Happy February every one. Day 3 of our Antarctica experience.  I made an executive decision last night to set no alarms this morning so that everyone could sleep in and make up for a couple of days lost rest.  I am so glad we did.  By the time we awoke around 8:00am, the scenic Narration that was supposed to take place was cancelled due to inclement weather blocking where we were supposed to go.  Our next narration was scheduled for 11:00 so we took the opportunity to have a relaxing morning.  We ordered room service, did some tidying around the room and watch the beautiful Antarctica landscape go by.  Periodically we’d see something amazing and run outside into the 32 degree weather and take some photos and then run back inside to warm up.  Megan had a chance to do her crochet group today and Valerie had tutoring.  Tomorrow we wrap up another week of schoolwork and the girls are doing great keeping up with everything.  We stayed in the room and enjoyed the scenic narration from there and we were blessed to have most the amazing sights for today appear right outside our balcony here on the port side of the ship.  Our geographical points today were Errera Channel and Charolette Bay.   We also reached our most southerly point of our World Cruise 65 degrees latitude.  We were about 1800 miles shy of the geographic south pole.   At 2:00pm we all wandered up for some warm soup only to go back outside and freeze out booty’s off.  Cayucos Polar Bear dip has nothing on today’s penguin plunge.  About 25 brave souls, Valerie and Megan included, put on the their bathing suits and ventured to the pool outside on the back pool deck for a plunge.  It was 32 degrees outside and it actually started to snow while we were out there. Mom and I were bundled up and we froze. I’ll let the picture speak for them selves on that craziness.  We came back in quickly after and sent the girls for hot showers as mom and I went and acquired two decaf lattes for us sand two hot cocoas for our brave (crazy) girls. At 4:30 pm scenic narration began again.  We came into Charolette Bay and the abundance of whale watching ensued.  Humpback whales breeching, breathing right outside our cabin, diving…This is a popular spot for feeding and it did not disappoint.  As scenic commentary concluded, it really started to snow outside. I’ll lovingly remind you it is summer here.  But it is never really summer at all.  Sunset tonight is 10:12pm and sunrise is 4:28 tomorrow morning.  Scenic narration is set to begin at 7:00am tomorrow for our last day in Antarctica.  Enjoy all the amazing pictures we got today.  Tomorrow is our last day on our Antarctica adventure.  Love and hugs to you all, Debra

It’s official.  We have 100 days left on our trip.  What a fabulous one it was.  We started our morning at 3:30am Antarctica time.  The sun was not even up yet, but it was not dark outside.  It is a weird phenomenon here.  The sun never really sets this time of year.  I went outside on the deck of the ship to get some pictures of the sun rising and as I did, a humpback whale cruised along side and paused in front of me to take a deep breath.  A sort of a hello just for me as I was the only out there.  It was just the peak start to a day that held that pinnacle all day. We saw more whales then I can count, another penguin colony, icebergs, fjords, ice fields and beauty beyond what words can describe.  I will include as many pictures as I can.  For those of you following on a map, today’s geographical points were Neumayer Channel, Paradise Harbor, and Wilhelmina Bay.  I ask that you just enjoy them all.  Today marks the day four years ago that my beloved Don started his path to being diagnosed with cancer and passing away from this earth.  But today he was in heaven, smiling down on us, sending us signs from above and reminding us to give thanks for everything he blessed us with.  Enjoy all these photos.  Love and Hugs!!

We were up at 5:30am so that we could secure front row window seats in the Crow’s nest.  That is the space on the ninth floor that has all windows for the ultimate in viewing pleasure.  I was there by 5:30am and met Jackson and Dillon, the other two teenagers on the ship, and we saved seats for Megan, Valerie, Nana and Jackson’s mom. We were there for about an hour before the first views of Antarctica came into view.  It was breathtaking from the start.  We came into Admirality Strait on King George’s Island first. We are in an area known as the South Shetland Islands. We also visited Peter Landing and the U.S. research station. Scenic narration began at 8:00am. We saw the research stations from several different countries, pods of penguins, humpback whales and seals.  The ice fields were gorgeous and every view was more beautiful than the last.  I will let the photos speak for I can not find words to describe the majesticness of all that we saw today.  After we left King George’s island Megan and I stayed in the Crow’s nest till 1:30pm just enjoying all the views.  At 2:00pm I joined mom for our daily lecture called “A Beginner’s Guide to Penguin Appreciation.”  After that we headed back up the Crow’s Nest for the second scenic narration of the day as we entered into the area surrounding Deception Island.  There we drifted into Baileyhead cove to see a colony of Chin Strap penguins.  And by colony I mean fifty thousand mated pairs of Chin Strap penguins.  You could smell them before we could see them.  It was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen.  Please enjoy the photos.  As we left the cove, the penguins played in the ocean surrounding the base of the ship and we got to spend a great deal of time watching them swimming through the sea. I am exhausted and my heart is so full with everything we got to witness today.  Knowing we are among a blessed few that have had the opportunity to visit and see Antarctica.   This was just the first of four days we have here. Tomorrow scenic narration starts at 7:00am so it will be another very early morning for us all.  As I know the wi-fi is intermittent you will have to wait to enjoy this for a couple of days, but I know it was worth the wait.  With love and admiration of our planets beauty, Debra.

Crossing Drake’s Passage. According to the Antarctica team that is on board with us for the next week, this has been a gentle crossing of Drake’s Passage.  We will be crossing it again in a few days, fingers crossed it is as smooth.  It has been the roughest 24 hours we have had to date. In the night last night the champagne glasses in our bar all fell over and couple of them broke.  A rude awakening at 4:00am.  The air temperature is currently 45 degrees as is the sea temperature.  We are expecting a cool 34 degrees tomorrow.  In about an hour we will cross 60-degrees longitude, which signifies us entering the Antarctica sanctuary.  There have been many talks and pamphlets passed to all passengers informing us all of the rules and regulations that must be followed while we are in this area.  Absolutely no trash out side, no smoking and for the few hours of darkness there is, no outside lights on and our curtains must be kept closed.  Sunset is at 9:30pm tonight and sunrise is supposed to be at 4:40am tomorrow.  We are hoping to start seeing the landmasses of Antarctica at 8:00am tomorrow morning starting with Elephant Island, so we will be up early with binoculars, cameras and warm coffee.  We attended three lectures today and learned a lot about life in Antarctica, the wild life, the expeditions and the history of the discovery.  Megan and I watched the Disney documentary on penguins this morning; they are showing it on the television in each cabin.  We also went to our crochet class and turned in my blanket today. There will be lectures broadcasted all over the ship throughout the day over the next few days as we see the amazing sights of this beautiful area.  Stay tuned for some beautiful pictures.  Tonight we had a commemorative dinner in honor of all the explorers that discovered Antarctica.  It was presented nicely with a keepsake menu.  Oh, and we found out they are hosting a VIP super bowl party on the ship on Sunday so mom and I bought tickets.  All the alcohol we can drink and front row seating for the big screen event in the main theater.  Kids attend free yeah!!  Wi-fi is getting worse by the minute this will get posted as soon as I can.  Love and hugs.  Bundle up and stay warm.  Debra 

7:30am we are up and getting bundled up for the day.  The captain came on the speaker in the sky to tell the passengers that the dock we will be using to tender is very wet from the spray being caused by the 45 mph wind. Passengers with any mobility issue were recommended to not get off the ship.  8:00am we are heading up for breakfast and the captain announced that NO ONE would be permitted to get off the ship at this port.  First let me say that I know he is looking out for our safety and our well-being and I appreciate that.  Secondly, we are still really disappointed though.  We were really looking forward to seeing all the penguins.  The assistant cruise director told us there was a great place to visit a rookery in Chile so we got on that right away and booked that excursion for later on the trip. So we now have a sea day.  That also means that we are going to have 10 sea days in a row without stepping on land.  Today we are going to cross through the mouth of Drakes passage as we head south to Antarctica.  The weather is getting cooler.  The captain warned us that we could be heading into rougher seas with possible 12-15 foot swells.  They even told passengers today that we were not permitted on the outside deck that circles around deck three.  So we went out up on the 9^thdeck and got some great pictures of Port Stanley. Then we went and had breakfast all together after peeling off some of the layers of clothing we were wearing in preparations for the days excursion.  Megan and I went to crocheting and she finished up her blanket. She got to ring the bell and turn it in to a round of applause.  I owe you a photo.  She was proud of herself and I am too.  We met with Valerie and Nana and had lunch.  Since it wasn’t supposed to be a sea day there is no tutoring today.  The girls went to dance class and worked on polishing up their cha-cha.  I went back to my cabin to work on downloading some photos for you wonderful people and I got to finish up my blanket as well.  Mom came by in the afternoon and we just relaxed in the room for a little while before getting ready to head to the main dining room for dinner.  Megan made a friend through our crocheting group, Judy, and she invited Megan to join her for dinner tonight so it will just be the three of us.  I am so proud of the girls for their gentleness, friendliness, and general comfort with the other passengers on the ship.  They have an amazing ability to be comfortable in most situations and adapt quickly to most situations.   It is a great skill that will take them very far in life.  After dinner the girls ran off to their Club HAL activities and mom and I went to the show tonight.  It was a young music group from London and they played all 50’s and 60’s music.  We’re definitely rocking and rolling in more way then one tonight.  In the coming days there will lots of talk and narration as we enter into the Antarctica.  We are so excited to share it with you all.  Have some sweet dreams everyone.    Debra

Let me just say…BRRRR. Can you hear my teeth chattering from there?  Wasn’t I just roasting in 90+ degree weather?  It’s currently 49 degrees outside right now.  We actually had to pull out all our winter gear for our excursion tomorrow.  Now when we packed it we complained because we are truly only going to need it for about a week, but I am really glad we brought it today.  Tomorrow we will be in the Falkland Islands and the forecasted high is 53 with a chance of rain and possible 30 mile an hour wind.  But you know what, we are going to a penguin rookery and it is totally going to be worth it regardless of the weather.  I also have to say that last night was by far the roughest night we have had to date on the ship.  You know how you wake up when you feel a little jolt in the night due to an earthquake?  It was an eight-hour earthquake.  Between the creaking of the walls and clanging of any glass bottles of water we left too close to one another and my darling daughter kicking me all night it made for a rough one.  We are being extra careful when we are walking around the ship especially going up and down the stairs.  I will say there was a noticeably fewer number of people out and about around the ship today.  Seeing that the average age of the passenger on this ship is 70 years old, I would suspect that many passengers find it more comforting to just stay in the cabin on days like today. Room service is included and we can have a fabulous meal without ever leaving our rooms.   We ventured out for all our usual activities today.  Breakfast, crocheting class, tutoring, a fabulous lecture where we learned even more about the Falkland Islands, arts and craft class, schoolwork and then a casual dinner at the buffet tonight.  We didn’t feel like dressing for the main dining room so we kept it easy tonight.  The girls are off at Club HAL, where they go most nights and just get a chance to be kids. Tonight they have an earlier curfew, as tomorrow is an excursion day. I got the good camera out and put the telescopic lens on it so I am ready to take some fabulous pictures tomorrow and then share them with you all.  We will bundle up and stay as warm as possible.  As we continue to venture south and I am not sure how the wi-fi will be so if you don’t hear from me for a little bit, know that I’ll get you updated as soon as I can.  Oh, and we purchased the unlimited photo pass from the ship so every time we have a chance we are having pictures taken of us.  I will get some of the prints soon and take pictures of the pictures so you can see us all dolled up on the formal nights.  There are a lot of them already.  Time for bed…need a good nights rest.  Big hugs to you all who are so far away.  For those of you in Cayucos, we are currently about 7,000 miles from you. Blessings,  Debra

Sea Day.  It was another relaxing day at sea today.  Megan and I had breakfast together this morning as mom and Valerie slept in late.  We had a chance to relax before we headed up to our crocheting group at 10:30am. Megan is almost done with her first blanket and I am wrapping up my second.  I promise to post some pictures when we are all done.  I will try to add one today of my first completed blanket I turned in.  We worked on some school this afternoon and had a chance to wrap up this week’s work. Then at 2:00pm we went to our daily lecture, “Introducing the Falkland Islands.”  Such an isolated, but fully functioning part of the world these islands are.  We are so looking forward to our excursion there when we will be visiting a penguin rookery.  After the lecture we headed back to the cabin so the girls and I could go over their completed schoolwork for the week and I got their lesson plans completed for the next four weeks.  With there being many sea days coming up as we are getting ready to sail around Antarctica, I wanted the girls to have what they needed to get ahead while they had the opportunity.  So their lesson plans are completed now through the end of February.  That took our day right up to getting ready for dinner, as tonight was a Black and White themed Gala.  It was another great opportunity to get dressed up just as the ship started to rock and roll.  I swear sometimes they are planning it so we all struggle walking in our heels.  Just Kidding.  We had a head of security for the entire ship as our guest at dinner this evening.  It was great to learn about him, his family and how he came to be in charge of our floating city.  I think it is especially great for the girls to learn about what makes the day to day operations flow on this ship to afford them the comforts and privileges they are experiencing.  By the end of dinner the ship was really rolling and we saw many crewmembers escorting elderly passengers back to their cabins to ensure they were safe.  Valerie was having a rough time of it so she had me put another seasickness patch on her to calm her tummy.  Unfortunately, that makes her sleepy so she decided to sleep with mommy last night.  She said, “Sometimes a girls just needs her mom.”  Megan took the couch in my room and Nana got a night all to herself.  It’s going to be a rough one so we are all tucking in and holding on for a wild night.  Love and Hugs!!  Debra  

Montevideo, Uruguay. Today is our second port in Uruguay. I can honestly say between Punta del Este and here, that I really loved this country.  It is so laid back, relaxing, everyone outside at the beach enjoying life, sleeping in late on the weekends and so welcoming.  Today we drove along the beaches and just got to enjoy the beauty of this wonderful place.  We drove through the city center and saw it historical buildings too. Next we traveled to Juanico Winery. There we toured the 300 acres winery and got to see the Tannat grapes growing there.  This winery is known for it’s away winning Tannat wine.  It is a grape this is higher in tannins then we are used to the states.  It was delicious and will be difficult to find when we get home.  But I will enjoy the bottles I brought back on the ship with me. We had a lovely lunch at the winery and got to taste five of their wines.  It was pretty much all you could eat and drink.  Everyone was in the best of spirits (pun intended) as we drove back to the ship.  There was a rendition of wheels on the bus being sung by the two couples next to us. The girls thought it was hilarious. Blessedly the wi-fi at the winery was amazing and I had a chance to download many photos for your viewing pleasure. Make sure you look back on yesterday’s post as that one has been updated as well.  We are all looking forward to a sea day tomorrow and Monday.  Three days of excursions and ports and we are ready for some relaxing time of schoolwork, crocheting group and lectures.  Also, tomorrow is a Gala night so it will be fun to get all dolled up.  We are hosting the Chief security officer at our table so it will be fun to ask him questions about how he came to be in charge of our little floating city.  Hugs and Love to you all….farewell to Uruguay. Debra 

Buenos Aires, Argentina. What a beautiful place we visited today, despite the fact that the temperature topped 90 degrees today.  We took a drive through the highlights of the area.  We visited San Telmo, Recoleta and La Boca. There were 24 plazas in downtown representative of the 24 “States” of Argentina.  We went inside the Metropolitan Cathedral.  I am always in such awe of the beauty and grandeur of the Cathedrals we visit when we are abroad.  In Recoleta we visited the cemetery that has 6,400 statues, sarcophagi, coffins and crypts of many notable people, including Eve Peron.  We went to a home-hosted lunch and had a fabulous meal.   Lastly, we went to Cafe de los Angelinos and saw an amazing Tango show.  It was a full eight-hour day, but it went by so quickly.  We didn’t make it back on the ship in time for our 5:15 dinner seating so everyone went their separate ways to shower and rest or swim and then have dinner at the buffet.  I went and walked the track with Megan and then we played pickle ball.  I am finally feeling a little better.  I started antibiotics yesterday and will stay on those for a few days to try and kick this out the rest of the way.  Tomorrow we will be in Montevideo, Uruguay. We are ever vigilant of our surroundings and are staying safe.   Now if we can all be healthy again, we will rock this trip even more.  Love and Hugs from us to you all.  Debra 

P.S. Still having issues with downloading photos. I promise there are may to come.

Punta del Este, Uruguay. Welcome along on our next excursion with us.  Today we visited Punta del Este, Uruguay.  We took an extensive bus tour around the city.  Punta del Este is surrounded by water almost completely on all four sides.  Three of the sides are river water and the fourth side is the Atlantic Ocean.  There are many beautiful beaches and lots of flats to rent.  It was blissfully quiet everywhere we went.  This is the busy season here and it was as tranquil and can be.  It is definitely a place I could see myself coming back to visit again.  This is summer time south of the equator mid Dec- mid March is when everyone here takes their holiday.  We saw some interesting sand sculptures; the undulating bridge, Trump tower, Casapueblo, and we spent some time at Lapataia Farm.  It is a working dairy that also specializes in making their own Dulce de Leche. We got to take a “train” ride around the property.  The highlight for the day for the girls was when the staff went to feed the animals they let them help and get close and personal.  So close that he handed me a baby goat right over the fence and let the girls take turns holding it.  Understandably, Megan and Valerie didn’t want to leave there.  Our next stop is tomorrow in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Tonight will be an easy dinner in the main dining room and early to bed.  Meet time is 8:15am tomorrow.  I’m having a hard time uploading photos right now, so I will give you an I.O.U. Hugs,  Debra