Julie and Graham’s Fantastic Adventure

 So onto Le Boreal as we bid a fond farewell to Miami and the American continent.  We were greeted at the gangway by the Captain (nice touch) and started our check in. The process was relatively painless and soon we were headed to the restaurant for a quick bite and a drink (before dehydration sets in). After that we were shown to our cabin. But to Julie's horror it did not have a bath tub - a must on such a lengthy voyage. So off to speak to the reception. We were told that they will see what they can do. 😊 Le Boreal has capacity for around 246 guests. Our voyage will have around 64. So a lot of cabins available. Later that afternoon we moved into another cabin. Not only did it have a bath, it also had an adjoining room which is used as a lounge area. Very nice. The ship is around the same size as the Venture, nicely appointed with the amenities that would be expected for an expedition vessel. It has 2 dining areas, a number of bars (not always open though for this cruise) a...

 Our journey up the Amazon has finally come to an end. But not before a few interesting days. Firstly they upgraded us to a better suite since the crew were having an end of cruise function in the lounge which was a deck directly above. \ So a very nice upgrade. We did go out exploring a couple more times with varying results. The first time resulted in us encountering a mixture of wildlife including monkeys some more bird life and of course the mandatory water lilies There was another expedition in the morning at 6.00. I decided to stay in bed and let Julie go out with our new found friends.  They were back within 90 minutes soaking wet (😆). I was still lying in my warm bed. And so we bid Venture and the Amazon a fond farewell The bags are packed ready for an early disembark on Friday. Then a rush to the airport for our 10.45 flight to Rio. We go via Sao Paulo and a 7hr flight. We got to Rio and headed for Copacabana Beach. The hotel was virtually on the beachfront so not to...