EPILOGUE

A journey we booked 15 months ago with Silversea, a glorious 4-weeks in South America, a first for us to ever set foot on the Continent has unceremoniously and quietly come to an end. 

'It will take some getting used to when you return home ... ' as Cruise Director Kirk Detweiler reminded us ' ... when the toilets at home only flush and do not suck ... when you wake up in the middle of the night, famish, and realized you already had breakfast, lunch, high tea and dinner ... when you keep forgetting to feed the dog ...' so funny, so true, and so appropriate.

A quick recap of our take-away from this cruise.

* smallness of us humans verses the vastness of nature

* unfailing impression of the open sea, in serenity or in anger

* timeless, lasting beauty of million-year old glaciers

* spirit of adventure that drove early dwellers everywhere

* our insatiable desire to explore, to learn, regardless of age

While it was another tick in the conspicuous consumption chart (one our party of travel pals did enjoy) I for one am not sure if 3-weeks on a cruise ship is something I will do again anytime soon. How do people manage 60 days or even 120 days on a world cruise? That said, perhaps I should keep my mouth shut and reserve judgment until I am a bit older? Who knows what is installed, it could well be the only avenue available for us to see the world.

Lastly to all of you who enjoy cruising may I quote these parting words from Niki Sepsas, our Onboard Presenter Extraordinaire ...

'Hope your Seas are Smooth and your Sunsets Memorable'!           

SANTIAGO

Santiago has more or less the same feel as Buenos Aires as we entered from Valparaiso, the port city where we disembarked, a 2-hour drive from the Capital. 6 million out of the 17 million or 35% of Chile's population live in Santiago. The Grand Hyatt is an older hotel located at a prestigious neighborhood, surrounded by the usual suspects, the often boring brand names and fast food chains that one sees everywhere, thanks to globalization. Spanish influence is extremely strong here. 80% Catholics but not unlike other predominantly Catholic countries most of them are not church goers.

18 well known valleys such as Veramonte & Casablanca near the city are devoted to vineyards that boost harvests around March to yield a robust Chilean wine industry. Further out there are olive farms aplenty that cater to the export markets, primarily to Spain.

It may be the end of Summer as people seem relaxed and happy. More smiles across the board than Buenos Aires where faces are more somber. We were blessed by perfect weather and with the majestic foothills of the Andes as backdrop what is there not to like in Santiago except, perhaps, the eating department. This subject matter can well be characteristic of South American cuisine. I should not make scathing remarks as this obviously deserves a separate blog, which I shall attempt to do.

BAVARIA IN CHILE

The Lake District in Southern Chile is fascinating. One might be forgiven for temporarily thinking one has been transported to Austria instead of Southern Chile. This region, complete with snow capped volcanoes and glistening lakes in vibrant blue, is the historical homeland of Chile's indigenous Mapuche people who revolted and drove the Spanish conquistadors out in 1598. It was not until 1881, almost three centuries later, when a treaty was finally signed to end the Mapuche War. Soon afterwards Government policy was to recruit waves of German, Austrian and Swiss immigrants to settle in what was then called 'the empty territory' principally to offset indigenous domination. The typical Bavarian sheen around the Lake District is evident, even now, especially in townships around Lake Llanquihue like Puerto Montt, Frutillar and Puerto Varas. Our excursion was an eye opener, a worthwhile visit where we could witness first hand the consequences of immigration policies established 133 years ago.      

RIO SIMPSON

Dozens of rivers and waterfalls wend their way through the mountain formation as we move slowly north along the fjords on the Chilean side of Patagonia, a long strip of land thousands of miles long but less than 300 miles wide. We took an excursion to the Rio Simpson National Reserve, with a short stop at the tiny township of Puerto Aysen. To be gracious we describe the town as quaint, even though there was not much to write home about. The scenic drive along the river, however, was calming and offered many picture opportunities.

We were shown an idyllic spot where one can photograph the side profile of a lone Moai look alike ... one of the famous 887 monumental statures built by the Rapa Nui people on Easter Island ... on a clear day, that is, as rain falls on this region up to 300 days annually. 'We have a brand new gym but strangely town folks only use it on sunny days, which means 2+ month in a year' ... think about that.        

NAPS NAPS NAPS

We were a bit bored by one of the excursions and played a joke on our guide. While there were fascinating ones like the San Valentin Glacier we also had one or two 'dogs' when we were shuttled in long bus rides to not very worth seeing spots ... like the 'viewing point' on Stubbs Road that caused traffic jams near our home. Why are we here? We thought we were funny but were told we were not, apparently we do that a lot on the road ie falling asleep everywhere. It just shows one thing, again, we can never win the age game.    

NEW ME?

This is the ship's interpretation of a Full English Breakfast ... which I love so I closed my eyes and ordered it daily, until the third morning when I surrendered. Needless to say the 3 meals a day are sacrosanct on cruises and if one is not mindful, a problem almost everyone faces on board, one can get into real trouble from over eating.

Then I did a few things which surprised myself these few weeks. I stopped drinking altogether (almost) no hard liquor, no wines except a sip or two. From the daily morning walks I managed to meet (again almost) my JawBone target of 10,000 steps per day. I decided to cut coffee as well, since a week ago. I indulged in salads galore at lunch and only ordered fish of the day, steamed, with steamed veggie and plain rice. Why do I do this while on a cruise ... I don't know, guilt perhaps?  Will this or rather can this last, I don't know either. I certainly plan to make it last.

PADDLE BOARDING SAN RAPHAEL STYLE

While we were busy oohing - aahing and clicking away, something or rather someone appeared out of nowhere that took our breath away. A solo paddle boarder in shorts (!) cut right across our bow. Could this be an illusion, or for a moment, a ghost. Well, it is all real according to the crew. There is a training camp for extreme sports nearby and these are 'solo challengers'. This very tall, lean, super athletic looking young woman was initially paddling on her exposed knees (right) as the water must be close to freezing, when she reached us she stood up to take a bow (left) with The Big One behind her. We were speechless! What does it take on the determination and stamina scales to try something like this, it was unimaginable.    

SO BLUE - SO CLOSE

A close up on what I meant by the magic Pelican Blue .... by the way we were so close to these floating beauties we could almost reach out to touch them. 

SAN VALENTIN GLACIER

150 nautical miles south of Puerto Chacabuco lies Laguna San Rafael National Park. Getting here is in itself a wonderful experience as we cruised through waterways, fjords and estuaries that offered stunning scenery. Within the Park is the tallest peak in the Southern Andes, Mount St Valentin at 13,310 feet from where 19 glaciers (!!!) were born, the Mount San Valentin Glacier being the most famous.

As we entered the Lagoon we could see large blocks of ice afloat that were calved off from the almighty giant, often with thunderous roars as they crashed into the lagoon, we were told. Our sightseeing catamaran came very close but never too close as the ferocity of the crash can create currents. The most amazing yet was what I call the 'Pelican Blue' like the ink in fountain pens we grew up with ... that beautiful hue is unmistaken. For some reason glaciers can absorb all colors except blue and voila.

If I were to nominate the best excursion on this cruise ... this will be it, without question a truly unforgettable sight.      

ROAST LAMB

There is something about roasting either a side or a whole lamb or beef that makes the meat taste so different. The boys at Estancia doubled up as Chefs and they did a marvelous job ... succulent, tasty, and beautifully seasoned. Accompanies by roast potatoes, corn on the cob and salads, the Estancia cook-out was one meal we Hong Kong belongers will not soon forget.