Ever wonder what a dream job would be? How about cruise lecturer? As it turns out, Carolyn was invited to be an astronomy enrichment lecturer aboard Holland America's MS Ryndam from March 15-April 1, 2001. Her tasks: to offer 3 astronomy lectures, stage a few star parties, and introduce the wonders of astronomy to some 1200 passengers. Mark's passage was provided as part of the package, giving him (and Carolyn) some much-needed time off and a chance to see some new places! Southern hemisphere skies, sunny climes, mountain hiking, browsing in seaside ports, Chilean fjords, rounding the Horn, gracious service, meeting new people, a chance to kick back and relax, plus many other adventures awaited us as we boarded the Ryndam in Rio de Janeiro on March 15.

Our route (lined in red-brown on the map) was to take us on a 2-day sail from Rio de Janeiro to a one-day visit in Montevideo, Uruguay. A very leisurely overnight sail would put us into Buenos Aires, Argentina for a two-day stay. Then, we'd head out to the open sea for two days to get to the Falkland Islands and a one-day port stop. After that, another sea day to approach Cape Horn, followed by a half-day stop in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Another one-day stop in Punta Arenas, Chile would kick off two sea days through the Chilean Fjords until we reached the port town of Puerto Montt. Finally, after a final sea day we'd arrive at Valparaiso, Chile and a flight home. All in all, it sounded like just the ticket!

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