Ile d'Aix
What a beautiful day! We anchored early near the French island Ile d'Aix and took Zodiacs ashore. A short walk from the dock was the house where Napoleon I spent his last 3 days on French soil before the British exiled him to St. Helena. The museum in the house was filled with busts, portraits, and his personal items. Talk about a cult of personality! Some of the guests rented bicycles and toured the island. They saw local fisherman collecting muscles on the strange lava-like rock formations. One of the most striking aspects of the island is the tide in the surrounding sea, which lifts the boats up 2 meters and then deposits them back down on the ground. At one point, the boats were completely stranded in a sea of mud.
Back on board for lunch, we sailed smoothly southward. People read on deck in the sun, and then Richard and Bob presented the guests with information about innovative new camera techniques. Some guests took the opportunity to get into shape, doing special exercises adapted for a work out on the ship. Later in the afternoon Ian gave a lecture on Wild Europe, the beasts and birds that existed in the past, those that survived, and those that are endangered. During the recap Tom talked about the sale of Louisiana and its connections to the island, Sevan spoke about the plight of honey bees, Mike spoke about the consensus in the scientific community over climate change, and Ron spoke about the Basques - those Indo-European people who straddled the border between France and Spain. In the evening, the film about rounding Cape Horn was shown in the lounge. Smooth sailing at night with a full moon closed out the day.
What a beautiful day! We anchored early near the French island Ile d'Aix and took Zodiacs ashore. A short walk from the dock was the house where Napoleon I spent his last 3 days on French soil before the British exiled him to St. Helena. The museum in the house was filled with busts, portraits, and his personal items. Talk about a cult of personality! Some of the guests rented bicycles and toured the island. They saw local fisherman collecting muscles on the strange lava-like rock formations. One of the most striking aspects of the island is the tide in the surrounding sea, which lifts the boats up 2 meters and then deposits them back down on the ground. At one point, the boats were completely stranded in a sea of mud.
Back on board for lunch, we sailed smoothly southward. People read on deck in the sun, and then Richard and Bob presented the guests with information about innovative new camera techniques. Some guests took the opportunity to get into shape, doing special exercises adapted for a work out on the ship. Later in the afternoon Ian gave a lecture on Wild Europe, the beasts and birds that existed in the past, those that survived, and those that are endangered. During the recap Tom talked about the sale of Louisiana and its connections to the island, Sevan spoke about the plight of honey bees, Mike spoke about the consensus in the scientific community over climate change, and Ron spoke about the Basques - those Indo-European people who straddled the border between France and Spain. In the evening, the film about rounding Cape Horn was shown in the lounge. Smooth sailing at night with a full moon closed out the day.
