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One Last Day In Buenos Aires, Argentina and Antarctica Thoughts

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In Buenos Aires on a Sunday, we walked back to the San Telmo Flea Market hoping to see everyone dressed in costumes, bands and entertainment (see earlier article…put in date when it runs). Wrong. Our earlier visit happened to be a special day. San Telmo is still fun and interesting but nothing like the one 14 days ago. Oh well..

One of the most interesting stands was filled with “old” seltzer bottles. We both had grave doubts as to exactly how “old” they were but since we weren’t buying…didn’t really care. They would still be fun to have around as a conversation piece.

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seltzer bottle stall at San Telmo, Buenos Aires, Argentina

A nice walk back to the hotel passing a building with colorfully dressed guards who resembled little tin soldiers. Obviously, some Argentine Government building.

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Argentine guards

Hungry (when am I not hungry), we decided to try a little restaurant by the hotel. Prosciutto…View image…, on Sarmiento and Julin, is an old bodega.

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inside of Prosciutto Restaurant, Buenos Aires Argentina

Not only was Prosciutto filled with Portenos enjoying a lazy, late lunch but the food was absolutely delicious. Huge platters of pasta (could have shared one easily) that was so good, I hated to leave one forkful on the plate. No website but I do have an e-mail address for you if you are in this neighborhood…prosciuttojunin@fibertel.com.ar.

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my pasta selectiion at Prosciutto Restaurant, Buenos Aires

And then, as stuffed as we were, one last scoop of homemade ice cream (gelato) at Pharaoh II, a Helado Artisanale. (That means “homemade.”) …View image…and on to the airport for the flight back to Chicago.

Now…Antarctica. I am conflicted on whether or not to recommend Antarctica as a “must do trip.” My thoughts:

– Antarctica looks nothing like brochure photos UNLESS it is a sunny day. Antarctica is primarily grey.

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gloomy, Antarctic day

– There are usually no elevators on ships. Make sure you are in shape to go between decks and up and down the narrow stair into the zodiacs. Don’t even think of doing a cruise with Antarctic landings if handicapped, e.g. canes, walkers, wheel chairs. This is not the trip for you.

– You must wear sneakers, trainers, sensible shoes on board ship with good traction. Not a place for flip-flops or high heels. Very unsafe.

Prepare for rough seas, non-landings, bad weather (and I’m not just referring to the Drake Passage). It may not happen but with a 50/50 chance…who knows. We ended up having five beautiful, sunny and warm days in a row.

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certificates showing we stood on the Antarctic Continent

– All you need is warm clothes for landings, blue jeans and casual clothes for onboard ship. Don’t bother packing anything else. No one dresses…or wears makeup…and it’s very difficult to wash your hair in a 2′ x 2′ shower while the ship rocks and rolls.

– The Orlova, crew and facilities were good to great. This was the first voyage of the season for the Orlova and the crew (primarily in the dining room) still had a way to go before getting their act together, e.g. if you didn’t guard your plate of food, it was whisked away before you had a chance to say….”no, I’m not finished.”

– There are are also quite a few tourism issues that are surfacing. During the 1992-1993 season, there were 6,750 Antarctic visitors. 2007-2008? Over 35,000 tourists are expected to visit. And instead of the 100-person ships, there are monster ships with 1,000+ passengers. Obviously, you can’t land 1,000 people on land but this is a disaster waiting to happen. There is no way a rescue could be launched if something happened to a ship this size. Stop and think about this when you make Antarctic plans. Stick to a small ship. The passengers on the Explorer that went down at this time were extremely fortunate that they were on a small ship.

– The penguins…View image… Leopard Seal and Lemaire Channel were definitely the highlights. You could sit in the snow and watch penguins all day. Always engrossing and amusing.

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ex-Marine and penguins in Antarctica
 


If I had to recommend just one unbelievable trip in the entire world, it would be visiting the Mountain Gorillas of Uganda and/or Rwanda (read this series on my site). That was worth every expensive penny. You may disagree. Antarctica? You have to make the call on whether or not it is worth the money. It was a spectacular trip and definitely worth doing. We questioned one of the 30-something passengers about affording a cruise like this and he felt, spend the money now and don’t worry about the future. After all, where else are you going to see scenery like this….View image

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Deception Island, Antarctica cruise
 

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walking to a rookery in Antarctica
 

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one of the many nesting sites in Antarctica
 

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…and have a chance to interact with penguins not in a zoo

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Boy…do I need a bath!

If you can afford it…go. You should be in good health to participate in this “expedition” and who knows what tomorrow will bring healthwise… We wish you a calm Drake Crossing, thousands of penguins, a Leopard Seal and ample sunshine….

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ex-Marine and Sheila on Antarctica


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