DAY 19 Jan 31 - Arica, Chile

Arica is known as "The City of Eternal Spring" and has a population approaching 200,000. It is the most northern city in Chile, just 12 miles from the Peruvian border and is located on the coast of the driest desert, not only in South America, but in the world.

Stretching 600 miles from Peru's southern border into northern Chile, the Atacama Desert rises from a thin coastal shelf to the pampas and their virtually lifeless plains that dip down to river gorges layered with mineral sediments from the Andes. The pampas bevel up to the foothills of the Andes, where alluvial salt pans give way to lofty white-capped volcanoes reaching 20,000 feet.

At its centre, a place climatologists call absolute desert, the Atacama is known as the driest place on Earth. There are sterile, intimidating stretches where rain has never been recorded, at least as long as humans have measured it.

Neither a blade of grass nor cactus stump can be seen any where. Many People who live here cannot even remember ever seeing it rain, as it rains only 2 to 3 times in every 100 years.

The region has a mild climate. Water, a rarity in the Atacama Desert, comes from Río Lluta that originates in the Andes and flows through Northern Chile to Bolivia and supports lush vegetation.

There are often conflicts between the two countries over the syphoning-off of water from the river.

The area has been inhabited by native tribes from at least 6000 BC where corn, squash and cotton were cultivated and where pottery was made.

These people were later part of the Tihuanaco culture of Bolivia and the Inca Empire which extended as far north as Quito, Ecuador.

Once part of Bolivia, and Bolivia's access to the sea to export silver from the mines in Potosí, Arica became Chilean territory in the War of the Pacific.

Arica still functions as Bolivia's access to the sea, connected to Bolivia by train.

Chile has a Pacific Ocean coast line stretching nearly 3000 miles and has an average depth of just over 100 miles inland. The population is currently about 17 million people.

It is one of just two countries (the other being Ecuador) in South America that does not share a border with Brazil.

This is the first of many stops we will be making in Chile over the next two weeks as we head towards the Antarctic on our Grand Voyage.

Today, on our first day in Chile, we have booked a tour through Cristan Ossandon of Sertours in Arica. The booking was conducted through the Internet and all finalised in October.

We meet up at the gates of the port and walk to the Cathedral where we pick-up the van for the 5 hour tour of the City and the Archaeological Museum where we will see the world's oldest mummies dating back to 10,000 BC (see photo).

We will then visit the Azapa Valley to observe the incredible Tropilla Geoglyphs followed by a further visit to see the Cerro Sagrado Geoglyphs.

Later in the morning we will enjoy an Aymara (local India tribe) picnic.

Our party today consists of 13 persons all of who I had introduced to the tour via Cruise Critic. The group from our ship was made up of: Lin, Gerry and Gary, Robin and Jennifer, Rosalyn and George, Lee and Lorraine, Dot and George plus of course us two.

Our English speaking guide was a very nice young man call Santiago and is pictured here with Maria.

At 9.00 sharp we started off on foot exploring the small centre of the town including the Cathedral and the Governors Residence.

Unfortunately, we were in formed he was not at home as this was a Sunday thus no photo opportunity for us with the local big wig. We just had to do with a photo outside his official home.

Before visiting the incredible Geoglyphs stretching 50 foot in length on the hills surrounding Arica we visited the railway station, the former Customs House and a huge fruit and vegetable market called Terminal Agropecuario.

The market had a wide assortment of produce nearly all from the local Azapa and Lluta Vallies.

Some produce was quite expensive by our standards but others quite cheap. For example one of the huge water melons, shown in the picture with Maria, were UK30 pence or US50 cents.

Then it was off out of the town to see the Geoglyphs of La Tropilla.

Essentially these huge displays of llamas and humans built of rocks on the sandy side of the hills are thought to be a directional signage system that was introduced about 550 years ago to guide the local tribal people towards the Pacific Ocean. The llamas always point toward the ocean.

While taking photos of these amazing 'drawings' we can across an enterprising Pisco and wine salesman with a good supply of samples of the various Pisco Sours he sold.

I had heard that the Mango Pisco Sour was a very acceptable cocktail so ventured to have my first sample of this delicious drink. It was a good job our son-in-law Paul wasn't with us as he a bit of a thing for Margaritas and I could see him getting very quickly hooked on this new discovery. The sample was so good I decided to buy a bottle as well as the more traditional Lemon Pisco Sour.

These will make rather nice pre-dinner drinks to pour ourselves but of course have increased our already large alcohol mountain!.

Next it was on the the Cerro Sagrado Geoglyphs as seen in the photo. This large display was some form of religious memorial dating back many hundreds of years to pre-colonial times.

While viewing this sight under a canopy built to protect us from the strong sun our tour hosts supplied us with some lovely local produce. Olives, one of the main crops of the area, a tasty cheese, some biscuits and a cereal dish. All very enjoyable. These we washed down with a selection of Pisco Sours, water or coke. I won't say which option we chose. Our hosts had also laid on a young violinist to entertain us as we enjoyed this welcome break.

Our last stop was about 10 miles outside the town at the Archaeological Museum of San Miguel Azpapa.

The well presented displays here begin 10,000 years ago and progress until the present time. Chinchorro mummies from the Andes and Atacama Desert are reputed to be the worlds oldest remains. They were a fascinating sight and displayed as part of the history of the region.

Unfortunately we were unable to visit the nearby Lluta Geogglyphs as these hillside drawings, again representing llamas and humans, are designed to be viewed from the sky, and they didn't have aeroplanes in those days did they?

We arrived back on the ship, shown in the picture taken from high above the town, at about 2.00 o'clock and the very welcome air condition environment of our home from home was very welcome. It was time to update the blog, have an ice cream and in Maria's case some nice fresh mozzarella, before perhaps having a nap.

Today is the birthday of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands so it's formal night again on the Prinsendam with a very Dutch menu. However, as I'm still not 100% and off my food I think we will just go up to the less formal Lido restaurant and have a bite there without all the fuss of a 5 course dinner.

DAY 18 Jan 30 - Sea Day Pacific Ocean

Another sea day as we head down the South American coast towards Chile, which when we dock at Arica tomorrow morning will be the fourth South American country we will have stopped at on this Grand Voyage.

As we left Puerto San Martin last night the Captain told us he had received permission from the Peruvian pilot for us to cruise slowly past the iconic 'Cande-labra' drawings and for our resident travel guide Frank Buck-ingham to gives us some more interesting facts about it.

It was a gorgeous evening and the position of the sun allowed us to maximise the photo opportunity this presented. I have therefore shown here a few of the different pictures that I took of this mysterious wonder. The port side of the ship was absolutely lined two deep with passengers appearing on deck with cameras at the ready for gazing at this unique sight. Unfortunately Frank was unable to add any more information that would enlighten us as to the origins and meaning of the prehistoric 'Candelabra' drawings. It is unlightly that the 'drawing' can be viewed easily from the air because of the angle of the slope on which its placed. The only way to really appreciate its majestic form is to do what we were doing and just sail past it.

At dinner we heard that our waiter, Nandang, was having to depart the ship at the next port of call and fly home to Indonesia where his mother was very ill. This compassionate leave had been granted by the HAL Head Office in Seattle. He will be missed as he was performing well and was aware of all our various idiosyncrasies!! We all hope that his mother does recover and is comforted by his timely return to her bedside.

I was quite tired at dinner after being up since 5.00 in the morning and without a nap during the day so was quite pleased to retire to the cabin shortly after 10 o'clock.

Maria was slightly more refreshed having had a nap earlier.

The bad news was that the clocks were being put forward an hour so by the time it was lights off, the clock was reading 11.45. So much for an early night!

Deden's animal offering was again a masterpiece as shown in the photo above.

At lunch time today the various members of Cruise Critic who had contributed to this Grand Voyage thread on the CC website, were holding a 12.15 lunch in the dining room. There were approximate 40 of us on board so it will be interesting to see how many turn up. It's a good opportunity to exchange information and hear any good rumours about the cruise that might be doing the rounds! Our hosts will be organisers Bill and Mary Ann.

In the event there was a good turn out of about 30 plus spread over four tables. The food in the dining room at lunch time seems to be excellent and a little more portion controlled than the Lido restaurant.

Most of our dinner tables mates seemed to have grabbed a table together (see the photo opposite) but we were pleased to be on a different table in order to chat with others that we didn't usually have the opportunity of meeting socially.

It was indeed pleasant to have the Canadian sisters Rosalyn and Jennifer with their spouses George and Robin present on the table. We had met them briefly before and chatted following originally 'meeting' them on Cruise Critic boards over the previous months. (Pictured here is Rosalyn and her sister Jennifer).

The four of them were due to be on the tour I have organised for tomorrow in Arica so I was able to update them on price and meeting point. I also took the opportunity to update a few others who were on this same tour tomorrow.

The other couple at the table were Don and Aileen.

All in all it was an extremely pleasant lunch and social interlude.

Next door neighbours John and Barbara from the UK had privately booked a a three day tour to Machu Picchu which of course they couldn't undertake because of the flooding and destruction of the surrounding area. Their privately found travel agents had now informed them that they would not be offer a refund and that they would have to seek financial redress via their insurance policy. Not an entirely acceptable situation.

It is believed that HAL would be refunding the whole amount to clients that had booked with them (at more that twice the price of the private booking) directly.

Although post-Lima there had been a net increase in passenger numbers of approximately 30, the dinning rooms and other public areas were showing no obvious signs of increased numbers.

After Valparaiso, numbers would again increase as the new cabins, and other ones taken out of commission because of the construction work, were made available for occupancy. Because of the number of single occupancies on board the actual passenger numbers were quite low for a grand Voyage of this nature.

DAY 17 Jan 29 - Puerto San Martin( Pisco), Peru

We were in sight of the rather desolate port of General San Martin as soon as the sun came up at 6 o’clock. It was quickly apparent we were now firmly in desert country and this terrain would continue to dominate over the next few days as we cruise down well into Chilean territory.

It was good to see the sun rising once again after two gloomy sunless days while in Callao and Lima. It had been the first time in two weeks that the skies had been so overcast and threatening.

This was turning out to be a lovely morning with temperatures expected to be in the mid-80s in the afternoon. Just the kind of day for side trip on a boat

As we left Callao last evening it was interesting to see that the small British registered cruise liner, the Saga Ruby, had arrived in port as part of her world cruise. We have friends that have cruised extensively on her and they speak very highly of the ship, it’s British officers and Filipino crew.

Further out of port we passed a small craggy island where the clouds presented an interesting formation and was worth of a photograph. Perched on top of the Island was a lighthouse to warn ships to stay clear.

When we eventually retired last night, after again missing the nightly perfor-mance in the show lounge, we were met with a Deden special, this time a monkey on a hanger.

Once the pilot was on board this morning, shortly before 6.00 am, Captain Albert and Chief Officer Ane Smit could be seen on the extended bridge accompanied by the pilot measuring up their bearing to our final destination of the day and ensuring the ship was carefully brought along side the dock.

Puerto San Martin is named after the great South American liberator General Jose de San Martin. This area is significant in Peruvian history as the birthplace of Peru's struggle for independence. In the month of July, 1821, San Martin triumphantly entered the city of Lima, proclaims independence.

It was after the liberation of Argentina from the Spanish that San Martin next turned his attention to the Spanish stronghold of Peru.

Then after months of slow advances he won a decisive victory against the Spanish at the Battle of Pisco on 6 December, 1820. It was after this that he and his army sailed north from this area to prepare for the liberation of Peru. Thus the naming of this port - Puerto General San Martin.

Together with Simón Bolívar in the north, San Martín is regarded as one of the Liberators of Spanish South America. He is a national hero in Argentina, Chile and Peru.

The port itself is pretty sparse and is surrounded by baron desert terrain as this region is part of the south Peru coastal desert plain. There is no actual town here with Pisco being the nearest areas of population about 10 miles away. The coastal town of Pisco originally prospered because of its nearby vineyards and is the namesake of the Peruvian grape brandy, pisco. However, the original port at Pisco has now been replaced, other than for some fishing boats use, by the General San Martin deep water port where we docked.

Our table mates Mary Ellen and Bruce have booked us for a 9.30 trip including boat ride to the highlight of the area, the Ballestas Islands found in the Pacific just north of the port and close by Pisco. They are sometimes known as the 'poor man's Gallapagos'.

We boarded our boat at the small seaside resort town near Playa El Chaco in the bay of Paracas, just 10 miles south along the shore from where we docked. There were about 40 of us on board made up of several nationalities including a group from China.

We soon headed to the Ballestas Islas. The Islands form part of the Reserva Nacional de Isles Ballestas, which is now also a UNESCO heritage site for wildlife.

On the way we passed several shoals of dolphins, which we were informed, had come up from the Antarctic.

They were an amazing site to watch as they skimmed along past us at high speed.

The whole experience was quite exhilarating as we moved swiftly to the first of the Islands.

Here we saw an incredible amount of wild life including Cormorants, Boobies and Humboldt penguins on the rocks. There were just thousand upon thousands of these wonderful creatures all coexisting together on the rugged rocks of the Islands.

Other birds were also well represented here. The local penguins are of a breed that's very scarce in world terms and there was plenty of them on display.

The masses of birds mean a deluge of droppings or guano as it's called in Peru, surround the islands, which are readily collected-up for use as fertilizer and the points of exportation are prominent in the landscape.

A wonderful surprise for us was seeing seals and sea lions scattered among the rocks round the islands. We even saw and heard a colony of sea lions controlled by a huge bull lion.

In the main they were resting and sunning themselves on the warm rock face with the exception of one seal who dived into the water as we approached him.

On the way to and from the islands we passed and had wonderful views of 'The Candelabra' a huge prehistoric carving etched into a sloping hill at Pisco Bay.

This strange figure looks vaguely like a candlestick; thus, its name "The Candelabra of the Andes." The Candelabra is 595 feet long and can be seen from as far as 12 miles out to sea. It is one of the most amazing giant ground drawings (or "geoglyphs") in South America. Scholars are puzzled why such a figure would be placed where it could be seen best by sailors.

Some say the gigantic carvings look like a Jimson weed! It is also known that there is a miniature version of the Candelabra drawn on a rock in California's Cleveland National Forest. An association therefore of the two 'Candelabras' has been made.

The ancient inhabitants of Peru voyaged to California to collect Jimson weed and other hallucinatory drugs. When they sailed back to Peru with their cargo, it is thought, they used the Pisco geoglyph as a navigational aid!

We were soon passing the Prinsendam as we headed to our disem-barkation point after this quite unique and exciting trip to the Ballestas Islands.

This had been a ‘not to be missed’ excursion and again it had been a National Geographic type experience. It had been a truly wonderful morning and all for the price of just $45 each including private car to and from the ship. Thank you Mary Ellen for organizing it.

By 1.30 we were back on board the Prinsendam and ready for our lunch and a look through the hundreds of photos we had taken during this unforgettable nature trip.

DAY 16 Jan 28 - 2nd Day in Callao (Lima), Peru

This is our second day in Callao after an overnight stop here.

Lima is the capital and largest city in Peru. The population is constantly growing and it is estimated that up to 12 million people reside here. Lima might not be South America’s most beautiful city, but with excellent museums, interesting historic attractions, friendly people it has plenty to offer. Unfortunately, Lima is known for being covered in fog most of the year. Roughly from April to November, a gray cloud known as the garúa settles in over the city, making for a rather dull setting. However, from December to April, the sun shines, and it is during these hot and humid months that the bulk of Limeños hit the welcoming nearby Peru beaches. Having said that, yesterday and certainly this morning the sky is overcast, its a little humid and there is no sun in sight.

Political and economic instability during the latter half of the twentieth century created unprecedented poverty and violence in the rural highlands, forcing thousands of campesinos (peasant farmers) to migrate to Lima looking for work and a better life. Today, more than one-third of Lima’s population lives in shanty towns, locally known as pueblos jóvenes, many of which lack such basic services as electricity and running water. There continues to be widespread underemployment in Peru and over 50% of the population living under the poverty line.

Here are some interesting trivia type facts about this ancient territory of Peru. The potato originates here and they produce over 3000 varieties. The tomato too is originally from Peru. One of the corn variety's from Peru has the biggest kernels in the world and I had some of these in my soup yesterday. Delicious too. The avocado is originally from Peru as well. Peruvian food has 468 different registered typical dishes! The finest cotton in the world, Pima and Tanguis are Peruvian. The weeping willow also originates from these parts and it produces the base for aspirin. A Peruvian root known as Huanarpo Macha is what Viagra is made from. The mind boggles!! It sounds quite a country doesn't it?

Last night the Lido deck was brightly decorated with bunting in the red and white national colours of Peru and a deck BBQ was organised. Pisco Sours became the drink of the night and by all accounts sales were brisk.

Not being great lovers of BBQ's we went up to the Crow's Nest for pre-dinner drinks where young Lalaine was in charge as the other usual staff were manning the temporary bars set up on the Lido deck. Wow she too has learnt to pour a mean and good size Scotch on the Rocks!!

We understand that 65 passengers disembarked today after this the first two week segment of the Grand Voyage and 90 other passengers embarked. Many were seen looking round the Crow's Nest while we were there as they presumably explored their new home from home.

I was still suffering a bit from the excessive lunch we had enjoyed earlier in Miraflores and had no appetite by dinner time. I found that I could only eat my soup and a 'No Sugar Added' ice cream dessert. I'm sure that won't do me any harm!

After dinner we retired giving the Peruvian dancers and singers show a miss. No doubt this will have turned out to be a mistake as the act was said to be first class. At least they show it on one of the TV channels the next day.

Welcoming us in our cabin was another towel animal master-piece from Deden. This time it was a dog relaxing over a crossword puzzle on top of our bed.

As is traditional on Grand Voyages, a guest list booklet has been distributed to each cabin. This gives in alphabetical order passenger names with basic information on domicile and nationality.

A quick glance shows that the Brits are very much in a minority with only 4 or 5 couples listed. Americans and Canadians dominate the list with also a fair amount of guests from the Netherlands , after all we are on a Holland America Line ship, and a dozen or so hail from Australia.

It is rather odd therefore that in the cabin next to ours we do have another British couple, John and Barbara, from Walsall in the Black Country. Now you would have thought they would have spread us out a bit better than that or maybe they just want us together so they can keep an eye on us!!

While we have been in dock these last two days the ship has been painted on one side. A couple of cranes lift a cages that hold two painters strapped in and off they go down the port side of the ship.

From our balcony on the 10th deck we can see the little bits of rust they have missed. There is certainly no rubbing and priming here.

We managed to make a few purchases from the stalls that had grown-up near where the ship was docked. We bought some lovely Peruvian woollen jumpers that hopefully will be appreciated by their future recipients back home.

Lunch was a very pleasant smoked mackerel and smoked trout fish selection up in the Lido restaurant. We also treated ourselves to a naughty dessert that we took down to the cabin to polish off.

All on board is set for 4.30 today with the actual sail away half an hour later. It is just a shame that the sun has not appeared yet today leaving a very overcast sky to dominate the vista.

DAY 15 Jan 27 - Callao(Lima), Peru

Callao(Spanish: El Callao) is the largest and most important port in Peru. It is located west of Lima, the country's capital, and is part of the Lima Metropolitan Area, a large metropolis that concentrates almost one-third of Peru's population. It borders Lima Province on the north, east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It is considered to be a suburb of Lima as the city of Callao lies just minutes to the west of the capital. The city is part of both the Constitutional Province of Callao and the Lima Metropolitan Area.

The port of Callao is a particularly historical city being founded in 1537, just two years after Lima (1535), and it soon became the main port for Spanish commerce in the Pacific. The origin of its name is unknown; both Indian and Spanish sources are credited, but it is certain that it was known by this name since 1550.

At the height of the Spanish colonial period, virtually all goods produced in Peru, Bolivia, and Argentina were carried over the Andes by mule to Callao, to be shipped to Panama, carried overland, and then transported on to Spain via Cuba. This must have been a mammoth task to undertake but with an abundance of native labour available, was very achievable.

As we entered the port this morning at about 6.30 I was amazed to see what an incredibly busy sea port this place still is.

A fishing fleet of over 80 vessels was anchored outside the harbour walls and can be seen in the misty picture below. Approximately 20 freighters and tankers were also anchored there. However the skies this morning were overcast and visibility was restricted due to mist thus limiting my ability to take good photographs.

Within the sheltered dock area all available berths were taken with ships from all over the world being emptied or filled with a variety of cargoes.

In 1851 the first rail road in South America was open here between Callao and Lima. It's also interesting that in 1567 it was from this port that explorers set out and discovered the Solomon Islands and also from here, in 1590, they set out and discovered the Marianas and Marquesas Islands.

Maria and I were last here during our 2007 Grand World Voyage on the Amsterdam. As a result we have seen the City of Lima and it's surrounding area and have not therefore booked any trips today. The immediate area round the docks is known to be very dangerous and passengers are advised not to venture past the dock gates unless on an official tour or in an approved taxi only available from inside the gates.

Maria was up and about (after firstly having her juice and coffee in the cabin) early today and although not necessarily fully awake soon joined me on deck to watch the ship come along side. The maneuvering had been delicate and slow because of the restricted space available for the ship to turn due to the proximately of the large bulk carrier from Hong Kong positioned aft of us.

Before we departed the cabin our lovely steward Deden appeared with our returned laundry all nicely washed and pressed. What a great daily service to have. He also showed us on his iPod a picture of his new little son. What a lovely little baby it was too. Deden also presented us last night with another of his beautiful towel animal, an elephant this time. Unfort-unately unless they are moved from the bed and placed else where in the room they tend to be come a cropper during the night so we preserved our animal by placing it behind the sofa on a shelf.

Some passengers had booked a Machu Picchu land tours that would start out from this port. This is normally a three-day affair. After completing this exotic and exhilarating trip to the rarefied atmosphere of this ancient city set high in Andes mountains, passengers would again pick the ship up at its next port in Peru, Pisco, a few days later.

However it has just been announced by the Captain and on CNN news that there have been very serious mud slides in the region with many tourists trapped there. The essential railroad used to climb much of the hinterland has been buried under the local swollen river and the road cut off with mudflows. It would appear that many people will be very disappointed with this news but up to $3000 better off as a result!

We had often thought of doing the tour but the possible need for oxygen at these altitudes and the limited period to acclimatize has put us off. Some of the hotel rooms used on the trip offer oxygen filled rooms to assist people with their breathing. There are often stories about people not making the full trip because of the high altitude.

Our plan today is to head for the Miraflores sea side resort and part of Lima where H. Stern have an up-scale 'World Class Designer Jewelry Store’ for which they run a free shuttle service to and from the ship.

It is not our intention to buy anything at the store but just to avail ourselves of the safe and free transport service (see photo below).

At 10.30 we took the Stern shuttle for the 30 minutes ride to the up-scale resort of Miraflores passing through some very poor parts of Lima en route. The resort area has many high-rise condominium buildings, some good international hotels and plenty of restaurants and little boutique type shops.

After walking around and realizing that I had left my camera battery charging on the ship (stupid me! and the reason there are no photos here!) we went and had lunch. The restaurant was perched high up on the cliffs overlooking the well-manicured beaches below and set in a pleasant shopping area.

We tried some Pisco Sours as we were now firmly in Pisco drinking country and would be for the next month or so. They were delicious and not unlike a good Margarita cocktail.

Maria had Paella (her first in South America) and I had a huge bowl of soup with what seemed like a whole cow in it. It was delicious and very filling. I though I had ordered a minestrone soup but it appears that was not the case. A sole fish dish followed my soup, which was also most enjoyable. Our bill plus a considerable tip was just $40.

By 2.00 o’clock we had had enough so decided to head back to the ship courtesy of Mr Stern.

A large sign by the docks entrance reminded us that this was the premier port of Peru and much of South America.

Some welcome ice cream was awaiting me plus a lovely plate of fresh orange and grate-fruit segments as we visited the Lido restaurant. Maria declined the temptation and would now wait until dinner before eating again. Oh what a goodie goodie!!