Jaunting in Antarctica!

Friend Paul jaunted off to Antarctica for his 40 birthday simply because traveling in Antarctica was something he'd vowed to do before he was 40.  We caught up with him and heard all the stories and here they are, posted here for Kelly since she wants to do this journey too, although too late for her 40th birthday:

* Lateral icebergs are the bluest blue you can imagine and 

look so sublime against the grey sky. You can scoop up the 

little ones, which are thousands of years old, shine like 

enormous diamonds and are covered in etched linear marks that 

look exactly like an ancient written script. And if you drop 

one into your scotch, it makes the scotch taste wonderful, like 

nothing else on earth.
 

* In summer, the temperature hovers around 0 degrees, but the 

wind is brutal and cuts through you like a knife. However, 

when the sun's out and if you get away from the wind it is 

really quite pleasant.
 

* There are only five types of penguins in the Antarctic. The 

rest are smarter and live in warmer climes, not even coming 

down to breed. There are only four types of seals. Neither 

seals nor penguins have any fear of humans and you can 

approach and touch anything without fear; except for one type 

of seal which you should sensibly fear, particularly if you are a 

child. These are the big predator ones whose name I've forgotten 

which kill and eat other animals. Everything else eats krill.
 

* Whales treat a zodiac dinghy like a fellow whale and press up 

against it affectionately but they flap their fins warningly 

if you approach in a metal dinghy.

* You have to bring a swimming costume because, like Captain 

Cook said, you can swim in the water above the underwater 

volcanoes. However if you accidentally swim out of the hot 

spots into the regular antarctic water, it is a total shock to 

the system and really hurts. However once you've done it once 

and managed to struggle back into warm water, you feel like 

doing it again and again and after you've done it about four 

or five times you feel totally and wonderfully stoned, the 

sensation lasting for hours afterwards.
 

* On the volcanic islands, you can scoop a big hole in the 

black sand which immediately fills with icy sea water and 

within ten minutes the water in your improvised pool is 

steaming. You can then strip down to your undies and sit in 

the water. It feels bizarre to have a boiling hot body and a 

freezing cold head and after a while you again feel deeply 

and happily stoned.
 

* Chilean corn has individual pieces the size of a grown 

man's thumb. Six bits, a potato and a little dried meat 

makes a meal. One stalk can feed five people for four meals. 

Needless to say, this type of corn has become a stable of 

travelling through the Antarctic. Luckily, it is also delicious.
 

* An huge proportion of people you meet travelling in the 

Antarctic Circle are recovering alcoholics and drug addicts. 

There is probably a valid psychological reason for this, but, 

still ... isn't it odd!
 

* The very best way to end a vacation in Antarctica is to 

immediately fly to Peru and climb the mountain up to Machu 

Picchu. You then spend the late afternoon climbing to the top 

of "the female mountain" next door, pitch a tent and spend the 

night.  Dawn, when the sun rises, you feel completely and 

totally validated and like you can accomplish anything and 

deal with anything life will ever throw at you again.
 

Needless to say, although I totally respect Paul for taking 

this journey, I will NOT EVER be doing it ... although I quite 

like the idea of swimming in the Antarctic Sea. Mmmmmmm???? 

Mmmmmmm? OK! For my 60th birthday, this is a journey I will 

take ... although I'll definitely skip the walk up to Machu 

Picchu. Apparently you can also take a train. THAT I will do! 

Anyone want to join me?