I sit here staring at the blinking cursor on the white screen, the room still moving up and down, rocking to and fro after having just come off a ship for 10 straight days.  I am grappling for words to tell you what I just experienced, but I am at a loss. The conversation over our “farewell lunch” among a group of fellow cruisemates and new found friends said it all. Now back in Ushuaia, the six of us sat there long after our Malbec-infused lunch was finished, trying to come up with words to describe the “white continent.” Words like “astounding, magical, enchanted, powerful, awe-inspiring” were all we could come up with, and we all agreed they were just not big enough to describe the wonder of Antarctica. But you all know me….I have to try. 😉

I will attempt to describe what I saw in a series of subsequent posts; The Wildlife, The Ice, The Crossing, The Roomie, and The Ship.

Crossing the Drake Passage

Some may not realize that it takes two and a half days at sea to cross the Drake Passage to reach the Antarctic Peninsula, and there is a reason why they call it “paying the Drake Tax.” Continue reading →

I will start with my arrival on the ship, the M/V Polar Star. This being the most expensive vacation I had ever taken in my life, I booked the most economical option on the ship; a triple cabin with a shared bathroom.  I had quite a bit of apprehension about the roommate situation, sharing a cabin with two other total strangers and a bathroom with three more strangers on top of that. Continue reading →

 
I did a lot of research before I finally settled on the M/V Polar Star, built in Finland to serve in the Swedish Maritime Administration’s fleet of icebreakers.   Polar Star Expeditions purchased the ship in 2000, and retrofitted it as an expedition cruise ship. Continue reading →