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We departed February 21st on American via JFK, continuing on with Latam to Santiago. Prearranged airport to hotel transfer with Suntransfers (suntransfers.com) worked out fine even though it took us 75 minutes to get through the airport. We had 2 nights in Santiago at the Sommelier Hotel Boutique, 433 Merced. Good central location. Our room (#42), was small & in the rear with no view & little natural light. We had to pay additional $65 to check in early & we were charged Pesos 2,000 (approx $3) for a coffee in the room. The breakfast was poor. We had dinner at a roof top restaurant in Barrio Lastarria. Shared pizza, empanadas, glass of wine & a beer cost approx. $35.

Saturday February 23rd. Santiago. After breakfast we followed a loop via the Central Market, the Fruit markets & San Cristobal. In the evening we walked to Plaza de Armas which was busy with people & street performers, and to Plaza Constitution. Had dinner, shared pizza 3 pisco sours and a beer at a pub close to the hotel, cost approx $30. Sunday February 24th. Santiago/Embarkation. Met up with Cheryl & Steve with whom we were sharing a transfer to San Antonio (Booked through Ruta de Chile). In the lobby we met Mark & Cathy who were also on our cruise. Our shuttle arrived on schedule at 11:00am, the driver spoke good English, & had a good sense of humour which made the 1 ½ hour ride pass quickly. Bag drop-off & check-in went with usual efficiency. Had lunch on deck, went to Seabourn Square for coffee, & sign-up for the internet. Had dinner at Thomas Keller. Double nice surprise, Ana is the hostess & Martin is back on the Quest after a short stint on the Ovation. Also on board are Cynthia & Susan & their friend Margit. We sailed with Cynthia (Montreal) & Susan (Scottsdale) on our very first cruise around the tip of South America in 2012, so it was a nice surprise to see them again. At 93 Cynthia is an inspiration. Monday February 25th. Sea day. Rough seas & feeling bit ropey. Downside of being at the front of the ship is that it is the bumpiest place to be. First day of Team Trivia - didn’t do very well. Went to meet the Expedition Team at 11:00am. Went to photography talk in afternoon. Captains reception at 6:30 & had a very nice dinner with Nic Botha, Guest Services Manager, a couple from Norway Odd and Anne-Mette, and John & Judy from Toronto (friends of Marc Thompson). The scheduled show by the singers & dancers was postponed due to rough seas (dodgy for the dancers) so had a Brazilian guitarist - who was very good.

Tuesday February 26th. Puerto Montt. Arrived 10.00 am. Overcast, drizzly & cold. Signed up for a 4 ½ hour bus tour of Puerto Montt, Puerto Varas & Frutillar. It was a bumpy 7 minute tender ride to shore. Having dressed for the cold, the sun came out & it was a beautiful day. Osorno was in full view from Frutillar. The Tour consisted of a drive through Puerto Montt, an hour stopover in Puerto Varas & an hour in Frutillar. Chilean snacks & refreshments were laid on in Frutillar. We returned to ship at 5:45, & watched the local show in the Grand Salon at 6:30. Making the mistake of sitting near the front I was invited to join in the dancing - I couldn’t say no and it turned out to be good fun. We endured the cold having dinner at ‘Earth & Ocean’ at the Patio - Gwyneth was wrapped up in 3 blankets! Food was good but service was a bit slow. Caught the last 30 minutes of the violinist - she was very good, especially the tribute to Queen. Had a drink & dance in the Club before retiring at midnight.

Wednesday February 27th: Castro, Chiloe. Using ships tenders again, but sea considerably calmer. Arrived at 7 am, last tender back was at 2:30 pm. Arose to catch the sunrise at 7:24 but bit early as sun rose behind a hill so had to wait until 8:00 for the light. Surprisingly I wasn't the only idiot up early. Went ashore just before crew drill at 10:15am. Warm, sunny skies 61F. Took shuttle to main square & walked to the palafitos. Took a few pictures & walked around town, looked around the craft market (Gwyn bought a neck warmer & 3 purses for the grandchildren) & then back to the ship at 2:00pm. Lunch on deck, sat with Mark & Cathy (Boulder Co.) and Marty & Mary Anne (Ottowa). Weighed-anchor at 3:00pm for some scenic cruising of the channel before re-entering the Pacific. It was sunny but with a cold wind (apparent strength of 37 knots). The Channel is lined with colorful markers of the many salmon farms. We are heading south/south-east, the snow-capped mountains of the Andes straight ahead of us. Once out of the channel we will have to endure the Pacific swells again until we reach the shelter of the Chilean Fjords hopefully by tomorrow. We have 2 days at sea before our next port of call, Punta Arenas. Thursday February 28th. Day at Sea. Weather overcast, dull. Not much on, couple of lectures & team trivia. Did better at Trivia, tied first on day & tied second cumulatively, 10 points back. Went to photography talk - smart(phone) photography. Stevie Wonder impersonator was pre-dinner show. Had dinner in Restaurant with Marty & Mary Anne. Service poor - messed up my order. Retired to room early & watched The Green Book.

Friday March 1st. Sarmiento Channel, scenic cruising El Brujo Glacier. Forecast for overcast skies & possible showers, high 48F/9C. Sunrise at 7:35 but we are greeted with wet decks, cloudy skies & fog shrouded mountains. Small pieces of ice in the water as we navigate the channel at 10 knots. Scheduled to be at the glacier at 8:30am- hot chocolate & coffee with a kick being served on deck 6 forward & observation deck. Days schedule filled with Conversations with the Ventures team & the photographers & Team Trivia at noon. Room service breakfast at 7:30. At 8 O’clock it was pea-soup outside. Several hardy souls were out on Decks 6 & 10 then we came out the other side to see the vivid blue of the Brujo Glacier casting a reflection in the still water. Clouds hanging just above the glacier and a small shaft of sunlight trying to break through. Stayed at the glacier for about an hour, then turned & continued on our way down the channel towards Punta Arenas. Overcast all the way with light rain falling. Low clouds obscuring the snow capped peaks that we knew were on either side. Had ‘coffee with the officers’ in Seabourn Square at 10:30am. We did well in Team Trivia taking over the overall lead by 160 points. Had lunch in the Colonnade - ‘British’ - fish & chips, steak pie, cottage pie, chicken tikka masala, Eton Mess & a Boddingtons (beer). Attended photography talk - the Exposure Triangle - at 2:30pm. Passed the wreck of the USS Riverside at around 5:15pm. The weather not being conducive to staying on the outer decks, the scheduled caviar event took place in the Grand Salon at six followed by Seabourn singers classical rendition. Had room service and skipped the late show by the Brazilian guitarist & Stevie Wonder tribute act.

Saturday March 2nd. Punta Arenas. Rain/cold morning. Went into town around 10:30 am but returned, wet & cold, for lunch. Deciding to go back in the afternoon, I dressed for the cold/rain and the sun came out so I was too hot. They say that if you kiss the toe of the native Indian on the statue of Magellan in the main plaza you will one day return to Punta Arenas. It seems that touching has the same effect - this was our third time in Punta Arenas & Gwyn just had to touch the toe again. The Seabourn Club reception was in the Grand Salon at 6pm. Gwyneth went and we were ‘honored’ for reaching 200 sail days. Chefs dinner in the restaurant 'a deux'. Missed the show - violinist & singing duo.

Sunday March 3rd. Beagle Channel/Glacier Alley/Ushuaia. Up early at 6:30 am & clear outside, brief red sunrise before mist/rain descended. 8:30 am entered Glacier Alley, mist cleared but rain persisted with overcast skies. Trevor Potts providing commentary about the Beagle & Captain Fitzroy’s charting of the channel & interactions with local people. Fitzroy later returned on the Beagle with Charles Darwin. Mandatory briefing on the do's/don’ts in Antarctica & zodiac procedures. Cold out on deck - 8C at noon as we approached Ushuaia. Wildlife including black-browed albatross, terns, skuas, cormorants, and seals. Docked in Ushuaia at 1:30pm - sail-in drinks on the Patio - Pink Ladies & Lemon Drop Martinis. Partly sunny/cloudy but cool. Went ashore & walked to the Maritime Museum/Prison. Very interesting & well worth the $17 entry fee. Had dinner/drinks on the Patio.

Monday March 4th. Crossing Drake Passage. Very calm for the Drake, bit of a roll, use of wrist bands advised. Made fast progress so will get first landing/sight of Antarctica tomorrow - a day earlier than scheduled. Mandatory bio-hazard inspection of outer gear, bags, tripods etc that will be used ashore, and boot exchange/storage in the afternoon. Replaced individual metal cages from our previous Antarctica trip with plastic cabinets holding boots of 4 suites in each. Team Trivia - didn’t do well but neither did any of the other teams & still managed to tie for second on the day. On 920 overall with a lead of 120 points. Afternoon spent assessing gear/charging camera batteries. Briefing at 6:30 pm to find out more details & order of landings. There are 5 colour-coded groups, with each group scheduled 1 ½ hrs apart. Briefing over - we are planning on landing at Half Moon Bay tomorrow. Chinstrap penguins on the menu. White group drew short straw, off at 8 O’clock. Our group, Blue, is at 11 O’clock. Weather forecast 33F/1C, winds 10 - 14 knots, chance of precipitation. Dinner tonight in Thomas Keller with Odd & Anne-Mette.

Tuesday March 5th. Half Moon Bay. 62 deg 35,31S/59 deg 53,98 W. Weather overcast, cold 1C. Arrived at 7:00am. Didn’t recognize it without snow. Glad we are not in the first group! By 10 am the clouds are starting to lift showing the blue of the ice in the distance. Wind slacking, by time we go ashore in an hour it may have improved somewhat. Seas calm, weather mixed, clear spells revealing the glaciers of neighboring islands. Short zodiac ride to wet landing on gravel beach. Muddy track & very rocky. 2 passengers took tumbles. Wore a couple of layers & found that to be comfortable. Chinstrap penguins in various states of moult, couple of hundred fur seals (at a distance), and the odd Gentoo penguin. Got back to ship about 1:30pm as had to wait for next group to disembark & we were held-back to allow for the transfer of one of the fallen passengers back to the ship. Cleaning our boots was not without difficulty. Lunch in Colonnade - Italian - hot bath & nap prior to evening briefing/recap. Tomorrow we are going to attempt a landing at an old whaling station on Deception Island, provided we can navigate Neptunes Bellows, a narrow channel leading into the volcanic caldera in the center of the island. We are to overnight in the caldera. We are second group off at 9:30 am, so room service for dinner tonight & for breakfast in the morning.

Wednesday March 6th. Deception Island 62 deg 58,88S/60 deg 36,23 W. At 6:30 it is overcast, temp 0C, wind at 25.4 knots. After spending the night in the caldera we are positioning off the beach for our landing. The beach & hills are dusted in fresh snow from the short but intense snowstorm last night - around 11pm. Remnants of the whaling station & hundreds of fur seals line the beach. The plan is to drop off at one end of the beach & walk right to left along its length to the whaling station at the other end, staying between the water-edge & the high water mark - should make for some interesting encounters with the fur seals that currently occupy that space! 7:15am zodiacs drop-off the expedition crew to assess conditions & mark the route. One of the expedition staff is approached by a fur seal - he/she stands their ground - it looks like a tense stand-off for several minutes until the seal backs off & dives into the water! Not sure the passengers will be that brave! Jan made an announcement that passengers who do not want to walk the beach can opt to be dropped of at the whaling station. We have a ringside seat from our suite. 8:01 am I can see the first zodiac filled with orange jackets approaching the beach, where the expedition staff have secured a landing area, watched closely by dozens of fur seals. Another wet landing. Several groups have now landed for the walk & one group is headed straight to the whaling station. The walking groups are guided up the hill to the ‘Window’ - a break in the ridge encircling the beach. At 8:20 am a weak sun is trying to break through the cloud & a light snow is staring to fall. At 8:45 the first group is now halfway along the beach. We are called at 9:15 am, blowing 24 knots & still 0C. Little choppy boarding the zodiac & the wind chill adding to the discomfort. It was a fairly easy climb to the Window’,and the view was worth getting up for. A little steep/slippery on the initial descent but easy walking for the remainder. Dozens of fur seals along the beach & one or two penguins. The walk took longer than anticipated & we didn’t return until 11:50. Lunch in the Colonnade. Seems quite a few people didn’t go out due the temperature/windy conditions. All the kayak groups were cancelled. At 1:30 pm the clouds have lifted & it is much brighter - although still showing 21 knots & 0C. The snow has all but melted & the landscape is very different, not nearly as dramatic as before. Hundreds, if not thousands of fur seals line the shores of the caldera. At 4:15 pm we pass again through Neptunes Bellows, leaving Deception Island & the South Shetlands behind heading for our next destination. Seas a little choppy, a ‘small’ iceberg is directly off the starboard bow.

Thursday March 7th. Cuverville Island 64 deg 40,40 S/62 deg 37,31 W. Wind 5.9 knots, temperature 3 degCelcius. Calm seas, icebergs, penguins, seals, whales - Oh my! And, internet still working. Low clouds covering tops of mountains, sun breaking through in spots every so often providing nice photo opportunities. Can smell the penguins before I see them. Several humpback whales feeding around the ship. We are in the 4th group at 1:15pm. Plan is for a short scenic zodiac ride before or after the landing. All kayak groups good to go. 11:45am patch of blue sky above the penguin colony. Might be nice for our group. Groups are a little behind schedule, we are called at 1:15. Had about 1 hour ashore then a 10 minute zodiak ride through the icebergs - bit disappointing. Lot of Gentoo penguins in various states of moult. Pretty smelly. Mix of snow & rocks underfoot. Penguins quite inquisitive. Back on board several whales spotted & before leaving we got up close to several humpbacks - but bitterly cold outside. Had dinner in Colonnade - Thai - quite spicy. Comedienne Jo Little from Pontefract Yorkshire - quite funny.

Friday March 8th. Paradise Harbour. 64deg 51,58S/62deg 53,59W. Temp at 7:15am 0C, wind speed 13 knots. Overcast, low cloud. Plan today is scenic zodiac ride. We are off first at 8 o’clock! View from suite not particularly appealing - glad we cancelled the kayak! Back from zodiac ride - only 8 to a zodiac, glaciers & ice impressive. However the zodiac ride was a bit disappointing - while I am interested in wildlife, our driver seemed more interested in the rock formations. Couple of humpbacks sleeping on the surface, spent 3 minutes with them, couple of minutes passing the shags, & penguins at Brown Base, rest of time in front of the glacier - he did however spot a sleeping crab eater seal, which wasn’t at all interested in the strange orange coated people trying to wake it up. Entire trip lasted barely an hour.

Rest of day spent taking pictures - several whales in the bay - 2 breached giving those in the last zodiacs of the day the treat of a lifetime. The Captain took the ship to the north end of the Lemaire channel but it was blocked with ice so couldn’t get in. Bit of a disappointment, however given the lack of snow on the mountains I think it may have been a bit of a let down compared to the first time we were there. Dinner in Restaurant followed by 50/60’s dance night in the Club.

Saturday March 9th. Neko Harbour. 64 deg 50, 70S/62 deg 32,76W. 0degC, wind 2knots. Woke to beautiful white/blue mountains reflecting the morning sunlight. The planned activity is to land & climb the hill above the penguin colony. However, due to the ice conditions our day’s schedule has been pushed back by an hour. Lucky red group get an extra hour in bed! The bay appears to be blocked with ice but the Quest manages to navigate through to get us close to the landing site. At 8:30 am the landing team is on the site marking the path up the hill above the penguin colony - it is a steep snowy/icy climb so not sure how far up we will get. The kayaks are being readied for those intrepid adventurers - should be nice today - flat calm & lot of ice. We are last off at 3 pm - hopefully the sun will stay out for us. In the morning took in the view from the ship. By the afternoon the sun has disappeared but we climbed the hill - bit slippery in places - to enjoy the view from on high. Gentoo penguin colony & a leopard seal asleep on the beach. A whale was spotted logging in the distance but it didn’t want to come near the ship. Being the last group and as the days landing had been pushed back an hour I felt that we were hurried to get back to the ship. Late in the afternoon a research vessel entered the bay. Caviar on ice at 5:30 pm on deck 8. We are told in the recap that a major storm is crossing the Drake so we are going to stay ‘south’ & make our journey to the Falklands so that we go behind the storm. However, we are told to expect a bumpy ride. So, tomorrow we are going to Torgersen Island in the Palmer Archipelago, the ‘activity’ being a zodiac tour. Not particularly pleased about that. This will be the second of 6 days in Antarctica, that we don’t get a landing. We are in the third group at 11 am. Had early dinner in the Colonnade & watched a movie in our suite.

Sunday March 10th. Torgersen Island, Palmer Archipelago. 64 deg 47, 06S/64 deg 3, 85W. Arrived just after 7 am. Looks miserable outside, light snow/rain & poor visibility - not ideal for a zodiac tour! Heavy swell & lot of brash ice. 7 knot wind, 2C. Perhaps by 11 am it will have brightened up a bit! 9:15 am announced kayaking cancelled for 10 o’clock group as they can‘t find a suitable spot - no great surprise there. At 10:30 am still snowing but a bit brighter. Can see a seal playing in the water just off the bow. Wind has dropped to 3 knots. Got the call at 10:45 am. Queued a long time to board the zodiacs as the drivers had a shift change. Boarding the zodiac was a bit tricky as it bounced around on the swell. With low expectations, it just goes to show what a difference an enthusiastic zodiac driver can make - Claire was our driver & she was great. It was a wet, cold, bumpy ride & she had to navigate the brash ice but, a mine of information, she never stopped the commentary & made the 45 - 50 minute ride an absolute pleasure. We couldn’t get close to the shoreline because of the waves/swell but we got a good look at some fur & elephant seals, a couple of nesting giant petrels & their chicks & a couple of small groups of Adelie penguins. Australian lunch in the Colonnade, the staff of Palmer Station had been invited onboard & seemed to be enjoying their lunch and coffee afterwards in Seabourn Square. Went to Brent’s talk on Ice at 2:30 but struggled to stay awake! At 4:30 pm the weather is deteriorating, light snow & visibility very poor. Perhaps not as we envisaged our last day in the Antarctic peninsula but perhaps more representative of the typical weather at this time of year. Tonight we have a Diamond Member reception at 5:30 in the Spa, the final recap at 6:30 and dinner with John & Susan at 7:30 in the Restaurant. Reflecting on our Antarctic Experience & comparing it with our previous experience, overall I was a bit disappointed. The addition of another colored grouping (from 4 groups to 5) since we were last here meant less time for each activity. Last time the groupings were 2 hours apart and we had a minimum of 1 ¾ hours ashore, the groupings this time were 1 ½ hours apart providing for 1 ¼ hrs ashore at most, & the zodiac tours were much shorter - barely 45 minutes on the water. I can only speculate as to why they made the change but it seemed to coincide with the introduction of the kayaks. We now have 2 days at sea before reaching the Falklands. Monday March 11th. Sea Day. Rough seas, overcast day. Gwyn feeling a bit seasick, got some gravol from Marty & Mary Anne. Sea day means resumption of Team Trivia - came second on the day & maintained our overall lead - but not a comfortable one. We hosted a cocktail party at 5 o’clock for 24 - 30 people, the Captain dropped in, Jan, Hotel Director Stefan, Nic & Julian. Seabourn went above & beyond & everyone seemed to enjoy it. Roberto, Michaela (on bar), Anastasia & Princess (servers) were wonderful. Had dinner with guest conversationalist Geoff de Vito, and his friend Tony - who told an interesting/disturbing story of when he was grabbed by a hippo, shaken about & taken to the bottom of a lake - he managed to escape by inadvertently poking his thumb up the hippos nose & opening the waterproof flap that allows the hippo to stay underwater. Watched the show with singer Stevie Bor. We had seen him before & his act was exactly the same. A bit corny, but appealing to the ladies in the audience judging by the reception they gave him. Tuesday March 12th. Sea Day. Late rising. Crew drill in the morning. Rough seas. Team Trivia at noon. Still ahead. Dinner with Marty & Mary Anne who had arranged for a king crab leg feast - there were 8 of us. Met Julia & her son Nick from Kong Kong & Lawrence & Vienna from Toronto.

Wednesday March 13th. Stanley, Falkland Islands. Weather was good - sunny with a few clouds. Little wind but when it did blow it was noticeably colder. Excursion to Volunteer Point with Estancia tours. Got first tender ashore at 7 am. There were 33 of us with Estancia. Worked out to about half the onboard excursion price. Shared 4x4 with Marty & Mary Anne. Our driver Gary was a good laugh & made the 2 ½ hr ride each way quite entertaining. The last 12 miles of the journey was over peat bogs & very bouncy and Gary & his mate had their own route which I’m not convinced was any better than the main route taken by the other 20 or so vehicles! Quite a large colony of king penguins with chicks of various ages (apparently they don’t all breed at the same time), some Gentoo & Magellan penguins also. Glad I’ve seen it but wouldn’t do it again. Got back to Stanley about 2:45 and the last tender was at 3:30 so had just enough time for a quick pint & a chat with Gary in the Victory pub. One of the good things about taking a non-ship tour is there is more opportunity to interact with the locals. The folks who went to Bluff Cove said that was good also. Back on the ship it was epicurean event with the officers on deck at 6:15, and a bit of dancing but it was very cold. Dinner with Nic, Julian & Julians mum & partner in the Colonnade - Indian night. Dance party in the Club afterwards. Thursday March 14th. Sea day. Rough seas, lot of people feeling a bit poorly. Team trivia - still ahead but our lead is being eaten into by the Hopefuls who had a really good day. We keep shooting ourselves in the foot by changing correct answers! Galley Market lunch - had a table with the trivia team. Had dinner with Peter & Richard in the Restaurant. Service not very good & had to complain about the petit fours - we were given a plate consisting of 3 petit fours that looked like it had been taken from another table & they had eaten the fourth one! Friday March 15th. Sea Day. Seas still rough. Final Team/Dress up Trivia. As the Incredibles we dressed in our thermals, Sharon & Gwyn made paper “I”s & headbands & we won the dress up - probably helped that only a few teams went to the effort! Tough questions but we managed to hold on to our overall lead to be crowned Team Trivia champions. Enjoyed a very pleasant dinner with Stefan (Hotel Director), and Kamlesh & Colette from Gran Canaria. Amazingly it was first time we had met them. Watched Seabourn singers/dancers perform “an evening with Tim Rice” in the Grand Salon. Saturday March 16th. Montevideo, Uruguay. Time to change out of our winter wardrobe as the weather has warmed up - currently 76 F/25C. Arrived at 10:30 am. Planned to go ashore after lunch. We skipped breakfast and my stomach was screaming at me to feed it! Tango show in Grand Salon at 6:30pm. Norwegian farewell dinner with Odd & Anne Mette at 7:30pm in the restaurant. There were 10 of us, we had a special menu & we got through a bottle of aquavit while singing ‘skol, skol, skol’ before every shot! Not sure other diners appreciated our singing. Then it was time to go back to our suite, finish packing & put luggage out.

Sunday March 17th. Disembarkation. Vacated suite at 8 am. Had breakfast in the Colonnade, sat with Peter & Max, two Australian brother-in-laws traveling together from Adelaide. Disembarked at 9:45am, Nic & Stefan were on the dock so got chance to say a fond farewell to both. Took shuttle to terminal, picked up luggage & got a transfer to the hotel - at $20 it cost twice as much as a taxi but felt a bit safer. We had booked a room for 2 nights at the Claridge Hotel (www.claridge.com.ar) as our flight was late the following evening & didn’t want to have to check-out at noon & hang around for several hours. As it turned out the hotel only charged us for one night & a late check-out fee (thank you Thomas). We managed to check-in early but only had a room with 2 single beds - still better than hanging around for 4 hours waiting for a double. The hotel is in a great location, the staff were friendly & extremely helpful. Our room was basic but clean, the beds were comfortable & the wifi worked. We also got a bathtub with a plug so Gwyn was happy. Avoiding the midday heat we went for a walk to San Telmo in the afternoon - there was a huge street market and the place was buzzing. Bumped into Brandon & Noelle on the way and Marty & Mary Anne in San Telmo. Following the advice of the concierge we had dinner at El Establo a couple of blocks away on the corner of Paraguay & San Martin. It proved to be an entertaining evening - our waiter had an odd way of holding his head to one side when he did anything such that we wondered if he was blind in one eye. A shared caprese salad, a ‘small’ ribeye & a chicken brochette, with a bottle of malbec,and agua con gas, cost about $50. His head to one side, our waiter discreetly pointed out that ‘tipo no inclusivo’. His head shot straight up as I handed him a $10 bill - it was priceless, for everything else I used Mastercard.

Monday March 18th. Buenos Aries. At $12 pp the hotel breakfast buffet was worth the price for the coffee alone - never mind the selection of fruits, breads, bacon & eggs, cheese etc. After breakfast we walked to Plaza de Mayo, then to Teatro Colon in Plaza Lavalle. Returning via Av. De Mayo we had coffee & streudel de manzana caliente con helados at Café Tortoni - a Buenos Aries institution founded in 1858. We joined an Israeli couple who were in front of us in the queue - there is always a queue for Café Tortoni - who had also been on our cruise. With our flight at 8:50pm the front desk arranged a taxi to the airport for us at 5:30 pm. Being rush hour it took 75 minutes. Check-in was quick but security & immigration were not - departing passengers have to clear immigration after security. Then there is another bag check at the gate prior to boarding! I can only surmise that it is designed to create jobs. Tuesday March 19th. American Airlines so called Flagship Service on our flight to Miami (AA900) was absolutely abysmal. I think the crew must have been trained by B.A. It seemed they were intent on getting the service over as quick as possible so they could rest - to the extent of taking glasses & dishes away that weren’t finished! The good news was it landed an hour early, immigration was remarkably quick & our bags had been checked through to Bermuda. We had booked a day room at the Pullman (previously the Sofitel) and were able to check-in early so had a good nap, and a nice lunch in the restaurant before heading back to the airport for a couple of drinks in the Flagship lounge before our flight to Bermuda. We landed half an hour early, were reunited with our luggage and having dropped us off four weeks earlier, Sam was there to welcome us home. Having taken almost 2,000 pictures between us we will be reliving this trip for some time to come.