Antartica Chapter Five
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/7/23. Ushuaia 54°48’S / 68°18’W
Welcome Aboard The SeaVenture
Photos by Dan Brown, Polar Latitudes Expedition Photographer, unless otherwise noted
Dinner was accompanied by our farewell to Ushuaia.
Photo by Dan Brown
Dinner 7th February 2023 Appetizers and Salad Mixed Seafood Cocktail (df)(gf) Red Onion, Capsicum, Parsley, Lime-Garlic Olive Oil Dressing **** Marinated Vegetables Tartare (vn) (df) Bean Curd, Curry Oil, White Radish Carpaccio **** Cobb Salad (gf) Mixed Leaves, Sliced Chicken, Blue Cheese, Cheddar, Bacon, Tomato, Avocado Choice of Dressings Soup Roasted Tomato & Basil with Chorizo (gf) (Kindly ask Your Waiter for Vegetarian option) **** Cream of Potato & Leek (v) Main Course Baked Butterfish Fillet with Parmesan Crackling (gf) Parmesan Risotto, Cherry Tomato Confit, Champagne Butter Sauce **** Sirloin Steak ‘Cafe de Paris* (gf) Gratin Potatoes, Sauteed Spinach, Burgundy Jus **** Curried Beans, Potato & Vegetables Casserole (vn) (v) (gf) Poppadom Basket, Basmati Rice, Pineapple & Coconut Cream **** Grilled Corn Fed Chicken with Chimichurri (ho) Gnocchi Potato served with Olives, Onion, Cucumber, Rustic Croutons Dessert Apple-Cinnamon Damper (v) Vanilla Ice cream, Maple Syrup **** Cappuccino Layer Cake with Kahlua Sauce (v) **** ‘Ice Coupe’ Peach Melba, Vanilla Ice Cream, Toasted Almond (v) **** Seasonal Fruit Platter **** Selection of European Cheeses, Condiments, Chutney, Crackers Wines Recomendation White wine - Fiuza Sauvignon Blanc,Portugal Red wine - Marqués D Castilla,Tempranillo,Syraz,Merlot, Spain (v) vegetarian – (gf) gluten free – (sf) sugar free – (df) dairy free – (vn) vegan (ho) healthy option Rufino Aguinaldo Executive Chef Sergiy Zhukov Maître D’
Sailing through the Beagle Channel, we could see Argentina on one side and Chile on the other. Did this count as having been to Chile? Maybe in the same way I was in Iceland, at the airport in Reykjavík. So not really. We did pass Punta Arenas, which is another port that Antarctic cruise ships sail from. The Beagle Channel is pretty smooth.
Some wildlife was visible.
The ship was piloted down part of the channel by a sailor from the port. Later in the evening we saw him jump from the ship back to the tug that accompanied us. Fortunately he didn't miss.
Photo by Sharon Michalove. There are lots of small birds but they blend in with the water.
This is the wildlife photo I woke up to every morning—an Arctic fox right across from my bed. So inappropriate, but completely adorable.
Photo by Sharon Michalove.
Next week, the Drake Passage. Did we shake, rock and roll, or was it a lake?
Partridges and Gold Rings
Ian Grant is back in Scotland after his recent posting to Zagreb, just in time for Max and Cress’ wedding. Still not completely recovered from the parasitic infection he picked up in Kazakstan, the prospect of the joint festivities of marriage and Christmas feel more like a burden than a celebration.
When Max’s fiancée, Cress, insists he join them for a few days in Edinburgh to enjoy the holiday market, he gives in grudgingly.
Mary Louise Young is on a tour of European Christmas Markets. First stop is Edinburgh. When she stops to watch a Punch and Judy show, she gets separated from her group. When she goes searching for them, the crowds push her into a narrow street with no outlet where she is surrounded by a small gang of teenagers. They try to grab her bag, but Ian, who is looking for a quiet place to escape the crowds, sees what’s happening, runs over, and chases the kids away.
He takes Mary Louise to a small cafe to recover from her ordeal and discovers that the American woman is much more interesting than she appears. When he escorts her back to her hotel, they find that their stay will overlap for two days and he offers to give her an in-depth look at the city.
Both acutely feel time ticking by. Everything changes when Mary Louise's mother falls and in a brace and on crutches, they can't continue the tour.. Ian convinces them to come to Grant House with him to recuperate.
Will a rogue partridge lead to a gold ring? Only time will tell.