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| This pelican is trained to entertain tourists as the man passed around a cup. |
“Sightings from the Veranda while Cruising”
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| Activity in the port in Pisco, Peru. |
Today, we began checking flights for February 10th, when we plan to fly from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Mpumalanga/Nelspruit, South Africa. Prices are high for the shortest flights of 16 hours with two layovers.
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| Locally harvested seashells for sale, along with a few pairs of flip-flops. |
It’s always tricky deciding if we should book now or wait for a price drop which may appear closer to the time we plan to fly. We’ve tried both ways, and on occasion, we get lucky finding a price drop during the last 60 days.
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| Ship sculpture made from bones. |
It’s too risky to wait until the last 30 days when we’ve often found prices rising with few remaining seats available. There’s never an easy way or set plan on how to book expensive flights. We’re expecting to pay US $3,500 for the one-way tickets for two.
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| Activity on the boardwalk in Pisco. |
Unfortunately, there’s no way to get to South Africa from Argentina that avoids an overnight flight with a layover in the middle of the night. After all these years, we’ve finally gotten over the fact that a “red-eye” may be the only way we can get from Point A to Point B.
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| Locals and tourists are enjoying the beach on a perfectly sunny day. |
The simple reality is that we won’t sleep for about a 24-hour period. Neither of us can sleep for more than a few minutes on a flight, and taking a nap after arriving at our location also alludes us. But, we’ve found, if we can manage a mere 20-minute doze, it can do wonders when we’re exhausted.
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| Various feathered friends were resting on a moored fishing boat. |
Yesterday morning, after we’d uploaded the post on a sea day, I found myself nodding off while seated in Cafe al Bacio. We both decided to head to the cabin to see if we could sleep for a bit. Magically, we both slept, albeit lightly, for about 30 minutes, feeling refreshed upon awakening.
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| A boat tied up at the beach near the pier. |
“They,” say (whoever “they” are who often provide incorrect information), a short nap (under 30 minutes) is more beneficial than a long daytime doze. For once, we agree with “them.”
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| Local trinkets. |
Last night, we had lots of fun with friends Lisa and Barry. The usual two-hour Captain’s Club event in the Constellation Lounge was canceled for a Senior Officer’s party at 7:45 pm. Usually, at this time, we’re in the dining room having dinner.
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| A small fishing boat was lying on the beach. |
Instead, we decided on an early dinner at 6:30 to head to the party after dining. It all worked out great when we sat at a table for four in the Constellation Lounge with Lisa and Barry, after which we all embarked on a “bar hopping fest” where live music and dancing were on the menu.
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| Bronze sculpture welcoming guests to a restaurant on the boardwalk. |
Tom and I both love dancing together. It’s good exercise, reminds us of our youth, and is a fun shared activity. Last night, hanging out with our new friends only added to the experience as we used the ship’s program to decide where the best spot for dancing was coming up next on the agenda.
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| A pelican was proudly posing for a photo. |
It resulted in another late night. We arrived at our cabin around 12:15 to another one-hour time change. We’re a little bit sluggish this morning, but once we’ve uploaded the post, we plan to leave the ship to visit the town of Arica, Chile, where our ship docked early this morning.
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| Local band playing Peruvian music hoping to earn tips. |
This first leg of the back-to-back cruise ends in three days. There are only about 250 passengers out of 2,170 staying behind for the second leg. Last night, there was a notice on the bed stating a meeting at 9:00 am on December 6th (tomorrow) for us back-to-back passengers.
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| A tightly packed RV park in Pisco. |
We’ll be provided with instructions for the process of staying on board when the remainder of the passengers will be disembarking at San Antonia, Chile. This final stop was supposed to have been in Valparaiso, Chili, a much more exciting town than San Antonio.
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| Ocean inlet along the dunes. |
Due to strife at the port in Valparaiso, the cruise line decided to change this final port of call to the less complicated San Antonia. Many passengers were disgruntled. For us, it made little difference when we’ll be back in South America down the road.
So, folks, have a wonderful day! We’ll be thinking of YOU!
Photo from one year ago today, December 5, 2016:
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| Historical Furners Hotel in downtown Ulverstone, Tasmania. There were many small towns we explored while in Penguin. For more photos, please click here. |