Tag: argentina

Final days of Antarctica

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January 6/7/8, 2025

We woke up on our final day of the cruise to much smoother waters. We were relieved that we had survived the Drake Shake and that we could relax a bit more on the final day. We spent the morning getting our suitcases organized and watching some of the different crews science talks from our room.

There was one session we wanted to attend in-person, and that was the talk about where we all stopped on the cruise. It was really fun to be able to look back on the different stops and see the names and locations all in one map.

The lecture hall is right by the Science Center, so on our way out we were also able to take a look at all of the animals that had been spotted throughout the trip. It was pretty cool to see what animals and what days they were spotted on. Antarctica – and the surrounding area are just incredible. I’m writing this about a month after we left the ship – and it feels like a fever dream to know that we got to be in these animals’ natural (almost undisturbed) habitat.

I hope that for years to come other explorers get to see the pristine wilderness of Antarctica. We only scratched the surface! I know many people view Antarctica as a once in a lifetime trip, but I sure hope that I can go back again one day. I LOVED it.

The evening of our last day, the officers hosted a toast to all of us and previewed a video that the professional photographer put together with his pictures. It was really beautiful to see – and also, even though we were on the exact ship – see some of the pictures (and videos!) of wildlife that we missed! If you’re interested, it’s actually hosted on YouTube and you can view it here. It is long – but I swear, it’s worth it!

After dinner, our group of new friends made our way up to the lounge one last time. Davon, the professional pianist gave me a proper send off with some of my favorite 90s music. I really hope he has the most wonderful life in front of him, he definitely made our experience more enjoyable throughout the trip!

Sure hope he has been practicing his Britney Spears and Backstreet Boys!

We all toasted our friends good night before heading off to bed before an early wakeup the next day.

We woke up in Ushuaia the next morning and had breakfast with Craig and Kim one last time. They were on an earlier flight and we wanted to have a proper send off with them before they made their way to the bus.

We were the last group to be called to get loaded on the buses, but what we didn’t realize was that we were getting a proper tour of the city before getting dropped at the airport! We had about an hour to walk around and pick up some souvenirs. (Which was great, considering the only place we could even get postcards was from Port Lockroy and the Penguin Post Office!)

Ushuaia really is a charming little town – and I wish we could have had a bit more time there. But we were glad that we got to see a bit of it before heading to the airport.

This was going to be the longest travel day ever. We were set to fly from Ushuaia to Buenos Aires, which was a 3.5 hour flight. Once we landed in BA, we had an 8-hour layover. We had toyed with the idea of getting a hotel, even if to just take a nap and freshen up before our next flight, but the hotels were more expensive than we had thought and would take about an hour roundtrip to get to/from.

We opted to stay in the airport for those 8 hours. We were flying AeroMexico, and their check-in counter didn’t open until closer to 8pm. That meant we had to sit on the other side of security for a few hours. Our new friend Dena was in a similar position, so we looked around at the only restaurants that were outside of security. And we landed on Outback Steakhouse. (This one was for you, Ash!)

Dena parted ways with us and we made our way to Starbucks to sit for a bit longer. We finally had a check in counter, and now we just needed it to be staffed. I don’t think we’ve ever been so relieved to see the gate agents making their way to the counter!

After dropping our bags we made our way through the longest security line and made our way to a lounge to relax before our flight. Our next stop was Mexico City – just a short 9.5 hour flight. 🙈 We aren’t sure how, but we somehow got upgraded to “extra room” seats. It was nice to have the extra space on that long flight!

Shortly into the flight is when I started to have the “sickening” aka when I started to feel like I was getting a chest cold. I started to get full body aches – and I knew this wasn’t going to be good. Something similar had happened to me on the way back from Australia and I wanted to be anywhere but on a plane.

After landing in Mexico City, we cleared customs and tried to find somewhere to hole up for a few hours so we could stretch out. One perk about having travel credit cards is lounge access – can’t stress this enough – it makes a layover that much more enjoyable with free food and comfier chairs, in addition to quieter environments.

Our final flight was from Mexico City to Tijuana – another 3.5 hour flight. We finally made it home on Wednesday, January 8! It was a long journey from the end of the world, but it was an absolutely incredible trip!

Next trip:
– Panama for Andy’s 40th!

Exploring the MS Fridjtof Nansen

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December 29, 2024

After departing Ushuaia, we were heading straight for the Drake Passage en route to Antarctica. The Drake Passage is the body of water between the southern tip of South America (Cape Horn) and Antarctica, connecting the South Pacific and South Atlantic Oceans. It’s known for its rough seas and unpredictable weather: strong winds, large waves, and frequent storms, which make it one of the most treacherous routes in the world.

This was the only part of the trip that scared me – I had seen so many videos on social media of giant waves rocking the ship violently, and following other people’s journey and knowing how seasick they felt on the passage.

Thankfully, we both felt fine and had learned from previous cruises what worked for us. Andy had patches that he wears behind his ears and I use Meclizine to combat seasickness. Others on the trip complained about not feeling well, which really sucked for a lot of people. However, we were blessed with relatively calm waters (all things considered).

We spent some time exploring the ship that day – it was still relatively warm. We were one of the only couples out in the hot tubs! It was pretty funny to watch people walk by all bundled up and both of us were in our bathing suits!

This ship also has a wonderful sauna that has a panoramic view to the water, which is definitely a highlight! (Andy loves it – I can’t sit in there for more than 5 minutes at a time).

It also comes equipped with a science center, which is pretty cool. There’s a variety of skeletons and different displays that show the difference in the animals found in Antarctica. They also have quite a few microscopes set up – each day we are in Antarctica they will be sending out science boats that are optional. I’m sure that’s where the microscopes will come in handy!

The HX team kept us busy – we had picked up our jackets the day before and now we needed to get fitted for our expedition boots. Unlike the jacket, these boots would have to be returned at the end of our cruise. However, they are required for all of our landings and zodiac trips during the cruise. We were also assigned our groups – how HX would organize our different activities – so we received our animal patches.

Our group is the Snow Petrel, which is an adorable bird. However, I think we were both hoping for something bigger – like an Orca Whale or Humpback. But we will take what we can get!

We rounded out the evening by spending time listening to the ship’s pianist in the Observation Lounge. After some peer pressure, I was able to get a few Millennial favorites: Britney Spears and the Backstreet Boys.

Up Next:
– Another day at sea





Ushuaia or bust!

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December 28, 2024

The HX team descended upon our hotel on the 27th – we checked in with them in the afternoon and got our plans for Saturday, 12/28. The itinerary had said we would have an “early” morning flight to Ushuaia – but what we didn’t expect was that breakfast started at 3:00 AM with a 4:00 AM departure to the airport. I was quickly relieved we hadn’t booked a tango show (most of them started at 10 PM) because we needed to get to bed early.

The morning of the 28th, we ate a small breakfast and then got on the bus to the airport. It was about a 40 minute ride to the airport. HX had organized a charter flight for us – so we went through the domestic terminal. Security was less strict than us Americans are used to – Andy was able to bring a bottle of water through! (I of course guzzled mine, because #rulefollower).

The flight was around 3.5 hours down to Ushuaia – we started to see the other passengers in our group. There were definitely some stand outs – good and bad – on who we wanted to get to know more on the trip. The make up of the group was really interesting – I was shocked to see a few families with young kids. (Setting the bar pretty high for future vacations!)

Ushuaia is located at the southern tip of Argentina and is often called the southernmost city in the world. This city serves as a gateway to Antarctica with many cruises and expeditions departing from its harbor. It is surrounded by stunning landscapes, including Tierra del Fuego National Park. It reminded me and Andy a lot of Alaska – Homer vibes in particular with all of the water and snow capped mountains surrounding it.

After landing, we all gathered our luggage and the porters would take it to the ship for us. We were given the option for either being dropped off in the city center (and taking a taxi back to the ship) or taking a sightseeing tour around the Ushuaia area. We decided it would be fun to do the tour to get more familiarized with the surrounding area.

Our first stop was Mirador del Valle Carbajal, which offers a beautiful viewpoint of the valley and the beautiful mountains in the background. In this area, the final 15 minutes of the movie the Revenant was filmed. They even had to bring in pine trees to make it feel more authentic, since the rest of the film was shot elsewhere. (They were chasing winter to give it the same feel as the rest of the movie). So it’s fun to say that Leonardo DiCaprio was there too!

From there, we moved on to Mirador Paso Garibaldi, which is a scenic viewpoint along Ruta 40 that offers panoramic views of Viedma Lake. You could also spot “hidden” lake in the distance. It’s a popular stop for travelers because it offers stunning photo opportunities. We saw a lot of birds of prey soaring around the area!

Our next stop was a lodge called Park Austral. We had lunch here before stopping in to visit the museum dedicated to the Pan-American Highway that spans from Alaska to Argentina. It was really small, but we did see a group of motorcyclists that had just completed the trek. Seems like a cool idea for a roadtrip if you have the time!

After lunch and the museum, we all embarked on a short hike through a bog. It was so spongey and cool to walk on – it was my first time in one. And we spent enough time out there that the one mosquito found me and I had a welt on my ankle for the first few days of our trip.

As soon as we wrapped up there we made our way back to the city of Ushuaia and to the port. It was finally time to board our ship! We had seen the Fridtjof Nansen in the San Diego bay the same week we had booked our trip! So we knew exactly what we were looking for – and boy, was this ship a beauty!

Our ship was only built in 2020 – so it is pretty new. The check in was really quick – and we were in our room shortly. At the last minute, the company upgraded us to a suite. We both were holding our breath until we actually got there because it felt too good to be true. But sure enough, a suite it was. Truly, truly grateful.

They recommended picking up our expedition jackets right away – they had changed them from the red from previous years to a light blue. Nice quality jackets, but not the parkas that they had advertised. Thankfully we had brought plenty of layers with us.

We were pretty exhausted from the long travel day – so we explored the ship briefly before turning in for the night.

Lodging: HX – Fridjtof Nansen

Up Next:
– Drake Passage (sailing for 2 days)

Merry Christmas from Argentina!

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December 25, 2024 (and 26-27)

We woke up the next morning still tired from the long travel day the day before, but filled with excitement! We were going to make a quick day trip to Uruguay – a new country for us – by high-speed ferry.

I had assumed it would be pretty similar to trains in Europe, where you can show up 20-30 minutes before the train departs and be fine. But before I fell asleep, I had translated our e-tickets and saw a note that we needed to be there two hours before our departure time. Our departure time was at 12:15 – so we needed to get there around 10AM. We realized that it was Christmas in Argentina, and that most businesses were completely shut down.

So we had a beautiful walk in Buenos Aires over to the port to catch our ferry. We quickly realized that the ferry there was more similar to an airport experience. You had to check in – go through security – go through both Argentina’s customs AND Uruguay’s in the same area. Because I’m paranoid, we had plenty of time to get through all of these hoops and hurdles.

Not to mention, I had booked “business” class because it wasn’t that much more than the normal seats. We had no idea what it all included, but we stumbled into the VIP lounge and finally found food and much needed coffee.

Unfortunately for us, our Spanish has become rusty over the years. All of the announcements were in Spanish, so we were relying on the other passengers to understand what was going on. It turns out, our ferry was running over an hour late… and this ferry also could bring cars over. We heard (but can’t confirm this) that there were over 200 hundred cars loaded onto our ferry as well!

What was supposed to be a 2.5-3 hour event in Uruguay – ended up getting more and more delayed. By the time we got to Colonia del Sacramento, we had 20 minutes before we had to check back in with security again. We had planned on having lunch and strolling through the historic district (which is a UNESCO world heritage site), but ended up power walking through the district instead.

The ferry terminal in Colonia del Sacramento was much smaller, and less organized than the one in Buenos Aires. But we made it through the same security/customs we had cleared in BA – and then sat down in a cafeteria area. We had met our first fellow Americans while in line, they were at the end of their trip – we enjoyed sharing different travel stories with one another.

We quickly realized that we were on the same ferry as we traveled over on – and had a good laugh that the crew would see us and wonder what we were doing back so soon. (Only one woman noticed us – and we had shared a knowing smile).

This time the ferry was on time – there were far fewer cars that needed to be loaded on this leg of the trip. If you’re in the area, I’d highly recommend traveling with BuqueBus – it’s allegedly the fastest ferry in the area, but I’m sure other providers are good too.

Once we made it back to BA – we started our search for restaurants that were starting to open up. I had read that most things were closed on Christmas, but if they were going to open it would be around 6 or 7 and only for the dinner service. We found a burger joint – we resisted the temptation of the Hard Rock Cafe and found a local spot instead.

After dinner, we made our way back to the hotel to relax. The next two days would be pretty low-key as Andy was working remotely. I’m going to provide a quick highlight of our time in BA below!

Buenos Aires highlights:
– Puerto Madero: a vibrant and upscale neighborhood, known for its stunning waterfront views and fun dining and entertainment options. It was originally an old port district, it has undergone a dramatic transformation into a trendy hub, featuring luxurious hotels, stylish restaurants, and high-end office buildings.
– Puente de la Mujer (Bridge of the Woman) is another famous landmark, a pedestrian bridge that is shaped like a sailboat.
-Lots of shopping and restaurants near the hotel. We ate dinner at a few – interestingly enough there were a ton of Italian restaurants (of course in addition to all of the Argentinean steakhouses).
– Tango shows: we didn’t have enough time to do one of these, but I did a lot of research and wish we could have made it work!

Hotel:
-Hotel Emperador Buenos Aires

Up Next:
– Flight to Ushuaia
– Board cruise ship

Expedition Antarctica

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December 24, 2024

Antarctica. Our FINAL continent to visit! Did you know that on average only around 75,000 people visit Antarctica each year? This number has been increasing each year – last year even saw 100,000 people! The interesting point to mention is that it’s not a country – it’s only a continent.

There has been a treaty in place since 1959 that means there can be no military activity, each country has to publish their scientific findings publicly, strict rules in place to protect the environment, and no country can claim it as their territory. Pretty cool, right? It’s like the only thing they could agree on!

We had long dreamed about when we would get to Antarctica – and as most of you know already, I always have a running bucket list for our travels. We booked this trip SO many months ago, which made it feel pretty unreal. It was something that we were going to do at some point, but December 2024 seemed so far away!

We had selected Hurtigruten (now known as HX Expeditions) as the company we would travel with to Antarctica. Taking a cruise ship is the most common way individuals get to Antarctica – I think technically you can fly there on your own, but I think it would involve a lot more research and likely wouldn’t be as comfortable or affordable!

All of this to say, HX was taking us to Antarctica from December 28, 2024 -January 7, 2025. We could have booked flights through HX to Buenos Aires, but opted to book them on our own. We hadn’t yet visited Buenos Aires, so we decided to fly in a few days early and take advantage of Andy’s time off from work over Christmas Eve/Christmas.

Our flight left at 1:00 AM on Christmas Eve morning – and had a connection in Mexico City. Everything went by rather smoothly – and we found out that we had gotten an upgrade with AeroMexico. (Really – we had just bid to have a row to ourselves to allow for extra space). Since we had a red eye flight – we slept for part of the flight down to Buenos Aires.

Once we landed, we made our way to our hotel. Our flight arrived a little ahead of schedule, so we were able to check in and get settled into our room by 11:00 PM. This was the same hotel HX would put us up in a few days later, but we decided for convenience we would just stay there ahead of when the rest of the group got into town.

It was around midnight that we started to hear fireworks! We realized quickly that in Buenos Aires – both the city and residents do fireworks at midnight to celebrate Christmas. It was really fun to watch the show from our room, not quite Disneyland, but still fun! It was a fun way to end our long travel day.

Hotel:
Emperador Hotel Buenos Aires

Up Next:
– Ferry to Uruguay