Living in an Inside Cabin

Antarctic Icescape

I want to write about Antarctica but I am having trouble finding the right words.  I am just finishing a 17 day trip from Valparaiso to Buenos Aires via Antarctica on the Veendam.  We have had the best weather we have seen all season.  Captain Ric broke two Holland America records by going the furthest south to 67 degrees and also the furthest up the Drake Passage.  In Stanley, Falkland Islands the sun was shining, it was warm and guests came back with sunburn.  Amazing.

Back to Antarctica… I had no expectations about what to expect here in the way of scenery except for reading the book Endurance about the Shackleton expedition.  The photographs taken by Hurley on that expedition are absolutely incredible, especially given the era and equipment he was using.  He is my photographic hero.

The most fun in Antarctica

So when we arrived in Antarctica I was awestruck by the height of the mountains, the depth of the snow, the magic of the icebergs, the PENGUINS.  And the vastness of the place!  We were only on the edge of the continent and it just went on forever and ever – no civilization, nature at its best.   Majestic, unending, rocky, smooth, craggy, barren, blue, white, whales, seals, birds and PENGUINS!  There has to be a God to have created this place and we must protect it.

If you ever get the opportunity to take this trip or any other to this destination, take it and don’t look back.  There is a sampling of photos here with more to be found on Flicker.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gardner310/sets/72157625766178464/