24th March, 2008
Last night, our team got the opportunity to camp out in Antarctica. It is, by far, the coolest thing that I have ever done. I had the chance to sleep outside, without a tent. There was a smorgasbord of nationalities lined up in a row, huddled behind a wall of snow and ice. It may be the only time in my life that I will probably sleep in between an Aussie and a Norwegian mountain man. I’m sure that I will recover one day. I’m kidding. It was such a blast. I loved absolutely every moment. We were relatively lucky with the weather; we only had two storms pass through the entire evening. Before the sun came up, we were awoken by the voices of the crew members on the walkie-talkie regarding the preparation of zodiacs for our retrieval. Overall the night was perfect. Although I did wake up with a form of frozen tears around my eyes. Given the chance to sleep outside and rough the elements again, I would do it in a heartbeat. I should also add that I may be the first person in history to have ever done ‘the worm’ on the Antarctic continent. Twice.
22nd March, 2008
When the sunlight kissed my face as my feet touched ground on the Antarctic Continent, I realized that my life would never be the same. I immediately felt this overwhelming sense of serenity and humility coupled with an unprecedented joy. I have made it to paradise. Nothing quite prepares you for the sudden rush of emotion that comes to you when you witness the beauty Antarctica has.
As cliché as it may seem, a person can truly find himself in Antarctica. Her nature is so intriguing as her beautifully rugged exterior behaves as a façade to her real desire- wanting you dead. I have been so fortunate to observe and feel Antarctica in her fury, yet also seeing her at peace. This paradox of Antarctica is what has enabled me to become completely enamored by her. I can’t help but to be saddened for the rest of the world as they will never witness true beauty. Photos do not have the ability to capture the 360 degrees of heaven that surrounds you.
Standing in Antarctica you have never been more surrounded and never been so alone. You close your eyes and listen to the conversations of penguins and the unrecognizable stillness. The smell of Antarctica, at times, is very similar to any wharf. Antarctica is harsh and cold to the touch, but so pleasing to the eye. Antarctic snow seems to taste just a little bit sweeter.
It is difficult to articulate what happens to all five of your senses while in Antarctica. She is so much more than a collection of beautiful colors. I feel so honored to be one of the few to have seen what Antarctica truly is and always has been.
21st March, 2008
It´s a rare thing when you have just experienced a day you feel that neither pictures nor film and not even words can do justice. That´s how I would describe the past two days; today tops both of them. There is a communal feeling on board that what we´re experiencing right now will rarely be topped in our lives and if so, it will be by the like of weddings, births, and graduations.
After another impressive breakfast, we were briefed on which groups we would be placed in to for the next two nights. This evening as I type, half of the group is out camping on the Antarctic continent and another is relaxing and winding down onboard the MV Ushuaia. Roles will be reversed tomorrow evening. After learning our respective tours of duty for the next 48 hours, we geared up for a landing at Charlotte´s Bay. Read more
18th March, 2008
Unfortunately, there are no green rivers to celebrate the Irish holiday, but there are royal blue seas as far as the eye can see, which is more than sufficient. After a long journey, Antarctica is literally just around the corner. Today has been one of the most exciting thus far with the sighting of groups of fin whales, our first iceberg, and finally, land. Seeing my first iceberg is a moment I will not soon forget. During lunch, we had noticed that the boat was stalled, only to have our EL Peter inform us that the expedition´s first iceberg was ahead. While I was excited and had been anticipating this moment for a long time, I now know nothing can really adequately prepare you for the power such a moment holds. It was truly an experience.
To keep this short, everything from Ushuaia to right here in the ship just past King George Island has been amazing. I´m confident it will only get better, as we haven´t even boarded the zodiacs yet! But I am eagerly anticipating that opportunity in the morning. We will head to the E-base for the first and last time, perform some manual labor to help prepare the base for winter, and go on a hike to visit some elephant seals. On a sidenote, a group of us are planning and preparing for our very own re-enactment of Titanic created by and starring our very own IAE 6 team! 1´´Titanic: What if it didn´t sink?´´: coming soon to a YouTube screen near you!!
