Departure Day Recap

I never had a chance to post photos and updates from Ushuaia on the day we departed.  My group was scheduled to meet at the Albatross Hotel's restaurant around 2:30pm so I arrived early to have some lunch.

Local Malbec; the glasses used to serve the wine were labeled accordingly.  Fin del Mundo means "End of the World" and is used to describe the Ushuaia because it's the southern most part of the world, excluding Antarctica!

I tried the local fish, called "Toothfish" or "Hake".  It was a very heavy and fatty fish but I'm glad I tried it.

After the heavy meal I needed a double espresso before heading upstairs to the meeting point.

At 2:30 I moved to the second floor of the restaurant, our designated meeting spot.  There is a law that passengers must be transported to the ship and board as a group so we gathered upstairs, turned in our passports to the crew (this was unnerving), and were shuttled by bus across the street to the docks.  When I was filling out one last form upstairs and needed a table to write on, two people sitting near me offered me some space.  After a few minutes of chatting I learned that it was Clif's third trip to Antarctica and Stacey's second trip.  They were both from Calgary and I remember thinking, wow, that's pretty aggressive to go back multiple times.  I also remember asking them about sea sickness and prevention- I've been on the water a lot and have never been sea sick so I thought I would just wing it and take the Dramamine I brought if I needed it.  I'll never turn down advice- Clif and Stacey suggested I start taking the pills immediately and continue taking them every 4-6 hours throughout the first few days.  Thanks to them I never really got sea sick, but have a feeling I would have been completely ill and stuck in my cabin had I not taken the pills.  They make you drowsy but I definitely experienced some slight nausea and dizziness even with the pills so I can only imagine what would have happened if I didn't take them.

I felt as though I'd known Stacey and Clif my whole life; I'd found other people who were just as silly as I am.  I had a feeling that most people on the ship would fall somewhere in my range of personality- a little goofy, a little quirky and a lot of nerdy.  Love.  Side note: I remember Clif commenting on how both Stacey and I nearly ran into people because we were focusing on other things - Stacey and I happen to share the same quirky brain 'issues' as I like to say.  I was looking forward to meeting the rest of the passengers including my mysterious roommate!

First steps on the gangway!

Stacey & Clif on the gangway!

Once we got on the ship we were escorted to our cabins and I was able to meet my roommate, Kay, from Australia.  I'll be sure to share more on Kay; she was honestly the best roommate anyone could ask for!  Want to know what the cabin looked like?  It's small, yes, and I'd estimate it at about 150 square feet based on the size of my college dorm room.  To be honest though, after almost fourteen years of living in NYC, it didn't seem that bad considering the circumstances.

Our cabin as seen from the doorway.  Kay slept on the left and I slept next to the port.

My sleeping area, looking way less messy than ever.  What can I say, I have problems organizing things!

The itinerary, part of "Ocean Notes" that were posted daily around the ship. The Ocean Notes always contained some educational information, a recap of our previous day, the current schedule and a Russian word of the day. 

After checking into our cabins, we were taken upstairs to the ship lounge where the staff had food and cocktails waiting for us.

Rama, the ship bartender, passing out mimosas to celebrate our arrival.

We were fortunate to have such a beautiful sunny and clear afternoon for departure.  The tall ships (We were departing during a unique time when the meeting of the tall ships took place in Port Ushuaia; tall ships from around the world gathered in the port.) and mountains were amazing backdrops for some last minute photos.  

We had our life boat drill shortly before dinner.  As embarrassing as it is, the first thing I thought of was how they really look like the ones in Captain Phillips.  It's actually amazing how much space is inside of these lifeboats.  Supposedly every person on board can fit in the two lifeboats.  Thank fully we never had to use them.

And then we were on our way, see you in 11 days Ushuaia!

A beautiful view of Port Ushuaia and the tall ships as we began our journey to Antarctica.  Photo from our OE shared folder.

Before dinner Doug and Barb, also from Calgary, invited some of us to their room to have some wine before dinner.  Doug and Barb had been upgraded to a suite and actually had the space to share.  Doug and Barb met Clif and Stacey briefly in Ushuaia when Stacey made a comment about Doug's Calgary Flames hat.  Ironically, Doug and Stacey were connected in another way besides Calgary.  Doug drew Stacey's name from the hat in the charity raffle for this very trip to Antarctica!

Doug relaxing in his suite.  Kay, my roommate is to the left.  I am willing to bet that Barb was power walking through the halls of the ship- she was brilliant to do this during our long passage to stay limber and keep grounded!

Here's a better picture of both Doug & Barb.  This picture was taken on our very last night.

I have lots more to say about my wonderful roommate Kay, but for now I'll just post one quick photo of us.

Kay and I at dinner on the last night of the trip.  I'm so thankful to have met her!

There's a lot more to post on the amazing people I met during the trip.  I look forward to sharing some of the stories and photos in my next post.

I made it to Ushuaia!

A brief synopsis of my journey to Ushuaia and my first 12 hours in the town:

After nearly 24 hours of traveling, I have arrived safely in Ushuaia.  I began my journey on March 14 around 1:30 PM eastern time, when my cab arrived to take me to JFK.  There were a few moments when traffic was so horrendous I was not sure I'd make it with enough time to spare.  Fortunately everything worked out - including my intent to travel with only carry-on luggage.  My main carry-on bag was teetering on the official weight limit for Aerolineas Argentinas but I had no problems passing right through check-in and security.

I traveled on an Aerobus 330-200 to Buenos Aires- a 2-3-2 seating arrangement in which I had the window seat.  My neighbor was a very kind Argentinian man around my age who was considerate of his space and I was happy to share all of the food/desserts with nuts (I'm allergic) with him.  About 11 hours and change later, we arrived at Buenos Aires airport (EZE) and I was astounded by the hospitality and willingness to help by anyone and everyone.  Thankfully my flight from EZE to Ushuaia remained as planned- I did not have to transfer to the domestic airport.  That being said- it was a bit unnerving to pass right through airport security without having to show my ID or passport or anything more than my boarding pass lol! Once I was safely in the departure terminal around 4:30 am, I had to wait about a half hour for the one and only cafe to open.  Shortly after 5 I got some water and some local soda (owned by 7up lol!).

A more citrus flavored version of 7Up I found at the airport.

Cafe con leche and a breakfast sandwich at the airport. 

I tried so hard to stay awake during the layover but I actually fell asleep with my head on my travel pillow on the table of the airport cafe for about an hour and a half.  I woke up in a panic that I'd missed my flight but I still had time and no one really seemed to care that I was sleeping with my face planted on the table.  Finally we boarded around 8:30 in the morning.

Making our decent to Ushuaia

Once I landed in Ushuaia I waited in a taxi line with the beautiful mountains in the background.
My hotel (Celine del Faro) was less than 10 minutes by cab and I was so pleasantly surprised when I arrive to my enormous 1 bedroom suite.

Kitchenette with a beautiful few of the port.

Living area

Bedroom with another fantastic view. 

View of Port Ushuaia from my hotel window

Self-timer is a solo traveler's best friend!  Me checking out the scenery.

Wondering if that really is my ship to the left as it seems a lot smaller in real life.  I couldn't read the name even with zoom so I'm not really sure.  

When I arrived I rested a bit and then went straight to the gym located in the spa.  Look how beautiful the spa pool is.

Spa plunge pool, next to the jacuzzi.  I hope to get a chance to use the facilities after tomorrow morning's workout!

After hitting the gym and taking a nice long nap I decided to take a walk around the town to get some fresh air and pick up some Argentinian wine.  Ushuaia was unexpectedly beautiful and I am looking forward to exploring the town more when I return from the voyage.

 I scouted some restaurants and decided based on my research that I would have dinner at a place called Volver.  It's known for it's seafood, especially king crabs.

View of the restaurant Volver from across the street.

One of the many unique and tiny buildings scattered throughout town.  Someone actually lives in this cute ocean-front home.

Ushuaia was also filled with interesting and beautiful street art depicting the town's roots.

There are of course tons and tons of touristy gift shops- all filled with what else besides penguins!  Now you all know what I'll be bringing back for you haha.

Mate is a local 'drink' that I kept seeing around town.  The local wine shop owner offered to let me try it but I figured I should double check my long list of food and plant allergies first! Maybe when I return to Ushuaia on the 26th.

I picked up two bottles of Malbec and enjoyed a glass before heading to dinner at Volver, only 2 blocks away.

Scallops with cheese and crema, as suggested by the waiter.  I've never had anything quite like this and it was delicious!

More Malbec with dinner as a looked out onto the port.

I love that the restaurant has its name etched onto the wine glasses.

And this my friends is the main course: crab with parmesan cheese, crema, tomatoes & asparagus.  I am so trained to scoff at the cheese with seafood concept but this meal has changed my mind!  I wish I could adequately describe how amazing both dishes were.

That sums up my first day.  It was exhausting but so much fun!  I'll try to get one more post in before departure and before I lose all internet access until March 26th!