Well, how do you top yesterday where I saw a whale close up and had a sunset summer bbq out on deck amongst all the glaciers?

Why, wake up in paradise, of course!

Well, specifically, Paradise Bay where we found ourselves anchored as we all awoke this morning.

An early morning wakeup call

Normally we get a wakeup call at either 7:00 or 8:00 and, honestly, I’m normally up and about even before the call comes over the PA system across the ship.

Today, however, I was woken up to the chimes of the PA followed by a message.

Because I was still wearing my earplugs, I didn’t actually hear the message but assumed it was just the regular morning wakeup call.

I knew I had time to get to breakfast so I just pulled up the covers to get just a few more minutes sleep.

Eventually I rolled out of bed and looked at the time on my phone.

4:40am

What the hell?!?

I asked Harper who was also up what the announcement was and he said there was a rare sighting of an Emperor penguin.

I got up as fast as I could and raced out to the deck but by then everyone had gone back to their cabins and all the excitement was over.

Dammit, I missed it!

So the lesson here is – don’t wear earplugs when there’s the possibility of unexpected events happening on an expedition.

Anyway, I did go back to sleep for a bit and then the real wakeup call came.

Brown Research Station

At 8:00 an announcement came to remind us that, despite the nice weather, we still needed to be bundled up in waterproof outerwear.

I guess they saw all of us with our jackets off yesterday and wanted to just gently remind us that we always have to be prepared for a dramatic weather change as it has happened in the past.

Like yesterday, I did shed some layers again but today I brought my bag to store my gloves and beenie as well as my lifevest once I got on shore.

I also unzipped the inner part of my parka so it wouldn’t be so big and bulky and I’d be able to wrap it around my waist instead of lugging it around everywhere.

It took awhile but I think I finally figured out the optimal way to layer up and be comfortable on shore at the same time.

With a significant amount of sunscreen on my pretty little face, it was off to the Brown Research Station.

Before the passengers come ashore, there are paths that have been marked out by the scout team ahead of time.

As with many of our excursions, there were two paths marked – a short one to the actual research station and a long, winding one up the hill to the top of the island.

I always start with the short path and then eventually talk myself into taking the long, steep, climb up the second path.

So I went to see the little buildings that make up the research center first.

It’s run for the Argentines who use the station to base their research operations during the winter months of December to February.

Usually there’s only a couple of scientists who work there with there other 6 to 10 people being military personal to “protect them”.

Really, it’s an excuse for their military to hang out down here and apparently they get double credit towards their service time while down here.

Of course, because of the chaos of the Argentinian economy, it’s been a fair while since the station has been used.

After wandering around the station for a bit, I walked towards the path heading up the hill.

And then came that inevitable internal conversation I always have:

-Should I do it?
-I don’t know, it seems soooo far.
-But if I don’t I’ll be missing out.
-Okay, I guess I’ll start going up and I could always turn back.
-Oh, hey, I’m halfway up already – alright I can do the other half.
-Wow, I made it!   I can’t believe I did it!   I’m so happy I did!

At the top of the hill, I reflected on a story Johnathon told us last night about the history of the Brown Research Station.

Back in the 80s, the base commander also happened to be their doctor.

Naturally people are given psych evaluations to make sure they’re able to work in these desolate places.

Well, since he was the doctor, he gave himself his own evaluation.

Yeah, you see where this headed…

Long story short, he was in love and she was waiting for him in Argentina while he completed his research mission.

Near the end of his mission he found out that, due to unforeseen circumstances, he’d have to spend another 12 months there.

Another 12 more months away from their true love would turn anyone insane.

So, he burned down the station in an attempt to get out of the situation.

It burned down.   He was caught and ended up in jail.

And his true love?

She married another.

Lunch time

Lunch again was a snapshot into the kind of service I’ve been getting here on board.

I went through the buffet line, filled my plate, and walked over to a free table on the side of the dining room in Francis’ section.

As I approached the table I noticed a can of Coke and a glass with ice next on a counter next to the table.

I even told my table mates, “Watch – I bet that’s for me”.

Sure enough, I sat down and Francis was bringing the can of Coke over to me.

God, I love this place.

Neko Harbour

Our second landing today was at Neko Harbour known for its’ beach death zone and “tsunamis”.

My group was the last boarding group on this excursion as the 4 groups assigned to us at the beginning of the trip rotate starting order each landing.

After the 3rd group was called, I started to get ready by layering up.

Everything was going fine until I reached for my waterproof pants which I always leave hanging next to my parka.

And it wasn’t there!

What the hell?   What happened to them?

I literally am not allowed to do any landings if I don’t have waterproof outer layers.

I searched high and low as my group was called and just as I heard them do a final call for zodiacs I figured out what happened to my pants.

Inside a closet was a pair hanging up – Carlos’ pair.

Yup, he mistakenly took mine.

So I grabbed his, put them on, and raced over to the gangway as the last zodiac was about to depart.

Now, onto Neko Harbour…

The island we landed at was at the edge of the harbour.

On both the left and right side are large snow covered mountain faces.

However, it’s the middle section that’s most intriguing about this place.

This section is a weakened area with a large amount of snow with crevasses naturally carved out in it atop an inlet.   It almost looks like ripples in the snow.

The weakness causes towering piles of snow to frequently slide off into the inlet down below.

This has been dubbed the death zone because when the snow falls it creates a tsunami wave about 2-3 meters high.

It can reach 100 yards in just seconds and without warning so anything small in it’s way, like a zodiac, is going to be in for a very rough ride.

Needless to say, our landing spot was reached by doing a route completely away from the inlet.

On the way up the mountain top I got a nice education about penguins from Kevin and about the death zone from Meru.

I’ve found that despite each landing spot being basically the same when it comes to snow and penguins that each one has a unique story behind it and that makes each day different.

By the way I confirmed with Kevin that a male penguin’s life is basically: wait for pebbles to appear, get the pebbles, build a nest, and find a mate.

Rinse.   Repeat.

Ship Info

By 5pm we were all back on board.

My lack of scarf and beenie today has taken it’s toll as both my neck and the top of head are pretty burnt.

Yup, I got a sunburn in Antarctica.

Down is up and up is down.

Who woulda thought that was a thing, right?

At 6:15 we had our daily recap and information meeting.

First of all Johnathon, our expedition leader, said what we were experiencing on this trip was very unique.

Apparently the blue skies we’ve been having are rare and he jokingly apologized to those of us who came for a “real Antarctic experience” with all the snow, wind, and rocky water.

Next, Vadim shared the footage he took of the both the bridge and engine room.

We also learned some brief history about the ship itself including it’s origin in 1975 when it was built in the former Yugoslavia originally as the Alla Tarasova.

Someone also asked about the different nationalities of the passengers and out of the 131 guests there were 20 different nationalities with the leaders being Canada with 27 people, the United States with 25, and the UK with 23.

As for the 75 crew members, they are represented by 15 different nationalities with the Philippines offering the overwhelming majority at 42.

Dinner and Happy Feet

After the meeting it was straight to the dining room for another multi course dinner.

Again, my waiter Francis and the head waiter Randy were on top of everything.

Any item that was listed on the menu that had gluten in it was modified for me so I could eat it.

I also got a bonus slice of gluten free chocolate cake along with my ice cream when everyone else just got ice cream.

Yeah, I’m going to have to really take care of them at the end of this trip.

And then it was time for the main event of the evening.

A screening of Happy Feet in the lounge by popular demand.

Seriously, people have been demanding it.

Although I’m aware of the movie and what it is, I had never actually seen it so I was excited to be watching it for the first time.

It was a nice, relaxing way to end the day.

Tomorrow is our last day of explorations here in Antarctica before we start our 2 day voyage back up through the Drake Passage the following day so things are sadly slowly winding down for this trip.

Despite that, there’s still one more day of adventures tomorrow and I can’t wait…

Edit Note: I am currently still sailing in the Antarctica with limited expensive internet.   I’ll be uploading all my photos and videos into a gallery at the end of this post when I arrive back on land.