Ports

(Note: Most of the days on the M/V Discovery on this cruise are at sea, so I haven't posted on the ports, so the following is back-tracking, chronologically.)


My actual cruise began on January 27 in Valparaiso, Chile. It ends on February 10 in Ushuia, Argentina. (I may be able to patch in a graphic later - but for now - you'll have to Google these places yourself). In between, the ship only stopped at two ports - Puerto Montt and Punta Arenas.

On the road to Valparaiso: This port city was reached by a bus ride of about 90 minutes from Santiago, the capital of Chile where I arrived from Los Angeles (& have already mentioned briefly in an earlier post). One of the sites pointed out along the way by Alejandro, our tour guide on the bus, was a small copper mine. However, he stated the mine pales in size to the state-run Chuquicamata mine located north in the Atacama Desert. The former produces about 70,000 tons annually as compared to the large mine's 2 million tons. We soon left the dry, Santiago Valley and passed through two much greener valleys with fruit trees and vineyards. The Casablanca Valley's vineyards are mostly white wine producing.

As we neared Valparaiso, it was evident we were getting closer to the coast. The first clue was passing a lot filled with large shipping containers (like you'd see at AML).

For centuries a major world port, Valparaiso's standing took a dive when the Panama Canal was completed. However, watching the port activity after I was on ship, it still seemed very busy. Across the pier from the Discovery, for example, a freighter, Spring Dragon, was being onloaded by large cranes. Other freighters were docked nearby. Chilean Navy ships were occupying another separate pier. Small tour boats chugged by with tourists on a harbor tour, while a enforcement boat zipped past (looking like a twin to our Coast Goard boats that escorts the cruise ships in and out of the Tongass Narrows at home.)

The city is built on many hills with access by funiculars dating to the 19th century and originally powered by coal. (Looking a bit rickety as compared to the much newer Cape Fox tram, but they've lasted this long, so are reliable).

We're off!: Our first evening and the next day, were spent traveling down the coast of Chile. We were out far enough off the coastline that it wasn't visible. It was a good time to get used to the ship and to meet other volunteers, such as a couple from New Zealand - Cathy and Dave.

We arrived in Puerto Montt on January 29, which was my birthday. Although I usually don't mark my birthday's with celebrations anymore, I wanted to do something special being away from home. In talking to Dave and Cathy the previous evening, we decided to take a trip together outside of Puerto Montt. Cathy had already been to this town on a previous trip and wanted to do something different. We hired a taxi to take us to Frutillar and Puerto Varas - two Bavarian-influenced towns located on a lake about 30 minutes away. The area was settled by Germans through a government-sponsored immigration program. Later, Slavs immigrated here. The influences of both are seen in some of the names around the area. Puerto Montt, at a population of about 200,000, is the fastest growing city in south Chile; but the two towns we visited were smaller - especially Frutillar. No wonder, then, that it was my favorite.

Frutillar had a relaxed small-town feel. And what a picturesque setting on Lago Llanquihue (South America's fourth largest lake) with the snow-capped volcano Osorno in the background. This is a popular vacationing spot for Chileans (which is now as their summer is our winter, so the children are out of school.) This town also hosts a classical music festival every summer. (The only building I saw which I found unattractive was being constructed as a venue for the festival.) Next to it, a pretty wooden pier extended into the water and across the street two men were playing chess on a giant-sized chess board. (Photos to be inserted when I can)

We stopped at the town of Puerto Varas on the way back to Puerto Montt. Although it also has a scenic setting also on the lake, it did not appeal to me as much. It had a boom town "we must build to keep the tourists coming" feel to it; evidenced by the casino on one side of a busy street with another large hotel under construction on the other side. Progress?

We embarked back on the ship without me checking out Puerto Montt. Three days at sea followed with the absolutely beautiful scenery in the Chilean Fjords and the Magellan Strait. (see Fjords post) It wasn't just me that thought this area looked like Southeast. Our daily program guide states of this region - Aysen or Aisen - that its terrain and form are: "very similar to those of the Alaska Panhandle, the northern Norwegian coast and New Zealand's Milford Sound."


Punta Arenas - On Monday, February 2, we docked in Punta Arenas, which means Sandy Point. It is the capital of this province, called Magallenes. This city (population 120,000 to 130,000) is the major hub for vessels going to and from the Antarctica, and presumably for supply airplanes as well. It has the only large airport in this area of the country. (I will fly back here from the Falklands.)

I had signed up for a tour to a Magellanic penguin rookery in the afternoon, but the morning I had free. Another Kiwi couple from off the ship - Dave and Sue - and their friend Jane, invited me to walk around with them. The cemetery was the first destination. It may seen strange, but this is quite the tourist stop because it contains grave sites of early sailors as well as up to the present day, with everything from large extravagent mausoleums to simple graves. I found reading the names fascinating as they were often a mixture of Spanish surnames with Slavik names. (Which makes sense I later found out as this is an area of Croatian immigration.) Huge sculpted trees divided various areas, and the early morning light on the crypts and walkways was pretty. Leaving the cemetery, we walked down a main avenue. Its median contained monuments along the way to various influences in the area - sheepherds; Croatians; and petroleum. Interesting and odd mixture. Among other sites, we walked past the University of Magellan and a race track on our way to our destination - a shopping mall. I withdrew some more Chilean pesos from an ATM and everyone looked around before we hired a taxi to take us back to the city center. Stopped in several outdoor gear stores out of curiosity and got a lead on a hostel to possibly stay in on my return for the Falklands.

After lunch back on the ship, Jane and I joined other cruise ship passengers for a bus trip to a Magellanic penguin rookery. These penguins nest in burrows in the ground, which is different than the other types of penguins we were to see later. I was excited as these were my first penguins of the trip - and they are so cute. We observed them both on the beach and also inland a bit, traversing to their burrows, or standing outside. (But, my camera battery decided to give out, so I didn't get as many photos as I'd liked). These are the penguins also known as the jackass penguins as they make a braying sound. (I may do a separate post on penguins gleaned from my observations and from notes from a lecture).