You've got Mail! From Antarctica!

 Call me crazy... You won't be the first!

But one of the unique and wonderful experiences to be had in Antarctica, actually is most delightful a few months later.

If you secure a postcard and stamp either from your expedition ship or on land in Ushuaia the possibility then exists for sending that postcard home or to a loved one, FROM ANTARCTICA.

I know, I know. I told you there were no stations that were inhabited when we were there. That's because only the British have a post office on the Antarctic Peninsula. In true South Pole spirit, they allow people to drop their postcards here and they promise to send them along "when able". 

We never got to land at Port Lockroy. Time, weather and/or our more southern route meant that we sailed on by. However, also in the spirit of all things Antarctic, our ship crew told us that the next voyage would likely stop here and they'd mail them for us. Just a few days after dropping us back in Ushuaia, the Ocean Endeavour made it back to Port Lockroy and faithfully mailed our postcards.

The expectation is that they can take as long as 3-6 months to arrive at their final destinations. The British post office sends mail back to the UK and from there it's dispersed around the world. 

We heard from other Endeavour ship-mates that postcards began arriving just 6 weeks later. 

Ours - mailed to friends who took care of our pets and of course, to our pets themselves, arrived this week!

It's the little things in life! 

I'd like to think our fur-babies were as delighted by the arrival of mail addressed to them as I was. Alas, Teddy gave it one good sniff and went back to watching "New Amsterdam" on Netflix, Wrigley thought it smelled funny and made a face and Rusty just glared at me like I was wasting his flippin' time, tucked his head and resumed his nap.

Antarctic Circle Voyage - A picture book

Traveling home from Antarctica was, as it turns out, the easy part.

Re-integrating in real life involved a "hard landing" and I found myself feeling some sadness, a touch of guilt and just being super-aware of my choices and the impact I might have on others, the planet and my future. Not all completely rational of course, but definitely all worth taking time to think more deeply about.

I also took extra time to review pictures of animals, landscapes and people that we had met along the way as well as those who leapt in with both feet earlier in 2022. My initial impressions were that the pictures were not great and I was disappointed. It has taken a MONTH to realize that there are no pictures that measure up to the memories I made and the experiences my eyes helped capture. Weeks later I can look back at the pictures and they bring great joy... I'm proud of them. They evoke memories that include smells and sounds and the temperature. All the things that my camera couldn't possibly add to the images, but my brain retains. I feel better now.

And when all was said and done, this blog was brought up-to-date and I finished a photobook in record time. I had promised Mark I'd make one if he traveled to the bottom of the world with me!

Our journey map:

The book looks like this: 

240 pages of my best efforts to capture the bluest icebergs, most dramatic geography, quirkiest penguins and breathtaking whale encounters. A book that features few words and lets the pictures speak for themselves - evoking feelings of things that are not necessarily even seen in them. The few words are simply travel-related quotes that speak to me and of this journey in particular.

Note: The book is actually for sale on Blurb.com  It might be just right for those who go to Antarctica but have more memories than pictures - or maybe those for whom the in-person journey might never be possible but who would enjoy a more virtual experience and can also appreciate the natural world as seen through someone else's eyes. 

PURCHASE BOOK HERE

At the end of the day though, the person both least likely AND most likely to approve of what I've captured of the White Continent is me... and it turns out that's just fine too. 

Like I said. Life changing.