We board in the early afternoon. We'll get someone to help us with the luggage for the 300 meters to the ship.
We've no friends with us this time, but the ship will have many Australians on board. They're usually fun and easy to meet. Our cruise from Singapore to Athens taught us this, where we Americans were in the minority.
An item of interest to some is the layout of the ship. Journey's deck plans can be found here. There you can locate our little home, 7044.
On Deck 9 outside Windows (the buffet dining room) you can see the Patio - you'll find us there frequently. The food is good and the location is outside but covered. Of course we won't get much use of it south of Puerto Chacabuco - too cold. The main dining room (MDR) is Discoveries on Deck 5.
The Den, one of the places to meet and drink is also on Deck 5, near the shops and aft of the Cabaret - the entertainment place. The Living Room on Deck 9 is the other center of activity.
First day. A time to look around, to see if you recognize anyone, to see what's new in the shops, and meet people. Start a list of things we've forgotten. Learn the wine offerings. Meet the entertainment staff. Meet the Den bartenders.
First port. We haven't scheduled a tour here as of this writing. We'll get a round tuit.
Castro's an isolated place in an archipelago. It should have nice scenery including the approach and departure.
We plan on just a simple walk across to the Plaza and Cathedral. Then we'll wander.
Another port, no plans yet.
After this, we'll be two days at sea.
20250207 & 08 Friday & Saturday At Sea Chilean Fjords
Two days cruising the Norway-like fjords of Chile.
The tour selected for today is the Patagonia Estancia Experience, where we bus to a ranch (Estancia) to see what they do, including sheep. The last such thing in which we took part gave O a severe case of E.coli. Hopefully that will not be repeated.
Punta Arenas (Sandy Point) is located on one of the three ways around Cape Horn, the Strait of Magellan. Second will be the Beagle Channel, which we will view tomorrow. The third is around the point itself, ocean to ocean, done only by lunatics and those suicidal.
No, not named for a breed of dog, but for a ship that made a transit through here that thousands of ships have followed, and on which is our port call for tomorrow.
But for today, we can take pictures of the walls of a narrow channel and/or read books, play trivia, eat & drink, chat, or do laundry.
