Penguins!! Puerto Madryn (Punta Tombo)

Today is penguin day! Just about 79 degrees and we're off in search of our fuzzy tuxedoed friends.

A long bus ride South down the Argentinian coast but it was worth it.

Punta Tombo is peppered with Magellenic pingüinos, some marching a beeline to the ocean, some coming and going with food for the babes, others snoozing, and those seemingly wandering, arms flapping the familiar flap and beaks to the wind. We did see some dead bodies as well. Even those they drag back to their burrows and use for shelter. Although we stayed on a path, the penguins cut back and forth in front of us, unfazed by our presence.

Half a million penguins and a few Llamas! Awesome!

El fin del Mundo..The end of the World...

January 24, 2015

Spent the day in Ushuaia just checking out the town. Very windy but we expected that and dressed appropriately...found our future RV mobile...even says Rainer on it so must be fate.

It turned out to be a nice sunny day!

King crab and lamb are the food del día here.  Also, check out the baby swing hanging from the hydro tower. The dog kept barking at me so I scrambled out of there. Looks perfectly safe.

Hope these blogs post as we will be wifiless the next two days as we circle Cape Horn!! Can hardly wait! Wish us luck...I did kiss the foot so I think we're good.

PS - Those pesky OTTAWA 2017 stickers are popping up everywhere!!

Ushuaia, Argentina!

January 24, 2015

Writing from the end of the world!

Getting from ship to shore was pretty hilarious as we held our own in wind gusts of up to 80 kph and light rain. Good thing we bulked up at the buffet or we'd be swimming in glacier-fed waters about now, with the other whales...

A few pics from this morning...more later.

Tomorrow we SAIL AROUND CABO DE HORNO! Woot!

Punta Arenas, Chile

January 23, 2015

Today we spent our last day in Chile in Punta Arenas after two days at sea cruising through the Chilean Fjords and Straits of Magellan.

Breathtaking sunrises and miles of Andes mountain range. Weather is still pretty warm, considering the further south we go, the colder the temps will get, until we cruise around Cape Horn and we head up toward Buenos Aires. Sunset is 10:25 pm! South cold, north warm. Go figure!

The pictures really don't capture the magnificence of snow-capped mountains and icefields.

We caught a local bus across town which weaved through various neighbourhoods. Influences here include Swiss and Germanic - a different feel from other cities here.

Note turnstile in bus, an arena which has to be a money drain, penguin hats at the Sanchez y Sanchez store as we forgot ours at home! Local dancers performing in the Plaza de Armas and the lucky statue (if you kiss his foot it guarantees safe passage around the Cape and also a return trip to Chile). Couldn't risk it.... the second worst thing I've ever kissed. 😂