SOUTH AMERICA TO EUROPE CRUISE
HENRY NOWICKI 20 APRIL 1999
Buenos Aires is a huge sprawling city reminiscent of Europe as reflected in its architectural and population makeup. Its location on the huge estuary of the Rio de la Plata is not emphasized unfortunately except for its commercial aspects of port shipping and warehousing. Someday, a great planner will redesign the waterfront and create a new aspect to this great city.
Incidentally, there seems to be a rash of petty crimes affecting tourists. Right in from of the beautiful Sheraton Hotel a few of the cruise passengers were ripped off in broad daylight...one of the passengers was in a wheelchair at the time with a bodyguard and that still did not deter the thieves. Another passenger told me that a few youngsters squirted mustard on him and when everyone went to wipe it off, his billfold went with it. Travelers be on your guard.
The weather was a bit rainy the first day so an ad hoc idea to catch a bus south to the seaside resort of Mar del Plata (Ref 2) took the next five hours spanning the easternmost pampas...an exceedingly flat green plain with little to recommend it to the itinerant traveler. The coastal city of Mar del Plata (ciudad feliz) has grown considerably with now more than a half-million in population and would merit a few days at the height of the summer; however, by the beginning of April and start of the southern hemisphere's fall, the water associated activities had started to wane. An overnight and another five hours to cover the more than 200 miles back to Buenos Aires took more time than I should have spent on the side trip.
The visitor will find many attractions (Ref 3) that start with the beaches and waterspots. Back to the main business at hand...the cruise to Africa and Europe. The Royal Princess (Ref 3) is a fine ship and noted for its innovative design that includes all cabins with outside views. The interior arrangements are adequate with most of the public areas on Riviera deck three and dining on Plaza deck two (see deck plans at Ref 3). The open deck space in the aft parts of the vessel are too limited for my taste and it is unfortunate that the Lido is not open to the weather a bit more. So much of the excellent Lido Cafe on deck eight is covered and protected by glass partitions. Nevertheless, my favorite feature was the so-called lap pool which extends some 50-ft in length and allows a few more strokes before having to turn around and head the other way. The 24-hr dining option is also neat as it frees one from a timetable that might not always coincide with one's appetite.
The activities aboard are all that you might expect on a modern cruise ship and this ship's itinerary with essentially a day in port with a day or two or three at sea in between allowed for full participation in these onboard attractions. The main distraction was the ubiquitous art auction that was allowed to occupy the main atrium at its intersection with the most-used deck three so that the public had to thread through the junk art that is huckstered by a glib salesman with a microphone that doesn't stop. It sure cheapened the cruise experience.
The unusual equator-crossing ceremony with King Neptune in attendance was a highlight with even the staff captain being humiliated with galley waste and being thrown into the pool with full uniform on.The Royal Princess departed late for Montevideo, some 140 air miles east of Buenos Aires, and little of the extremely long (some 60 miles as I recall) channel was to be observed.This relatively shallow area was subject to an oil spill in mid-January (Ref 4) when two vessels collided in the estuary.
Montevideo(Ref 5) is similar to Buenos Aires in its European makeup (the last four local indians are depicted in bronze at one of the small parks in the city!) and can easily be explored on foot from the port area. Uruguay, on the northeastern side of the La Plata estuary, is more of a bridge to Brazil and the north country.Log Note: Two days at sea heading in a northeasterly direction and covering a total distance of 1,042 nautical miles at an average speed of 17.1 knots.
Rio de Janeiro (Ref 6) is in a class by itself. The approaches in early morning were breathtaking with huge numbers of large seabirds, probably albatross, careening high in the sky and the fabulous shoreline of Leblon, Ipanema and Copacabana beaches interspersed with sculptured uplands such as Corcovado and Sugarloaf to the west and islands and uplands of Niteroi to the east. A flotilla of some six Brazilian frigates followed us in trace into Guanabara Bay and the day was off to a marvelous start. Rio has so much to offer that one day in port is only a teaser but a welcome one indeed.
Log Note: Two days at sea heading in a northerly direction and covering a total distance of 1,083 nm at an average speed of 18.6 knots. The equator was passed without the navigator's famous coconut fish being observed.
Recife (Ref 7) is a pleasant city with little of the opulence of the larger metropolises of the continent. Olinda is the only hillmass along a flat coastal area and it only rises some 140 feet above sea level; however, it is well worth a visit as it on the World Heritage list of monuments and is only some two miles north of the cruise ship pier at the northern part of the city. Although I used a cab, one could easily use the local buses for short transportation needs. The port visit was shortened to half a day so that there would be ample time to negotiate the transatlantic crossing.
Log Note: Three days at sea heading in a northeasterly direction (038) and covering a total distance of 1,720 nm at an average speed of 20 knots.
Dakar (Ref 8) is located in Senegal at the westernmost point of Africa on the Cape Verde peninsula so it has a most strategic location for water transport headed from Europe to either South America or around Africa in a counterclockwise direction. Most passengers found the rather aggresive nature of the shop and stall vendors to be a bit much but they nevertheless found the merchandise, especially the wood carvings, to be attractive and reasonably priced. I finally broke down and purchased two ebony canes which gave me precedence in walking up to ticket counters throughout the many air terminals that I visited on my way home. Never mind that I do not yet normally use a cane.
Speaking of walking, that is what I did in Dakar for most of the day. I walked on the coastal side of the presidential palace when a sirens and lights highlighted the president's entourage as he whisked by. According to the local lad I had been walking with, they seem to like him and reportedly he has been helping the people for quite some years now.
Log Note: Two days at sea headed in a northerly direction and covering a total distance of 1,099 nm at an average speed of 19 knots. La Palma in the Canary Islands was passed to port on the second day when the vessel was some 240 nm south of Madeira.
Funchal (Ref 9) in Portuguese Madeira,
is a lovely port that invariably pleases cruise passengers. I used a taxi but one could easily use local buses as they are neat and frequent.
I spent much of my time swimming at the seaside Madeira Claremont Hotel which has a stunning set of upper and lower pools to choose from. Walking through the town is always a nice pastime. Driving a few miles west to the picturesque fishing town of Camara de Lobos is recommended and Winston Churchill's picture painting site is still marked by a small monument.
Log Note: One day at sea headed in an eastnortheasterly course for a total distance of 475 nm to Casablanca at an average speed of 13.7 knots
Casablanca (Ref 10) in Morocco is an extremely busy port and the vessel was moored the better part of a mile from the entrance to the port proper. However, the city center is very close to the port entrance and walking at that point is easy enough. I immediately took a train to Rabat, the capital of Morocco, for something like $3 to cover the 60 miles in less than an hour. Rabat is prettier than Casablanca and for my walk was an excellent choice. The souk and casbah are readily available and the various sights such as Hassan Tower are rather easily negotiated. Upon return to Casablanca, again by rail, I walked the downtown region. One can always count on good weather in this part of the world.
Gibraltar (Ref 11), some 140 nm northeast of Casablanca, is a British colony appended on the southern shore of Spain. Only a few square miles in area, it has had a strategic importance in being located at the chokepoint where the Mediterranean exits west to the Atlantic. That military advantage has dwindled but its tourist value has grown remarkably. Spain cannot wait for the UK to give up just about its last colony. In any event, Gibraltar makes a pleasant day's stopover as one can ascend to the 1,200-ft top of the rock by car or cable car (a few minutes ride for about $10) and tour some of the associated sights. It is noteworthy that the famous view of the steep side of the rock is actually from the north or land side rather than from the south and the sea. Sometimes it takes a visit to ascertain such things. The departure was at midnight so the lights of the Spanish shore combined with the lights on the west side of Gibraltar made an interesting combination. Rounding Europa Light at the southernmost point of the rock and heading for Barcelona was worth the wind and the cold of the evening.
Log Note: One day at sea headed in a northeasterly direction and covering a total distance of 262 nm to Barcelona at an average speed of 21.2 knots. The prime meridian was passed at 1430 hrs.
Barcelona (Ref 12) was entered very early in the morning and allowed passengers having early flights to depart at 0530. I ate a leisurely breakfast and took a taxi to the main train station and boarded a train to Paris via Toulouse. I had a rented vehicle waiting but decided that rather than spend another week touring the Spanish coast that I would wait with that for next time. Sometimes it seems that five weeks on the road is enough for now.
Overall the voyage, covering 6,244 nautical miles, was very successful.
REFERENCES
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