Boarding @ Ushuaia

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Up at 5am and scurried to be downstairs by 5:30.  I ran and got a cup of coffee while Kate dealt with check-out. We were lucky this morning. There was a Peruvian flight crew up early and the early breakfast was really for them. We just caught a break - usually breakfast does not open till 6am.  The taxi came pretty close to 6 and there was a lot of conversation about which airport and how long it would take and how much $$.  The driver broke out his Google Translator and all questions were answered.

The domestic airport is a busy place. We made our way to check-in and then went our separate ways.  I took advantage of the upgrade auction to be able to stretch out -- my knee is not a happy camper after the past couple of days.  I went in search of a VIP lounge -- not here, too small.  Walked around a bit and eventually met up with Kate at the gate.  Said good-bye to Buenos Aires as the plane took off. It was a short but very fulfilling visit. I am now enjoying my luxury seat immensely.  Just finished a small breakfast and waiting to land in about an hour and a half or so.  As mentioned previously, we'll have a couple of hours in Ushuaia before the charter comes for us.  We are both pretty psyched about finally getting on board.

Easy landing with glorious sights.  Did not expect so much
sunshine.  Thought it was going to rain today.  Grabbed a taxi and had a wonderful conversation with Andres.  He gave us his card just in case we should need a rescue on the way home.  The Albatross Hotel is lovely.  We dropped our bags, checked in with our loved ones and headed out to get our passports stamped with the Ushuaia stamp.  Walked about town for a bit.  There are several old houses that were made out of the ships - using every piece that they could.  They are pretty cool and quite dear as I understand it.  Took photos and headed on back to the hotel for a bite to eat.  Eventually the bus came to pick us up to go to the ship.  The sun was shining, the temps were fine, the winds were a bit active but nothing I haven't experienced living on the south-coast of New England.

To my standards this is a large ship.  However, I have been told that this is in the small category.  We found our way to our cabin which is quite nice I might say.  Did as much unpacking as we could before it was time for the life vest instruction.  With that done, it was back to our cabin. FYI, the beds have since been separately.  I took a shower and no sooner was I done then it was time for the crew introduction -- starting to feel a bit like camp but I played along.  Everyone is very nice and extremely accommodating. I still feel like a fish out of water, so to speak. There was talk about what to expect from the weather.  Apparently, there is a front moving in and we may be hanging around the Beagle Passage until it moves through. After that, it looks like clear skies for quite a while.

Finally it was time for dinner.  "Would you like to sit with other people" "Absolutely".  We had a wonderful table.  A couple from London.  The man was a high court judge and this couple actually knows Fiona Hill!!! His wife was a dentist. Another Chinese couple know live in San Diego.and a couple from Napa Valley, CA.  There was plenty of  lively conversation and we were one of the last tables to vacate.  Speaking of which, it is now 11 pm and it is still light outside.  Not sure if it ever gets dark.

Going to try and get some shut eye.

Next time.... Going through Drake Passage

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