ANTARCTICA PICTURES

We hit some high seas on our first night. These are actual photos from the bridge. We were rocking and rolling!! Half the passengers were seasick (fortunately, not me!)

We did lots of cruises by zodiak around icebergs and islands. Really gorgeous, but cold enough that we were glad for our layers!

Here’s a couple of our intrepid and charming staff deploying the zodiaks and kayaks. And, no, I didn’t kayak, though it made me want to learn.

We saw orcas.

And leopard seals, really primordial-looking creatures.

Humpback whales came in really close!

We crossed the Antarctic Circle!!

Everyone wants to know if we saw penguins. It’s impossible NOT to see them. They’re everywhere. And, be advised, you smell them before you see them. Yikes. These pix are Gentoo and Chin Strap penguins.

One of the most incredible things we saw was this huge, magnificent iceberg—three arches and four stories high (at least.) We were all taking pictures because it was so beautiful, and then as we motored away, we heard a rumble and the big tower on the right collapsed. That left us racing ahead of a huge wave, filled with ice and debris. It was fantastic! The third picture is all that was left after the collapse.

At our last stop some of my crazy fellow passengers did what’s called the polar plunge and took a swim in the freezing waters of Deception Island! They then raced back to the beach, put towels and clothes back on and were zoomed back to the ship to warm up. They were (predictably) freezing!

Just a couple more pictures on a beautifully clear day. Just amazing. You can see that the water was like a mirror, perfectly flat and glassy.