1-26 Chilean Fjords

1-26 Day 21 At sea (Chilean Fjords)

Last night all guests were given maps of the area our ship would be traveling through the Chilean Fjords. We would be starting early with the ship's travel guide starting a commentary at 7 a.m. We went up to the Crow's Nest (front of ship with big panels of windows) so we could see both sides of the waterway. We watched the passing scenery for about two hours. It is similar to Alaska with the steep hillsides coming right down to the water. It was so green with beautiful trees that turn autumn colors in August (their Fall.) We saw a salmon farm along the way, plus a lighthouse out on a somewhat lonely rock area. It was very peaceful to watch this beautiful scenery go by.

About 9 a.m. we headed back out into the open sea (Pacific) where the water immediately became rougher. It had been so calm in the inner passage way. We grabbed a quick breakfast in the Lido restaurant before heading back to the cabin to get cleaned up for the day.

A famous (seriously) guest chef is now on board for about 10 days. It is Mark Bittman ,who has written many cookbooks, created the New York Times cooking column, and has made many TV appearances. He had a demo class in which he made a cassoulet with lots of vegetables (he really believes we should eat less meat and more veggies), a whole grain flatbread, and a mango sorbet. We were able to taste a little of all of it – and it was yummy. The great thing is that he cooks with simple ingredients and simple recipes so that it is easy to make at home. But it is all highly flavored and tastes wonderful. I immediately signed up for his two cooking classes – and barely got in because they filled up so quickly.

Doug was ready for lunch after this class, so we went to the regular dining room hoping to meet more new people. We had a wonderful view at the back of the ship and were the first to the table. Another single gentleman joined us who was very nice and friendly, and then wouldn't you know . . . the boring museum couple also joined us . . . again!!!! How could this happen with a roomful of people dining?!?!?! Oh well . . . The only excitement was the crash of a tray of dishes and glasses that fell when we hit a huge wave; also the table behind us had to move to another table after all their red wine spilled out of their glasses with the same wave! It truly was a bumpy day at sea.

We spent the rest of the day being lazy and watching the scenery go by – and of course a nice nap with so much rocking of the ship. The captain said we had 12 foot waves.

We weren't hungry after a larger than normal lunch, so we went to the 6 p.m. movie, In the Loop, which was like Monty Python humor. Doug enjoyed it. The regular ship's entertainment was postponed because of the high seas, so they showed Julie and Julia (the movie) instead. Since I had not seen it yet, I went and really enjoyed it. I'm really into a cooking thing, I guess! Doug enjoyed good reading time.

Knowing we would be up early again tomorrow, we tried to get to bed at a somewhat reasonable hour.