Wake-up call is 3:30 AM and we are whisked off to the airport for our chartered flight to Ushuaia. It is a three plus hour flight and upon landing we are reunited with our luggage in order to stack them up for loading on the ship. The airport is crazy busy due to several major cruise lines (2000+ people) waiting to embark today.
In order to spend time before getting on the ship, a bus is waiting to take us on a road trip to the Ushuaia National Park. It also seems that this is the same itinerary adopted by the rest of the cruisers. The buses are lined up at the park entry and the narrow roads are teaming with buses and road activity. We stop at the lake and take in a sunny view while experiencing a hefty wind. Our next stop is a short board walk to the catamaran waiting to shuttle us in the Beagle Channel while eating a late lunch. Because the wind and traffic slowed our movement, we make a beeline to the ship for our entry to the Endurance, our ship.
Upon arrival to the dock adjacent to the ship, we had a curious detour requiring us to get back on a bus, sit while the bus made a U turn on the dock and then return down the deck to the stairs for boarding. To understand the absurdness of this exercise, we left the catamaran and only had 30 feet plus to walk to the same stairways. Check-in was smooth, room was flipped from last trip, our bags in the room, and rental gear in place. We settled in to our room and headed out to a meeting regarding emergency safety followed by marching to our muster station.
Cocktails and dinner capped the day. Then bedtime.
Rizbee On The Road 