As I’d expected, Emerson was perfect on the flights home. And, we arrived in Tampa early on Monday morning.

Anyway, here’s the recap of our final day.

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Wow! This was a full day for us!

We disembarked Infinity around 8am. By nine, we’d transfer via shuttle to the main terminal building, collected our luggage, went through customs, and met Fred (our driver) for a private tour of BA.

We spent the next 6 hours or so visiting most of the amazing neighborhoods in Buenos Aires. Our friends, Dick and Frank, commented after their visit on the diversity and distinctiveness of BA’s neighborhoods. How true!

I’m writing this on the red-eye flight home without the benefit of a guide book for reference… so please pardon the inevitable misspellings (I’ll try to edit / correct the post later). But here’s a brief description of how we spent our day:

We started in the elegant Recolletta neighborhood, home to one of the world’s finest necropolises (which includes the grave of Evita). Next, we visited many of country’s government buildings (the President’s Mansion–the ‘Pink House’ (Casa Rosada), the swoon worth Congress, and the imposing Supreme Court) and saw many embassies and fine mansions. We toured the city’s most elegant bookstore (located in an old theatre)–loved it! We visited Puerto Madero (where I finally found the choripan!). We then visited the colorful streets of La Boca–what a visual feast–with blocks of buildings painted in primary colors. Here was (briefly) saw a tango performance and bought some Argentine cookies from a store called ‘Havana’ (Argentina’s native / rival to Starbucks). We then traveled to MALBA (the museum in BA dedicated to Latin American–mostly modern and contemporary–art). we had lunch at the museum as well, and I bought a really cool book (though sadly, for me, entirely in Spanish) on geometric abstraction (which has a strong history in Latin America, especially as an extension of the international Concrete Art movement). After MALBA, we visited the Sunday antique market in San Telmo (BA’s oldest neighborhood)–very impressive (as are the surrounding storefronts with higher end antiques–seemingly a great place for Art Deco finds). In this neighborhood, Libby also found–shockingly (not!)–a shop that featured high-quality, handmade Argentinian purses. Needless to say, I had to figure out how to cram one of those into our luggage too!

All in all, our day in BA was perfect! Many thanks again to Fred (our ex-pat American driver)–I’ll post the link to his web site again. If you’re disembarking from a cruise in BA with a late flight home, I highly… highly… highly… recommend using Fred instead of a tour organized by the ship. With three people, it’s almost break even (but for a private–do whatever you want–tour!) when compared to the ship’s excursions. For two people, it would have been roughly $125… but again, this is for a private tour… no buses, no strangers, no wasting time seeing uninteresting / touristy crap. On a trip, time really is money. As such, Fred enabled us to see far more in our abbreviated visit, making his service a great value.

The airport was, well, and airport. The wait wasn’t too miserable (though I don’t suggest arriving too early for your flight, as check-in for your flight doesn’t open until 3ish hours before your scheduled departure time and there’s not really adequate seating in the departures hall). Delta, however, did a fine job once check-in opened, and we zipped through immigration / security due to Argentina’s “got a baby? go to the front of the line” policies. The Sky Club–actually an American Express lounge–was fairly crappy… with limited offerings and broken wifi, but at least it provided a place to comfortably feed Emerson and let her play.

Our flight–I’m writing this from somewhere over northern Argentina–departed roughly on time. Emerson was a little fussy prior to take-off (which seemed to bother Libby–I didn’t give a crap, as I consider it karma / payback given my number of miles with OABs… other angry babies). in any case, she was asleep before we were wheels up.

I’ll post some pictures of BA soon.

All in all, this has been a good–though not great–trip. Week #2 was markedly better with more cities (large and small) to explore. Also, I think this trip underscores a few facts about us, which I’ve always known yet been able to largely ignore. First, we cruise not so much because we love life aboard a cruise ship but because it’s an efficient (time/money/distance) way to visit a lot of new places (our current travel focus). Second, we are really independent travelers at heart… that is to say, we don’t generally/deeply interact with fellow guests aboard ship, and we prefer to forge ahead on our own when ashore, taking organized/group excursions only when more-or-less required (e.g., Egypt). Third, we really are unusual (and perhaps crazy) for attempting to travel with a child of Emerson’s age, as it does add stress, worry, and work to the trip. However, we’re so committed to travel that we’ll forge on with her, through the good (which is the majority) and bad (which is–thankfully–rare). With time, I’m sure it will become easier. And, in the end, I think/hope this will instill a love of travel and make her life more fulfilling/interesting, thereby paying dividends for years to come for her (and us).

I’ve fixed this for the posts on Cape Horn (Day #10), Puerto Madryn (Day #12), Sea Day #13 (Prelim Cruise Review), and Montevideo (Day #14 — today)! Earlier posts I’ll fix later (or not).

Sorry… feel free to comment away now.

Since I haven’t written comprehensively about the ship, I thought I’d write and share the better part of my cruise review today (which seems unlikely to change radically).

Ship

Overall, we were impressed by the look and feel of the Celebrity Infinity. Some prior reviews suggested that it was in need of its upcoming dry dock. Not so! Is there a little wear and tear? Sure. But, she has no significant/obvious flaws.

The layout is very passenger friendly—easy to navigate; nothing weird (unlike some ships were certain portions of a deck are only accessible from certain elevators). Better still, Infinity never seems (over-)crowded… though this might change once they add more cabins in the retrofit. For example, tables are always available in the buffet area even at peak dining times. The décor is pleasing to us. It’s elegant with an overall sense of a minimalist influence. And, where the minimalist aesthetic does differ (e.g., the elegantly paneled Michael’s Club), the design remains tasteful and understated. Though it’s not especially nautical in design, I’d say the ship compares very favorably with the likes of others we’ve sailed on previously. Specifically, I like it as much or more than Brilliance of the Seas (RCI) and Nieuw Amsterdam (HAL). Of course, it lacks the super-sized “wow” factor of RCI’s Voyager, Freedom, and Oasis-class ships. It’s also better than anything we’ve seen in the NCL fleet.

Here’s a photo of the main lobby:

As we haven’t sailed on any other ships in the X fleet, I can’t say how Infinity compares within the brand. I will note, however, that other passengers seem to think that X’s newer Solstice-class ships are markedly superior.

Cabin

We’re in cabin #6001 on Infinity. This is a forward-facing, oceanview stateroom that overlooks that helicopter pad and bow of the ship. In relative terms, it’s very large with more than ample storage and floor space for the three of us (including room for Emerson’s pack ‘n play—which is provided by Celebrity). We opted for this stateroom for two reasons: 1) we wanted the extra interior floor space, and 2) it was markedly more affordable than a balcony stateroom. So, we have more for less. I like that!

We have only two issues/complaints/caveats. First, there is decidedly more motion this close to the front of the ship. We expected this to be the case, but I’d caution those prone to motion sickness. Ironically, the difference is most pronounced in moderate seas (say, 7-12ft) during which time this cabin has an obvious roll when other sections of the ship seem markedly more stable. Second, the bathroom is one of those areas where Infinity shows some of her 10-year age (e.g., slightly stained grout)… and, they have a shower curtain vs. a door (which we always find oddly annoying).
I should also note that our cabin steward, George, has been excellent throughout the trip. He’s not overly personable, but he’s eager to please and very efficient/effective. I think he’s probably the second best cabin steward we’ve had over the years.

Dining

Celebrity has a reputation for excellent service and food. I’d like to say that I concur, but we really don’t find it to be exceptional. It’s not that things are uniformly bad (other than perhaps our hopelessly ineffectual wait staff in the dining room, whom we just gave up on)… it’s just that things are very uneven.

Consider the buffet: Good fish ‘n chips. But, all other non-fried forms of potatoes are undercooked. Good variety/selection on the salad bar. But, the salad dressings range from mediocre to awful. The ice cream has been great in terms of both flavor and variety. But, the desserts are tasteless to disagreeable. The buffet highlights include the evening made-to-order stir-fry station (we’ve eaten a lot of stir-fry meals!), the pizza (which is respectable, though not great), as well as the aforementioned fish ‘n chips and ice cream. We’ve also appreciated the friendly and attentive service in the buffet area.

The main dining room is a different story altogether. Here, the food has been uniformly mediocre (even by cruise ship standards, which is generally mediocre-at-best anyway), and the service from our waiter/assistant waiter has been generally poor (especially for traditional—same table, same time each night—dining). Let’s start with the food: I don’t even recall much about the 3-4 meals we’ve had… and I’m still on the ship! It’s not been bad… just generally unremarkable, good or bad. The only truly enjoyable dishes are the French onion soup (best from any cruise ship’s main dining room) and the crème brulee (which, while not great, was credible by land-based standards). The rest ranged from ‘just fine’ to ‘less-than-mediocre’ in our experience. The service, however, was what finally drove us away altogether. Our biggest issue: ssssslllllooooowwwww service with tens of minutes between the starters and main course (and a similar lag before desserts). Based on overheard conversations, this annoyed our follow patrons at other tables, but it damn near made us suicidal (or homicidal, depending on the day) with Emerson along for the ride! Of course, this lag should have allowed our assistant waiter more than ample opportunity to do his work. Unfortunately, not so much! Instead, we often arrived to find no bread on the table, no condiments/cream/sugar provided in a timely manner (if at all), and coffee—which really pissed me off one night—showing up just as we’d finished the last mouthful of our aforementioned AWOL dessert. Staff on cruise ships make meager wages for much hard work, the majority of which comes from tips. As such, I’m always generous with meeting (and usually exceeding) recommended gratuity levels. This is the first—and I hope last—cruise in which I am actually going to not fully pay the dining room staff’s gratuities—not because we only ate there three times, but largely because they, in a word, sucked at providing even a minimal level of acceptable performance. Here again, we’ve heard from past Celebrity cruisers that Infinity seems to deviate (negatively) from the line’s norm.

I can’t speak of the ship’s specialty dining venue, the SS United States, as we unfortunately didn’t eat there. They require patrons to be 12 years of ago or older (which, honestly, strikes me as a bit excessive for a cruise ship), and we were unwilling to use the onboard, in-cabin baby sitting service. Had Emerson been three or older, we would have likely let her play in the supervised kid’s club during our dinner.

Finally, I should note that Celebrity probably rivals NCL in terms of beer offerings. I could get Leffe, Franziskiner, and Hoegardden aboard ship. The wine list looked pretty good too (though perhaps not markedly better than other lines). I didn’t look at the selection of single malts or other drinks (though the mixed drink menu seemed appealing).

Entertainment

We saw relatively few shows and guest performances (in part or whole). Therefore, I won’t/can’t comment on these other than to say that they seemed to be on par with most cruise experiences (think: performers, suitably talented to be paid, but generally not good enough for major international or even regional theatre venues). I have enjoyed the string trio’s performances–although, I think HAL’s usual string quartets are better.

In terms of port/guest lecturers, Celebrity brought aboard three for this trip. Jim—a geologist at the Smithsonian—has been excellent. His delivery is less overtly entertaining, but his passion for science is infectious. I’ve really enjoyed his lectures and (re-)learned much about geology, plate tectonics, glaciers, volcanoes, and astronomy. He reminded me of how much I loved science as a kid and why I should invest time in studying it more once again. Well done! Graham—our British naturalist—was also entertaining and well informed. For whatever reason, I didn’t connect as much with his lectures, but I enjoyed attending them. I also bet he’s a fan of Patrick O’Brien’s Aubrey/Maturin series of novels, as I noticed he had a PowerPoint presentation on his laptop about Lord Cochrane (the historical basis for the Aubrey character)—now that’s a talk I would have loved to hear! Finally, we had Rod—the Australian physicist—who talked (actually rambled) about geography and history (of which, he seemed to know little, especially as he never remained on the topic of the lecture). Worse, he struck me as a self-important windbag. Boo! In any case, 2/3 isn’t too bad… and I’d have to say that this is the best educational/lecture enrichment program I’ve experienced at sea.

In the food/wine enrichment department, nothing really can compare to Holland America with its dedicated culinary showroom, guest chefs, and partnership with Food & Wine magazine. As such, Celebrity’s program seemed more typical of most cruise lines (cooking / cake decorating demonstrations, ice carving, fruit carving, etc.).

Itinerary / Ports

Single biggest problem: there were too few of them!

Here’s a summary: we really liked Buenos Aires (and look forward to seeing a bit more of it in a couple of days). Both Stanley and Ushuaia were interesting to visit and good for brief wildlife encounters (great with Emerson!). Puerto Madryn would likely have been better with a wildlife-related trip, but the town itself was perfectly enjoyable too. And, I’m looking forward to Montevideo tomorrow. The ‘cruise-by’ port calls (Elephant Island and Cape Horn) were generally too brief to make them feel like anything other than a day at sea. And, of course, we feel cheated of a more in-depth visit to Antarctica, especially as we had to endure the full, bi-directional Drake Passage crossing anyway.

This brings me back to my original point: we’ve essentially spent 9 days doing nothing but cruising. It’s sort of the reverse of our only other 14-day cruise, aboard the NCL Jade, where we spent 4-5 days cruising and 9 days in port. Of course, going into this cruise, we knew this would be the case. However, we thought that sea days would be easier with Emerson. Wrong! This might be true for a day or two. But, in rough seas with a sick child and a ceaseless monotony of days, everyone starts to suffer from ‘cabin fever.’ As a result, we all became increasingly bored, lethargic, and cranky (roughly in that order). I strongly believe this is why this week (with more days on land) has been markedly better than last week (with almost all days at sea).

Having not experienced a long stretch of days at sea without a young child, I can’t really say how much we would have liked or disliked this itinerary under different circumstances. I suspect it would have been somewhat better, as we’d at least have had much more time to relax alone and together. But, I can’t say we’d have loved it. Overall, this was a good experience to have had in this context since at least the journey had a purpose (i.e., days at sea were needed to get to/from Antarctica). However, it will cause us to reexamine subsequent itineraries, specifically looking to minimize (or at least better distribute) days at sea. We’ll likely also reconsider some of our longer-term plans, such as doing an around the world cruise (which could be miserable?!?).

Summary

While it’s not over, I think the trip’s been successful in meeting our goals and objectives—ticking the boxes for South America and Antarctica, as well as adding a few countries. Argentina’s been a pleasant surprise. I’m not sure that we’ll rush back (as we have other places to go), but I think we’d both be predisposed to returning. Ditto for the Falkands. Antarctica is more complex: part of me is predisposed to never returning (the Drake Passage, again? Bah!), but another (perhaps growing) part finds it a more compelling prospect now than ever (though likely on a ‘proper’ expedition). In any case, a return to Antarctica is off the list until after completing the current travel project.

As for Celebrity, though this review may seem critical (which by definition it must be), we’re generally not picky people. Overall, it’s been an okay experience—a sort of weak mix of Holland America and Royal Caribbean. I wouldn’t go out of my way or pay a premium relative to others to sail aboard the line again. But, I’m not going to swear them off either. Like every other cruise line, Celebrity has its positives and negatives—though it seems remarkably devoid of highs or lows across the board. As such, we don’t think X marks the spot for the top of the ‘near luxury’ or ‘premium’ cruise line market. In that segment, we enjoy HAL far more. And, based on this single cruise, I can’t say that I’d rather sail on Celebrity over either Royal Caribbean (its ‘mass market’ parent) or NCL (which, ironically, has been the source of my two favorite cruises, despite that line’s obvious limitations).

However, Libby had an extended conversation with ship’s captain this morning. In that discussion, Libby (who was obviously feeling feisty) passed along my observation that Celebrity seems more willing to turn tail and run than other major cruise lines, such as Holland America (not to mention adventure/expedition ships). The captain smiled and (with a knowing wink) acknowledged that this was basically Celebrity/RCI policy, as he’s sailing under orders from headquarters to avoid bad weather in Antarctica because the company didn’t want any public relations debacles as it exits this market. I’m sure the captain wasn’t expecting this information to be disclosed on a blog—as he’d stopped Libby (a seemingly harmless mother) in order to interact with Emerson (who’s the only baby/toddler aboard the ship).

In any case, I’m not sure that the call to change course was “wrong,” though part of me wonders how many plates of milk do the serve to the officers and crew on the bridge per day.

Tomorrow we’ll be in Ushuaia. We’re looking forward to being back on solid ground. None of us have obviously suffered from motion sickness per se (unlike some fellow passengers based on the vomit bags in the stairwells), but I do think we’re all a little out of sorts and suffering a bit from “cabin fever” too.

After a relatively peaceful night, I awoke and flung open the curtains to see my first glimpse of Antarctica…

Fog!

I went out on deck: more fog. Port side: fog. Starboard side: fog. Fog, fog, and more (you guessed it) fog. Roughly an hour after reaching Elephant Island, the wind had increased enough to blow some of the fog away from the leeward side of the island. We were thus able to see a few of the glaciers that blanket the island (which looked, not unsurprisingly, a lot like the glaciers in Alaska). In all, we spent roughly an hour and a half in position viewing Elephant Island, departing around 9:30.

We’d intended to have breakfast in the Oceanview Café, but Emerson was apparently fussy (I’d stayed on deck maybe an extra 5 minutes). And so, by the time I’d made it to the location on Deck 10, Libby and Emerson had already departed for the cabin. I spent about 20 minutes looking for them, after which I returned to the cabin to find them there. Needless to say, I think everyone was frustrated by the circumstances.

At 10:30, the captain made an announcement that the weather conditions were expected to worsen over the next 2-3 days due to a low pressure system. Winds were expected to reach tropical storm force at between 30-40 knots. And, the seas had started to build.

At 1:30, Allan—our cruise director—made another weather related announcement. According to reports from bases near our destination, the low pressure system was intensifying and visibility along the Antarctica Peninsular was reduced to near zero. He said they’d make another announcement in an hour. But, I strongly suspected that they’d be turning us around. Needless to say, this prospect was very disappointing. As I’m writing this, I generally feel like this has been a fairly crappy trip… most has been build up to Antarctica (as the rest of the itinerary is a bit of a yawn), we’re constantly stressed about Emerson potentially bothering other guests (though she’s generally been great), and we’ve been dealing with (and worrying about) Emerson’s illness (which finally—thankfully—seems to be mostly behind us).

At 2:30, Allan confirmed what I’d suspected: that we’re, in a word, screwed. We’re now heading north back through the Drake Passage. We will be skipping our visit to the Antarctic Peninsula and spending an extra night in Tierra del Fuego. We expect the weather to continue to grow increasingly dirty with seas reaching 20-25 feet tomorrow in the Drake Passage.

Technically, we’ve made it to Antarctica, having visited Elephant Island. But, I’d be lying if I didn’t say that that feels only like small consolation after spending thousands of dollars and traveling for what will be a total of 16 days in order to spend 90 minutes with/in Antarctica. But, right now, I think that will have to do, as I’m not really that excited about the prospect of returning to this place at the end of the world.

Anyway, here’s a photo of what (little) we saw:

Not sure when I’ll next post, as the weather has already crippled the television reception…

In many other ways, the day has been like those before it (and likely more to come). Breakfast in the buffet. More lectures: geology (glaciers), ecology (climate change), and zoology (penguins). The ongoing care, feeding, and napping of Emerson. Thankfully, last night was a bit better for us. Libby slept for a longer period. And, I was at least able to sleep. Otherwise, Emerson’s condition remains largely unchanged—she’s a bit more fussy and tired than usual, but otherwise she seems fine. And, the regular doses of medications are controlling her fever nicely. We’re going to skip the main dining room tonight… neither of us can deal with that again today. Sixty to ninety minutes of trying to simultaneously eat and feed/amuse a toddler is simply beyond the reach of our patience and good humor today.

I’d intended to talk about the ship (which is lovely), but I don’t feel much like writing today.

So, I won’t.

As is our routine, we had an early breakfast in the Oceanview Café. We spent some time walking about the decks. Libby then attended a lecturer on the Falklands, while I took Emerson back to the cabin for her morning nap. The Falklands talk provided a good introduction to the history of islands, including the 1982 conflict with Argentina. Based on the discussion, Libby’s more excited about visiting this outpost of the United Kingdom – seems like it should be very quaint. In theory, this should be our best (as in easiest) port to see penguins, but I’m not sure how that will work out since the shore excursions sold out long before our departure. So, we’re on our own. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get a shuttle bus or taxi… otherwise we might be walking the 8 miles (roundtrip).

This afternoon Emerson developed a low grade fever. This wasn’t entirely unexpected as one of her vaccinations last Monday can result in a fever 5-10 later. This was day #8. However, she also seems to have a bit of a runny nose. So, we’re thinking she might have a mild cold. In any case, a little baby acetaminophen knocked the fever down (though not completely out). Needless to say, we’ll keep a close eye on her and make sure she’s bundled up, but I think she’ll be back to 100% quickly.

We went back to the main dining room tonight for dinner. Libby had the Caribbean cod cakes (good), cream of corn chowder (bland and bad), and NY strip steak (good). I had the shrimp cocktail (flavorful… and unlike many lines’ main dining rooms, not baby shrimp), French onion soup (best ever in a cruise main dining room; respectable overall; and grilled wahoo (decent but unremarkable; could have been warmer). Service, however, was very good for Libby and me (e.g., drink preferences remembered, etc.), as well as Emerson (e.g., high chair ready, table set appropriately, special food brought out, origami frog made at the table, etc.).

I have to say, the Celebrity staff seems to really enjoy Emerson’s presence and treats us very well. Of course, we’re fairly certain that she’s the onlytoddler on the ship, and there appears to be only one other kid under the age of five on this cruise. That said, our fellow passengers have a mixed reaction to our presence. Many (likely those with kids and grandkids) seem to enjoy seeing her. Some consider us brave (and have said so). Far more likely think we’re crazy (perhaps not unfairly). And, a few just give us (undeserved) dirty looks. In truth, traveling with a baby isn’t always carefree or easy. Indeed, sometimes it feels a bit like work. But, Emerson’s been an angel for us, and we think these early experiences (even if she doesn’t recall them) will make future travels with her easier and more rewarding. Plus, I especially enjoy the opportunity to spend unfettered time with her for long stretches of time (as work demands at home mean that often don’t see her everyday for 2+ weeks, let alone spend 24×7 with her).

I’d planned to talk about the ship today. But, that’ll have to wait for our next day at sea.

Tomorrow is the Falkland Islands, and I expect the day to be busy!

I have mixed feelings about this journey.

I really don’t expect it to be the ‘best trip ever’ or even anything closely approximating such an outcome. I’d call it ‘wildly successful’ if we 1) make it to all of the scheduled ports, 2) nobody gets deathly seasick, and 3) the roundtrip, overnight 9+ hour flights with a baby are basically uneventful and peaceful. I’d call it ‘successful’ if we just 1) make it to Antarctica, and 2) nobody is permanently injured (either physically or psychologically) by the journey.

See what I mean? Low expectations.

As for Antarctica itself, I’m not terribly certain it will be a much different experience than looking at glaciers in Alaska a couple of summers ago. Let’s be honest: we’re not granola-eating, tree-hugging, outdoorsy types who weep at the sight of mountain majesties (or fruited plains for that matter). I’m not judging the ecologically-oriented. I’m just saying: we’re city folk. I can’t really identify different species of penguins (and don’t especially care to learn). And, I’m unlikely to play the part of Captain Ahab standing out on deck for hours looking for marine mammals in some sort of gleeful reimagining of Moby-Dick with a buffet line.

For us, the primary allure of Antarctica is the exoticism of it all: a new corner of the earth explored, albeit very briefly and from the comfort of a cruise ship. If I’m completely candid, it’s mostly just a critical tick mark (and a pretty damn expensive / difficult one at that) on our travel quest for 7 continents, 100 countries, and all 50 states. As such, a large part of this journey will be the journey: sailing for days in some of the world’s roughest seas in order to earn our Antarctica badge.

Bad attitude? Perhaps.

I realize it’s less than noble to view a trip to Antarctica as the travel equivalent of eating my vegetables, doing my homework, and visiting the dentist for a routine check-up.

I am grateful for the opportunity to go to Antarctica.

And, if I’m luckier than I deserve, who knows? I might find it exceeds my expectations or even becomes a transcendent experience.

In the meantime, “call me Ishmael.”