03 February 2010; Coquimbo, Chile.

It was an approach to the port that I could dream by now as it was basically the same as in San Martin, Arica and Iquique. The only difference was that the pier was not an L shape into the sea but a rocky Peninsula with the pier on its lee side. We arrived nicely on time but were then told to wait by the pilot as he advised us that he was maneuvering. For a moment we thought that he was talking about his car but then it became clear that he meant the ship alongside the dock where we were supposed to go. It turned out that the captain of the cargo vessel was not very much in the mood to get out of bed for us, so it took a while before the ship was gone. I was docked at exactly 8 am. The official arrival time but in order to get the tours going on time, you really have to be earlier than that. The tours left 30 minutes late and that it will mean that we depart 30 minutes later this evening. A normal occurrence during a full day tour, the schedules are always tight.

The day started out a bit chilly but by the early afternoon the sun came out and it was a glorious day. The swell predicted by the agent never occurred and we were safely docked all day. I had never been to Coquimbo before so I quizzed the pilot about what and if and when. It turned out that there is a very sheltered bay to the south. Basically meant for bulk carriers but we could anchor there if there would be a heavy swell running along the dock. That will go in my notebook for next time. When looking at the town on arrival, it looked a bit peculiar; with to the right a large cross and straight ahead the minarets from a Mosque. A bit strange as there are no Muslims in Coquimbo. (There are some in Iquique and Santiago but not here) However after the big cross was built, the mayor decided that he wanted to turn Coquimbo into an ecumenical town. He managed to get the King of Morocco to sponsor the mosque and there it is. He is now trying to have a synagogue built but there is no money forthcoming. As far as the pilot knew there are no Jews in Coquimbo so American sponsors are not really interested.

The “Third Millenium” Cross
as it is called. The Mosque is located more to the left and not visible.

I wished that he would build a cruise terminal as well as the guests really liked the place. At least the comments about the tours were only positive. In the meantime we had all available crew in the new cabins for the finishing touches. Tonight the linen goes in and then we are ready for tomorrow. They have turned out very nice and in tomorrow’s blog I will post a few pictures. Especially the two handicapped inside cabins are very big. You can drive your scooter straight into the bathroom and have a spin. I think the guests who have booked them are going to be very happy. If I would ever do a world cruise as a guest on the Prinsendam, I would book one of the big inside ones as there is plenty of room to set rails for all the dresses of my wife. A balcony is nice but I personally prefer a dark cabin to sleep in.

The town of Coquimbo across the bay. To the north is La Serena which is moreof a resort with hotels and Restaurants.

I had to dock today at the far end of the pier, as another ship was expected and supposed to go alongside ahead of the Prinsendam. However when the captain saw the dock, he opted to stay at anchor until I was leaving. The pilot thought that he was afraid to maneuver in close proximity of a cruise ship. I personally guess the captain wanted a restful afternoon for his crew, after a long rolling ocean crossing from Japan. The ship did not have any stabilizers and being empty, she must have rolled considerably. As soon as the ship would be alongside the crew would have to work in continuous shifts to load the cargo and therefore the Prinsendam was a welcome excuse for a few hours of rest.

Tomorrow we are in Valparaiso where the guests for the new section are joining us. It will be an extremely busy day as we see Valparaiso as a change over port with everything that goes with it. At least the weather still looks good, so we can’t complain.