It was a much-needed 3 weeks off to disconnect and see Antarctica, the 7th of 7 continents that I had visited. Did you miss me?
This was a once-in-a-lifetime trip! The reason I chose this title is that we were on these small rubber Zodiac boats (originally made for the military) and it was a scramble to take photos. Upon our return to the cabin, we got to see how the pictures turned out, kind of like unwrapping holiday presents.
Antarctica is made up of the 7th continent and the region surrounding it. The continent of Antarctica is the land mass at the bottom of the globe, right below the southern tips of South America (Cape Horn), Africa (Cape Town), and New Zealand. It contains the geographic South Pole, is surrounded by the Southern (or Antarctic) Ocean, and is the coldest, driest, and windiest continent on earth!
The Southern Ocean has the roughest waters in the world called “The Drake Passage,” named after 16th-century English explorer Francis Drake. The waters are rough because there is no land mass to break the waves. They call it “The Drake Shake.”
It took a total of 4 days to get there from JFK airport. First, it was an 11-hour flight to Buenos Aires, Argentina. The was followed by a 3.5-hour flight to Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world. Then it was a tough two days on board the Quark Expedition ship to get to Antarctica, the promised land!
Antarctica is massive. It measures 14.2 million square kilometers (5.5 million square miles) which makes it the size of the USA and Mexico combined. It is twice the size of Australia.
The Arctic is the area at the top of the globe where the North Pole is whilst Antarctica is at the bottom, in the south. The other difference between the two is although both are vast areas of the ice, there is no land in the Arctic, it is all just frozen sea, while Antarctica has land beneath the ice.
According to NASA, Antarctica has 90% of ALL the ice on Earth! Known as “The White Continent,” in some areas the ice is 3 miles thick. If it all melted, worldwide sea levels would rise by approximately 230 feet, which would wipe out humanity!
No country owns Antarctica because it has no native population, so nobody has had a historic claim to it. It is uninhabitable year-round as we checked the temperature in September, and it was negative 57 degrees Fahrenheit. Their seasons are the opposite of ours, so this is the end of their summer. It is the most unique continent as it has no cities, towns, roads, building,s or commercial industries. The only buildings or settlements on the continent are the 70 scientific research bases belonging to 30 different countries. Many of those are only accessible by plane or by long motor convoy journeys across the ice.
There is no doubt this was a trip of a lifetime for me! We had daily briefings from a marine biologist, ornithologist (bird expert), geologist, and historian and briefings and daily recaps from Shane, the expedition leader. It was like going back to college combined with a mind-blowing excursion.
The first question I am asked is, did you do the Polar Plunge? Yes, I survived “The Polar Plunge” in 31-degree water! I learned that salt water freezes at 28.4 degrees Fahrenheit. They put a wet harness around us, and we jumped into the frigid water. My feet immediately went numb and I had to look down to see if I was standing on the ship’s metal stairs because I couldn’t feel anything. On the way up the stairs, they give you a “Polar Plunge” patch, throw a towel around you, and a double shot of vodka before it is time for a hot shower. There is something about this and the spas’ ice baths because that night was the best I had felt all trip. This was a physically and mentally taxing journey, not for everyone.
Before this trip, I thought I had a decent knowledge of travel; however, this was next level. I went on this expedition with long-time Rockaway resident and fellow adventurer, Josephine Romano (pictured). Fortunately (for me) she had been an aspiring travel agent; however, she smartly chose the stability of the court system over the volatility of being a travel agent.
I learned the following ways to save money from Josephine:
I am not sure where to go from here as this was the apex of travel. If you have any travel venue suggestions, feel free to email me at [email protected].