- Falkland Islands & Dep. UK
- Antarctica dep. Argentina
- Anctarctica dep. Chilean
AI-99 USA (New York), Gibraltar (UK), Madeira (PORTUGAL), Canary Islands (SPAIN), CAPE VERDE ISLANDS, Ascension Island (UK), St. Helena (UK), Tristan da Cunha Islands (UK), South Georgia Island (UK), Falkland Islands (UK), ARGENTINA
Date of travel: Oct 11 – Nov 29, 1999 (the whole trip 50 days, sailing 45 days)
ITINERARY:
On Oct 11 late in the afternoon I drive in Budget rented car from Vista to Los Angeles airport. There I board a TWA plane to New York where next day early in the morning. I have 12 hours between planes. By bus andsubway,I get to 34thSt. I visit the “Empire State Building” and take pictures from its 86thfloor. I continue 5th Avenue and 42nd St. to “Grand Central Station,” then to“UN Building,” on 47th St. to “Rockefeller Center” and “Time Square” between 42nd and 47th St. Then back to JFK airport. In the evening I take a British Airways (BA) plane to London-Gatwick.
On Oct 13 early in the morning after 7-hr flight I land in London-Gatwick in UK. Soon I am on another BA plane flying 2.5-hr to Gibraltar, UK. We are taken to our hotel. I share room with 76-year old Filipino-American who has traveled extensively. I do sightseeing in the afternoon. The British Colony is aplace to visit. 6 km in length, 1 km in width most of it is filled with limestone mountain. Next day there is a bus tour of the “Rock.” Due to limestone Gibraltar is full of caves. Some have stalactites and stalagmites, others are used for defense. We visit some of them. A cable car takes us to top. There are “Barbary Macaque” (monkeys) all over. From a lighthousewe see mountains in 16 km distant Morocco. Late in the afternoon we board our Russian ship “Lyubov Orlova.” The ship starts its journey through Atlantic Ocean.
Next two days are on the ocean. “Lyubov Orlova” used to be a cargo ship. While sailing it is being equipped with cabins. Not all passengers have cabins they paid for from the first day. I share cabin with the Filipino.Russian owner is on board. The crew and hotel personal are all Russians. There are 3 Canadians from Marine Expedition who run the expedition and 3 lecturers. The lectures start immediately.
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SA-05 South America cruise – Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Falkland Islands (UK), Chile and Peru
Date of travel: Nov 9, 2005 – Jan 4, 2006
ITINERARY:
In the morning on Nov 9 I drive in a rented car from Vista to Los Angeles airport. In the afternoon I fly with Varig Airlines from LAX more than 11 hours to Sao Paulo in BRAZIL where early in the morning on Nov 10. Another plane takes me to Manaus on Rio Negro where early in the afternoon. There I board the ship Minerva II. for 8 weeks cruise around the South American continent.
On Nov 11 morning there is a sightseeing of Manaus. It is my third visit of this city. We see the Opera House and the market place designed by Gustav Eiffel. There is a boat ride to jungle and to the confluence of Rio Negro and the Amazon River in the afternoon. In the evening Minerva II. leaves Manaus for 1000 miles (1600 km) journey to the estuary of the Amazon River. Before we reach it, the ship stops at Parintins to see a beautiful Indian show. On Nov 13 there is another stop at Santarem. Here I take a trip to jungle. On Nov 15 at the estuary of the Amazon River we visit city of Belem.
Then Minerva II. follows the coast of Brazil on the Atlantic Ocean to anchor in the city of Fortaleza on Nov 17. After another day on the ocean we stop at Recife on Nov 19. Here we visit the city of Olinda in the morning and Recife in the afternoon. On Nov 21 we anchor in the city Salvador de Bahia which was 200 years the capital of Brazil. The city is divided in the lower and upper part connected by elevators. This is followed by another day on the ocean. On Nov 23 we reach Rio de Janeiro. From several trips I am choosing one to Petropolis outside Rio. There is an imperial palace built in the middle of 19 century in Petropolis. The following day I take a sightseeing of Rio to visit Sugar Loaf, Corcovado with the statue of Christ the Redeemer, Botanical Gardens founded 1809 and the famous beach Copacabana. After another day on the ocean we land in Paranagua on Nov 26. From there we do a day trip to city of Curitiba with most of its population from central, east and southern Europe.
Leaving Brazil Minerva II. takes two days to come to Montevideo URUGUAY early in the morning on Nov 29. In the past Uruguay served as a buffer between Portuguese Brazil and Spanish Argentina. A day is devoted to sightseeing of Montevideo. It is a pleasant city.
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