We made it back to the ship yesterday afternoon in Valpariso. Fred says we just spent 2 days on the moon.

We have been to several places in the world that were deserts, but this one was something else. Our trip started in Antofasta with a bus ride fo 2.5 hours to Calama. Calama is where the largest copper mine in the world is located. The drive across the desert was across a very nondescript landscape. There was a stop at a ghost town that they are trying to restore. It was a mining town in the early 1900's when nitrate was the hot commodity. A war was fought between Chile, Peru and Boliva over control of the nitrate fields. Both German and English companies were doing the mining and Britain did not want German to control (this was during after World War I) so they came in to help Chile. Chile took over what was southern Peru and Western Boliva and the entire northern region of Chile was Bolivian teritory before the war. The camp was also used during the troubles in the 1970's as a concentration camp for political prisoners. It is still surrounded by land mines today. The earthquake of November 2007 did quite a bit of damage to the already abandoned buildings and you have to be very careful. They did not want us to go into any of the buildings except the theatre which lost its roof in the quake. Volunteers are trying to restore some of the buildings to show what a nitrate town looked like as well as to preserve some of the graffti from the prisoners.

We arrived in Calama about 6:00pm and at 6:45pm some of us who were interested were driven up to the mine. We could only drive through the two and around some of the mine dumps. The town is now abandoned..all the houses are empty, the school is closed, and the hospital moved. They have rebuilt all the employee housing, schools, hospitals, etc. down in the town of Calama as there is copper ore under the existing town. They will be completely removing the town so the space can be mined and used for more spoil piles. This is a large open-pit mine on the side of the mountains. However, the spoil piles don't look much different than the surrounding mountains. In this part of the Acama desert, there isn't any vegation except in the oasis so they don't have to worry about "restoring" very much. Just stablizing the rock piles.

The hotel was simple, but clean. There are only a couple of hotels in Calama and mostly they are there for the business people who come to work or visit the mines in the area. Monday through Thursday the hotel is packed but on the weekend (when we were there) they are mostly empty. Dinner was ok, nothing special.

Next morning we drove to San Pedro a very small village/town near the Andes. It was about a two hour drive across the most desolate landscape you can imagine. Most deserts we have seen have some vegetation even if just low bushes or very small plants. A large part of this one has nothing. No plants, no insects, no snakes, no nothing...except rocks. The elevation is high..Calama is at about 6000 feet and we drove up to 10,000 feet of the way to San Pedro. The mountains rise about the floor of the valleys but they are very brown and gray. The wind blows so much that a lot of the fine grained material has blown away leaving the ground covered in gravel. Since Fred is a geologist, he was having a grand time trying to figure out what kind of rocks we were seeing and the different formations.

Finally, as we reaching the highest point, we began seeing small bushes and catus. This was closer to the Andes and gets some moisture. We had clouds and our guide described it as "Bolivian winter". They do get some moisture in Janurary, February and March, but mostly in the form of ground fog. There is more moisure as we got closer to the high Andes. Unfortunately, for us, the clouds obsured the view and we never did see the volcanos except as dim outlines on the horizon.

San Pedro is an indigneous town that is mostly dedicated to tourism. It is an oasis on a river that comes from the Andes. It was running with water as they had had rain the week before. We visited a nice museum from the archeological digs in the area. They no longer display the human remains that have been found out of respect for the existing villagers who are their decendants.

We had a very nice lunch in a small hotel in San Diego that made the best Pisco Sours! They used fresh mint in the mix which gave them a different taste. Then off to visit some of the archeological sites (my spelling is terrible today) including a village 2600 years old buried in the sands and a ruin from the 1500's destroyed by the Spanish. Finally a drive through the Valley of the Moon. A valley of salt deposits that have weathered into strange shapes. Because of the rain the week before, the ground was covered in "fresh salt" which made it look like snow. It was interesting and Fred loved the rocks! Back to the hotel in Calama for dinner.

We flew out the next morning from Calama to Santiago and drove back to the ship (about a 2 hour flight and a 1.5 hours drive). We drove through the Casablanco Valley where all the vineyards are. The contrast was amazing to what we had seen the past two days ... on the moon as Fred says!

Dinner last night was in La Veranda. Wonderful lobster...this time with a side of butter sauce.

Today we are at sea on our way to Puerto Montt. It is windy and cool...no deck time today with a bit of a swell - 10-15 feet. Tonight is the Seven Seas Party and we have been invited to have dinner with Captain Afredo.

Food continues to be fantastic!

Thank you Jan! We are heading to San Pedro on Sunday for a three-night stay at Awasi. It sounds as unique (but different) from Cappadocia in Turkey.

We are looking forward to the visit. Thanks for whetting our appetite.

Glad you are back aboard and getting ready to head around the horn.

Cheers, Anne

I love your description of this unique area, Jan.! Very timely for some of us on ICE. We're hoping our waitlist for Awasi comes through for a post ICE Atacama Desert visit. Sounds like you are really enjoying these adventures, Jan & Fred!...and, we are too, thanks to your great reports.

Jan - so glad to read your report. You do have a way with words. Glad you are back onboard in your comfort zone. Thanks for the wonderful descriptions - I thought I was right there with you.

Take care - hugs to both of you. :hug:

Love reading your reviews Jan - thanks for taking time to write and post - Joanna

Jan,

Great sea and land mail! I loved hearing about your adventures. Thanks for posting!

A couple that was with us is Manchu Pichu stayed at Awasi on the trip and they could not stop raving about it. Said is was one of the most fantastic places ever. Each couple had their own private 4-wheel drive plus driver and could go where ever they wanted. They say...don't miss going to see the Flamingos on the lake..a site not to be believed. I know you will enjoy the Awasi trip!

To catch up with us...we went on a full day excursion in Puerto Montt to see Emerald Lake, the falls, volcanos, etc. We were late arriving due to strong currents at the entrance to the bay where Puerto Montt is located. So we were not on the buses until almost 10:00am. We had an absolutely beautiful weather day. Clear blue skies with only light fluffy clouds on the tops of the highest peaks. No wind and warm temperatures. The only negative...they have some of the biggest flys you will ever see! They were more like dive bombers than insects. Our guide said they come in the summer for about one month and have one week left. They were not biting but very annoying. Kinda wish we had had our Australian face nets with us.

We drove the Emerald Lake and took a boat ride. The boat was almost all enclosed and somewhat warm as well as crowded with two buses. The best thing about the ride was watching the cloud form on top of the volcanco and this "melt" away. The falls were pretty but nothing spectacular.

Then off to lunch at a pretty resort overlooking the big lake (whose name I can't spell). The location was very nice. The food not so good. The tomato soup was fine, but the main course was overcooked salmon, mashed potatoes, and mixed veges. I will never understand why anyone would eat mixed up mushy peas, carrots and green beans! I don't know what the desert was as I could not stand the heat any longer and went back outside to enjoy the scenery.

We stopped at Puerto Vargas on the way back for one hour. A nice town on the lakeshore but we were not particularly interested in shopping. Bought a sweater for our grandson and then had an ice cream to cool off. The guide said it was the hottest day of the year!

Back to the ship about 7:00pm. Since lunch was not until 3:00pm, we had a drink in the Observation lounge and then crashed. We were going to have room service since the special menu was German, but about 8:00PM decided we just were not hungry!

Yesterday, we sailed into the fiords up to Puerto Chacobaco. A beautiful sail in on another totally cloudless day. Terry Breen was doing the commentary as we sailed in and she said she had never seen the mountainsides in this fiord as it had always been socked in with clouds. There was a severe earthquake in the area in 2007 and there are massive slides on some of the mountain sides. The slides caused waves that bounced back and forth doing damage in this fiord. We arrived in Puerto Chacobaco about noon. We did not have a tour planned as one day of a bus is not to be followed by another day on a bus (Fred's rule). So I took the shuttle into Puerto Aynes...didn't even get off. It is a larger town but all the shops were closed until 3:00pm and they were having a power outage. They do grow beautiful flowers. But I guess 260+ days of rain and theses long days of summer are good for flowers. The roses especially were spectacular.

It was a beautiful evening sailing back out of the fiord. We spent sometime in the Horizon lounge watching the sites behind us and then decided that La Veranda was the place for dinner so we could enjoy the scenery. The International menu is still "active". Fred had a very good New York Strip and I had the veal chop done in a Mongolian style barbeque sauce. Both were very good.

Spent the rest of the evening watching the sites until the sun went down. As we sailed back into the Atlantic Ocean, the waves picked up and the fog rolled in. The fog horn sounded all night until about 8:00am this morning. We are scheduled to re-enter the fiords about noon and it looks like the fog is beginning to disappear.

Fred says that today and tomorrow we are on a two day tour...just doing it from the ship!

Jan

Jan - what a great, descriptive report! Thank you so much. There is nothing like on the ground reports. We really, really appreciate it.

The fjords sound simply beautiful. Wishing you a most enjoyable two-day tour from the comfort of your balcony.

Leaving for Awasi tomorrow. All our communications so far have been outstanding with this lodge. The on the ground report makes me that much more enthused. Flamingos, here we come!

Cheers, Anne

Jan,

Thanks for another great report!

Anne, Have a wonderful trip!!!!

Great report Jan!! Thanks!

Thanks Jan...the Sea Mail you post are all so great.

Jan, thanks for all of the details. Will you guys be posting pics?

Hi Debbie,
I take fewer and fewer pictures every trip. I will probably post some after I get home since uploading them from the ship is a real pain!

Jan, it surely is a pain to mess with on the trip, that is for sure. I keep taking more and more on trips since I can just delete the ones I don't like, but I should wait till I get home to upload, as I get dropped on the connection, etc. I will watch for yours when you get back. I like to picture you guys having a good time.

Todd's parents and his cousin did some of these places where you've been last year but on a bigger ship, and my FIL griped a lot about not being close enough to this and that place. I have yet to convince them to go on a smaller luxury ship. Of course, they have yet to convince me to go on a big one.

Jan,
Please ask Terry if she will be on the Navigator from Rio to FLL on the Discovery Cruise.
Jim

Hi Jim,
Had a chance to talk to Terry. Yes, she will be on the Navigator this fall from Cape Town all the way to FLL. And in 2009 on the Ring of Fire from FLL (? now I'm not sure where she said she would start) to Sydney.

Jan

Oh good, she'll be on for KOALA. She is a great lecturer...very interesting AND entertaining. Linda & Larry

Thanks for the news, Jan. It will be great to have Terry onboard for SAMBA Pt. I & II.

HELLO FROM THE MARINER once again. This is my third attempt,so I will keep it short.new captain arrived in Buenos Aires,Captain Phillip and a lot of new personal.Ray and I noticed that there seemed to be a "feeling" we havent sensed before...can't put a finger on it but it feels like the staff are not quite as happy as they always were,and for the first time I heard someone say that it (a boottle of my favorite Californian wine) was not available due to"budget constraints"...now thats a new one.

When we boarded in BA there was a first CHINESE wait staff ,haven't seen this before and in Rio quite a few more came on and the Phillipinos went home. Perhaps it was just vacation time and maybe not...who knows.Anyway I guess "new Owners" etc.

Great time so far but sure miss you guys a lot...sooo quiet...no pooching.Appears to be a slightly older group on....Will write more later,

Interesting feedback. When we were on Voyager in December, the Asst F & B mgr said that he doesn't stock some items anymore and that there is an upcharge (125/btl) for items like pink champagne.

Pat, you're alive. I have been wondering why the lack of seamail. Third attempt - or is it your body adjusting to a different vino? :3smile:
That is interesting about all the staff changes and really sad if the staff isn't happy. Any staff from LAMB still on board? I'm certain that all LAMB poochers wish they were with you. It definitely wouldn't be quiet then. Did you get to the glacier?
Hope you'll send more reports. The SAMBA group will be in Rio in 9 long months from now, so anything that is a "must do," let us know.

Pat, this is all quite interesting. I love Capt. Philippe....have cruised with him several times. Not sure what's going on with the rest of the crew but hope they all put their smiles on and give everyone the service Regent is known for. Hope there's not cutbacks on the wine....Tom will not be a happy camper!

Miss you and Ray, too, Pat- once you get a taste of a fun bunch of LCTers it takes some adjusting to be without them...hope any kinks work themselves out for your trip - J and T

Greetings All,from somewhere north of Rio on our way to Salvador da Bahia.Yes Betty we did make it to the Porito Moreno and it was totally awesome!!You can only imagine being so close to it and hearing it creak and thunder as it calves and drops its bergs into the water.The wind there was also something else. The town of El Calafate was soooo hot and windy...about 80F plus. The flowers were abundant in a riot of colours.The lavender was huge much more than Provence if that is possible.

I also noticed we that some of the new wait staff are from the Balkin Regions,Romania,etc.They are very nice and friendly .I remember that the Oceania also used Balkin staff as well.

OK thats all for now,as I said very very quiet without you all.

Pat, glad you and Ray are enjoying the cruise. I know you must miss the Poochers! Wish we were sailing with you.

We're on the Voyager and had a big crew change in Sydney . . .and as far as I can see the make-up of new (mostly familiar) staff is very similar to the group who departed: Filipino and European.

And as to the charge or unavailability of some wines, we've been able to have any we've asked for with no charge but admittedly, we are not connoisseurs.

I don't want to get into a discussion about this but just felt some comment was appropriate.

Peggy