JANUARY 13

---

Sunday January 13

What a beautiful day! Castro, Isla Chiloe, Chile. It was supposed to be 60 degrees with a chance of rain so I had a T shirt, long sleeve shirt and a sweater. I carried a jacket. When I went ashore I carried the jacket. Shortly after I took off the sweater. Perfect day weather-wise. I went ashore by the tender. Smooth seas, smooth ride.

When I got ashore, I realized I had quite a hike up a steep hill to reach the town square and the Cathedral, my sight seeing objective. Before I began the climb, I found a sea shore park, for some unknown to me reason, dedicated to old trains. One engine was named after my friend Manny from the White Horse I knew he was well known internationally, but I was surprised that his reputation extended to Castro, Chile! I struggled to get up the hill, but it was a cardiac stress test and I passed. When I got to the top I had two thoughts; was it worth the effort and will going down be easier. It wasn’t really worth the effort, but I’m glad I did it, and it was easier going down. I don’t know why the town seemed so dead; was it because it was a Sunday morning? I was looking forward to lunch in a local restaurant, but I did find any I was interested in trying. I went back to the ship after about an hour in town.

The weather was so nice I changed into my shorts and went up to the Lido deck and sat in the sun and read on my Kindle. Had a few diet Cokes (see, it isn’t always alcohol) and awaited the start of the Seahawks/Falcons game. Another great one. I watched it from the Crow’s Nest where I could see both the game and the scenery (plus it was happy hour there). There were many white flotation devices on the water I tried without success to find what they were. Just before leaving, the captain explained that they were salmon farms. Who knew!

I had dinner with a couple from Toronto who spent there winters in Melbourne, FL and a man from Oregon and his wife from Kazakhstan who were moving to Kazakhstan. Real interesting discussions. I caught the last quarter of the Patriots/Houston game in the Crow’s nest. Sunset around 9:30 again, but the light remained for another half hour. The music was provided by DJ Alex and featured ABBA for a while and then requests. I requested some Ray Charles and Village People. There weren’t many people there at the time (because of early port excursions tomorrow), but the wait staff enjoyed the music, and so did I.

Tomorrow, Puerto Chacabuco. I’m booked for Northern Patagonia and Coyhaigue City leaving at 7:45 am. Good luck Charley!

---

Photos

CASTRO PARK
MANNY

CASTRO HARBOR
ms VEENDAM

CASTRO
CATHEDRAL

CASTRO
TENDERS

CASTRO
SALMON FARMS

CASTRO
CITY FROM THE SHIP

Comments

[Home and Away]

I'm surprised that you could watch the games live...
During our recent cruise from Honolulu to Sydney, we went without cable TV and internet for most of the trip.