Leaving for Punta Arenas – Nov 17, 2007

We took morning flight to Punta Arenas which is part of the Patagonia. Punta Arenas is the south most city of Chile and it is the port where we boarded the Mare Australis Cruise Number 162.

The 1st thing we did was having a $4,200+ lunch. Even it was in Chile Peso, it still surprised us when we saw the price list on the window. It was a good Chinese buffet. After lunch, we visited the City Main Square and a high lookout point for a panoramic view of the Punta Arenas.

After boarding the Mare Australis, there was a welcome party and we saw the Chilean national dance Cueca the first time. Cueca is a dance between a roster and a hen waving handkerchiefs. It is sort of a folk dance.

One interesting thing we learned was the similarity between Chile National Flag and our Texas State Flag.

Chile National Flag

Texas State Flag