A Reflection of our Adventure

We have been home for over a week now and have had the opportunity to reflect on this special adventure. We realize we were really fortunate to have experienced such a unique trip. We never thought we would be able to go to Antactica. That portion in Antarctic was the gem of this trip while Argentina and Brazil were extra perks.



Another thing we were somewhat surprised about, was that there were a goodly number of folks that were not very physically fit or healthy enough to attempt such an adventure. If you happen to have a serious medical issue while aboard ship, you may not get to a hospital for a number of days. It doesn't mean it is reputable, just a hospital. We were awfully far from any medical facility for any major problem.


The Quark Expedition Team was absolutely excellent. They made sure everything and every point of interest was safe as well as interesting and well planned. The stops that we made are not always possible due to the ice buildup in some of the areas but they would not forego safety in search of adventure. They also made sure we were well equipped with special boots and the lovely water repellent warm yellow jackets. Those bright yellow jackets will come in so handy here in FL. :-)






The team members from the Ocean Diamond Expedition were well trained in multiple positions which meant they might be guiding a zodiac in the morning and later in the day providing instruction for the kayakers or skiers or making sure you had your life jacket on properly as they checked off your name as you left the boat for a hike and cruise. The team members assisted in everything from medical, geological, photography and animal and bird identification and history. They made this trip a wonderful adventure, since they wanted to make sure that you really enjoyed your once in a lifetime experience. We certainly did.




The ship even stopped so that the passengers could get photos of these lovely whales on New Year's Day. Of course, the whales also stayed in the area a little longer since they felt safe. This was fabulous.

We were surprised by the mountains of lava covered with snow. We had stereotypical ideas of Antarctica being flat. It is flatter as you go much farther inland, but that is not an area we will ever see. The central flat area is where a fair amount of research is done by various countries.






















The remoteness did not surprise us but it did give us a very eerie feeling. You could look way off in the distance and not see anything but snow, ice, steep mountains, glaciers, and icebergs, but no other ships. It was almost a quiet soothing meditative type of silence. Really hard to explain because it was so so quiet. You would occasionally hear a glacier calving (crashing into the water) but otherwise this serene feeling. This was especially evident near the "Iceberg Graveyard" area. There wasn't much of anything there, not even many penguins and the gray overcast sky just added to that ominous feeling.







The most beautiful blue iceberg.













Another zodiac seen through a tunnel of an iceberg. Neat!












The penguins were quite fascinating to watch and to try to identify which ones were which. I was concerned that the odor around the penguins would be terrible. I had read that it would be overpowering. There was a smell but not too bad; it certainly could have been far worse. They are noisy little buggers though. They are in constant motion and really make a fair amout of chatter within their colonies. The surprising thing is that some of the colonies were way up on the tops of mountains, which made it difficult for them to go down to the water to get food and then make the long trek back up the mountain. Also, larger birds could also see them when they were on the mountain tops, which makes them a main meal for predators. Some of the larger birds just hover over penguin colonies to try to get the eggs or young chicks that might escape. The penguins do not have an easy life.











































All in all we had a wonderful time, especially in Antarctic since that is surely a place we won't be able to travel to again soon.

Argentina was also pretty unique in that we were able to see a huge glacier that continues to grow. Most glaciers are getting smaller.














Buenos Aires was a huge city but it did offer some unique things such as the dog walkers and the cathedral of the now Pope Francis, the opera, along with areas which Eva Peron made famous. There is a different culture there and people are either quite rich or awfully poor. The poor areas were so sad and dilapidated.







The Cathedral where Pope Francis used to preach in Buenos Aires.












Where Eva Peron spoke.





Ceiling dome within the opera.














The falls at Iguazu are one of the 7 wonders of the natural world, so we were fortunate to spend a fair amount of time there.

All in all we had a wonderful trip.

Heading Home From South America

Monday Jan. 13, 2014

We did get out of Iguazu at about 1:30 am or later which was about an hour late. It seems it was a luggage handlers' strike so that could definitely be a problem.

We did get into Buenos Aires and that flight was delayed which was good. We went through security again and got to our gate and went through security once more but this time it was hand searched. When they did the hand search, they took my Purell, which I carried through the whole trip until now. There is to be no alcohol products and Purell contains alcohol. That took time and we did not leave until after 5 am. That means we should get into Miami about 12 noon or after since this is about a 9 hour flight and a time change. We went through immigration with no problems but the luggage was really, really slow. We must have waited for at least 40 minutes to an hour. Miami seems very disorganized. We then finally got our stuff and needed to get to the American ticketing area in the domestic terminal. This airport stretches for miles so that was a definite problem. We hustled through the controller and then after a lot of walking got to the American ticketing in terminal D. We used the kiosk to check in and we will make our flight. It is a good thing we had a later flight since we certainly did not have an excess amount of time to spare since we had to go through security once again. What a mess. We are not checking our luggage on this flight but we didn't really have a choice from Iguazu. Here the luggage actually fits. The foreign flights are not as friendly to carry-ons that are bigger than a purse.

I had the pre-check through security but Walt did not. I went through the fast check but I was the random person who had to have my hands checked with their little wipe down. I did have to wait a little longer for Walt, but not too much longer. The guy who was doing my pre-check said he would put Walt in a shorter line and he did. I had the liquids so that made it a little faster anyway.


We got back into Orlando late afternoon of Monday Jan. 13 after being on a plane and being up almost 2 days. We are weary but glad to be home. I will write a post of our favorite things in a few days.

Iguazu Falls Argentina

Sunday Jan. 12, 2014

We started today early since we have a busy day at the National Park for the Iguazu Falls. We started by walking to the train that took us to a walking trail of falls as well as bridges that had been destroyed a few years ago from the winter heavy rains and the river rising 9 feet along with all that force. There were lots of those little raccoon type animals all over the park. There are warnings to stay away from them and not feed them since they probably have rabies. People just don't pay any attention to the warnings and now there were baby raccoons all over the place too.




Tropical bird of Argentina.

Next we took the train back and eventually worked our way to the steps that took us down to the boats. There the boats toured us around the falls and we got absolutely wet. The water poured down so hard that we could not keep our eyes open. It was unbelievable to be so up close. We got doused at least 2 times which made us all look like drowned rats. We docked and got off and worked our way back up the stairs and got on a special truck that took us on our jungle ride. That portion was sort of a bust. We did not see any wildlife at all, not even a bird. Then it was onto a buffet lunch.




Getting ready for the boat trip under the falls.




Getting really close to those falls and nearly wet.



Too close and very wet for the first time. We actually got drenched 3 times.






Look how small those people look down below as we walk the upper falls.





We actually dried out. See the nice falls behind us.



We were even lucky enough to catch a rainbow over one of the falls.


After lunch we reached our last hike but also received the news that our flight was cancelled. Our guide was working on checking on the situation. It seems there is a strike which is a problem. We finished the hike and eventually headed back to the hotel to clean up and change our clothes. The hotel offered us that opportunity which we think our guide worked out. We changed and then ate in their bar area.

We will tentatively leave on a 12:50 am flight from Iguazu and then leave from Buenos Aires at 4 am. We shall see.

Heading to Iguazu Falls in Brazil

Saturday Jan. 11, 2014

We had a morning flight out of Buenos Aires into Iguazu Falls area. It was about a 2 hour flight. It was quite bouncy so no snacks or beverages were served.


As soon as we got to the hotel we had only a few minutes to get ready to head to the Brazilian side of the falls. We weren't even allowed to check in, but we could grab a couple of things like sunscreen and go. We took about an hour to get there and a big portion of the time was spent going through immigration between the two countries.




This is the bridge that divides Argentina from Brazil. The blue and white is Argentina and the green and yellow is Brazil .

We walked around and had views of the falls that we weren't able to get from Argentina. We had some really good views of the 20 % (which is the portion of falls on the Brazilian side) as well as the 80% (which is the Argentinian portion). We did get quite wet from the spray and then got poured on by the rain. What fantastic views of the falls. We were able to get a panoramic view of all of them.














It is difficult to get the full perspective as to how massive these falls are.


We then sat on the van and waited through immigration again. Our clothes were still quite damp by the time we arrived back at the hotel. We then had supper down in the bar area with folks from our group. There were several tables pushed together and we all enjoyed some food and liquid refreshments. It was a very nice relaxing time.





A lizard in Brazil.



These are their raccoons that are all over the place and have rabies. They tell people to stay away but it seems to be a lost cause since people are constantly feeding them.

Tour of Buenos Aires

Friday Jan. 10, 2014

We went down to the morning breakfast and they had a lot of items that they say have antioxidants. They also have a large table full of cookies and other desserts. It does seem rather ironic, but the desserts are not bad, not as good as the food on the ship but ok.







We had a tour of the city where we were taken to what were previously mansions of the rich and are now embassies. There are a lot of green park areas which is very European. We also saw a number of dog walkers in the parks and nearby areas. They might be walking as many as 10 dogs at one time and of course these are not just mutts, they are very expensive dogs. I guess these dog walkers make a fair amount of money since they have to walk the dogs at least 2 times a day.







Here is a busy dog walker.






These happen to be cups made of alpaca leather. They have a special tea that is called mates which is drunk by using the metal straws. There is a special technique used in drinking it. If not finished or done properly it solidifies. It is some sort of herb, which is another antioxidant that they promote.






They also have a thermos of hot water to take when they wish to make this special tea.

I almost forgot we did see the pope's cathedral in Buenos Aires. The people of this area are so very proud to have one own be the pope.




Here is the cathedral which really looks more like a government building on the outside, but it was very lovely inside.




Here is a photo of Pope Francis which was just inside the door.





This is right near the presidential palace which is only for meetings. The president does not live here but out in the suburbs. This gate is protecting the palace from protesters and riots. There frequently are protesters but our guide said that this wall is not usually all the way across. There was also a high amount of security people and police presence when we were there.





Here are some of the protest banners.





Here is a stencil of the grandmothers wearing scarves that is on the pavement to represent the many children and folks that were removed and disappeared by the military during the 60s or 70s.

We were busy today. In fact we even were able to tour the Opera building which had many influences from Versailles, so it was really interesting to see. The guide even sang a bit at the end to show us how well the acoustics work since there is no need for microphones. It is the 3rd best in the world for sound. It was pretty impressive.








The opera was lovely.






We went to a dinner where there was Tango for the entertainment. It was quite good with sexy costumes and much different from the one we viewed earlier. We could not take any photos so none to show.

Iguazu Falls Area

Saturday Jan. 11, 2014

We had an early start for our flight to the falls. We went to the Brazilian side this afternoon. Some of the group just veged out by the pool and took naps. We certainly got wet, even though we were to only get a little wet. We walked along the side where you get a panoramic view of the falls. You get a fabulous view from the Brazilian side but only 20% of the falls are actually on the Brazil side. We will experience the 80% tomorrow and we will get drenched. It is guaranteed. We take a speed boat of sorts and get dumped on by the falls that are called the 3 Musketeers.













There is a heck of lot of force rumbling down these falls. Whew!







Some of their English translation is a bit different.




We enjoyed a relaxing time chatting with folks as we had supper and drinks in the nice bar area of the hotel. We did not get back from the falls until after 6 so we needed to change into dry clothes and relax. It started out with a couple of tables pushed together and ended up with 7 or 8 tables put together and enjoyed just visiting. It was nice to have a nice unscheduled time with most of the group.

We also have a very nice view from our hotel where the river splits and you can see Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil. The three countries are quite close together at least by river; by driving about an hour or so.