Day 4 - Stanley, Falkland Islands

Date: 19 November, 2016

Weather - Overcast in the morning, light rain in the afternoon.  Maximum 9 degrees.

Sea: Calm

We woke up at about six o'clock as the ship was approaching Stanley Harbour so Henk and I quickly got dressed and went out on deck to watch the manoeuvring of the ship through the very narrow passage into the harbour. By chance, we were allowed onto the bridge so we could watch the captain and his crew bring the ship into position. It was quiet and efficient and we were given binoculars so we could see how the crew lined up the navigation markers.

Our zodiac group were the first offshore today. Thankfully, we were allowed to wear our regular shoes and not the Wellington boots so we could walk around Stanley at ease instead of "club hopping" around. We could do this as we didn't have to do a beach landing and walk through water as the zodiac took us directly to the town's short jetty. This would be our only jetty landing. 

We arrived in Stanley at 9.15am and we were required to be back at the jetty by 3.00pm. 

The six hours allowed us sufficient time to see the small town which has a population of approximately 2000. Stanley felt very English and the surrounding countryside had the treeless, windswept look of Scotland.  There were rows of single-storied cottages running parallel to the shoreline. We spent considerable time in the excellent and modern Historic Dockyard Museum. Of note was a fifteen minute documentary on the Falklands War from the perspective of the children at the time. There was also an original, early Antarctic hut which had been removed from an Antarctic base station and restored within the museum. It was very tiny with four bunks, a small kitchen and table.

 

The 1982 Falklands War was evident at the edge of the town with the 1982 War Memorial and the Margaret Thatcher Memorial. The inscription under the Margaret Thatcher bronze bust read: "They are few in number but they have the right to live in peace to choose their own way of life and to determine their own allegiance. Margaret Thatcher. April 3rd, 1982."

We visited the Christ Church Cathedral which is a very English-looking stone church overlooking the harbour. It is the most southerly Anglican Cathedral in the world and as it a standard sized church the title of cathedral was a bit of an over-statement. At the front of the church stands a whalebone arch constructed from four blue whale jaw bones which was installed in1933 to commemorate the centenary of continuous British Administration in the Falklands. 

For lunch we had homemade tomato soup in a cosy cafe listening to a folk singer. He came from nearby Saunders Island which we visited yesterday afternoon. The Falkland Island currency is the Falkland Island Pound which is on a par with the English pound. The shops also accepted English pounds and US dollars. 

The ship left the harbour at 4.00pm and once again slowly made its way through the narrow passage. The daily recap and briefing by the expedition staff was held earlier at 5.00pm as the Captain's Welcome Cocktails was held in the Nautilus  at 7.00pm. We met up with the New Farm couple, Cathy and Chris and Melbourne Lorraine for the cocktails and dinner and we had a lovely time. Whilst at the Captain's Welcome Cocktails there was much excitement as a pod of pilot whales swam past. 

The forecast for the next few days is looking relatively calm as we venture east and south east towards South Georgia Island and the Southern Ocean. We will be now at sea for two and a half days before we reach South Georgia.