Stanley Falkland Islands Part Deux

So while sitting in the International Café sitting with friends we talk about seeing so many penguins from the window here the last time.  Of course people overhear us and many keep saying “did you see penguins?”  I can’t help myself, I head back to the cabin and get a Falkland brochure that I have from last time and cut out two small pictures of penguins.  I then proceed back to the IC to tape them to the window and then the joke starts.  See the penguins!  Many people pose with the penguins in the window and I mean many.  Heck the photographers should have been there taking shots they could of sold a ton of them.  The pic stayed up all day and night too.

Thais sees penguins too

Zoran excited to see penguins

We decide to head ashore around 11 and we head to Da Vinci (the priority boarding lounge) and Cameron the CC host is there checking people in.  We are given the next tender ticket but there is a medical evacuation on a tender in front of us so we have to wait for the next tender – I hope they are okay.

Anthony

When we get to the tender it is cold but we head up on top and bear the elements for the ride in.  It is windy and that wind is cold but other than that it is rather nice. 

Once we get ashore it is crowded at the pier, lots of people are coming back and there is a long queue.  We head up the street and decide to walk to the left and we get a lovely view at the top of the hill.  We walk along streets and see beautiful gardens and homes and little store, but many are not open (hardware store, furniture) guess they have odd hours in such a small place. 

We head to Shorty’s Diner, yup that is the name.  We enter and it is filled with locals, nothing special but normal diner food and we order.  I get fried fish that comes with fries and baked beans, Bernie got a barbecue chicken.  Neither dish was that good, Bernie hardly ate any of his and mine was just too much fried food, so well I guess I won’t give it my Stanley recommendation.

As soon as we leave the skies open up and it pours, we thankfully have our wind/rain jackets but it is coming down and we laugh and say “reminds us of home”.

As we get back into the port area the crowds have invaded the town.  We walk around a bit and head to the West Store – their grocery/clothing/coffee shop/liquor store – we don’t really need anything so we are back out on the street.  All the stores are so busy and we are tired and need to find a quiet place.

We find the pink café and we enter and grab a coffee and a cupcake (darn those cupcakes were good) and enjoy some relaxation.  Now I see they have wifi but find out they charge for it here, in fact it seems all the establishments charge for their wifi.  At the pink café they charge 5 pound or $8 US for a certain period but I can’t recall the period. This seems to be standard here I later find out.

We get in the queue to get back to the ship and be prepared it is exposed the elements.  We did have to wait about 20 minutes for the ride back but we once get back on and head upstairs to the open deck.  The ride back is around a half hour. 

In the end I think I would of rather have just stayed on board for the day.

As soon as we get on board the ship we head back to the cabin and we crawl into bed and we are asleep quickly.  So little sleep last night and getting up so darn early made a two hour nap necessary but we are probably going to have a late night tonight.

We dress for dinner in Da Vinci at our regular table.  Mark and Loralei are there waiting for us. We tease Mark cause he is shocked to hear I am a transit bus driver in Vancouver, he looks right at me and says “don’t you find it hard driving a big bus” and of course I laugh and say how come you are not looking at Bernie and saying that cause he drives too.  He says well it isn’t a normal female job…. Bernie is laughing cause he knows Mark is just digging a hole.  I tease Mark more saying you know a woman can do anything a man can.  It is just as easy for me as it is for Bernie to drive a bus.  By the end of the dinner I have forgiven him.

For dinner I had the crab cake, the Thai soup (which I LOVE and had two servings), heck I could have had a huge bowl of that for dinner itself.  For my entrée I had the cowboy steak and it was way overcooked but tasty and then mango sorbet for dessert.

We thought about going to the Majority Rules game but we are don’t feel like waiting around for it to start and we walk around a bit and then head back to the cabin around 10:30.

 

Oh I forgot to mention that the Captain came on earlier in the night to tell us the approximate time for heading around the horn tomorrow.  He also commented that the winds are high and they will be coming right at us during the night and tomorrow so be prepared.

We notice the ship moving a lot more as we turn in for the night.  Lots of creaks and bumps thru the night for sure.  The seas are not bad but boy the wind is really strong.

Stanley, Falkland Islands March 11, 2014

We are pulling into the harbor of Stanley and I am up early cause the last time we pulled in here we could see the penguins swimming along the ship.  Today though I see not a one.  I even head down to Promenade deck at 6:30 am and again don’t see any penguins in the water or on shore near Gypsy Cove.  We are over two weeks later this time so maybe they are gone.

Temperature is around 11C/52F which is great if you are on land with no wind but with the wind at sea it is cool, and layers are key.  Note that the Falklands are at the same latitude as England is but in the Southern Hemisphere.

 

Today tender service is going to be long.  We are anchored just outside the harbor and the tender ride will be a half hour each way.  Priority tendering service for Elite and Suites are to meet in Da Vinci Dining room as there are over 800 of them.  All others meet in Michangelo Dining Room.  All aboard is 5 pm.

Stateroom Movie is Last Vegas.  They are showing the movie The Book Thief in the Princess Theater.  Tonight’s Stateroom Movie is The Way Way Back.  Princess Theater is featuring Viviana Guzman.  It is Rock and Roll Night in Explorers and Dan is hosting Majority Rules Gameshow.

Our plan is to go ashore later and walk around.

One Month, Well One Month and Two Days

touching the foot of the Indian in Punta Arenas guarantees are return visit - guess it worked

Yeah just over a month, one month and two days till we leave.  But who is counting.  Don't know why I am so excited about this trip.... sure I always look forward to all my trips and sure we talk about it.  But I am so excited about this voyage.  

WELL I SHOULD BE EXCITED I am going back to South America!

We really enjoyed our last trip around the horn; although there was a few issues that were beyond our control.  This time we know what to expect and this has given us some peace of mind and also the knowledge to know what to do where and what NOT to do and where.

Us in the Falklands at Volunteer Point with King Penguins

The things I am really looking forward to:

• Over 50 days away from work, yup no shop talk, no early morning shifts, no rude passengers on board, no uniform - yup 50 days baby.

• Seeing good friends again - yes I am talking about Barb and Craig and also Jan and Michael.

• Seeing Rio de Janeiro again during Carnival and actually getting to go the Sambadromo Parade to see the parades!

• Reading lots of books

• Seeing all the wildlife.  The last voyage we saw so much wildlife, and so many species we have never seen before.  Can't wait to see again.

• The total relaxation that being on a cruise for this long with lots of sea days brings.

• Good food, great wine from many of the ports, and seeing so many great crew that make our special voyage extra special.

• Seeing all the glaciers in Southern Hemisphere.

• Getting to see Peter, Johan, Felipe, Sanja, and Claudio on board again!!!  Our Princess family.

• Also to see so many different countries with such a variety of cultures, history, languages. To try the local cuisine, and drink... yup got to test who makes the best Pisco again.

Buenos Aries

So am I excited well, YES.  Stay tuned while I countdown the trip and I share what we will be doing in each port.

Stanley, Flakland Islands - February 25

We are docking early and as we head south towards Stanley numerous people are out on their deck – we are freezing our butts off with just our robes on but we can’t help it the wildlife is amazing. 

We first notice whales which we later note are sperm whales.  We have a few sightings of whales.  Bernie is excited to see the smaller albatross and then he shouts penguins!  At first we thought they were fish swimming at the surface but looking closer we see they are penguins diving down and back up to the surface to welcome us. 

that is a penguin in the water on the left

Today is a tender day and thankfully the waters are calm which will make the longer tender ride more comfortable.  The cruisecritic gang is all meeting in Explorer’s lounge for a group tender and we are directed off right after the ship’s tours.  We brave the elements and head up to the open area on the tender.  Sure it is cold but we see so much more and we are excited when pods of dolphins jump and play along side the tender.

As soon as we arrive in Stanley (the town dropped the Port name a while back since they don’t have a port) we see our name on a sign and introduce ourselves to Owen our driver.  He is one of Patrick Watt’s respected drivers and is coordinating things.  The tour we organized can be found at http://www.falklandislands.com/contents/view/74

Each driver takes four passengers and note that means three in the back seat and the ride is long so be prepared.  You drive for about 40 minutes on gravel road then 1.5 hours off road thru fields and it is bumpy but Owen was very professional and a great driver.

I've posted a video up on Youtube on the King Penguins here, you can watch it at http://youtu.be/yVZ4TavAx3w

You arrive at Volunteer point and make sure you dress in layers.  The temperature isn’t that bad it is the wind that is cold.  Here you will see three varieties of penguins but the time of year that we are there there are only two the Gentoo and King penguins.  The King have some that are still with their eggs and some newly hatched penguins.  The area is large and you can wander around but they do ask you not to go past the white stoned area as this is where the penguins are nesting. 

After an hour and a half here we grab a provided lunch and we are back in the vehicle for our trip back. 

If you are interested in this tour to Volunteer Point to see the penguins make sure you reserve way in advance as the number of drivers he can coordinated is limited and spaces fill fast.  We paid in pounds and that was 115 pounds each, some paid in US and that was around $195 each, but the ship’s tour was $329 each and was sold out.

The town of Stanley is not large but reminds me of many fishing villages on the East Coast and many of the stores are open cause ships are in port.  We walk to the West Store (grocery store) and pick up some club biscuits (as we can’t find them at home and love them).  We cross the street to visit a few shops and pick up many items, t-shirts, post cards, penguin earrings, four limited number prints that we will frame when we get home, and a small stuffed penguin.  You will find almost everything possible with a penguin on it here!

There are a few pubs in town too where you can get a beer and fish and chips.  The whole area is easily walkable and we enjoy about an hour here before heading back on the tender.  This time our trip on the open area is a little colder as it starts to rain, but rain here is really sleet and it is cold! 

As soon as I get back on board I head up to the horizon court with my large mug and hot chocolate mix to make a hot chocolate and enjoy that on my balcony.  We head out around 6:15 pm and again Bernie and I are watching the wildlife, dolphins, penguins, whales, and birds.  We are tired, there isn’t much going on tonight and we both agree a quiet night is in order.  We order room service and watch a movie and we are both asleep at 9:30 pm.