January 22 to January 26, 2014 Coquimbo, Valparaiso, Puerto Montt and Castro in Chile

January 22 to January 26, 2014

Wednesday, January 22, we arrived at Coquimbo on schedule. In 2012 we took great pride in doing Coquimbo and La Serena using public transportation. We were very satisfied with what we saw and did. This time we decided to pamper ourselves with a ship’s tour, Scenes of Coquimbo, La Serena and the Elqui Valley.

Wow, are we glad we did. We were taken to sights the local bus did not get near. We viewed a horseshoe bay to the south of the harbor. There were many condos and summer homes 

along the shore. All had beautiful views. And the architecture was impressive. From there we drove past the mosque on our way to the lighthouse. The mosque serves as a library and reference source for the Muslim culture.  There are fewer than 10 practicing Muslims here, but the mosques was donated in an attempt to increase understanding following 9/11.

As we boarded our coach after visiting the lighthouse, our guide received a call from the ship. She was advised to check with the tour group to learn if anyone was experiencing gastro distress. If any were, she was to send them back to the ship by taxi. Due to a high number of passengers reporting illness the ship had gone to code red. Condiments were removed from the tables. These would be served by the waiters. The Lido food was dispensed by servers. The library was closed. This will continue until the cases decline.

We proceeded to La Serena. From the archeology museum we went to the market. Stalls were just opening, and we saw much of the same type of goods that were here the last time. Our guide Merlit, kindly took Alice and me to a farmacia to get cough medicine. She presented our symptoms in Spanish and the pharmacist selected the appropriate cough syrup. He wrote the dosage instructions on a label for us. A quantity greater than the Dayquill we bought on board cost us just $6 compared to $18.

We boarded the coach for our journey to the Elqui Valley. This is a narrow, fertile valley where melons, potatoes and other produce are grown. The predominant crop is grapes. There are many vineyards that grow grapes for the production of Pisco. This fermented product is a staple of the Pisco sour. At the end of our drive we visited the Capel distillery. They are a major producer of Pisco. We toured the facility, and then we sampled straight Pisco as well as Pisco sours. I will be looking for Capel Pisco when I get home. It is very smooth and flavorful.

Before turning back to the ship we had lunch in Vicunia. We started with an empanada and Pisco sour. This was followed by steak, rice, vegetables and unlimited red wine. Delightful!

The ride back to the ship was very scenic. We were glad to have done this tour. Merlit was an excellent guide with impeccable English. She was very informative.

This further reinforces our decision to repeat this grand itinerary.

Thursday, January 23, we docked at Valparaiso, Chile. Our tour of the old city left at 9:30. This included a drive through the downtown of the city, a tour of the poet Pablo Neruda’s house, a ride up one of the old funiculars that transport  people to the higher elevations on the hillsides and a walk to the ride down on another funicular.

The guide was excellent. She came from Vina Del Mar for our tour. The drive through downtown showed us the old architecture, the crowding and the congestion. We also saw several nicely appointed squares. As we headed up the narrow winding streets we kept on climbing. We finally stopped for a scenic overlook of the city and harbor.

Next we stopped at the Neruda museum. We were not given a time to return to the bus. We were told to meet at a given location when we finished the museum tour. As we entered we were given devices to play back recorded explanations of what we were seeing.

As Sean will vouch, when the Finns do a museum they read every sign and listen to every word. Alice and I did just that. We learned of the eccentricities of the poet and some of his strange habits. His house was designed like a boat with several floors and narrow staircases to reach them. Each room had fantastic views of the harbor and the neighboring hills. He liked to entertain, but often fell asleep before his guests had left. They would become quite irritated with him. When we finished the tour, we headed to the meeting point and saw our tour escort. She was explaining to the guard that she was looking for two passengers, the man was wearing a red shirt and had a beard. We tried to let her know we were returning to the bus. Off we went. Wouldn’t you know it. We were the last to return. Someone had told the escort that I was wearing a red, not blue, shirt. She was out there looking for us. At last she returned and we carried on.

The funicular ride was short, but very steep. We would have had great difficulty walking it. We did walk quite a way at the top. We wound through the neighborhood and stopped at some great viewing points. We overlooked an old funicular that had been removed from service and awaits repairs. It looked like the wait has already been quite long based on the weed growth over the tracks. At last we approached the down funicular, but first we stopped at a restaurant for a snack. All of the seats inside were taken when a group of five of u entered. The guide said good and led us outside where we moved a table into the shade of a large tree in the courtyard. The guide joined us there. She was very charming. Our snack consisted of a large empanada and a pisco sour. The empanada is like a pasty. It is baked dough filled with ground Peat, vegetables and an egg slice. Large and delicious.

After our ride down, we returned to the ship. Our impressions of Valparaiso have changed since our first visit. It is a city of great contrasts. The area near the port is old but reasonably well maintained. It is crowded and hilly beyond any other city we have visited. The streets are narrow and curving in order to negotiate the steep grades. We were surprised that we did not see any accidents. Vina Del Mar in contrast is relatively flat and seems more sophisticated. It has good shopping, beaches, museums and nice residential neighborhoods. The pace seems slower their.

If we were to return, our focus would be Vina Del Mar, but we are glad we experienced the city near the port.

Friday, January 24, a sea day started with me attending Good Morning Prinsendam. This is a TV show that Linda, our cruise director, does the morning of every sea day. She was interviewing our future cruise consultant, when the fire alarm sounded. She immediately ended the show and headed to her post on the bridge. Captain Roberts came on the pA to announce that this was a fire alarm for crew only and it was not a drill. Fire hade been detected in an area of the engine room near the incinerator. Passengers were to take no action. In just a few minutes Captain Roberts made anther announcement to clarify that there was no fire. But a large amount of ash in the air in that area. The cause was being investigated and appeared to be a blockage in the exhaust. All was OK.

Well, that made for an exciting sea day. But that was not enough. We experienced 30 to 40 knot headwinds and seas of 15 to 20 feet. In order to maintain some degree of comfortable the captain reduced our cruising speed to about 12 knots. This meant that we would be late in arriving at Puerto Montt. Not to worry! The next night’s journey to Castro was short. We could make up the lost time. So, our time in Puerto Montt was extended to 8 PM.

The rest of our time was spent in lectures. I have been taking the medicine we bought in La Serena, and it is working wonders. Cough and congestion are almost gone. I still have not opened the book Sean lent to me.

Saturday, January 25, marked our first visit to Puerto Montt. Again, we took a ship’s tour. Our guide, Ingrid, came to this area 40 years ago. Her English was perfect, and the knowledge she shared with us was quire enlightening. We headed out of Puerto Montt toward Lake Llanquihue, the second largest lake in Chile. As we left the city we could see Osorno Volcano in the distance. We reached the lake and drove along its shore, getting ever closer to Osorno. This volcano is over 8,000 feet high and has a beautiful snow capped peak. It is said to look like Mt. Fuji.  We stopped half way along to take pictures of it with the lake in the foreground.

Our destination was Petrohue Cascades. When we arrived we found the Petrohue River rushing through narrow channels in the volcanic lava. This made for exceptionally beautiful water color and spray. In the main channel a jet boat took tourists right up to the cascades. There were walkways constructed toe get us very close to the cascades from above. This was great to see. This is not a waterfall, and the drop in the river is not high, but the acceleration of the water as it passed through the narrows was exhilerating.

In addition to Osorno there are three other volcanoes. They provide nice peaks to include on photos, but do not approach the beauty of Osorno.

We returned from Petrohue to Puerto Varas, the city of roses. Ingrid explained that nearly everyone who lives here has at least one rose in the garden. The town was lovely. The main square is just one block from the lake shore. The shoreline here is somewhat sandy and, although the water temperature was in the low 60’s, there were many people in the water.

There was music playing in the square, and it was surrounded by lovely shops and restaurants. Unfortunately, we had less than thirty minutes to visit.

When we arrived at the port, Alice and I walked the main street to visit several blocks of handicraft stalls. The merchandise was interesting with a high concentration of woolen goods. We have our cold weather clothing, so we held onto our pesos. We had left Prinsendam shortly after noon. We returned at 7:15. There was no lunch or snack included in our tour. We had not eaten since breakfast. This is unforgivable on a cruise, so we went straight to the Lido for supper.

Sunday, January 26, we arrived at Castro on time. Alice and I boarded a tender right after breakfast. The last time we were here we turned left upon leaving the terminal. This time we decided to turn right.

We walked along the shore drive until we came to the end of the row of shoreside buildings built on stilts. We went down to the tide line to try to get a picture of these buildings from the seaside, but there was no bend in the shore and we could not see the fronts.

Up the hill we went. City center is high on a hill. Again the grades are very steep. Locals are very fit as they walk up and down these hills often every day. We are not so fit, but after a few rest stops we made the top. As we walked toward the square we saw a bright yellow steeple with purple trim in the distance. This was the catholic church on the square. It was very bright, and we are pretty sure that two years ago it was washed out and badly in need of repainting. What a difference.

As we walked we came to a large school. Just as we started taking pictures we heard the church bells. It was 10:45. We took a few photos and decided to head for the church in hopes of attending mass there. At the door we learned that mass was at eleven. We were ten minutes early and went in. There were very few people there. As we sat waiting, we watched a very industrious lady organize things on the altar for the mass. Then she started down the aisle. Alice said she was coming to us.

Sometimes in our travels we experience things that create really unforgettable memories. This was to be one of those times. This lady approached us and in very fluent Spanish, which we could not understand, was asking us something. We finally figured out that she wanted us to bring the bread and wine used in the mass up to the altar. We were a bit uncomfortable, since we did not know their ritual, but there was no denying her. She led us to the back of the church and with gestures explained what we were to do and that she would guide us.

Back in a pew at the rear of church we waited for the mass to begin. There was a band and choir providing the music. It was very lively, as Spanish music can be.

The entire service was conducted in Spanish, but the ritual was very familiar to us. The universal church makes this part easy.

Our time came and sure enough the lady was there to coach us. We led a procession of two ladies and two children to the altar. This is a big deal here. The priest was very kind and tried addressing us in Spanish. Based on our confusion he switched to English. He chatted with us, gave us a special blessing, and we returned the length of the church to our pew. We thanked God for allowing us to participate in such a special way so far from home.

At the end of mass the band and singers struck up a lively song and two dancers performed a folk dance in front of the altar. Astounding! The priest bid us farewell and safe travels as we left the church. Of course we got a picture of him.

Still riding high form this experience we walked through the square and down a street toward the sea. Our goal was to get pictures of the houses on stilts that line a small bay on the side of town away from the harbor. We succeeded, and returned to the square and then down the steep hills to the market at harbor side. This had expanded greatly since last time. Woolens and wood were the predominate objects. There was no haggling over price. We tried at several stalls, each of which offered the same price. None would budge. The market was crowded with locals. The last time it was just tourists. Perhaps this is because it was Sunday.

We boarded the tender for a smooth ride back home. What a marvelous return to Castro.

January 21, 2014 - Twenty Miles Off the Coast of Chile

January 16 to January 21, 2014

Thursday, January 16. This is our second day in Lima. Our plan to visit the Peruvian Market on the pier and then take the shuttle to Miraflores was soon abandoned. We walked down to the market. It was crowded with passengers from both Prinsendam and Amsterdam. We realized that this was the market where I had purchased a very nice leather belt two years ago. We made our way through stalls selling sweaters, scarves and hats as well as jewelry and trinkets. At last I saw some belts. I picked out 3 black belts, each with different engraved patterns All were better quality than I have found at home of late. Those are more like cardboard. They fall apart in less than a year. These three appeared to be as substantial as the one I bought last time. The price started at $10 and ended at $8 each. These should last my lifetime.

Next we sat down to try the free internet. My login was finally accepted, but the message said I could not join the network at this time. Try again. I did. And I did. And I did, again. All to no avail. There were just too many logins. The Amsterdam was to depart in an hour, so passengers were taking there last opportunity to get free internet before leaving. Their next port is Easter Island, many sea days away.

It was almost noon, so Alice and I decided to scrap Miraflores for today. We went back onboard and watched the Amsterdam cast off, haul anchor and leave. There was much horn tooting and waving as we bid each other farwell.

After lunch we watched a large RO-RO (Roll On – Roll Off) Dock in the space vacated by Amsterdam Within an hour and a half the crew was delivering 3000 new cars. The ones I saw being driven away were new Jeep Cherokees.

Dinner rolled around too soon, and then it was off to see the Magic Fountains. This tour left at 7:30 and was not due back until 11:00. We started with a repeat of yesterday’s city tour. This time it was dark and we got to see the buildings illuminated. This new perspective was enjoyable.

Finally we made our way to a park with many fountains. Some were artistic in their fountain displays. Others were designed to allow participants to get wet. One had a broad arch that we could walk through, while getting only a little  dripping form the water passing overhead. The centerpiece fountain pumped out a curtain wall of water with a multicolored light display. Promptly at 9:30 music began to play, the lights went off and a laser show began to play on the wall of water. This evolved into various movies intertwined with the laser show. After twenty minutes of marvelous spectacle, the show ended to much applause.

A slow ride through heavy traffic brought us home to Prinsendam. We had missed an onboard folkloric show, but were happy to have seen the Magic Fountain display

Friday, January 17. We went to Miraflores by shuttle. The drop point was the Marriott hotel, the same as 2012. The “”mandatory” visit to H. Stern for a map and viewing of current jewelry stock was brief. We are not in the market at this time.

We proceeded upstairs to the Marriott lobby. As we tried to join the internet, a very cute bartender came over to take our drink order. We declined, and asked if the internet required a password. She gave us the password, walked away and did not approach us again. We were online for about two hours.

With the internet need satisfied we decided to venture outside. Amist was rolling in from the ocean. It only penetrated inland about one block, but it made everything very grim.

Out shuttle escort pointed us in the direction of a drug store. I have been suffering with an upper respiratory malady for about 8 days, and want to give Alice (and me in the process) some relief. No one in the store spoke English. The clerk asked me to write out what I needed, cough syrup. She indicated that they did not have any. It later dawned on me that she was probably hoping to get a name brand. Oh well.

We ventured into the mall across from the hotel. This descends three stories down the Cliffside. That does not even get it close to the sea below The tenants consist of clothing and shoe stores with a large number of restaurants interspersed. There seemed to be a large turnover since our last visit.

With the poor weather we decided to forego any further walking around, and returned home. The shuttle ride was horrendous. This bus seemed not to have any shock absorbers. The journey over the many speed bumps planted in Lima’s roads seemed like a rocket launch at times. We always landed with a thud.

At 6:00 we departed Callao/Lima and headed south toward Arica, Chile. Tomorrow is a sea day.

Saturday, January 18. We spent this sea day in lectures and classes. The time is passing quickly. This is a result of the activities being so diverse and interesting. We often have to eliminate something we would like to do  in hopes that it might be offered again. The new lecturers  are interesting and good presenters. I have even stayed awake after lunch.

Meal times come too quickly. Dinners at our table are always enjoyable. Breakfasts and lunches provide the opportunities to meet other travelers. We look forward to these events, and have not met anyone we would not like to sit with again.

Sunday, January 19. We arrived at Arica, Chile. This small coastal city is surrounded by hills and then the Atacama desert. That is the driest place on earth. Since the tours to the desert required long coach rides we opted to stay in the city and do our own walking tour.

The first thing we noticed was the large number of birds roosting in the palm trees. The second thing was the bird droppings all over the pavement. The walks in the square were being scrubbed by hand to keep them clean.

Clean is a byword for this place. Everything is very neat and clean. We passed the craft stalls in the square and headed to for the obligatory visit tot the cathedral on the square. There were many steps leading up to the church. I noticed a sidewalk next to the church that led to a side yard of the church. Using this, we were able to reduce the stairs Alice had to climb to just two. The church was very nice. After a short visit we headed off to the pedestrian street.

On the way we passed an internet café offering one hour for $1. That buys us just 4 minutes on the ship. Walking along, we passed many restaurants and shops. All of these were closed. It was 10:00 on Sunday. We did not know if they would be open later. We kept on walking. There was quite a bit of graffiti. Some of it was quite attractive. As we neared the end of the walking street, we spied a large store that looked like a department store. It was. When we rode the escalator up to the second floor (or is it the first floor) we discovered the electronics and furniture departments. The prices for TV’s and computers seemed reasonable. Furniture prices were inexpensive, yet the quality seemed good. The selection of entertainment centers was very contemporary, and we found ourselves saying we would definitely buy from this selection if available at hom,

We kept on walking into the neighborhood when the pedestrian way ended. Our view of the major hills overlooking the city changed with every new block. Soon we were running out of sidewalk, and we were outside the hospital. Just looking. No visiting. We turned to head back downtown.

We meandered through the neighborhoods to either side of our original route before returning to the walking street. We got back to the waterfront parkway and checked out a museum, a narrow gauge locomotive and the craft stalls.

We were satisfied with what we had done in Arica. It struck as a clean, well organized town with very friendly people. Our only regret was that it was Sunday and with the shops closed the activity level was low.  This would be a nice place, if it was jumping.

Monday, January 20. This sea day brought more interesting lectures and a wine tasting. The guest wine consultant introduced us to some Chilean and Argentinian wines. They were very good and moderately priced. He told us where to look for them on shore. The evening was formal with a very nice dinner menu. The latin dancers who entertained us were very good. A great day at sea.

Tuesday, January 21. Another sea day! This provides for some leisure time. The highlight was the Mariners’ award ceremony and luncheon. Alice and I were presented with silver medallions for 300 days on Holland America ships. Lunch was very nice with free flowing champaign.

Tomorrow we arrive at Coquimbo, Chile. We did this on our own last time. This time we are taking a tour that will Get us out to a valley outside town.

January 13 to 15, 2014 Trujillo and Lima

Monday, January 13 a sea day.  This day passed uneventfully with more lectures and meals. It was a formal night, Dinner in Gold. I missed that and the entertainment because I slept in. I have been struggling with an upper respiratory bother, and decided, with Alice’s encouragement, to try to sleep it off. That did offer some improvement, and I was ready to the next day. Alice did dinner, without me, in the Lido. It was the same menu as the dining room, but less formal. She attended the entertainment, Forbidden Broadway, and found it enjoyable. I slept on.

Tuesday, January 14, marked our triumphant return to Trujillo, Peru. Some of you may have followed our 2012 blog at apfinn.blogspot.com and know that we had to make a detour from the Panama Canal that kept us in the hospital there for four days. Tujillo is where we rejoined the ship.

This time there were no diversions. We did not have to fly in. We rode the free shuttle from the pier. We were dropped at the main square, which we enjoyed so much the last time. At the bus stop we received a free map of the city center. It indicated a tourist information office on the opposite side of the square. This was our first stop.

Avery kind young lady gave us a more detailed map, and pointed out several free museums and historical home. All were within easy walking distance. We had not visited a local market in 2012, so we asked her about that. She gave clear instructions on how to get there. Then she mentioned  a Toy Museum. This had a nominal admission fee, but did not take dollars. Since we had not changed any dollars for Peruvian soles, she told us where to find a “safe” exchange.

Armed with all this information we set out First an historical house. This turned out to be a banking museum. It housed 18^th century furniture, old and new art and a coin/currency collection.

From here we went to the market. It was just as she had described it. It was indoors, and contained purveyors of all sorts of goods. We found fruits, vegetables, grains, spices, flowers, hard goods, tools meat and fish. As we approached one fish stall an older gentleman was just picking out a whole fish. We stood in awe as the woman fish monger  gutted the fish, removed the head and tail, did a filet of one side and made steaks of the other side. She bagged it, weighed it and the whole thing cost less than $18. The whole time she made sure we were getting the pictures we wanted. All of this with a big smile and not a word of English from her or Spanish from us.

After the market we moved back to the pedestrian street. We followed this past several Casinos, many shoe and clothing stores and a few supermarkets.

We were close to the Toy Museum, but had not changed any money. We decided to trek up to the second floor entrance. I tried the door, but it was locked. Oh well. As we were turning to leave, I noticed a handle on our side that was attached to a small rope that came through a hoe in the door. A bell pull? Just as I was about to try it, a woman opened the door. She spoke no English, but asked for 5 soles each. I asked Dollars? She was troubled at first, but then went to her computer, brought up a currency  exchange website and told us $4 total. Bravo!

The museum was small, but contained toy, dolls, doll houses, tops cycles trains and much more. Much of this dated back 100 years or more. As we made our way through the rooms we would turn the lights on and odd along the way. It was very sunny and warm outside, but the breeze coming through the open windows made the place seem air conditioned. I guess it was, in an old fashioned sense.

Down the stairs, without falling, we went back to the square, and visited on more historic home. Then boarded the return shuttle. An hour later Prinsendam was on her way to Callao, the port for Lima.

Many of our fellow travelers spent the day visiting archeological sites. These are very interesting and impressive. We had done them last time. The sad part is that you cannot do both the archeology and the city in the short time we have in port. That is really too bad, because those who missed either attraction, missed something special.

Wednesday January 15,  we arrived at Callao. Docked on the other side of the pier is the Holland American Amsterdam. She is in the early days of her Grand World Voyage. We have 53 days ahead of us. They have 100 days ahead.

Many guest had friends on the other ship. They arranged for touring together or for lunch on the other vessel. It is fun to see how the cruising family expands with each voyage.

We took it easy onboard until our tour departure at 2:15. We went for the Walking Tour of the main Square in the historic town. There were 10 passengers, a driver, a guide and his assistant in a comfortable van. The tour operator is Lima Tours. They did a fine job.

On our way into the city our guide, Percy, explained the geography of the city and talked about the economics. He explained that Limanites are a proud, hard working and friendly people. He repeated the friendly aspect many times as we noted a strong police presence in tourist areas. We never felt threatened.

There is a large disparity between the wealthy and the poor with a small middle class. The city has 10,000,000 inhabitants, spread through 43 neighborhoods. Percy owns no vehicle and lives in a middle class suburb 40 miles south of the city. He faces a two hour commute each way. His English is very good. He has worked in tourism for 6 years.

After noting sites along the way we stopped a square dedicated to General San Martin. Here we learned of the squares history, something about San Martin and something about the surrounding structures. Then our walk began.

This was an easy walk along a pedestrian thoroughfare, toward the government palace and its major square. We were introduced to several churches and historic buildings along the way. Some of these buildings had beautiful historic facades.  Their landmark status prevents exterior changes. Inside they have been gutted and changed into retail stores. One was even a supermarket.

At the government center we found a huge square with the public buildings on one end, the cathedral on one side and public buildings on the other side. In the center was a fountain. Percy told us that on July 27^th each year the fountain pumps Pisco, the nation liquor, for three hours. People arrive a day in advance to partake, and the next day is a national holiday.

Next we stopped at a restaurant for local juice drinks. These were similar to smoothies, bur made with berries we have seen at home. Very good!

After a stop at the church of St. Dominic, where the remains of St. Martin and St Rose of Lima are buried, we returned to the ship. This was an enjoyable trip.

We got to the dining room 20 minutes late. But our servers had us caught up to Ken and Marion in no time without rushing. Karol and Carol were out on a private tour. We had met them at the juice stop. They still had dinner and the Magic Fountain ahead of them. We will be doing the fountain tomorrow.