Our Antarctic Adventure – Part V

Wednesday, Feb 4 – At Sea – Southern Atlantic

From the ms Prinsendam Navigator

The Falkland Islands comprise more than 100 islands of which about 15 are inhabited. East and west Falkland are separated by Falkland Sound. In the 19^th Century the islands were a refuge for sailing ships bound to or from Cape Horn and an important ship repair trade developed in Stanley. With the coming of steam power, enabling ships to use Estrecho de Magallanes instead of rounding Cape Horn, and finally with the opening of the Panama Canal in 1914, the islands lost their importance to shipping.

Today was another peaceful day at sea, filled with sunny skies and a pleasant sea state. Since we had been delayed leaving the Port of Buenos Aires on Monday due to other shipping traffic in the Rio de La Plata, it became necessary for our good Captain to find a way to make up for that loss of time. IF not we might have to shorten our shore time in Stanley. Another problem was an apparent current that flows north along the East Coast of Argentina. In order to escape the “clutches” of this current the Captain decided to take a chance and sail farther out into the Atlantic and catch a tail wind. Today he reported that this course change was so successful that we were able to knock off three hours off that lost time. He also said that we will be able to stay in port an extra hour tomorrow. The weather report is still looking good. Hopefully the Captain can maintain his perfect record of never having to bypass the Falklands due to inclement weather.

We had a meeting of our Cruise Critic group this morning with excellence attendance. Name tags were distributed to help the newcomers to put names to faces. These are the folks that we have been communicating with through the Internet since early summer of last year. The six newcomers were asked to introduce themselves and then several members shared their shore experiences. The Beverage Manager had his staff set up an excellent spread of refreshments and cookies. To our dismay, the meeting was held in the smoking section of the Crows Nest so we had to make an early exit. One of the ships officers also attended, conveying the Captain’s regrets for not being able come.

After another delightful dinner, we topped the evening off at the Queens Lounge with “An intimate evening of your favorite classic songs with our four sensational singers; Jenny, Katie, Seth and Ferdinand of the Prinsendam Cast in a Cabaret-Style show” .

And now we sleep for tomorrow we meet the King PENGUINS of Volunteer Point…….. JWC