We are about to take our first international trip in two years. We’ve enjoyed our travels with OAT in years past. With the new travel restrictions we can’t think of a better company to use to get us back on the road. We have packed, got our COVID vaccines and booster. We got our COVID test yesterday and got the printed report with required QR code that we tested negative.

We depart at 6:30 tomorrow night for a flight to Paris and then on to Cairo, Egypt. We’ll be gone 17 days and look forward to seeing the pyramids , riding a camel, a hot air balloon ride at sunrise over the pyramids, and a 5 night Nile river cruise. Check our blog for some interesting photos.

Interesting trip to the high country of Peru. Cusco, the sacred valley, and Machu Picchu. Fascinating scenery and history of the Incan Empire. However the altitude got to Patty and I both. Cusco is 11,000 feet and Machu Picchu is 7,700 feet. 4 nights of restless sleeping , headaches and out of breath!

We spent a day here. We had from 9am until 4:30 pm in port and it was a short walk to town. I went to town early to find an ATM and took a short walk around town. The bank guard was helpful and even took the large bills to the teller and got change for me. Punta Arenas is the southern most city except for Antarctica. It is located on the Strait of Magellan. It was a major port prior to the opening of the Panama Canal. It was founded as a penal colony in the 1840s and used as such until 1949.

Our day in port…. I went kayaking, Patty did laundry. Thanks Patty😊!

54 degrees and 59 minutes south !! Farthest south land mass without going to Antarctica. We’ve been lucky so far. Last two Viking cruises couldn’t make it due to weather. Today is 45degrees, only 40 mph wind and 9 foot seas! A nice summer day! Patty is doing ok with Dramamine and a patch.

We saw Magellianic penguins in Puerto Madryn Argentina then we saw hundreds up close in Bertha’s Beach in the Falkland Islands …. penguins everywhere!!!

City tour and Tango dance demonstration. Country population is 10 and 1/2 million. 1 and 1/2 million live in Montevideo. No natural resources in the country. Number 1 economic factor is cattle. They export beef and each cow has a chip implanted so meat can be traced if there’s a problem with it. They also export sturgeon caviar. Currently they have 9% unemployment and 9% inflation…. tough economic times.

Houses and cars are sold in US dollars and most people get a 25 year mortgage. Property in Montevideo is expensive…. approx $3000US dollars per square meter(about $333 per square foot), that equals approximately 333,000 dollars for a 1000 square foot home!

Now to the fun stuff! There’s an argument as to the origination of the Tango! People in Uruguay contend it started in Uruguay, the rest of the world thinks it started in Argentina. And yes, “It Takes Two to Tango”.

I caused a self inflicted problem…. The short version: we got to the ship and I didn’t have my passport!! I remembered that I set it on my seat on the airplane when we boarded in Calafate. A Viking rep went with us back to the airport in hopes of finding my passport!! Argh!! Fat chance, is what I thought. We went to the airline ticket counter and their cleaners did not find it. Airline agent recommended we go to the police office. A 10 minute walk and police did not find it, but….. They suggested we check at the police office near the ticket counter….. They had it !!! That saved an all day visit to the American Embassy to get a temporary passport.

The cab driver waited at the airport and when we got back to the ship the fare was only $12…. I gave him a nice tip!

Most of the day was spent looking at the magnificent Perito Moreno Glacier. It’s in Los Glaciares National Park. This park is the 3rd oldest national park in the Americas, Yellowstone is the oldest and Banff in Canada is the second oldest. In 1946 this park had 15 visitors, last year it had over one million. The 97 square mile ice formation is one of the largest in the world and is the only advancing glacier in the world. We saw it from afar, from above, down close to the water level and from a boat! We heard it crack several times, sounded like a large gun shot! Also saw it calve a few times.