preparation Archives | Since Antarctica

December 24, 2010 No Comments

2.45 AM: Wake up, do some last minute packing to ensure that I stay under the 20kg weight limit.

3.45 AM: Groggily meet up in the lobby with the other guests. Normal hotel guests are probably wondering why so many people are awake at 3 in the morning. But hey, there’s no better way to motivate a group of people to be up at such an ungodly hour than the threat of not being able to fly out to Antarctica for another 24+ hours due to weather. (One of the downsides of flying is the dependency on weather conditions, which we’ll become familiar with at the end of our trip).

Day 1: Early Departure Same view down the street, just 12 hours later.

So voila, 60 people up and ready to go at 3:45 in the morning! The hotel provides us with some boxed juices, crackers, and a ham & cheese sandwich for breakfast to-go, to sustain us at the airport.

Day 1: Early Departure Guests milling about in the hotel lobby.

Day 1: Early Departure Getting ready to board the buses to the airport.

4.30 AM: Head over to the airport, spend about 15 to 20 minutes to get all our boarding passes. It’s not too bad of a wait, considering it’s Christmas Eve morning and there are a ton of people here aiming to travel home in time for Christmas. I accidentally cut in front of a guy for security, but he was very nice about. Quite admirable, considering how stressed people usually get during holiday traveling.

6.00 AM: After waiting for the big LAN flights to clear, we finally board our plane. It’s surprisingly comfortable, just like any other commercial airline (well, probably even more comfortable, considering seats were 2×2). I had definitely been expecting the back-up Hercules plane, after reading up on some others’ Antarctic flights.

Day 1: Early Departure Finally boarding our plane (DAP charter flight)!

8.00 AM: Wheels down at Frei Station! Disembark into the crisp Antarctic air – which is actually fairly warm, as it’s only 32 degrees F. It feels surreal that we’re actually in Antarctica. As we walk to the main station for a briefing, we pass the returning group and wave at them, as they bid us a good trip.

Day 1: Frei Station Wheels down at the Presidente Eduardo Frei Montalva Station (Chile) on King George Island, Antarctica.

Day 1: Frei Station Obligatory family photo in front of the plane.

Day 1: Frei Station It is never difficult to figure out which country’s research base you’re on.

Day 1: Frei Station The group before us, bidding us a good trip before they head back to the mainland.

Pit stop at one of the station buildings for refreshments and bathrooms – naturally, the women’s bathroom line trumps all.

Day 1: Frei Station Walking along the runway (which is really just a gravel pathway) to get to the main buildings.

Day 1: Frei Station Almost Martian-like landscape.

Day 1: Frei Station More rusty machinery.

Day 1: Frei Station Colorful research & residence buildings.

Day 1: Frei Station

Next, we get our first taste of Zodiac-ing to our ship, the Ocean Nova. Upon arrival, we get more refreshments and a briefing, although the latter is interrupted by a humpback whale sighting.

Day 1: Frei Station Walking down towards the shore.

Day 1: Frei Station Very first penguin sighting – everyone excitedly snaps pictures.

Day 1: Frei Station Boarding the zodiacs to head to our ship.

Day 1: Frei Station The Ocean Nova is visible in the distance.

We all haul ass and gear up, jumping into Zodiacs to chase after the whales. We manage to get a bit closer, but no majestic arcs for us. Of the 60 people in our group, there are at least 30 equipped with DSLRs, and many others with one of the newer micro four-thirds cameras. Makes sense though – you’re only going to get one chance to shoot photographs in the Antarctic, unless you’re a researcher or lucky enough to come back for a 2nd or 3rd round.

Day 1: Frei Station You can barely make out the dorsal fin, about 1/3 from the left side of the photo.

Day 1: Frei Station Another shot, way in the distance. It almost looks like a rock, except it’s curved and pointy.

Day 0: Punta Arenas, Chile

December 23, 2010 No Comments

11.30 AM: After travelling for over 20 hours from Cusco to Lima to Santiago to Punta Arenas, we finally arrive at the Presidente Carlos Ibáñez del Campo International Airport. I am fairly delirious at this point, but at least the weather is nice. Get picked up for the hotel by Antarctica XXI’s bus, along with a few other passengers. On our short drive to the hotel, we pass by the picturesque coastline of the Magellan Strait.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Finally landed at the airport!

Day 0: Punta Arenas Delirious, sleep-deprived smile, check.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Pushing our luggage out to the bus, which is waiting to take us to our hotel.

11.45 AM: Surprisingly, Punta Arenas has a fairly bustling downtown area – was not picturing this before. We arrive at Hotel Rey Don Felipe, but it’s too early to check-in, so we go to try on our boots and then head out to lunch & explore.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Finally arrived at our comfortable hotel, Hotel Rey Don Felipe.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Antarctica XXI welcome sign in the lobby, with the day’s itinerary.

Day 0: Punta Arenas We arrived too early for check-in, so we loitered around the lobby (read: sat my tired self on a squashy sofa and took photos).

Day 0: Punta Arenas Trying on boots for rental sizing – almost felt like shoe shopping, hah.

Day 0: Punta Arenas View down the street from our hotel.

Day 0: Punta Arenas On our way to the main street to lunch – I still can’t get over how colorful all the buildings are!

Day 0: Punta Arenas Saw a lot of this going on in Punta Arenas and later on in Santiago.

Day 0: Punta Arenas So little trash.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Not a very reassuring-looking academy, I must say.

Day 0: Punta Arenas More colors, albeit some a bit faded.

1.00 PM: Lunch at La Marmita, known for their amazing seafood (though I suspect most seafood is omnom in this seaside town) based on a recommendation from Pascale, our Antarctica XXI rep in Chile. It’s a very cute, boutiquey restaurant full of colorful knick knacks and the most entertaining waiter I’ve ever encountered. After lunch, we walk around downtown before making our way back to the hotel. We notice a shiny North Face store on the way – good strategy North Face.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Lunch at La Marmita, which had particularly good seafood.

Day 0: Punta Arenas NO?!! But the excitement on this page makes me almost want to be a vegetarian. Almost.

Day 0: Punta Arenas I’m going to go with… not. (I’ve never seen so much excitement crammed into one little lunch menu)

Day 0: Punta Arenas One of the yummy seafood soups we ordered. Unfortunately, I don’t remember the names of all the dishes we ordered.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Some more of La Marmita’s decor.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Creative sign for the men’s bathroom.

Day 0: Punta Arenas Colorful view from the entrance to the restaurant.

5.00 PM: Orientation, where we try to cram 60 people into a room only meant for 30. Basic guidelines and what have you, nothing too interesting here. Learn that travelers on this trip are from all over the world (unlike Tauck tours, which consist of mostly North Americans). Japan, France, Italy, Australia – you name it.

7.30 PM: We have dinner and cocktails at the historical & beautiful Hotel Plaza downtown. There was a father-son due from Japan – poor kid was PTFOed almost the entire time, since they just flew in from Japan that day (36+ hours of travelling). His father told us that he lets each of his children choose a trip location when they turn 12 years old. Previously, they chose New York, Miami, and Africa. Naturally, Antarctica is the only way to one-up Africa. I wonder how his son chose it – when I was 12, I sure as hell didn’t know Antarctic travel was possible. We also met a gentleman from Rome who tried to go on the trip last year, but got owned by the bad weather in Europe. This time around, he arrived in Santiago three days early to avoid the same fate (v. smart, considering the snow + air travel backlog we had just seen on TV). Now that’s determination.

9.30 PM: Get our first taste of southern summers as we head back to the hotel – it looks and feels like 5PM outside, even though it’s already half past 9. Prep and pack once we get back – early day tomorrow, with a wake-up call at 2:45AM to meet in the lobby at 3:45AM! Flying to Antarctica requires a solid 6 hour block of good weather – lucky us, that means we have to fly out at 5:30AM. But hey, better early than late :)