Day 2, Thursday, December 5, 2019: Buenos Aires

Slept late this morning, not getting up until almost 7:00 am. The sun had been up for an hour or more. I let Stephen sleep and went down around 8:00 am for breakfast in the restaurant. I had the eggs Benedict with a side of bacon. The bacon was border-line burnt, the eggs hard, the Hollandaise sauce had WAY too much lemon, the coffee tepid and neither the salt or pepper shakers dispensed. Besides that, I was almost alone in the restaurant but when a couple arrived, they set them right next to me, totally destroying my peaceful meal.

After that poor experience, I sat by the empty pool and read for awhile.

Stephen T and I were scheduled for a "Panoramic Tour of Buenos Aires". We spent  the next four hours, mostly on a bus trying to see the sights as we whizzed by them.

We stopped twice. Once at the first cemetery in Buenos Aires. Full of mausoleums, including Evita's.

Evita's tome, her casket is 10 feet below the surface.

In many of the mausoleums, you could see the caskets. The rules of the cemetery are that you can build your mausoleums as tall as you wish, but no more that 30 feet below the surface. Several had stairways going down to the crypts.

Some were in very poor condition due to lack of upkeep.

Later we stopped at the Caminito, a street museum and a traditional alley, located in La Boca, a neighborhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. The place acquired cultural significance because it inspired the music for the famous tango "Caminito", composed by Juan de Dios Filiberto. It reminded me of the French Quarter. I bought a leather wallet as a souvenir.

I was looking for a new leather belt. What else would you buy in Argentina, if not leather??? I ended up buying a wallet embossed with Flamingo dancers. It cost 1,100 pesos ($18.00).

The ship was scheduled to depart at 6:00 pm, but it was not until nearly 7:30 pm that we pulled out of port. Sarah did recover the luggage bag that had been left in Houston.

 

Tomorrow is Montevideo, Uruguay. We arrive at 0800 hours and depart at 1800 hours. Stephen T and I are doing a overview tour starting at 0930 hours.

Day 1: Wednesday, December 4, 2019: Buenos Aires, Viking Jupiter, Tango Show and Dinner

We left the house in League City around 5:30 pm. It took over almost two hours to reach IAH. There we quickly checked our luggage and found the United Polaris Club where we met up with Stephen and Sarah.

We boarded our Boeing 777 and were ready to travel, taking off at 10:20 pm.

I put on my eye mask and went to sleep almost immediately. Stephen, Stephen and Sarah stayed up to partake in the evening meal.

I actually slept relatively well. I awoke about one hour prior to our arrival in Buenos Aires, about nine hours after our departure from IAH. We got off the plane and stood in line for about an hour getting through Immigration.

Once past Immigration, we picked up our checked luggage only to find that one of Sarah's bags had been left in Houston. Hopefully, it will be brought on the next flight tomorrow and delivered to the ship.

We arrived at the ship around 1:00 pm. The situation was very confused and the staff seemed very harried. We did get to our room. Trout and I are in  4121 and Stephen and Sarah are next door in 4123. I was under the impression that 4123 was essentially the 2nd bedroom for 4121. But that was not the case. It is a completely separate, and very small, room with no connecting doors. Our room is not huge, but it will be comfortable.

Our luggage had not arrived (and would not arrive for several more hours), so we toured the ship.

Tonight we go ashore for a Tango show and dinner. It will be a late night, but we don't have anything schedule during the morning tomorrow.

Extremely noisy, extremely small and cramped. The food was borderline at best and it took far too long for the show to start. The show itself was great. By the time it started however (10:15 pm), I was ready to call it a night. No pictures were to be taken of the show, although that did not stop many people...the special ones among us. We did not get back to the boat until about 00:15 Thursday morning. A long day.

Saturday, August 3, 2019: Getting there

I will return from the WWI tour on October 14, 2019. My vague plan was to drive down to Houston prior to the beginning of the South American cruise and spend Thanksgiving with daughter and family. This week I decided to expand that road trip to include swinging by Fort Collins to visit mom and Phoenix to visit mom-in-law. I've got plenty of time.

Going out to Fort Collins will be the same as always. I will leave StL on the 18th, drop by Morrill, KS to offer my love and respects to Terri and stay the night in Kearney, NE. I will arrive in Ft. Collins on the 19th around noon and spend the afternoon with mom. I have found that a few hours with her are about right. I will spend the night with D&D before leaving the morning of the 20th.

Google maps suggested three route options. All are about the same duration. Normally, I have gone down through Albuquerque. This time I think I will go the northerly route (weather permitting) as it goes through the Eisenhower Tunnel, Vail and passes near Monument Valley. We have always thought about visiting Monument Valley, but never have. We have read that there really isn't much to do there.

So, I have booked a room at The View hotel in Monument Valley for the nights of November 20 and 21. The drive from Fort Collins to Monument Valley will be nine hours in duration leaving a five hour drive to Phoenix.

The Monument Valley park is not a U.S. National Park, but a Navajo Nation Tribal Park located on the Navajo Indian Reservation (www.navajonationparks.org). The View Hotel (https://monumentvalleyview.com/) is the only hotel located inside the Tribal Park and is located adjacent to the Park Visitors Center. There is a fee of $20 per vehicle up to 4 people to enter the Tribal Park. As a Tribal Park, US National Park Golden Eagle passes do not apply.

I have booked a 2 Queen Beds With Premium StarView room. There were not many left available even though it is three months out.

According to their website:

"The guestrooms on the top floor of the The View Hotel have been designated StarView Rooms. All StarView Rooms are on the third floor and provide fabulous views of the Mittens as well as the best stargazing imaginable." The "Mittens" are the iconic buttes for which the valley is known.

So, I will arrive the evening of the 20th and stay the entire day of the 21st, departing for Phoenix the morning of the 22nd. I should arrive in Phoenix around noon. I have booked a La Quinta near where Mary lives. I will spend the remainder of the day visiting with her. I will leave the morning of the 23rd. I have booked another La Quinta in Fort Stockton, TX...about half way to Houston. I should arrive in Houston on the 24th.

Overall, it will be a 3,000 mile road trip stretched over seven days.