…but as we head due north on our last day aboard our expedition vessel, some thoughts as shared with a friend:

“…being in Antarctica has been life changing. Words and photos alone cannot convey the magnitude and true realization of this continent. This was so very cool in every sense. We had unusually great weather and even as I write this we are sailing in the dreaded Drake Passage which is where the Atlantic and Pacific meet causing notoriously rough waters–some of the roughest in the world. But, today miraculously, we are almost perfectly calm. The whole group is wearing patches and popping Dramamine, but happily we are looking out at calm waters for the moment. Day after tomorrow we’re back in Ushuaia and then one more night in Buenos Aires (and a dinner with Tango Show) before some head off to Easter Island and some head on home back to their “real life”.

Soon this experience will be just a fond memory, but the actuality of being a part of this frozen, barren, remote but wildly interesting continent will live in our lives forever. I wonder how cold I’ll really feel when I come home to traffic, deadlines, rules and pollution…for a life without any of that seems to exert a sense of calling.

Today is our last day amongst the mainland of Antarctica and what a joyously incredible day it has been. I write at mid afternoon, shortly after a stop at Almirante Brown on the mainland in Paradise Harbour of the Antarctic Peninsula and before a visit to Wilhelmina Bay, a feeding ground for several species of whales. While exploring Paradise Harbour (and it truly is a paradise) we witnessed fishing penguins, mommy-chasing baby penguins, a leopard seal resting after a meal, glaciers as tall as skyscrapers and even an avalanche not so far from our small vessel excursion around the peninsula. Amazing!
To commemorate our place among the colonies and colonies (and more colonies) of penguins with whom we shared this amazing journey, today we did our own little ‘march of the penguins’ as you can see from the photo above. Not be outdone by a little humor, the true dazzling continues to come from the unending, uncharted and truly unbelievable landscape that befalls our every waking moment. We are trying our best to share this experience with our loved ones back home by way of Facebook, emails, text messages and blog posts, but the scope of this continent by which we are merely a speck can never accurately be conveyed by pictures and electronic means alone.

Happy Feet indeed! As AJ delves deeper and deeper into the Antarctic we are just ‘kvelling’ over the delving. Penguins who waddle right up to our toes, icebergs as tall as skyscrapers in Manhattan and water as cold as possible without freezing are making for some truly amazing moments. “Stars on ice“ have taken on a whole new meaning here in Antarctica. After passing through the rough waters of the Drake Passage our tour through the icebergs, landscape, wildlife and uncharted territories have dazed and amazed our group of 31 like no experience on earth.

Well, here we are–30 American (and one Italian) Jews sailing on a ship amoungst just 200 people from around the world, having just converged on the MV Fram for Expedition Antarctica. Yesterday we sailed through the infamous Drake Passage, a body of water where the Atlantic and Pacific meet and where we have been warned are the potentially roughest seas on earth.

Donning medicinal patches, pressure point wristbands and seasickness pills, we emerged from “the passage” mostly unscathed…save for just a few queasy uneasies. Truth is, most folks awoke in time for breakfast and then headed back to their cabins for mid morning reprieves in prone positions. As the day wore on and we left rough seas for the calmer waters of the southern ocean, life began to spawn once again. For those up and about, the first day aboard the MV Fram was laden with educational opportunities–a collection of lectures and films to help us understand the land to which we will be visiting and the accompanying wildlife that will share our space. “Interesting” is an understatement, but actual experiences will prevail. Proof in the pudding occurs as I write this; we are sailing amongst the first land masses–a collection of islands–known as the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica,and their accompanying icebergs. One of those monoliths is seen freshly downloaded above.

The rushes of people towards the window has just listed the vessel towards the starboard side. In just a few hours, however, we will embark upon Half Moon Island, our first real footprints on the continent. Anticipation and excitement is mounting. We’re really here!