and consider each day we have on this trip a true gift.  Hug tight the one you love tonight…Blessings, Debra 

Today we woke up in Punta Arenas, Chile.  After missing our opportunity to be up close and personal with the penguins in the Falkland Islands, today was the day we got our chance.  Chilean immigration is very strict.  We had to complete an immigration form last night and we had to carry it with us while we are in the country.  We were also not allowed to take any kind of food off the ship at all. If you got caught, there was a $300 fine on the spot.  When we got off the ship there was a dog sniffing all of our backpacks and us.  So because we added our penguin excursion this afternoon, we still kept our morning excursion as well.  This was a first for me but the timing worked out. We learned all about Magellan’s Discovery today.  We saw a replica of the Victoria ship and got to climb in and around it.  There was a great beach here and Megan, Mom and I took great delight in collecting a large amount of sea glass to bring home.  We all got a chance to touch the water from the Straights of Magellan as well.  

Personal story: my first walk on the beach at home after Don passed away I found a very tiny piece of green sea glass.  It was Don favorite color and I asked him if that was supposed to be a sign from him that he was with me?  Not 10 seconds later I found a very large piece of green sea glass and told him I got the message.  Today, the beach was covered in green sea glass.  We knew he was there with us.

Next we went to the Maggiorino Borgatello Museum.  It reminded me of the natural history museum with a lot of information on the flora and fauna of Chile and a lot of information on the indigenous people who lived here when the settlers came.  Last, we went to the Cerro la Cruz viewpoint to get a great panoramic view of Punta Arenas.  We were back on the ship at 12:30 giving us time to grab a quick lunch and then meet for our second excursion at 1:15pm.  We took a short bus ride to the other pier in town and we board a beautiful ship for an hour-long trip to Magdellena Island.  There we got to be close and personal with 16 thousand pairs of mated Magellanic penguins.  It was a sight to behold.  It is mating season so there were many molting baby penguins here.  There live underground in burrows and return to the same burrow every year to have their babies.  The penguins mate for life and completely share the responsibility of raising the chick until they teach it to swim and hunt and off it goes.  Good parenting!!  On the way back to port we had the opportunity to see some dolphins and a Sei whale.  We made it back on the ship just in time for dinner.  Everyone is exhausted from our long day.  It was time for showers and now bedtime.  But, you all needed to see all the gloriousness that I saw today, so take a moment and truly enjoy these amazing photos.  It was definitely a day for the record books.  Sending my love for sweet dreams with a very full heart. Debra.

Today we were in the port of Ushuaia, Argentina.  Yes, I have written that enough now that I have memorized how to spell it.   It was nice to be able to step off the ship today after a long time at sea.  The girls and I had our land legs pretty much right away, but mom had a couple of instances that she felt the “ship move” while we were on land.  It made us all laugh a little when it happened.  Today we took a train to the “end of the world”. We visited the southern most city in the world and we went to it most southern destination.  The train was built to transport prisoners to the southern tip of Tierra del Fuego, which is actually an island.  The prison is surrounded by the Beagle Channel, the Straight of Magellan and the Andes mountains.  The prisoners who were sent there were actually put to task of building their own prison.  To punish the prisoners the guards would lock the prisoners outside in the extreme weather. If a prisoner did try to the escape, they would either die from the cold or come back starving and freezing. There is now the Tierra del Fuego National Park at the end of the world and there is even a post office there.  I use that term loosely.  It is a tiny hut with a wood-burning stove and it sells a few items and attracts tourist to send a postcard from here.  Across the Beagle Channel from here is Chile.  We are wrapping up ours days of getting to see snow covered mountain and glaciers, but not quite yet.  There was an astounding one visible from our table at dinner tonight as we sailed through the Beagle Channel.  Enjoy the photos.  Sending love and hugs as we sail our way to Chile.  

I can not believe it has been a month since we stepped foot on this ship in Fort Lauderdale.  The time has gone by so very quickly.  Our trip is about a quarter of the way completed and I am so excited at all the adventures we still have ahead of us. This morning we awoke to a scenic cruising around the island of Cape Horn.  In a matter of 90 minutes we were in both the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. That is not something I envision being able to say very often.  We took on a local pilot who will take the ship into Ushuaia today.  We are expected to be in port around 6:00pm now.  Not sure if we will get off the ship tonight or not.  Mom and I had our second massages of the trip at 10:00am this morning and then we went and had lunch.  Megan went to crochet class and arts and craft.  At 2:00pm mom and I went to the lecture titled, “Lifestyles of the Poor and Grimy.”   All about living in Antarctica.  We are scheduled for a 7:00am excursion tomorrow.  We are taking a train to the end of the world.  More about that tomorrow.  Today we also enjoyed the scenic the cruising through Drake’s passage. 7:00pm we finally pulled into port in Ushuaia.  We are in the most southern city in the world.  The average temperature here is 41.5 degrees and the average wind speed is 40mph.  There was delay a there was another ship in our spot and we had to wait for them to pull out.  Some passengers were anxious to get off the ship, but we decided to wait until tomorrow. We have an early morning and we shall enjoy the city tomorrow.  We shall bundle up well tomorrow for a breezy day off the ship.   Enjoy the photos.  Love, Debra

Today was a down day for sure.  We all slept in late since we were up so late cheering our 49’rs on.  The Super bowl ended here after midnight.  It was a late night for everyone.  We spend the afternoon resting, working on a puzzle we started, Megan went to arts and crafts, Valerie had tutoring and then we all went to dinner together.  Our last day in Antarctica was sadly socked in with almost zero visibility fog.  Our ship has it’s our foghorn and it was fun to hear it throughout the day.  According to the crew in the front of ship, it is not fun at all.  Just as we were getting ready to go to dinner, the sun came out in time for us to see one of the largest icebergs we had seen of the entire trip.  After dinner we went to the show, which was put on, by the crew singers and dancers. They are always very entertaining and create a different show for each genre of music they are doing.  They are quite a talented group.  The girls went off to have some evening fun with Geoffrey and I went home to my cabin.  Tomorrow is another Sea Day.  We will start our morning sailing around the island of Cape Horn.  We were expecting rough seas this evening as this is where both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans meet.  We were really blessed, the captain said if was the calmest he’s ever seen the seas here.  The weather is slowly warming back up as well.  We were up to 45 today.  We are supposed to get into Urshuaia, Argentina tomorrow evening instead of Wednesday morning so we’ll have an option to get off and walk around a little if we want. It’s been 10 days since we’ve been on solid ground.  Looking forward another massage in the morning.   Love and Hugs.  

Super Bowl Sunday in the Antarctica.  We are hoping to be able to see the game but we won’t know for sure until game time. We will sadly not get to see any commercials, one of my favorite parts of watching the Super Bowl.  I will have to wait until we get better service and watch them all on facebook.   Today was a relaxing day.  We woke up to almost zero visibility and an inability to see any sights.   So there was no scenic narration again.  Therefore we had most the day to ourselves around the ship.  We went to Sunday brunch in the main dining room all together and had a lovely meal. Then we just went back to the room and wound up spending most of the day doing a puzzle, wrapping up the weeks school work and relaxing in anticipation of our late evening.  The game doesn’t start till 8:30 pm our time.  Unlimited alcohol is included in our super bowl package so for the first time on this trip, I plan on getting my drink on. Wishing you all an amazing day with your loved ones celebrating life and family and togetherness.  Love and Hugs…Debra