Okay - I know I am over 6 months late. Sorry. Here is the un edited version. Forgive mistakes in grammar, etc. please.
December 14
December 14
Charlotte Bay and Mikkelsen Harbor, sunrise 5:21 am, sunset 2:54 am
After watching the whales, eating breakfast, and resting a bit we went to a recap by 3 of the naturalists. They talked about Seals, particularly the ferocious Leopard Seal, the Adélie Penguin, the Arctic and Antarctic Tern and the Humpback Whale. The most amazing fact from the discussion was related to the Arctic Tern. A single tagged Artic Tern flew 97,000 km in one year. He bred in the Arctic, flew to,the Antarctic for the summer there, made several large loops over the southern oceans, and then flew the length of Europe and Africa in a month to go back south. 
Our stop for the afternoon was at (I think) Trinity Island. There were both Weddell Seals and a juvenile male Elephant Seal. All of them sleeping quite peacefully. There were of course plenty of Gentoo Penguins and scavenger birds like the Skua trying to get an egg. I know a couple of people actually saw a successful egg theft.
After dinner we learned some history about Deception Island and it's importance to the history of Antarctica. It is in the South Shetland Islands archipelago and has one of the safest harbors in Antarctica. It is the caldera of an active volcano which erupted in 1967 and 1969 damaging scientific stations and requiring air rescue for the researchers. The island also held major whaling operations and processing plants. It now hosts Argentine and Spanish research stations. The bay, Port Foster, is 5.6 miles long and 3.7 mikes wide. The entrance to the bay is only 750 feet wide with a large rock, Ravn Rock, lying only 8 feet below the surface in the middle of the Channel.
Ships must have evacuation plans in the event of an eruption. The ship will leave immediately if there is any sign of volcanic activity because there is only one entry and exit point. They will leave people on the island and pick them up on the outside. So anyone left will have to go over the caldera walls to be retrieved on the outside.
Spotlight: Gentoo Penguins- the Gentoo is recognized by the white stripe that forms a sort of bonnet on the top of its head and a bright orange-red bill. They are the third largest penguin after the giants, the Emperor and King. They grow to 22 -34 inches and weigh up to 19 lbs. Their weight can drop to 10 pounds when guarding the nest and chicks. They are the fastest underwater of any penguins, swimming at up to 25 mph. They are well adapted to cold climates and eat mainly crustaceans and a small amount of fish. They are the penguin we saw the most of.
December 15
Telefon Bay at Deception Island and Yankee Harbor, sunrise 5:20 am, sunset 2:57 am
First stop was Telefon Bay, 62°55.56' S and 060°38.40' W. It was snowing like crazy this morning. We couldn't even see land when we dropped anchor. Many of the first group didn't go on land with the bad weather and longer hike. By the time we left for the island it was almost sunny. We had a wonderful time going up to two small calderas. The hike wasn't super challenging but it was slippery with the fresh snow. But it was beautiful. After the hike we found 4 chinstrap penguins who were very curious and busy. There is not much wildlife here because of the volcanic activity. The water is not as good as outside the bay. So they were a treat, especially being chinstraps. And there was a seal resting in the snow. Double treat!
Evening sailing in the English Channel
Spotlight: Killer Whale - the killer whale is actually the largest of the dolphins. The dorsal fin is distinctive. It is sickle shaped and stands tall on females but triangular and almost 6 feet on males. They tend to travel in small family groups with well developed social structure. The group normally consists of a dominant adult female, several breeding males, and juveniles of both genders. They are also highly specialized hunters with varying strategies to hunt depending on their primary food source be it fish, penguins, or other animals.
December 16
At sea in the Drake Passage
Today is full of lectures. The first was whales which we missed because I felt so poorly and the theater camera wasn't working. The second was regarding if Antarctica was melting. I attend that one and it was very sad. Nit on,y the Antarctic was discussed but also the change in the Arctic. The uniqueness of the actual land under all the ice in Antarctica was discussed and the impact of the shape of the continent has on how quickly further melting of continental ice occurs.
There was an afternoon lecture on seals. It was as good as all the other lectures. There are two seal types in the seal family, eared and true seals. Only untrue seals are found in the Antarctic. We saw four of the six found in the Antarctic. We saw the Weddell, Leopard, Crab Eater and Elephant. The lecture discussed all of the habits of seals and what each of the ones we saw eats and how they live. Seals need ice primarily to breed, give birth and molt. They molt once per year and cannot be in the water at that time.
The final lecture was on who owns the poles. The short answer is no one definitively owns the poles but several nations lay claim to each. There are treaties and discussions on going regarding how the poles are used and managed including the previously mentioned Antarctic Treaty.
Captains Farewell Gala - introduced all staff, housekeeping, kitchen, musical, chefs, dancers, laundry, desk, zodiac crew, officers, doctor, nurse, 155 total staff.
December 17
The first part of the night was good for sleeping. The second half, not so much. I do t know how big the waves were but 4 hours were rough. Even the water tight doors on decks 3 and 4 were closed. It was bad. Sidney woke up only for a particularly large crash when something fell but otherwise slept through it. Honestly though the Drake Passage overall was a breeze, or as the Tauck directors said, it was like a lake both ways except over the continental shelf. They said most cruises are lucky to have a lake one way and a "shake" the other. They even showed us a terrifying video....
Anyway, at about 7 am we started rounding Cape Horn. It was beautiful and another unique experience. After rounding the Cape I went back to sleep to get a few hours back that I lost in the rough ride.
We listened to a frozen feathers lecture mid morning and turned in our boots. We also got our disembarkation briefing. After that we twiddled our thumbs, packed and repacked our suitcases.
We arrived at Ushuaia at 6 pm but were spending the night on the ship. Ushuaia looked much nicer in the sun than it had in the cloudy wet weather when we departed.
We are a bit sad, a bit ready to go home, and a bit tired. It's hard to believe it happened and hard to believe its over. One part of us wants to live this adventurous and exciting life forever, and the other part us ready for home.
Both parts and both of us dread the travel in the upcoming 36 hours. 3 flights and from 8 am local time tomorrow (5 am at home) to noon at home the following day. I hate sleeping on planes.
What an amazing adventure. 32,000 people and 80,000 sherpas climb Mount Everest each year. 44,000 people including those who cruise by or fly over visit Antarctica. Because of the Antarctic Tourism Agreement there is no trash, pollution, garbage or any other evidence besides footprints in the snow, of that many visitors. It's an amazing place. You see no evidence if man besides the one beside you and the occasional research station or relic building.
We had our last dinner at the buffet and packed our bags. They had to be outside of our cabin by 2 am.
December 18
Well the travel will be more than 36 hours. We found out at 4 am that our Delta flight home was cancelled as part of the fallout after the power outage in Atlanta. We were already up at 4 am because of another travel problem. Argentinian airline workers are going to strike to protest pension reform where they are the losers. So Ponant, the actual boat owner and operator, told us we needed to leave for the airport by 5 am to get to Buenos Aires before the strike started at noon. However Ponant failed to contact all of the guests on the cruise departing today to let them know to be at the airport earlier so they held the plane. We sat around without any word for 30 minutes before they told us we could go back to our room. We finally departed the ship at 8 am to head to the airport. 
Our plane was quite late and it was chaos at the airport. We boarded at close to 11 and arrived in Buenos Aires around 3. Only people on American Airlines were able to get out tonight. Everyone else was stranded. It was a frustrating situation to not have any idea when you were going home. Fortunately Tauck, the organizer of the cruise, had arranged rooms for us all that night. We had to pay for them ourselves but can turn it in against the insurance.
All of us went to lunch at a nice Argentinian restaurant and watched a very nice show. Two of the four dancers were the same ones we saw in Buenos Aires the first night we were there. They were so good and this time we could take pictures and record them. Lunch was fine and although Argentinian beef is fine, I don't find it to be seasoned enough for me. It also can be a bit tough. So I didn't eat much.
After lunch we dealt with the hotel check in madness. The people in front of us were very demanding and took forever to check in. I think the receptionist took pity on us and put us in a super room on the top floor with an amazing view. We could see the park where we walked the third day we were in Buenos Aires before and the river. A very nice young man delivered our bags and told us about his family. There were departing on a cruise to Rio de Janeiro and some other places. He was able to take a picture of their ship from our window as it pulled away from Port. We asked him about visiting Uruguay and he told us about a place called Colonia. You can be there in an hour by fast boat and it's a small old historical town in Uruguay. The dock wasn't far from our hotel but as we didn't all have flight arrangements we decided not to go. 
After some gelato for Sidney and a sandwich and chicken for Theresa we turned in for the night. Theresa's chicken was kind if like breaded chicken nuggets. But the breeding was very strange and included almonds. Then there was a very orange cheese sauce that was quite strange. Theresa does not much enjoy very strange things so she did not appreciate the change from expected chicken nuggets. My ham sandwich was ok though. Theresa found a flight home and the travel agent got our other two people on a flight with Theresa to Houston and then in to their home. Sidney and I were still in limbo when we went to bed. Delta had rebooked Sidney and me in a Aeromexico flight leaving at 3 am to Mexico City with a Delta connection to San Antonio. Unfortunately the flight couldn't leave because of the strike and would have been so delayed anyway that we would have been stranded in Mexico City for 24 hours because there is only one flight to San Antonio each day.
December 19
After a decent nights sleep I got on the phone with Delta myself since the travel agent hadn't said two words to us. Delta rebooked us again on a local South American airline to Lima, Pedro where we would get a connection to Atlanta and then another connection to San Antonio. What a mess. Each layover would have been 5 hours and that seemed like too many moving parts. Finally our travel agent in theory got us on the United flight to Houston. But that isn't the end. 
We booked cars for 5 pm and checked out of the hotel. Theresa's friend wanted to cross the big street and tour the Opera house, Teatro Colon, a Buenos Aires historical monument. So we set off in the very steady rain for the 5 mile round trip to do all that. We had two umbrellas between the four of us so two were somewhat dry and two were not so much. Theresa and I were the not so much. We ate weird cheese cake and had tea, coffee and hot chocolate while Theresa's friend toured the Opera house. Sidney's hot chocolate was hot milk with a piece of chocolate that you stirred in until it melted. We stopped and got sandwiches and chips before going back to dry out at the hotel.
Most of our fellow travelers had flights out. However a few were on yet another cancelled flight and hopefully will get out tomorrow. Everyone was hanging around in the lobby eating, chatting, and playing cards waiting to go to the airport.
Sidney and I headed out earlier than the others because we didn't have assigned seats and I was concerned, rightfully so as it turned out. The airport was beyond any madhouse I have ever been in, even Lima. Insanely long lines with people in various states of distress everywhere.
So I mentioned before that Delta failed to ticket our change to United to Houston and then San Antonio. This flight combination would have put us home at 7:30 am on Wednesday. When we finally sorted out where United's check in was and got to the front, we ha to wait more for them to call Delta to re-issue the ticket. Delta re-issued the ticket to Newark then San Antonio and at that point there was no way to change it.
December 20
The flight to Newark left at 1 am, 4 hours late. We had a 6 hour layover in Newark in part because the flight to San Antonio was late. We are running on fumes. The United flight was typical not that pleasant United. The bathrooms were very dirty and the service poor. Seats uncomfortable, etc.
The last 3 day can be summed up as: Early up, then early down, then delayed, then cancelled, then Mexico City.
Next bed, then Lima, then rain, rain, and more rain. Then long walk in rain, cross bug street, visit Opera house, weird cheesecake, then more rain.
Hope for Houston, get Newark and multiple delays.
There is a bit of sadness waiting at home. The young lady keeping our house said all of the fish died in a matter of two days. We have had them for some time so we are both puzzled and sad. We are ready to be home but getting unpacked and back in working order at home is always tiring. We have mountains of laundry plus I know the house needs vacuuming, dusting and mopping. Sidney is off school so she gets to help get us caught up since I still get to work.
I had about 800 work emails to deal with. I am down to 100 that need more attention. That is always hard too and I am down a person again. It's a little exhausting.
No comments:
Post a Comment