Thursday, January 19, 2023
Once we left Cape Horn, the rest of the morning passed quickly and while we were at lunch, the Captain announced that we were now in the Drake Passage. The stabilizers were on and working but we would still feel motion – no Drake “Lake” for us. Hold on to the handrails and secure all breakables.
I saw a lot of green apples appear at the Lido buffet and a number of guests were grabbing them. I’m not sure why green apples are a help with sea sickness, but some people swear by them. I prefer Bonine.
He has been doing some five-minute videos about our progress and weather and they stay up for a day or two on the cabin TV. Yesterday’s presentation was his planned route to the Antarctica peninsula hoping to skirt between two weather fronts that were between us and the land.
I went to the Future Cruise Presentation. There was only one that I thought was as interesting as the ones we already have booked because it included Bermuda and the Canary Islands in the same cruise. Not sure if I will pursue it at this time.
The Future Cruise Consultants on this trip have been busy every day that they are open. Our room is down the hall from their desks in the atrium and their sign-up sheets are always full of names. Holland America passengers love to cruise. This cruise is our 17th with HAL, and we are still considered newbies by most of the experienced HAL cruisers we’ve met.
When I left the presentation, I knew the Captain wasn’t kidding (he never kids about safety) – we were definitely in the midst of the Drake “Shake”. We were careening down the hallways like pinballs. Would make getting ready for the evening interesting.
Travel Trivia
Drake Passage
The Drake Passage is named after the English privateer Sir Francis Drake even though he never sailed the passage.
The first recorded voyage through the passage happened about 40 years after Drake’s crew had found the passage. It was the Dutch navigator Willem Schouten who sailed across the waters of the Drake Passage in 1616.
Sometimes known as the “Drake Shake” – The passage can have very rough seas. Waves of 32 feet are not uncommon here.
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