40. Puerto Montt, Chile

Puerto Montt, Chile         

66F (19C)    -      Cruise day 36       -       Feb, 28. 2018

We started off early; by 8 AM we took the tender to shore. While most people took the excursion buses, Carol and I walked a little bit to find a ‘private tour’ to the next town named Varas. The town of Varas was supposed to be a German town, full of Chilean Germans. Something I wanted to see. I even wanted to talk to them.

Tenders To Pier

We asked a taxi what his fare would be to Varas and he and others wanted US $100 for the trip to Puerto Varas. 

Hmm, not cheap!  

So we walked a little further (15 minutes) to the Bus Terminal. I found a bus that would take us to Puerto Varas and we each paid the bus driver US $2.00. So for $4 we went to Puerto Varas. (Round Trip = $8.00).

Modern, Local Bus

It was a local bus which stopped wherever people wanted to get on or off. It took us 40 minutes to ride the bus but it ultimately got us to Varas and dropped us off near the Radisson Hotel. The bus driver showed us the stop where we could get the bus later back to Puerto Mott and our Ship Terminal. 

Since we were dropped off near this fancy hotel I thought I would go and ask what their prices would be if we would stay there a night. One-night rate was US $185.00.

A Radisson Hotel

From this spot near the hotel we should have been able to see the Volcano named ‘Orsono’ but it was too overcast. Bummer!

So we started off walking into the casino of the Radisson Hotel but we had to have our backpacks searched, be x-rayed, etc. just so we could use the restrooms; lots of effort just to pee.

Souvenir Shops, A Few Roses

So now that we arrived, let’s find the Germans in town, I really wanted to talk to them. We walked to the main square, the Plaza. There is always a Plaza in any town in Spanish speaking countries. No problem finding the Plaza, but I looked around, tried to find those Germans. Well, I guess I listened to Humberto too much. I did not find even one person in all of Puerto Varas that even remotely spoke German. Puerto Varas is a tourist town. There were souvenir shops mainly on Main Street. Carol tried to find something with Alpaca, since we are in the Andes but no such luck. We listened to Humberto who named the town of Puerto Varas a town of ‘Roses’.

 Yes we found some rose bushes but to name the town with such exuberance is over the top. In my imagination, when you call a town a 'Town of Roses' makes me think of a Cinderella setting, like in Walt Disney movies. Well Puerto Varas is no such thing.

But the Ones We Saw Were Beautiful

 

On the town Plaza were some local musicians who played some haunting tune with their pan flutes. 

The town has a somewhat ‘European’ look to it, but to my eyes it was not as clean as Europe.

German Church

In the corner café of the Plaza we had a coffee, checked the internet, tried to do some banking but the connection for that was not good enough. The screen read ‘technical difficulties’.

We visited the great looking Cathedral (in pictures) on top of a hill, but found it a bit shabby and closed. I tried to sneak in through the side door and Carol managed to get a few photos, but then the priest came and shooed us out.

Inside the German Church

Then from the courtyard of the Church, the fog partially cleared allowing us to see the Volcano Orsono.

Orsono Volcano

 Ah, South America… you never know what you will run into.









We tried to see the town but at every turn we ran into something dilapidated and not too clean, not too organized.

A Little Bit Bavarian Looking

We stepped out of the church yard and I saw a bus go by with the name Puerto Mott written on the front… I stopped the bus, asked the driver if he went to Puerto Mott and when he nodded, we gave him $4.00 dollars for our trip back. 

It was the ideal bus, he dropped us off exactly at the Ship Terminal, and we did not even have to walk from the bus terminal back to the Ship.  Yahoo! 

Puerto Montt is not as attractive as Puerto Varas. Puerto Montt reminded me of Patterson, NJ. There is lots of room for improvement in Chile, despite Chile being the more ‘advanced’ country in South America. 

We were back at the Ship Terminal by 2 PM and just caught sight of our Ship’s Captain, Capt. Turo, leaving the Ship in civilian clothes. He had finished his contract in Puerto Montt and from now on we have a new Captain on the Island Princess. Will the ship operate differently with a ‘new’ Captain?

39. At Sea to Puerto Montt

Sea Day towards Puerto Montt       

59F (15C)     Feb 28, 2018

On sea days we try to listen to Humberto who gives the Destination Talks. He tells us what we can expect to see. Humberto is very positive on many things, sometimes so much that reality is not at all even close to what is there. He talked about Wi-Fi connections when there were none. He showed pictures of what we could look at but it was like an advertisement… in reality, it looked very much different when we got there. Yes, he is hired by the ship, but even so, he will say when we are better off taking a local guide. 

Exclusive Retreat - Not For Us

Well, a Ship’s tour is the easiest way to see a town and gives the assurance that no matter what, the whole ship will wait for us should something occur such as a traffic accident, etc. while being out on an excursion.  Many people use the ship excursions, they book them knowing that they are ‘safe’ from eventualities. Buses hired by the ship carry the ship tourists from the ship to wherever, there is little risk. 

It is a cookie cutter tour most of the time. 

Exclusive Retreat Also Included Massage Tables

After taking a few cruises now I know it’s a money-making venture for the ships. And boy, does the ship make a mark-up. The prices are at least double, sometimes triple what the trip costs if you do it on your own. 

Yet I listen to Humberto because I have no clue what is there to see in Puerto Montt for example. I have never even heard of this town.

Effy knows women, the place is always crowded, and I never knew that jewelry was such a big draw for women. The sales personnel at Effy’s know their stuff. Give-away items are raffled off on a constant schedule. Today, Carol tells me, they had 2 raffles; she did not win in either of them.

 

Dining Room

We made a mistake at lunch time; we were seated at a table for 10. It took a full 45 minutes to get served. I do not like large tables with so many people that you cannot talk to anybody. To me having a meal with someone is a social affair. Six people are about the most I can handle and 8 people already are a crowd. But we had 10 for lunch, way too much cross talk, and some people speak so softly that my hearing aids do not pick up their voice. Ugh!

We did somewhat better for dinner. We sat with Jim and Mary from Alaska. They had 25 cruises with the Princess line and had an ‘Elite’ status. They received many perks that normal passengers had to pay for, like laundry service, Wi-Fi, etc.  Jim spoke so softly that even Carol could not hear him well and Mary only talked about their children, grandchildren, etc. Nice people but way too ‘domestic’ for me. I like to learn from other people, I did not have the feeling I could learn anything from Jim and Mary.

 

A Couple of Fun Characters We Hung Out With Sometimes

Rick Steele was our entertainer for the night show. Country Music and a guitar was his shtick. He had to borrow a tux from the ship’s crew to perform. The tux was way too big and he looked somewhat like a scare crow. His whole luggage got lost by the airline; all his stage props and regalia were in the lost suitcase. What to do?

His show was pretty good, he loved to schmooze with the audience and the women loved it.

38. The Amalia Glacier

The Amalia Glacier.

2 Arms Feeding Into the Bottom Glacier

Fire, Ice and Sea; it is a cauldron of nature. Volcanoes surrounded by glaciers, bashed by wave after wave of the Pacific Ocean. And on top of it all a large ship with thousands of people, gawking at it all. The Glacier is one of the fastest receding glaciers in S. America… I think it lost 7 km (about 5 miles) in the last 50 years. That is a lot of loss. It is weird to sit at dinner in a fancy dining

Right Hand Arm of Glacier

room, near a window and watch the frozen world outside. The ship sent out a Zodiac to gather some ‘icebergs’ to show the people on deck what the glacier is made out of.

I felt like we are too civilized, or let’s call it removed from reality when I stood on deck watching the crew gather those mini ice bergs. Some folks complained that the large ice cube, the iceberg, was ‘dirty’ ice. 

Top of the Left Arm Is Obscured By Clouds

I guess they would not put some of ‘that’ ice in their drinks.

 
I cannot help but be shocked by the insensitivity or total lack of our fitting into the natural surroundings, the scenery. The ship does not fit. We do not belong here. This is primal, primitive, earthy and still evolving territory. The forces of Mother Nature are at work here.  I felt like an intruder.  While my intellect understood the forces involved

Huge Cracks But No Calving Today

in this part of earth, the reality of seeing them at work made me feel smaller than an ant.

I felt totally helpless watching forces at play that are really unimaginable and uncontrollable. 

Clouds Lifted Just Enough to See the Top (On the Left)

I better focus on my artificial life of being on a cruise ship and eat my dinner of fancy meats and vegetables, cooked just so.

Outside, the grinding of basic elements is beyond my comprehension. The glacier, seen from the ship, or what is left of this glacier, is awe inspiring. The volcano is still active. 

Ice Sculptures In the Water

Even writing this blog page makes me shiver thinking of how small and unimportant we are in sight of what is nature.

It Was Heavy and COLD

 
We missed the late show, heard later it was a good show, but we did see the glacier as close up as the ship dared to go. I was impressed with that.

Bundled Up On Our Balcony