At sea

It’s February 2^nd, groundhog day for the US. Did the groundhog see his shadow? The TV shows are full of political news and views, but not important weather forecasts like what happened with the groundhog in Pennsylvania. Not that it really matters to us; I don’t think he can predict the weather in South America anyway, but it would be nice to know how the folks back home are going to fare. They have been getting quite a bit of snow.

I love waterfalls. It doesn’t matter if it is Victoria or Niagara, or the pond in a neighbors’ back yard. Waterfalls are the best. Several years ago I went to Iguassu Falls and was amazed by the splendor of the falls, so with us getting as close as Rio and Buenos Aires it made perfect sense for us to take a side trip to the falls. The first hurdle was for Susan, our wonderful travel agent, to persuade Cunard to let us off the ship in Rio and back on again in Buenos Aires. Then the Brazilian authorities needed convincing that they were OK with us not leaving with the ship and staying a few more days at the falls. Finally all was approved, Susan booked us air tickets to the falls and found us a great sounding hotel.

So today we packed our bags for the overland adventure. Leaving the 5 suitcases behind, neatly stowed under the bed, and forsaking duct tape and bungee cords, we packed a few essentials into our backpacks, and we are now ready to head off the ship tomorrow for another adventure.

This afternoon at the Pavilion Pool they had the “Float your Boat” competition. This is where passengers try to construct a boat that will float and carry cargo. There were 2 entries in the competition – one rather conventional looking vessel that didn’t appear to be too seaworthy, and another that looked more like a hovercraft, but did appear to be more stable. The competition was judged by the deputy captain, chief engineer, and one of the musicians, who all took the task very seriously, and kept making notes on their clipboards. The first event was being scored on style, and then the next event was can it float. Although the first boat did spring a leak, it remained afloat, the second one had no issue. Then the cargo handling capability was tested by adding 6 beer cans to the vessels while they were in the pool. Yes, they both could handle that. Next it was how do they handle rough seas, and they were placed in one of the whirlpools, the beer cans were loaded on again, and the jets turned on at full blast. Both survived that test, although the first one looked in extreme danger of going under. It was a tough competition, but the second one did get more points than the first, and came out the winner. It was fun to watch, and with all of the building equipment in our cabin I am trying to persuade Brian that we should enter the competition if they hold it on the next segment. Finally something to do with all of the duct tape and zip ties.

Tonight was the last night for our table to all be together, so we met in the Commodore Club for a drink before dinner. I really enjoy their company, and will miss Paul and Karla greatly when they head back home from Buenos Aires. There are people who come into your life for a fleeting moment, and then head off into their own world again. There is no logical reason for why you miss them so much when they are gone, but there is a certain something about tablemates that makes it a very special relationship. Luckily Ann and Keith are staying on board, so we will see them again when we get back on the ship in Buenos Aires.