South American summer

A stiff breeze blew off the Rio de la Plata riffling the silty water. The river was the milky brown color of a perfect latte, including the foam. Sailboats ran before the wind and fishing boats motored through the harbor. I sat on the Promenade deck watching the other passengers lap the deck and the birds twisting in the wind. It felt good to be in the warm embrace of summer.

I arrived in Buenos Aires a full day late because of the snowstorm. But the flight was uneventful and I was able to share a remis (car service or shuttle) from the airport with a Swiss doctor. I got to the dock and onto the ship without a problem. Knowing Spanish was certainly helpful.

I would say the average age of my shipmates is about 75-- most are retired. They are vibrant well-traveled people. From many deck chairs I can hear drifts of conversation about their past travels. The whole lot of them seem to have been to Antarctica. I am going to have to push that higher on my list. While I am getting off in Rio many of my fellow passengers are going with the ship to Lisbon. The Marco Polo has been sold to a German company and the passengers and crew are feeling the bittersweet last moments and memories of glorious voyages past.

Fast forward,

We have just weighed anchor and are leaving Uruguay. Tomorrow will be a full day at sea on our way to Brazil. I will have time to tell you more then. TTFN!

Women and their shoes

Maybe I should say me and my shoes. I had no idea I was one of those women that felt strongly about wearing the right shoe with the right outfit. I normally have no issue packing. I travel for business all the time.

But when traveling abroad I cannot tell you the times that someone guessed my nationality because of the shoes I was wearing. (Apparently we are notoriously bad dressers.) I am determined not to embarrass myself this time.

So when I started to pack for my South American cruise, I packed the appropriate shoe to go with the outfit I would wear if I were home. But there is the rub. I will not be home and I do not want to have one piece of luggage just for my shoes. That is plain silly.

So I unpacked the red sandals, the high-heeled pointy-toed brown pump, the black short-heeled pointy-toed pump, the medium brown sandal, the taupe sling backs, the black leather flip-flop with adorable black bow, and my sneakers. (I had already decided against the hiking boots; after all, I would only be in the jungle 2 days.) This did not include the cutest black and white buckle-toed plaid shoes I was planning on wearing on the plane. Egad it was like a different shoe for every day.

I am starting over--re-thinking my clothing options, which of course, drives the shoe choices. I need the sneakers, and a sandal and something dressy. Sigh. I will have to build my wardrobe around the shoes not the other way around.