Punta Arenas, Chile Dec 10 2025

 We sailed into to Punta Arenas (means Sandy Point) this morning.  The town was offficially founded in 1848 although Magellan was first there in 1520.   We experienced some choppy seas about 3 am but Laura slept right through it.  Some new friends of ours actually woke up with sea sickness.  Luckily the waves calmed down by 9:00 am when we started our 4 hour walking tour.

What struck us first was the number of mural paintings on the buildings at the waterfront.  They looked incredibly detailed.  We also saw a monument celebrating the arrival to Puerto Arenas and the freedom from rule back home.  Interestingly, all of the monuments in the city highlighted immigrants and none of the native population.  Most of the buildings here are 4 stories or less.  Only hotels and government buildings are higher.  Our guide said that taller buildings require elevators which are expensive to build and hard to maintain.  One funny thing about the city is the number of overhead wires along the streets.

At the back of the city we climbed 100 steps to get to an overlook.  There we could see back to the waterfront.  There were locks on the railings.  Locks are put on by couples to represent their permanent love for each other.

Viking took us to a bar for refreshments.  Laura and I had Calafate Sours which we thought were just juice from the calafate berry.  It turned out to be more like a Whiskey Sour and just as alcoholic thanks to about two ounces of Pisco, a grape brandy, mixed in.

Back on the ship we attended an interesting lecture on Explorers and Navigation.  The presenter is an astro physicst who covered early navigation to present day satellite gps.

Our dinner was at the Manfredi Restaurant with a multi course meal.  Our night wound down with a concert duet with a Violin and Cello.  It was a very relaxing way to conclude the evening.