Tierra del Fuego National Park and the Corinthian 1.27.17

We left the hotel at 8 am  and headed to Tierra del Fuego National Park.   In Spanish, this means Land of Fire.   Early explorers saw smoke coming up from the trees (from fires of the native people) and gave the area this name.   Indians called Yamuna lived here for  about 6,000 years ago, but their numbers dwindled to extinction due to disease and problems with the explorers.

We stopped by a beautiful lake area and took a hike along the water.  Believe it or not, there was a post office here.   You could get your passport stamped  with Tierra del Fuego by the postmaster for $3.00.   I got mine stamped.   After all, when would I ever be back here again.    

Lunch today was at a restaurant outside of Ushuaia.   Almost every meal starts with an empanadas  which is a half moon sized deep fried pastry with beef inside.   Another favorite is roasted lamb.   I didn’t care much for either one so I filled up on salad.

After lunch we had time to walk around the town and harbor before boarding our ship, the Corinthian.  To our surprise, out cabin is quite spacious with a sitting area, a vanity  table, and a bathroom area.

We set sail around 8 pm.   I put on my motion sickness patch as soon as we got into our cabins.  Our ship entered the Drake Passage in the middle of the night.  I could feel the waves rocking us quite a bit.  In our briefing, they told us the waves were about 12-14 ft high and that this was moderate.    The patch seemed to be doing the trick.   I felt slightly nauseated but I didn’t get sick. So far so good!  So once we get through the Drake Passage we will start our exploring of Antarctica. Penguins here we come!