Shari

Cause Royal is da bomb !

Oh trust me #UltimateWorldCruise had Tiktok by the throat for the first two weeks or so. Since I was already (via algorithim) on the "cruisetok" side of tiktok, I started seeing lots of them and through that realized that cruisers and noncruisers alike were HOOKED on the idea. I think the accessibility of Royal Caribbean makes it so fascinating. I mean Oceania does world cruises every year but no one cared to talk about those Lol. And I'm pretty sure Viking has been in the world cruise game for a while too...
But yeah, there's actually several people vlogging it in different ways and many of the people documenting their experiences have met up and become friends (or at least friendly). I saw a funny video with a Full House style theme introducing the "cast" of the World Cruise hahaha

I came across this earlier today.  TikTok star gives a look inside life on Royal Caribbean's extravagant 9-month cruise: 'Crazy' (foxbusiness.com)
 

Based on my observations walking through the casino-
step 1- light cigarette
step 2- push flashing button (apparently pulling handle is too strenuous) 
step 3- smile or curse depending on outcome
step 4- return to step 1
I hope this tutorial is helpful.

Cruise Summary
I've waited a few days to post a summary so I can properly contemplate the experience.  In summary it was amazing. 
With my creative thoughts warmed tonight with a glass of Endurance Scotch I am ready to summarize this voyage.
I've enjoyed some special bucket list cruises on various lines to great destinations.  This experience on the Silver Wind to Antarctica has surpassed them all.
We had some great weather on this voyage but I have the feeling that the experience would be pretty fantastic with or without the weather we had.
I was pleasantly surprised by the condition of the Silver Wind.   There is no disputing her age yet I was pleased with the ship and how it has been updated.   
The premium internet plan and the consistent internet experience throughout the voyage given the challenges of internet at sea well away from populated areas was a pleasant surprise for this tech geek.  
When I considered Antarctic itineraries I initially focused on Antarctica exclusively.  Fortunately I realized if I was going all this way, investing in this vacation as required, I should explore the greater area.  This was a great itinerary that included the Falkland Islands, South Georgia, Elephant Island and Antarctica.  All of them are special in their own way and all of them worthy of being included on this special voyage.  
Boots on the ground in the Falklands, South Georgia, Elephant Island and Antarctica with a surprise visit to iceberg A23a.  Enough said.  Christmas in South Georgia, New Years in Antarctica.  Does it get any better than that?  
On the way home at the hotel in Santiago with new friends made on this voyage someone asked the best moment of this experience.  In truth there wasn't one, there were many best moments.
Being in a special place is all well and good but I learned the value of a great zodiac driver while in the Galapagos.  That lesson holds true in the Antarctic.  Great guides are equally important and our expedition team were all pretty great.  They all have impressive resumes and their passion for their work is hard to miss.  They were a large part of making this experience what it became.  I am quickly becoming a fan of Silversea expedition cruising.
The Captain along with his bridge and deck teams were also a significant factor in the making of this experience.  They all did a phenomenal job. 
Food is subjective.  I try to refrain from reviewing food because my tastes should mean little to anyone else.  I can't recall a bad meal and there were some pretty great meals on board.  How do they keep food fresh as long as they did?  The only meals that I was not enthused about were the two lunches in The Restaurant that were basically buffets.  Generally speaking the food in The Restaurant where I ate most of my meals was perfect for me.  
As far as my camera kit for this sailing I think I did pretty good.  When you own a boat and pull into a marina there is always someone in the marina with a better boat.   Photography is somewhat similar and I sometimes had some "PE" (photographer envy) seeing what other guests had in their hand.  Despite that I think I did okay and I'm pleased with the results.
I watched the ship provided video again before sitting down to write this summary.  I am so glad they provide the video.   Justin did a great job with it.   Every time I watch it the memories come flooding back.  
This was an incredible experience and I enjoyed presenting it here.  I hope you have found it informative and I thank you for viewing.  

On Allure. Sailed by Icon.
I wanted to jump off Allure, swim towards Iconand be rescued. My wife took off her wedding ring.
I climbed off railing. 

There are a couple of... "it depends" answers to your question.
Since you booked a US airline leaving from Vancouver then you will almost assuredly do CBP clearance at YVR airport in Vancouver.  This airport can also have long CBP processing times at certain times of the day so give yourself lots of time before your flight coming off the ship in Vancouver.  
If you booked a Canadian airline such as Air Canada to fly home they can sometimes connect in a Canadian city first which is where you may or may not have pre-clearance for the next hop into the US.  If such a flight connects in Toronto for example, Pearson airport is notorious for having long CBP preclearance wait times.  I am including this for anyone else who may read this post.
If you have Nexus then you cut a lot of time off the process in both Vancouver or Toronto.  Global Entry only (not Nexus) does help a bit but you still have to do the standard initial security line with only GE.  Nexus card holders get sort of a TSA Precheck like security queue which at certain times of the day can save 30 minutes or more.   Sometimes the Nexus card hardly saves any time, it depends on the volume at that moment.
Flying from YVR to MSP is essentially a domestic flight when you do CBP clearance in YVR.  Fifty five minutes is a "legal" domestic connection but starting to verge on being a tight connection these days.  At MSP for some reason I always connect at far flung ends of different terminals.  Even traveling solo and being pretty efficient as a frequent flyer I don't like a 55 minute connection.

Many Canadian airports have US Customs ahead of the US-bound boarding area, so once your flight lands you're typically in a domestic terminal with no need to go through Customs again. So if you're flying, say, Vancouver to St. Louis and going through Chicago you will not need to add extra time to clear customs in Chicago. HOWEVER going to the Canadian airport you will need to build in time to clear both security and customs before getting to your plane.  If you give details I will try to answer further, as I have flown in and out of most large Canadian airports.

I'm glad to see Utopia will have a Bamboo Room spin-off, Pesky Parrot, in place of the Bionic Bar.

I think this is the general consensus regarding the bionic bar. IMHO it’s a one and done experience and a total waste of valuable space. 

Agree.  Plus your D+ drink vouchers not accepted in Bionic Bar.

Just got off 6 nights aboard Odyssey of the Seas and thought the Bionic Bar seemed like a huge waste of space. Kinda cool to get one drink from it but never had anyone sitting and enjoying the space like other bars. I definitely prefer the Champagne Bar that they have been getting rid of an replacing with Bionic on some ships. Just an observation. 

A quick word about the complimentary parka.  
This worked quite well for me.  It is a two part design with an inner bubble style jacket that zips into the red waterproof outer shell.  I didn't keep mine zippered into the shell, I simply put on the shell over the jacket.
Sizing for me was perfect. I am typically a large ski jacket and this large fit well.  I generally wore a long sleeve t-shirt and the Silversea parka on all excursions and I was never cold.


The shell did a great job.  Despite being splashed often on zodiac rides I was never wet inside.  

^^^THIS^^^
Thank you @twangster! Best blogs as always 😊

This morning while waiting to debark I stopped at the photo studio to inquire if I could post the video from the ship's videographer Justin Duncan.  
They indicated it was okay to post the video but suggested I remove any segments that show a guest's face that would be easily recognizable.  I have done that and also removed the sound track which would likely cause a copyright issue on Youtube.
This video contains content that was all captured during this voyage.  There was no stock footage used or content from another ship or sailing.
No sound:

What a truly magical place.  I can't thank you enough for taking SO much of your precious time to include us.  What a wonderful gift you have given us.

I have done Northbound and Southbound transits of the Panama Canal. 
There is no forward or backwards to the canal.  It has always operated in both directions.  

Photo statistics:
14,235 pictures and/or video clips captured
781.21 GB on disk
1,960 images processed for posting.
Photos have been reduced to 1,200 maximum pixel width to make them easier to upload over ship internet.

Do you draw a chalk outline of where the chair was, like old school cop shows?

Fun fact during one of the recap briefings. 
Just 0.05% of the past and present world population has been to Antarctica.

We were on the ship just long enough to contemplate life and consider this next challenge.
The Polar Plunge.
They gathered victims, I mean participants by deck number.

Too late to back out now.




I survived!

Back in my suite I was able to watch some other participants enjoying the plunge.

Could not agree more! This type of cruise is likely not for me, but I find this all fascinating! 
Happy New Year @twangster!!!

And that is how you ring in a new year in the Antarctic!

Shortly before midnight I ventured upstairs to the party going on in the Panorama Lounge.  First a stop outside to see what it's like in the short overnight darkness this far South.




Flat seas and minimal wind.  Perfect.

so gorgeous!  Your pictures are amazing and I am just loving this blog.  I am pretty sure I will never get anywhere close to this part of the world but I feel like you’ve provided such an education for me!
Truly awesome!