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.
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