The ship taking my travel companion, and me to Antarctica hadn’t yet arrived in port, so we’ve spent our past two waiting days at Ushuaia, Argentina, joining other tourists in walking, shopping, looking, eating and exploring this southernmost city on the planet. We could not predict how our excitement would grow once we saw our ship pull in to the harbor, and we rushed ahead of the crowd to board first. On it, we will pass the Horn.
Seeing the Horn is a dream I never thought would come true. My favorite pastime has always been reading of the triumphs of sailors who have successfully tread the turbulent waters of the Horn around the tip of South America. What hit home harder was the thought that I would be crossing a mere 700 miles to be able to walk upon the bottom of the earth, as so many great men had done before me. To get a closer look on antarctic tours visit this site.
To minimize motion sickness onboard, my friend and I chose a cabin in the center of the ship. Exploring the ship is an adventure in itself, a necessary undertaking to find where crowds may gather. As we take our stroll, we are told that there are 98 passengers and 46 crewmen aboard.
To get acquainted with our co-passengers at dinner, our first meal aboard, we asked each other reasons for choosing to go to Antarctica. That they chose to travel to Antarctica to complete their visits to all seven continents was a reason shared by about half of the people I asked. The only thing every one really had in common was interest in the wildlife and terrain.
Worries about the foot-thick ice were assuaged after a member of the crew assured us that the 7,500 horse power ship could get through it. Antarctica is rich in ice and freshwater, about 90% and 70% in the world, respectively, to be exact. With the melting of the ice would come a sharp rise in the sea level, thereby creating new islands from the South American Andes extension and the Transantarctic at 7,000 to 8,000 feet elevation. You can get the best antarctica vacation information by visiting this website.
Right behind the ship was a gigantic bird, explained to be a wandering albatross. Its 11.5-foot wings allow it to fly, and it is the world’s biggest flying bird.
The albatross’ sense of smell is highly developed. Then there are petrels, shags or cormorants, skuas and penguins. Almost all Antarctic avian life is web footed.
Then our guide told us of the whales of Antarctica. Their lifespans are equal to that of humans, from 60-100 years, depending on the species. A reproducing whale increases progeny one every two years.
Counting my companion, me, and the other Americans, we make a total of eight aboard. The remaining 90 are from Australia or other places that use the metric system. Fortunately, a conversion chart is included with our trip materials, but it takes a bit of scrambling and translating, plus note taking, to keep up with the wealth of knowledge given.

