a rockin' and a rollin'....

Wowzers! What a night! We are definitely headed toward the Drake Passage with the ship now experiencing high waves and lots of rough seas (3-4 meter swells). Amazingly Ronnie slept through the night but I slept very little. I don’t feel unsafe really, as I know we are in a modern, seaworthy vessel with an experienced captain and crew. However, I won’t say it’s pleasant to be on choppy seas and feel this much motion onboard. I fully expected to see the barf bags out when we went to breakfast this morning but perhaps it hasn’t gotten to that point yet.

I won’t be one bit surprised if the plan to go to Port Stanley gets aborted. There is no large port there and we would have to tender in and I can’t imagine riding in a small tender in these waters! We have an excursion to see the gentoo penguins there but I won’t be one bit surprised or disappointed if our route needs to be changed. 

 

now bypassing the Falkland Islands, heading toward the Drake Passage

LATER....

The above was written early this morning. We learned a few hours later that the captain had indeed changed our route. The stop at Port Stanley got nixed and now we're headed straight for Ushuaia. Ushuaia is the southernmost city in the world, thus earning its nickname "The End of the World".  

This means we'll have an extra day at sea. Ronnie has been a bit under the weather today, so I'm actually happy to have an additional sea day. And thankfully, we don't have an excursion in Ushuaia. The other time we visited, he hiked in the snow and I took the hop on/hop off bus around the city. If he's feeling up to par we'll probably do the same. 

In the meantime, we will rest, read, nap and/or watch a movie or the Olympics. Today he attended 2 onboard lectures - "The 1982 Falkland Islands War" and "Art Tricks & The Color Wheel". I only attended the second. He continues to do his Bible reading/study, a little art, practice his ukulele and work on his Spanish each day. However, he did not exercise today which is a "symptom" in itself. I admire how disciplined he is in so many areas. 

This picture was inspired by our time in Buenos Aires and is called la corrida de sortija, which is a traditional game of the gauchos. Two or more gauchos race their horses with the goal of being the first to put a pin through a hanging metal ring. 

 

Ronnie - 2026 (color pencils)

 

I'm very happy to report that we are now sailing in much calmer waters. Hopefully tonight will be more restful than last. However, we are still headed toward Cape Horn and will have to sail through the Drake Passage which has a well known reputation for difficult sailing. Hopefully it won't be a repeat of last night - or worse!

 

 

 

Is it hot? Is it cold?

Yesterday as we walked the mile back from the cat café to the port, I couldn’t wait to get out of my sweaty clothes. Last evening the ship headed south from Montevideo toward Port Stanley in the Falkland islands. And today we switched our room temp from AC to heater! In a matter of hours I went from wearing summer to winter clothes and chastising myself for forgetting to bring a warm cap. I will purchase one when we reach the Falklands, just as I had to do the last time we visited there.

So today has been a lazy day at sea, for me anyway. The beauty of sea days is that one can relax and catch up on rest or participate in onboard activities as energy allows.

The Terrace Café was crazy busy at noon, mainly because it was too cold outside for all the people who would normally be eating in the Wave (outdoor restaurant on covered deck) or on the open deck itself. Those 2 eating venues being closed due to cold weather basically leaves all the indoor ones a bit more crowded.

We have one more sea day tomorrow before we reach Port Stanley. We can already feel the sea getting rougher. Here's where we are (left Montevideo heading south toward Port Stanley in The Falklands).

 

Yesterday we had an invitation on our door with the word "PRIVEE" on the front. It was inviting us to a dinner with the F&B Director and the 1st Purser (we later figured out that meant Food and Beverage). We had no clue why we received it; we still don't, except perhaps all Around the World passengers get one at some point during the cruise? We already had reservations at the Polo Grill so had planned to blow it off. However, when our butler Prashant came to deliver our laundry and saw the invitation lying on the desk, he urged us to go. So though still clueless, I RSVP'd with a 'yes'. We expected there would be other ATW guests there as well. Sure enough, there were 4 others, plus the F&B Director and 1st Purser. 

Prashant came early to walk us down since we had no idea where it was. But he very nicely suggested Ronnie put on a tie first. Still, we were the first to arrive so I was able to snap a few quick photos. I would have liked to have taken more but didn't want to embarrass myself. Check out this room! 

The table seated 8 but could have easily accommodated 2 more. I would guess there were at least as many (if not more) staff waiting on us as there were of us seated at the table. It turned out to be a pleasant evening with the opportunity to meet some other cruisers, ask questions and offer feedback regarding our Oceania experiences and gain a better understanding of its overall operations. The best part for me was getting to see the beautiful private dining room. However, the photos don't do it justice! 

Oh, I almost forgot to say that one of the other couples at the table is from Ft. Worth and both are Aggies! That's at least 4 Aggies that we know of on this ship now. And we've already met more Texans on the ship than on our previous ATW cruise.

 

window view from back of ship

before other guests arrived

server deboning my dover sole

our hosts ordered this (?) to share

tiramisu with red berries (yum yum!)