Rolianne Afloat and Abroad

So after the medical evacuation in Stanley, we turned around towards Antarctica. It took 2 full days at sea from there to finally reach it, crossing the Drake passage and passing the Antarctic convergence, where the water temperature dropped a couple of degrees. Days were pretty relax while at sea. Lots of movies, fooling around and chilling in the lounge. And a little bit of home schooling! Lots of desserts, too. 😵 Sugar rush.   All landings in Antarctica were unique and amazing! We first landed at Baily Head, part of the outer wall of Deception Island, an active volcano which is part of the South Shetland Islands. There, we saw a large colony of chinstrap penguins with multiple chicks in their nests made out of pebbles. So many of them were walking around, making little highways for penguins. After the afternoon landing, we went inside the crater with the ship to have a look at the scenery. There is an old whaling station, and it's pretty neat just to think...

In the afternoon of the 28th of December, we started our 2 1/2 days journey to South Georgia.  To be honest, I didn't even know that this place existed before preparing for this trip, but South Georgia has just been a big WOW in general. Every landing was spectacular, with its hundreds of fur seals and tons of king penguins. My heart was beating full speed the whole time I was on land with the kids, as the fur seals are pretty much as big as them. When they decide to check you out, and that you have to put your hands in the air and stand your ground, it’s hard not to run the other way! When looking at the pictures, you have to imagine the smell of thousands of penguins living together, the whistle of the chicks who want to be fed, the sound of fur seals fighting each other, or the one of elephant seals, just being lazy after the mating season. Every inch of the beach is occupied by a living thing. It's hard to believe that fur seals were once close to extinction!!...

Our trip started in Ushuaia, where we tried to relax for Christmas. It was probably one of the most exciting moments of our lives! We also went in the mountains to walk and explore the area. We didn’t have much time, and we wanted to keep our energy for the expedition, so we went hiking the close by El Glacier Martial. Unfortunately, we never made it to the snow because it seemed a little too risky for the kids at the time. Romain was really bummed about that, even though we were heading to the South Pole!  We got on the boat on December 25th, which is called the Ocean Atlantic. Nice boat, and all the staff were super nice to us! The kids did a good job during Sam’s presentation and the evacuation exercice. Winds were pretty light and the boat was only rocking slightly for our first day at sea. That didn’t stop Julianne and I from feeling seasick, and me from literally throwing up!!! First time ever for me. So long for living on a sailboat!!!  🥴 Thanks again to Sam’s ...