Saturday, 10/19. The title only tells the best of the day. There were other notable events.

We left early to go to Isle de Magdalena, an island of penguins. (And seagulls, though their presence was wholly inconsequential.) The penguins were the main act. Very, very cool. They ignored us completely. Sometimes noisy. Some seemed to pose for us. Extremely windy, which seems to be a theme of the trip.

Departed the ship in Punta Arenas, Chile. Clean and pretty. New accessory tour guide aptly named Maria (“They call the wind Maria”). Large statue of Magellan. After lunch departed north. Lots of birds. Martin is a birder, so we made several stops to see the birds. Very open countryside, without many trees. Cattle and sheep. Maria talked. And talked. A bit too intense for many, but I can’t say it wasn’t pertinent. Arrived in Puerto Natales, a one-night stay. Again, clean and pretty, along a sound that eventually connects to the Pacific, though it’s a complicated path.

In the past two days there has been a lot of unrest in Chile’s capital, Santiago. Its cause is a protest against an increase in metro prices, which has turned violent. There is a call to expand the purpose and scope of the protest as a sign of general dissatisfaction with their elected officials. Maria repeated some quotes that signify their lack of sensitivity to the people’s unrest. There was a protest brewing in Puerto Natales’s main square. The tradition is to bang pots with spoons. Police were patrolling at a discrete distance.

Great view, nice sunset, but the show of the day was the penguins.

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