Our ship left Montevideo, Uruguay, early evening on January 28 on our way to Buenos Aires, Argentina. While in Montevideo, I thought about this being one of the areas where our grandson, Trevor, served on his mission.
A dogwalker in Buenos Aires.
We were impressed that the dogs walked along quietly
without getting tangled in the leashes or
getting into a dog fight.
In Buenos Aires, we took a city tour on our bus,
stopped at the main plaza,
walked through a large park,
visited La Recoleta Cemetery,
and ate at a sidewalk cafe while watching tango dancers.
Pink House or La Casa Rosada
in the Plaza de Mayo (May Square),
in the Plaza de Mayo (May Square),
which is the main plaza in downtown Buenos Aires.
The Pink House is the official seat of the executive branch
of the government of Argentina and the offices
of the president.
It was from the uncovered balconies of the Pink House
that Eva Peron addressed the people of Argentina.
In 1957, part of the Pink House was turned into
an historical museum.
Piramide de Mayo or May Pyramid
in the center of the plaza.
This is a monument celebrating the first anniversary
of the 25 May 1810 revolution
that led to independence from Spain in 1816.
On our walk through the park.
Another pretty view in the park.
Some of the beautiful flowers.
closed its petals, but the guide said it is stationary now.
Weighing 18 tons, it took approximately
20 minutes to open and close.
The petals opened at sunrise and closed at sunset
with red and green lights moving over
the closed petals most nights.
Women's Bridge (Puente de La Majer)
Symbolically, the bridge represents a dance of tango.
Two of the parts are immobile,
while the middle section rotates in a right angle
to allow boats to pass through.
The grave of Eva Peron
in the La Recoleta Cemetery.
John and Narelle Canaan,
part of the Fun For Less staff.
John is also a musician, singer, and speaker.
The photo was taken in the
La Recoleta Cemetery.
Tango dancers at the outdoor cafe where
we ate and enjoyed the entertainment.
we ate and enjoyed the entertainment.
We spent the night on the ship and after breakfast the morning of January 30, we flew to Iguazu Falls.
The pool at the Iguazu Grand,
which was our very nice hotel in Iguazu, Argentina.
which was our very nice hotel in Iguazu, Argentina.
We went behind part of the falls
in a small boat like the one in the photo.
in a small boat like the one in the photo.
We also walked along the paths, which
allow close views of the falls.
Iguazu is wider than Southern Africa's Victoria Falls
if you consider Iguazu's 275 separate falls, and its shape provides
spectacular views. However, Victoria is the
largest curtain of water in the world.
Each view of the falls was impressive.
Another view showing a different section of the extended falls.
Another view showing a different section of the extended falls.
The yellow color in the water is from minerals.
Devil's Throat is the highest and deepest of the falls.
on our return from seeing Devil's Throat.
The Iguazu River on the right flows into the Parana River.
The junction of the "water flows"
marks the border between Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay.
We are standing in Argentina with Brazil behind us across the river to the right and
Paraguay across the river to the left.
On the Argentinian side is this marker
signifying the three countries that can be seen here.
(Narene)
This is the marker across the river on the
Brazilian side.
Looking across the river to the left is the
marker in Paraguay.
signifying the three countries that can be seen here.
(Narene)
Brazilian side.
Looking across the river to the left is the
marker in Paraguay.
South American coati mundi at Iguazu Falls
that did not seem to be very wild
around people and hoped to be fed.
Iguazu Floral
that did not seem to be very wild
around people and hoped to be fed.
Iguazu Floral
It was a special treat being with the
Nearons and the Masons
who became our dear friends
while serving a mission with them in Russia.
(Linda & David, Narene & Sam, Renee & Clark)
David and Linda
They were with Fun For Less but on a different bus
for our land tours.
Clark and Renee were not with Fun For Less
and so were not with our buses for land excursions.
It was fun to have both couples on the cruise with us.
We had been looking forward to sharing this cruise
with Harvey and Helen Bauss and were sad
that they were unable to make the trip.
They are special friends from our days in Ann Arbor.
Some new friends we made on the cruise.
We enjoyed walking around Iguazu after eating at
a restaurant featuring Argentinian beef.
(Narene, David & Caroline Faucette, and
Paul & Elaine Faucette;
the Faucettes are from Colorado.)
Max and Nancy Anderson
were at our assigned table for dining.
They were a fun couple.
We enjoyed getting to know
George and Mimi Murdock.
They also were our dinner partners
and became our friends.
Our cheerful waiter.
Realizing his name would be difficult for us to remember,
he introduced himself as "James Bond."
There were five formal dining times on the ship,
and 15 were smart casual.
For breakfast and lunch, we ate in the Lido.
Dave and Lynn Flinders are new friends
we made on the cruise. It is nice
that they also live in Spanish Fork.
One of the cute animals
our cabin stewards made for our room
out of towels each evening.
We enjoyed the entertainment on board the Holland America ship, the Veendam. The performances included professional vocalists, instrumentalists, comedians, a magician, and tango dancers, in addition to the variety shows put on by the ship's band and singers. The following photos were taken at some of these shows in the Showroom at Sea.
The guy at the left also sang at the
Fun For Less nondenominational worship service
one Sunday and accompanied himself on an
original piece he wrote. His second musical
number was "I Am a Child of God." He is LDS.
The ship's HALcats band and tenor
were very good.
Edmondo Rahme - an "international acclaimed tenor."
He had a beautiful voice.
Dimitris Dekavallas, classical guitarist.
He was born in Greece, currently based in London,
began performing at the age of nine,
has won many international and national prizes,
and gave a private recital for Pope Benedict II.
We enjoyed his performance very much.
Viviana Guzman, talented flutist, born in Chile.
She was amazing. In addition to playing on
different flutes of various sizes and complexity,
her main instrument was an eight-karat gold flute
on which she played one song with double tongueing
that made it sound like two flutes playing a duet.
She said she had a collection of 100 flutes
from around the world
and demonstrated the unique sounds on some of them.
One was a long wooden flute with no holes for finguring,
but she played a tune using many different notes.
Another was a small wooden Native American flute.
A background showed on a screen different photos
illustrative of her photographic talents.
She also had a very nice personality, and
she was one of our favorite shows on the ship.
Marty Brill, comedian.
He is also an actor ("All In the Family,"
"The New Dick Van Dyke Show");
a writer (episodes of "M*A*S*H,"
"The Mary Tyler Moore Show," "Mork and Mindy");
and musician (piano, classical guitar, harmonica, and singer).
Other performers we saw in the Showroom at Sea:
Dave Levesque (comedian, violinist, and juggler)
Judy Carmichael (jazz pianist)
Siobhan Phillips (singer and comedian)
Noel and Victoria von Kauffmann
(International Latin Ballroom Dance Champions)
It was appropriate to watch them tango
while docked in Buenos Aires!
We happened to be sitting right by a couple we had observed
one evening dancing in the Crow's Nest
who appeared to be quite professional.
At the conclusion of Noel and Victoria's stage performance,
they came down and had this couple dance along with them.
They had met on a previous cruise.
Filipino Crew Show
Jamm the Piano Man
I especially enjoyed stopping by most evenings
to enjoy his talent. He had a huge repertoire
of songs he could play and sing.
Each evening had a different musical theme,
and he also took requests.
I especially enjoyed his Andrew Lloyd Weber night.
John Canaan was with the
Fun For Less staff.
He had a very nice voice, and we enjoyed his music.
He also does relationship seminars
and did one presentation for our group.
The late night "Dessert Extravaganza"
with all kinds of sweets decorated and displayed
to be photographed and eaten.
One of the tables at the "Dessert Extravaganza."
The green and red item on the pedestal
was a carved watermelon.
Fun For Less Tour group assigned to the "Yellow Bus."
Going left to right:
John & Cheryl Kershner; Carl & Margaret Oosterman;
Bill & Marie Byrne (he behind, she in front of the Oostermans);
James & Marie Matthews (back row, only hats visible);
Reed & Ada Howell (he has a maroon shirt, she has a light blue shirt);
Illa Draper (in front of Reed Howell);
Earl & Carolyn Good (he is looking down, she wearing a passport);
Alvin Johnston (behind Carolyn Good);
Howard & Marcia Keen (right of Carolyn Good);
Nita Duncan (front of Howard Keen - white shirt);
Jim & Jeanne Okeson (back center - Jim in green shirt);
Claudia Johnston (in front of Jim Okeson - white blouse);
Barbara Bailey (Claudia's sister - white blouse);
Gretchen Fegel (back row, red hair showing);
Jim & Marty Galovan (he is left of Gretchen, she is partially hidden);
Lynn & Dave Flinders (she wearing sunglasses, he partially hidden);
Bob & Nancy Frampton (he has a blue cap, she is in front of him);
Jeanette Wilson (front - purple shirt); Arlene Liechty (yellow shirt);
Linda & Alan Peterson (she has red hair, he has white hair and beard);
Sam & Narene Ireland (in front of the Petersons);
Dick & Blanche Cochran (right of Narene);
Betty & LaMar Fox (right end);
John & Narelle Canaan (kneeling in front)
We enjoyed experiencing South America and Antarctica with Fun For Less and Holland America. The service, food, and entertainment on the ship were excellent, and we returned home with happy memories
of times shared with friends and new acquaintances.
