Sunday, January 11, 2009
Greetings from rock and roll central! It's Sunday afternoon arought 1:30 pm and the sky and the seas are gray. We've been experiencing rough seas for the second day and because of them, we will be 5 hours late in getting into Rio tomorrow. Right now the seas are said to be "rough" with 7.5-12 foot waves. I think the wild seas on our first attempt at the Drake Passage have cured me. I don't need my drug of choice "Sea Calm" and I'm not anxious about the seas---so that's good news.
It was hard to say good bye to friends who left the ship in Buenos Aires---especially Miles and Dan. We had such a good time with them and are sure we'll stay good friends. David keeps checking out the Crystal Cove bar for you.
Buenos Aires was really beautiful and there was so much to see. I really wish we had an overnight in BA rather than Rio. We had hired a private guide in BA, Pedro Wurburg. Pedro posts on Cruise Critic and answers people's questions about Argentina. I had emailed him with some questions which he graciously answered. I emailed him back and said he should be a tour guide. He emailed me that he was a guide, but couldn't advertise on Cruise Critic. I highly recommend him. We went with our friends Natalie and Rod and for a 7 hour tour it was $120 per couple, including taxi's and small purchases we made which Pedro paid for in Pesos. We were able to pay him in US dollars. We had a walking tour of the Recoleta section and visited the Cementerio de Recoleta to see the grave of Evita Peron. Evita is buried (finally) in the Duarte family tomb. Her body had been shipped to Italy after her death where it was buried anonymously. It wasn't until Juan Peron's next wife Isabella took office after Juan's death that she saw to it that Evita's body was brought back to Buenos Aires. It was considered a security threat due to her popularity with the poor of the city. It was interesting to hear the story of Evita told by our onboard lecturer, Dr. Jay Wolf. He really makes history come alive. Evita certainly did a great deal to help the poor of Argentina, and was their saint. But there was the other side of the Peron rule and their possiblity of complicity with the Nazis at the end of WWII. Millions and millions of dollars, francs, pounds, marks, etc were delivered by two German ships at the end of WWII and the money was placed in the personal bank accounts of Juan and Evita. Also, Argentina became the home of Adolph Eichmann who fled to Buenos Aires to work for Mercedes Benz at the end of the war. There was a large Jewish population in Argentina, but two bombings of the Jewish Community Center by Iranians has increased the immigration of Jews to Isreal and the US and Canada. Pedro, it turns out, also does a tour of Jewish Buenos Aires three times a week. Well, back to the Recoleta Cemetary and church. The mausoleums are amazing, many with magnificent marble sculptures, gold leaf, etc. They are sold like real estate if the family cannot or does not want to maintain them. They are than emptied of their residents who are buried in a more modest cemetary. There are many cats who live in the cemetary and are fed by caretakers or visitors. The church was pretty amazing, with incredible, detailed shrines and artwork. It also contains the true relics of priests who served there with their skeletons visible. Very, very interesting! We had a walking tour of the area around ST Martin where there are many remaining examples of French Empire style architecture. Unfortunately, many of these buildings have been torn down to make way for modern, glass buildings. Then off to shop. Leather is a good buy in Buenos Aires, but not cheap. High end products with edgy designs are just that---high. More prosaic styles are reasonable. David had a steak lunch that he loved for about $15 US. The Argentinians love their meat and a steak meal is a bargain. We had stopped for coffee earlier in our tour and the cafe would have been at home in Italy. In fact, people in Buenos Aires speak Spanish with an Italian accent and with the accomppanying hand movements. People look very, very European and everyone we interacted with was friendly. However, it is a big city with petty thefts from tourists an issue. Before we left on our tour, Pedro made sure none of us were wearing expensive jewelery or watches. David was actually stopped by a policewoman who told him to be careful with his camera around his neck, that a thief might cut the strap and run off with it. But Buenos Aires earns it's name the Paris of South America. I'll write about Rio after we sail on the 13th.
Life on board the ship continues to be wonderful and, although we've been aboard for a month, I'm not bored or ready to come home. I miss our family and can't wait to cuddle the boys. We scheduled a time in front of the webcam in the computer lab for Samantha and the boys to see us. We held up a sign telling them how much we love and miss them.
The speakers on board are really interesting. Today, Jay Wolf spoke about Brazil's history. This afternoon one of the senior editors of the LA Times, Al Schuster, is speaking about "The Press Today: The Love, the Loathing, the Lowdown." Crystal really chooses good speakers.
We are having such a good time with our tablemates: Penny and Barry Banducci from Dana Point, Ca., Marilyn and Henry Brook from Los Altos, Ca, Mary Mckee from Houston and Georgina Hogg from Sydney, Australia. The doctor is still our host and just delightful. Last night our table sang kareoke after dinner, badly, but with great spirit! Mary sang alone and did much, much better. Christie Kinnamon is also a regular and has a very good voice.
A new session of art classes began yesterday. This segment we are using pastels under Kristine Nugent's guidance. It's really fun and we accomplish a lot. Portuguese is offered by Berlitz instructors this segment, but I took a pass on that.
The food is consistently wonderful, but we find ourselves skipping meals and eating less. Even foodies like us can have too much. Tonight we are having dinner in Silk Road with Natalie and Rod, the sushi is so spectacular!
For those of you who followed the postings on Cruise Critic re: the large families from Mexico who violated the dress code rudely and consistently, who grabbed food with their hands from the buffets, who had unruly, disruptive children, whose kids were in the Luxe at midnight, who were abusive to staff, crew and fellow passengers, etc. I am pleased to report that they are no long on board. Crystal posted larger signs about the dress code at the entrances to the dining room and specialty restaurants and they received letters about their behavior, but although the heads of the families paid for penthouse accomodatons for them all, they don't belong on Crystal. Actually, they don't belong anywhere until they get some manners!
Caio for now!!!
Ricki and David