Drake's Passage, Second Verse

Monday, February 20th, Drake's Passage in route to Port Stanley. The sea has some swells today, but definitely smoother than the trip down. We will be at sea all day and night arriving on the eastern coast of Falkland Islands tomorrow - weather permitting. Now that I am such an old hand at this part of the world, I've learned the nicknames describing the passage. Calm seas it is Drake Lake, rough seas it's Drake Shake. Forecast is for Lake not Shake most of this northeasterly trip. For reference, when we arrive in the Falklands we will then be north and east of Cape Horn. Tomorrow I shall take a two hour "Stanley Historical Walk". Need it to walk off some of this delicious food I've been inhaling. Before leaving the Antarctic and Pacific behind, I'll share a few more of my favorite photos.

Our basic mode of transportation in Galapagos Islands.

A relatively young giant tortious at the preserve on one of the Galapagos Islands. They live to be well over 150 years. This one was estimated to be about 45 to 50.

A brown pelican attempting to shop at the local fish market on the island near our hotel, totally unruffled by humans.

The "Retirement Rock" in the jade factory in Colonial Antigua. After more than 30 years, the geologist couple who set out to prove to the world that jade did exist in Guatemala finally succeeded. Unfortunately her husband died about the time of its discovery and she continues to lead tours in the factory. Not my idea of retirement, but to each their own.

The most penguins I've seen on this trip. Fortunately for my budget, the shop was closed so no penguin souvenirs from Ushuaia, Argentina. Sorry friends.

Last evening I was invited to "An Exclusive Around the World Dinner" in my favorite shipboard restaurant, Polo Grill. Now how exclusive can it be if there are some 400 of us doing the 180 day gig one might ask. Question not. It was a lovely evening where I willingly ate Chilean Sea Bass and a delicious soup - ingredients unknown to me. This trip is all about new experiences and that includes foods. But I digress. The point of this story is to tell you about the lovely people with whom I dined. There was a couple from Galveston, he an MD, she a PHD; a couple from Toronto, he an accountant and she a therapist: myself and a very sophisticated lady from San Francisco - also traveling alone. All retired. As dinner progressed and we all began getting acquainted, Jo Anne from San Francisco revealed that she was 90 years young. So, I'm not so unusual after all. She did admit to getting a little lonely as she is insufficiently social media literate enough to blog, Facebook or email and has found Alex, our shipboard techie, of little help. In any case the youngsters at the table have decided to take Jo Anne under their wing and see that she is not lonely.

A purl from Jo Anne, "One cannot control what happens to oneself in life. One can only control one's reaction to the situation." Her recipe for a happy life.

Today Is Someday! Be a Jo Anne!