Back in August we headed out to Annapolis for an overnight. The Boss was running a race and as is the typical case I went to cheer her on and enjoy an overnight away.
Annapolis is a beautiful old town on the water. The capital of Maryland and I believe at one point briefly the nation’s capital. I’ve actually been to Annapolis a number of times but my last visit was a decade ago. It isn’t bad for a day trip, although in the busy months it gets a bit crowded and crazy towards dinnertime and into the evening. This particular visit was no exception. We did some eating, walking around and seeing the sights, and a bit of relaxation (sitting and reading), and The Boss ran a race and I cheered her on.
Ostensibly we were there so Julia could run a race, not for a football game at the stadium but our first task on arrival was to visit the football stadium for packet pickup. They kept us away from the bowl as there was a closed practice but I found a way to sneak up into an events area to take a quick peak. I’ve never been there for football but back when I was running races I visited a couple of times for race expos.
We had planned to arrive early enough for lunch. I wanted to visit a place called The Choptank for dinner; it was booked full, solid, so we ended up at their upstairs outdoor bar for lunch instead.
As always we sought out good food such as this ceviche. I also had a crabcake – the first of third crab related meals in Annapolis. Choptank does a great job with crabcake.
We wandered past an antique shop which also had a bar with live music playing.
Past the State House, confirming it was the Capitol.
Great view from here.
When evening came we elected not to leave the Westin. It was quiet and we were able to have dinner in the hotel.
I had this amazing wedge salad with crab meat all over it.
The Boss was running the Annapolis Ten Miler so we were both up early. She had a mile jog to the stadium for the start. I had a half mile jog to cheer on the runners.
After the runners went through I was able to go past this wetland area on a shortcut to the old town area to watch the runners.
A few birds hanging out there in the water.
And here I am at mile 3 watching runners on Rowe Boulevard coming into old Annapolis.
More great views from the bridge here.
Mile five with runners heading over the bridge. I was not able to get here fast enough to cheer on the runners – I took a break from the action to visit a coffee shop. However, I did run up on the bridge here.
The bridge here is kind of a cruel joke. Uphill after mile 5, and then through the neighborhoods on the opposite side of the bridge (going up and then back down for part of it), and then at about mile 8 1/2 you come back up the bridge. Mind you, it’s August and the temperature is creeping upward at this point
But there are great views of the river and the bay from the bridge.
And then time to shower, check out of the hotel, and head to brunch.
More crab at brunch. Crab eggs Benedict. Yum. But that was enough.
Annapolis is a great town to run a race but many of the races are in the summer where even at dawn it can be hot and humid.
And now finally the main reason we went on a road trip. There was a marathon for somebody to run! Fortunately, when we woke up early Sunday morning it was fairly dry. I say fairly because it did rain a bit during the marathon.
Buffalo Marathon starts at 6:30 in the morning near city hall. The route the race takes consists of three different “loops” each re-converging on downtown Buffalo. This made it easy for me as a spectator.
The first loop came up Delaware Avenue in front of The Westin where we were staying. This made it easy for me – I crawled out of bed just as Julia was leaving to head to the start line. By the time I arrived downstairs it was ten minutes before start time. I was able to cross the street and find a spot to cheer and so when she went by I yelled “Hey Julia!” She heard me even though I was on the opposite side of the street.
The race headed north for three miles, looped through a neighborhood, and then came back south – in front of the hotel again. This gave me the opportunity to attempt to get coffee. Unfortunately, everybody else and their brother decided to line up in front of SPoT coffee as well yet SPoT was not budging on their 7am opening time. As the day before had not gone well with a 5k running outside the front door once I realized it would only be the two employees who hadn’t been in the best of spirits the day before – AND they were NOT planning to open the doors until at least 7:15 – I abandoned and went back to the hotel room and made Hotel Room Coffee. Ugh.
My next cheering spot was about five blocks away from here. Once the course returned to City Hall it took a turn to the northwest and looped around one of the west side neighborhoods and went out along a waterfront park. I missed catching Julia here as I had taken another trip to the hotel room but I did catch her again when she returned. Then I relocated two miles further along the course – a decent half mile jog to get there – where I caught her returning from the waterfront where we ran Saturday morning.
She came running over to me at that point. “My phone is dead,” she told me.
“What???”
“My phone is dead,” and she held it out.
Then she started running away because I was not getting it.
Somehow in that five second window of time I realized she wanted me to charge her phone. And meet her further along the course. I did my mental calculations where I realized that even though the train wasn’t running and likely buses were not either that this was a town where I could easily get my car out of the garage and drive completely around the race course without running into traffic impediment and meet her…. Well, I was at mile 11 and I knew where to find her at mile 17.
“Hey, wait!” She gave me her phone.
So, I ran the mile back to the hotel. I figured that I needed to get to the hotel in about ten minutes, spend no less than ten minutes inside (charging the phone), spend about 15-20 minutes driving and parking, and then be in place to hand it back to her at I think it was 9:15am.
I was correct on my calculation. However, I went into the hotel and put the phone on the charger for five minutes, found my charged battery pack, hooked the phone up to THAT, and went down to the garage. Without my car keys! Back inside again.
Then I had to get out of the garage down a closed street which meant I had to drive on the sidewalk.
Here is our hero through the trees in Delaware Park just past Mile 17 at 9:19am! She was thankful – I managed to charge the phone to nearly 50% in an hour. Neither of us knows why it went dead.
Less than half a mile up the park roadway there was another junction point where the race course comes together. Next to the bluegrass band tent above there was a park refreshment stand which had coffee so I was able to replenish. Here it did start drizzling a bit but it wasn’t too miserable. After Julia passed here (Mile 21 at that point) I jogged back to my car (another mile…) and drove back towards the hotel.
I actually managed to catch her twice more, an all time record for me. On the drive back I came upon a traffic circle which was closed on one side for the marathon so I jumped out of the car here and cheered her and a number of the others on (they all looked familiar at this point as I had seen them all seven times thus far). And then when I parked at the hotel (back over that sidewalk again) I hopped outside just as she and the others were coming down Delaware Avenue.
She finished the race and we went back to The SPoT for coffee. Fortunately a third person had come in. Lunch was two pizzas from Frankie Primo’s +39 as takeout.
Naps were had all around and then Julia woke me up saying, “I feel like going for a walk. Do you feel like going for a walk?” Who goes walking after running 26.2 miles? Nobody I know.
The weather was beautiful by Buffalo standards for the end of May. It was dry and warm. As you can see the streets were reopened as well.
We made our way out to the seaport park hoping to eat outside at the marina tiki bar. Unfortunately they did not have their outdoor area open so we abandoned and walked back towards the hotel instead, ending up at Big Ditch Brewery.
Okay, so I’m catching up on my writing as today is our final sea day until our Antarctic adventure begins. I went to two lectures on polar ice today and a third discussion led by the captain on our planned route once we reach Palmer Peninsula early tomorrow morning. Basically he warns us “if you’re living life to its fullest you’re going to be busy.”
Morning view, Friday January 16, 2025
Our mornings are predictably beginning fairly early here and I’m finally settling into a routine where I’m able to fall asleep and take a nap if I’m trying to live life to a fullest. Unfortunately, my Oura ring which I’m using to track my stress levels, heart rate, readiness, and sleep doesn’t seem to be able to tell when I’m taking a nap on a ship. I know it can tell how much sleep I am taking at night but it doesn’t see when I reach the same level of stillness I normally do for a nap at home – because obviously the ship is moving.
It hasn’t tracked a nap since Santiago.
Anyway, the first thing I tend to do in the morning is look outside off the stern of the ship. If it isn’t raining I hop out there and snap a photo. Beautiful, isn’t it? Then I sit at my desk here and write a little and sip coffee.
The further south we were going in the waterways of Chile the more ice we saw and the closer it came to sea level.
On Friday we went down to Pinnacle Grill for breakfast.
Pinnacle Grill breakfast
The Pinnacle Grill menu is obviously more substantial than the MDR menu. On this particular day I had the aloo masala (potato curry I think) and egg burjhi (eggs with peppers and spices I think). It was served with a dosa (lentil crepe), chapati bread, stewed lentils, and some chutneys.
For comparison, today I had the Pan Asian breakfast, you know because I have to try everything out.
Pan Asian breakfast
This was served alongside miso soup poured table side.
I’m really impressed with the variety of food served here. It’s even higher than what we saw traveling in Aqua Class on Celebrity. I know we have some perks due to Neptune Class, but this variety even extends to the room service.
Acai bowl
Anyway. We were cruising through the Beagle Passage past a series of five glaciers as we were dining that morning. I didn’t get the best photos, but that’s fine.
Many of my glacier photos were stained by the window
It was enjoyable to capture the moment and instead rest for a change.
Another day, another glacier
We were able to have a fairly active morning as we were not due to arrive in port until 1pm. This was actually delayed even though our original plan was 2pm; the captain had to wait for a couple of expedition ships to clear out before we had space on the pier.
I was able to go to the gym and have some treadmill time (something I’m hoping to repeat today) before going to the aquatherapy room and the thermal suite.
View from the thermal suiteThese loungers are heated
I mean, this was a civilized way to come into port.
Anyway, unlike Punta Arenas, in Ushuaia it just seems as if you suddenly arrive on a scene. The city itself likes tucked up against the mountains on a narrow tilted shelf pouring itself out at the harbor. It looks and feels as if you’ve suddenly been dumped in Queenstown, New Zealand, or Aspen, Colorado. And it’s priced the same.
Expedition ship in Ushuaia
And there are these pricy expedition ships docked there to remind you of your mortality.
As we didn’t really have any opportunity for souvenir acquisition in our previous three stops we decided to begin our time ashore by going shopping.
Typical construction in Ushuaia – both old and new
There are a lot of shops that sell chocolate alongside t-shirts. And a number of liquor shops as well with whisky that normally costs us $60 at home going for $200 here. Fortunately the local stuff is cheaper – I think a small bottle of Patagonian gin was about $15 USD. We actually found the most interesting gifts in a coffee shop / cafe called Espirito Fueguino Cafe & Gift Shop. I now have a heavy black hoodie with a mythological Patagonian creature on the back of it; it should come in handy the next few days.
There are three museums near the port (there may actually be more, but I searched and saw three). There are two Museo del Fin Del Mundos; we visited neither. We did, however, visit the museum at the Presido, the old prison, which actually consists of about five small museums in one.
A museum in the prison
This museum has about two wings dedicated to prison life – one to the history of the prison and the prisoners who were in residence, and then one completely devoid of furnishings so you could wander around and enjoy the silence.
There were also two gift shops. And an art gallery.
Maritime art
The only requirement for a piece of art to be in the art gallery is it had to be pretty good and it had to have something to do with water. Nonetheless, it was good art, mostly South American from what I could tell. Much of it resembled European art work, or even American art work from the time periods where they were created. For instance, there were a couple of Hopper-esque oil paintings I enjoyed. I could have enjoyed standing in silence in this wing for a while longer but I wasn’t alone. It was time to go eat.
And even though it was neither Patagonian lunch time nor dinner time, we found a nice meal at Isabel Cocina Al Disco.
I think we actually spent big city prices for our meal but it was worth it. One massive 750ml beer from Patagonia Brewing Company and two large but not massive beers from a local brewery that makes a red ale. We also shared the house specialty – seafood and potatoes cooked in a disc from a plow, or a de arado, or plough in British English. In modern times they actually use a cast iron pot with high edges similar to a paella pan.
And thus the term “al disco.”
It was so good. Mussels and baby octopus and shrimp and calamari stewed in white wine-tomato broth with nicely roasted and fried potatoes.
I tell you. I researched this place months ago. I had no idea what the cast iron pot was until now and didn’t connect it until I saw “plough” on the English language menu. And Isabel is easy to get to from the port – you walk off the ship, down the pier, out through the gates, and across the street and it’s to the right one block.
Back to the ship for us.
We did not join Seabourn Pursuit
It was a beautiful late afternoon stroll back to the ship where we whiled away the evening with our feet up on the loungers in the Crow’s Nest.
This is a great pier to walk out
Ushuaia is a great cruise port – my favorite so far. Logistically it’s easy. For excursions buses and vans come straight out to the ship. Visiting town is a half mile stroll along the pier.
Views of the town are stunning
Local beer here is great, by the way. Next up, two days at sea.
I always feel like The Waitresses – Christmas Wrapping is stuck in my head on Christmas Eve as I dash to and fro possibly while bundled up too tight, but today was typical Virginia, where the weather was showing it can be bright and sunny and warm for the day. And for this I took advantage of some outdoor time, first by walking to coffee with my retired old man group, then by walking the waterfront in Old Town because I arrived too early for yoga, and finally by enjoying the waterfront at dusk after having a mid-afternoon dinner.
Latte at Idido’s
Back before the earth cooled, or at least in the pre-COVID era, a coffee shop opened across the street from my home, where I was living in a large apartment building before I settled down and moved into a house. This was Idido’s Coffee and Social. I actually wrote entire proposals while sitting at Idido’s.
Once I moved I started walking to Idido’s a few times a week to get out of the house as well as I was still working from home all the time. I started noticing one of my neighbors was meeting his friends there, mostly retired civil servants, once a week, and eventually he invited me to join them.
Well, I have long since gotten out of the habit of going to Idido’s, but my neighbor’s group has grown to include between ten and eighteen people, and I still show up once or twice a month. That’s what I did today. I didn’t have to leave early to go to work thankfully. Instead, I left early got head to yoga.
Months ago I started going to a new yoga studio in Old Town Alexandria. Usually I go with The Boss, other times I go by myself (today was maybe the once this month I will go alone). And being the next town over you never know how long, with metro DC traffic, it will take to get there and find parking. Today’s answer? About 17 minutes. Sometimes it’s 30 or 40 minutes. End result, I was early.
Yes, I know I’m droning on and on about this but there’s a point.
View of DC from Alexandria
I walked out to the waterfront to a spot I have never experienced. Let’s call this “things to do while waiting for yoga.” On this point there was, until recently, an empty warehouse but now there is a city park. It has a great view. I took the photo above with my new phone, an iPhone 17 Pro that I figured would be great for penguin photos next month.
I tried to make a joke about penguins but it just wouldn’t fly.
A month ago I was persuaded to upgrade my phone for aforementioned penguins, in part because the camera is so impressive. Purely as demonstration, not necessarily of quality because nothing is great with full on electronic zoom, I offer you this.
The Capitol from six miles distant
A view of the Capitol from six miles distant – notice it’s just a zoom on the photo above, a separte photo. But still, it tells me I can zoom in on an emporer on the ice and have you, dear reader, see an emporer on the ice.
But enough of this. Yoga as great, mostly floor practice, lots of stretching, then I came home and took a nap.
Dinner was at 3pm on Ada’s on the River. They still had their lunch menu up which was fine, it’s great. Ada’s is a better value than going into DC for fancy food and has a more extensive menu than most places in Arlington
Beau Joie Brut NV Champagne
We had a full bottle of champagne rather than cocktails and glasses. The occasion seemed to call for it, and the $89 restaurant price of the Beau Joie seems to be not tooooo far off from the $59 Total Wine price of the Beau Joie (it wouldn’t have surprised me to find that it was $30 in the store, such is the usual markup).
Oysters and Tuna
They had James River oysters which we refer to as being good enough for a half dozen. We like our oysters a bit more saline and tighter and smaller; the Chesapeake and tributary oysters tend to be less saline and larger. But these were fine and Ada’s serves them with excellent accompaniments. We also had tuna tartare and a dark brioche bread.
Mussels were had
Ada’s does a great job with mussels, served with bread of course in a tomato broth with some spice and dill. After oysters, tuna, and mussels, it seemed to order something starchy, so of course there was a side of lobster mac n cheese. Two pots of mussels were the same cost as the lobster mac n cheese.
Time for Tokaji
In honor of Hungary I ordered a glass of Royal Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos. And then the salted caramel chocolate souffle.
Image of man stirring caramel into a souffle
This was actually the only flop of the day, and it honestly wasn’t a serious flop. The server brought the souffle out with a tin of caramel, but the caramel was lacking in quantity and cold. It wouldn’t pour. So, when he cut open our souffle with a spoon and poured it, it wouldn’t pour, so our poor sad souffle was sitting there looking like molten chocolate until he ran to the kitchen and heated up the caramel. It was good and tasty, but the presentation would have been better if it was as intended. Instead, I’ll need to make it at home!
And that’s all for today’s activities outside of the home. Inside the home I’m rolling out puff pastry. More on that tomorrow, maybe. And I’ll talk about yoga.
This post is entitled why we go on cruises. It’s about the obvious. I’m the type of person – we’re the type of people – who actually enjoy doing things when we travel. We’re active. We run. We run in port. We walk across the Brooklyn Bridge to Kings County Distillery in the Navy Yard. We go on an architecture boat tour in Chicago. When we visit a city, we stay somewhere comfortable and wander around and try to be like locals. Well, we try. We walked to the top of Cadillac Mountain instead of driving. But we go on cruises. Why?
The view from the top
We go on cruises so we don’t drive each other nuts. We like to do certain things in the morning and we also appreciate a fair amount of downtime. Sometimes one relaxes while the other goes to the casino. We don’t like to haul our luggage back and forth constantly; instead, we want to pretend we’re home. We don’t want to sit in a place for a week or two or three weeks, at least not most of the time. We want to experience a place but also relax.
Feet up in awkward relaxation
So let me start out by telling you how I started cruising.
Walking amongst the fish, Atlantis
In 2016, I took my daughters on a cruise. I drove to the cruise port with them and we sailed south for a week. Planned ports included Port Canaveral in Florida (a success, we visited Disney for the first time ever), Nassau in the Bahamas, and Freeport (fail, due to planned hurricane). Did I mention the hurricane? My worst experience at sea was my first one, the one where the ship was listing sideways as we skirted a Cat 1 hurricane off Cape Hatteras.
In 2017, I took them on a cruise with my mother. Or rather, we went on a transatlantic passage on Queen Mary 2. Again, the main reason I did this is because it allowed a degree of relaxation while also entertaining my family. It was to some degree tiring though – travel with family is often not about relaxation. We did go to Scotland though.
On the train to Mallaig
I went on one solo cruise on a ship called the Royal Clipper, and then I went on two more – one, another Transatlantic, on Celebrity Silhouette as a “first vacation since COVID,” and one on Queen Victoria at the edge of winter to Spain and Portugal. That last one was in many ways the best – we, meaning we and not my daughters, visited a number of different interesting ports and towns in Spain and Portugal. This is really where we established our cruising habits and learned some lessons.
Always dine in port
Always dine in port, because the food in port is one of the strongest identifiers of a culture.
Always give yourself downtime. Don’t attempt to try every event on the ship. Remember, if you’re on a ship for more than a week, just as you do with work at home you also need a day off to sleep in, rest, and relax. Also, don’t drink heavily before a day where the captain is telling you that you will have rough seas.
Sunset
And move into your cabin. Act as if you own it. Find that one spot on the ship you find relaxing and keep coming back to it. Watch the sunset, watch the waves change day after day. Look for whales and dolphins. And enjoy yourself.
