Lead technician for our adventure documentation team.
As suspected, this wasn’t a slow day. Pretty certain our step counters were the highest ever today! This was despite the unanimous consensus that breakfast (the fuel for our highest step count ever) was sub-par. The atmosphere in the hotel basement was however outstanding (and worth sharing). Despite a poor breakfast, we eagerly set off for the day’s adventures...
Hard to believe, but we just passed the halfway point of our trip. That said, we aren’t slowing down!! We started the morning off with a brisk walking tour of Riga Old Town, led by local ‘Rita from Riga’. Brisk because it was 38 degrees out, sans windchill. Thanks to the buildings and the architecture, Riga Old Town has a Unesco designation, and is absolutely amazing...
(Fair warning… We’ll probably inundate you with pictures, as there was a lot seen on this day.) Klaipeda was a cool town, and we would spend more time here given the chance! We stayed at the Old Mill Hotel, on the water and across a swing bridge. Here are some shots of the Inn along with adjacent buildings. As we were packing up the van to head out, one of the two...
Our first day was so hectic that we didn’t mention much about the hotel. On this trip, we’ll be staying in boutique hotels. These are smaller hotels, no name brands, that are a block or two off of main thoroughfares. The Rinno Hotel is charming and the rooms are very spacious. We are sure we’ll be comfortable here for three nights. Before starting out for the day, we...
We normally do not combine days and only report on travel days if there was anything significant. Day 1 bled into Day 2, so we can barely delineate between the two. Oh yeah, that and it was significant in that we were nearly to the point that we weren’t sure we would be making the journey! Oh yea, one other unique difference in this trip… it’s not just us, but 3 of...
Another day in Ushuaia, Argentina and another outing in Ushuaia, Argentina. Due to incoming ships, our ship had to leave the dock and anchor in the bay, requiring us to tender to and from the ship and shore. The boat is anchored at one end, which we know because the landscape we see from our balcony continues to change. We’re basically moving in an arc...
Day 2 of our adjusted “Trip to Antarctica, but we didn’t make it to Antarctica” schedule. Hurtigruten (the expedition cruise line) has done an outstanding job of arranging for activities last minute to ensure that travelers have daily activities. How they have done this for over 300 people in a town of 100,000 during tourism season is beyond us! To organize the...
Our last time to see a continent in over 48 hours! The day started with a quick bus tour of Puerto Natales, including a stop at the town square. Here are some pictures from around the square. (Interesting observation – if a tree is in your way, build around it!) (Note the large tree coming out of the outdoor seating area for this restaurant.) (Doesn’t this look...
Today’s stop was a unique experience. We stopped at Puerto Eden, a village that at one time had a population of roughly 300, that is now down to just 70 inhabitants who are mostly native to the area. There are no cars, no sidewalks, no roads…. Just wooden boardwalks/footpaths that leads from the dock through town. The total walk took about 30...
Finally – a day not at sea! We stopped in the town of Castro and, due to the lack of having a dock big enough for an expedition ship, we were tendered to the shore. This excursion was a guided walking tour of the city. Getting up into the town from the docks was up a very steep street. On the sidewalk up, lining the street was several hand-carved...