Also located at the Plaza De Mayo is the Metropolitan Cathedral. It is the main Catholic Church in Buenos Aires. It is the mother church of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires and the primatial church of Argentina. Now it is most famous for it’s most recent Archbishop/Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio.

Located in the right aisle of the cathedral are the remains of General José de San Martín one of the greatest generals in South America because of his success in helping South American countries gain independence from Spanish rule. His black sarcophagus is guarded by three life-size female figures that represent Argentina, Chile, and Peru, three of the regions freed by the General.

Did I forget to mention, Archbishop/Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio is now Pope Francis I!

We arrived in Buenos Aires about 7:00 am and left on our tour of the city about 9:00. We would have started earlier but our buses were stuck in traffic (sound familiar?)

We began our tour in the north of the city in the Recoleta district. We saw several parks and our first memorial to Eva “Evita” Peron, probably one of the most well known, as well as controversial, Argentinians. We then proceeded to the Recoleta cemetary to see Eva’s mausoleum.

When we arrived it began to rain, not a normal rain but buckets! Only 8 of us chose to go to the mausoleum. You really need a guide to find it. You zig and zag through the tombs until suddenly, in the side of a small aisle, you’re at the flower-covered door to the mausoleum. Evita is buried deep in the Duarte family mausoleum with other family members.

Evita often gave speeches for women’s suffrage and the working class of Argentina at the Presidential palace called “Casa Rosada” (Pink House) located in the city center overlooking Plaza de Mayo. She spoke from the balcony with the curtained windows on the left.

On a building where her speeches were often broadcast in Buenos Aires, a metal image of Evita is shown yelling into a microphone about workers rights. It is facing north towards what was then where the rich and elite lived. While we didn’t see it, on the opposite side, Evita is facing south towards the working class area and is smiling.

After a couple of relaxing sea days, we arrived at the city of Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay and 90 degree heat. It’s a very modern city and has miles and miles of public beaches. However what appears to be the Atlantic Ocean is actually the Rio de la Plata river flowing from the interior of South America into the Atlantic. When we leave town tonight we’ll actually sail up the river to Buenos Aires, Argentina.

During WWII, the heavily damaged German battleship Graf Spee arrived in Montevideo seeking assistance for repairs. Convinced by false reports of superior British naval forces approaching his ship, the commander of the ship, ordered the vessel to be scuttled. Only within the last few years did the remains finally slip beneath the water.

A popular drink in Uruguay is Mate tea. An empty gourd is filled with Mate tea and then filled with hot water. The tea is then sipped thru a metal spoon-like sieve. The gourd and a thermos with hot water is carried around all day and the cup is refilled as needed.

After touring the city, we left the city to tour the Juanico Winery. Uruguay is a very big exporter of wine.

We visited the fields and the processing plant where all the grapes are turned into wine and stored. This is a big operation. When we arrived at the tasting room, we were treated to a tour of the oldest wine cellar in Uruguay. It was built by the Jesuits in the late 18th century.

After the tour we attended a wine tasting of 5 different wines. The tasting room was beautifully set and various breads, meats, and cheeses were provided to cleanse the palate and enhance the wine tasting experience. After the tasting ended, lunch was served. Huge pans of beef, pork, chicken, sausages, and roasted vegetables were served along with more wine.

Towards the end of lunch, there was a surprise performance by a couple of local Tango dancers. They were very good. They even convinced some of our tour to dance with them.

I can truly say that no one left the Winery with an empty stomach. The bus was very quiet on the way back to the ship as everyone napped!

Our first stop after Antarctica was the city of Stanley in the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas, if you’re Argentinian). For hundreds of years both Britain and Argentina have claimed the Islands as their territory. In 1982 Argentina invaded the islands. The British, led by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, fought back and ultimately reclaimed the islands for Britain. Today it is a bastion of Britishness. A monument to the fallen soldiers and another to Margaret Thatcher were erected by the Islanders.

Another must see spot is the Whalebone Arch, situated in front of Christ Church Cathedral. It was originally constructed in 1933 from the jawbones of two blue whales to celebrate 100 years of British rule. After years of exposure to the elements, however, they have had to be restored and now should last long into the future.

We also took a tour to Bluff Cove Lagoon to see more penguins. We’ve already covered penguins so I won’t discuss them here other than to say that we saw Gentoos and Kings. We left Stanley in a bus and then transferred to a Jeep 4×4 for a 1/2 hour ride to the lagoon of which two minutes was on an actual road. The rest of the time was spent traveling over pothole filled fields!

Here is one more picture of a young Gentoo penguin covered in his fluffy coat. Until he trades this in for feathers, he cannot go into the water. The fluff falls out or is pulled out by the young penguin.

Take a look at the following picture. Can you tell me what’s missing? Still don’t see it? Ok, it’s trees. The Falkland Islands have no native trees! Any trees on the island were brought there by the Islanders. This makes for some very strong winds covering the islands.

Also on our tour we saw some other animals on the island: Galloway cattle, ducks and Upland geese, and a black-browed albatross. Then it was back to the city for a lunch of fish and chips at the “Victory Bar” (what else did you expect on a British Island?)

All in all it was a very nice day.

During the sea day getting to the Antarctic, cruising the Antarctic, and the trip north from the Antarctic, there have been lectures and entertainers and, of course, watercolor classes. Here are some examples of my art projects. Each one is based on a photo taken by Ron or me. The man is the manager of the fancy onboard dining room, the Pinnacle Grill. He was nice enough to let me take his photo to practice my sketching.