wrap up and more photos

It took me a couple of days to catch up on my sleep, get re-introduced to technology, and unpack. I had not thought about the lack of technology on the ship but we didn't have TV, radio, internet, or phone service for 10 days and diving back into that was more difficult than I expected. Once we were back in Argentina I did have my phone service as far as texting and, when I had wireless service, email, but even that was quite limited. It was nice to not be distracted by technology and really nice get to know everyone and enjoy the conversations and scenery. I am as much a tech fan as anyone, but getting readjusted was a not-necesarily- welcome transition.

My physical therapist and my sports med doctor and my foot doctor all said I need surgery on the foot neuroma, the only way to stop the pain, and my butt was still sore because of shifting my running gait to keep my foot from hurting - it all conspired against me! I got a cortisone shot in my butt, which was VERY painful for two days and since then the pain is gone -hurray!! I have surgery scheduled for my foot in about a month, between trips to Chicago. I am running a bit, less than 2 miles right now, and walking and swimming. My foot hurts sometimes but nothing like when I was training and running the race.

Here are some more photos from Antarctica- what a beautful place and an amazing trip. I feel so lucky and grateful to have been to the continent of my dreams.

here is a map of the elevation of the race course- lots of hills, obviously!

some wildlife pics

and some more beautiful scenery

Getting home -eventually

At the gate for the earliest flight to Detroit I found out I did NOT have reservations, as the agent in BA had told me, so I was on a waiting list, along with Julie from the trip - and 23 others! No waiting list people got on that flight, so Julie and I, and several others from the trip who had later flights, went to the next flight concourse and waited but no waiting list people got on that one either.

With a couple of hours before we could try the next Detroit flight, the group of us went to get coffee and relax. Then we all went to the third Detroit flight but we didn't get on that, either. By then he rest of the group had to go to their flights, so we all said goodbye.

Julie and I were so tired and just wanted to get home but realized being on waiting lists for the next 5 flights was probably not going to get us anywhere. We went to the customer service desk for Delta, explained our plight, and threw ourselves on their mercy.What a difference an agent makes- Julie's was very helpful and worked hard to get her to Detroit while mine acted like she was doing me a huge favor and could hardly be bothered to help me.

Julie's agent figured out he could send her to Baltimore and then to Detroit, so she took it. My agent said her agent shouldn't have done that, and she couldn't do it without charging me a lot of money, and I said no, Julie didn't pay any extra fees, so my agent worked and called and typed and called and FINALLY put me on the same flights with Julie. aarrgghhhh

So.... I had crab cakes in Baltimore more than 24 hours after I should have been at home! Being with Julie was great because she is such fun and relaxed about things so the time passed quickly and we got to Detroit about 7 pm. As I was getting off the plane I received an email from Delta saying my suitcase had been there since early morning and I had better come and get it!

Julie got her bag quickly but nobody could find mine, so an agent, my husband, and I searched all over the baggage return and the Delta storage for it. SO frustrating when all I wanted to do is get in the car and get home. Finally found it and got home about 9 p.m. on Sunday, 36 hours later than the original flight plans!

unexpected day in BA

In the morning some of the group went for  a run, but since I was not sure how my foot and butt would feel I ran by myself. In a new area of town so I didn't want to get lost, and ran in a big square of several blocks each way near the river. My foot really hurt after less than 2 miles but I kept going for 3 miles, just so I would be tired and hopefully more able to sleep on the long flight home that night.

We all walked to the Recoleta artist market which was fun and I got a few more things. Then we went to a pizza place- yes, oddly enough, pizza is a specialty of Buenos Aires! The empanadas were excellent and so was the pizza. We had fun and laughs and toasted Martin-it was his birthday and he had planned to spend it with family in Atlanta but instead he had us-not quite a fair birthday trade but the best he could do. And of course one last "Flat Stanley" library card photo with Louann and the empanadas!

It was great to be with so many people who travel a lot and all over the world so nobody was too thrown off balance by the rapid change in plans. Most of us were ready to get home to clean clothes and our own beds, but we had fun and took advantage of one more day in the big city. As we were getting on the bus to leave for the airport I looked up and saw this crazy house on top of a 10 story building- no idea what the story is about it but it was fascinating-

The bus picked us up for the 40 minute trip to the airport and we thought we would have plenty of time to check in, use our free executive suite passes for some drinks and food, and get on board. Of course it didn't turn out that way! Each of our 14 people took a long time to check in, get connecting flights, and confirm reservations. I thought I had reservations on the flight from Atlanta to Detroit but as it would turn out, I didn't. One by one we showed up in the executive suite and I did manage to have a glass of Bailey's and some food and a last chance on wifi until Atlanta, about 10 hours away.

Since we were last-minute people on this flight we had bad seats way in the back in the middle, but we were mostly all together which helped. I was between my roommate Louann and our buddy Bob so that was fine. The flight was ok and I got lots of reading done and a few hours of sleep. We arrived in Atlanta about 5:30am and I sped through customs as quickly as possible, hoping to get to my connecting flight to Detroit...

Ushuaia, longer than we wanted to be there

Arriving Friday in Ushuaia early in the morning was a beautiful sight, this picture is one of my best-

it took time to get off the ship, gather everything and make sure nothing was left behind, and board the correct bus for town. Some people on the trip were staying extra days in Buenos Aires and they were on a different flight, but the majority of us were planning to continue our trek home when we got to the Buenos Aires airport after our flight from Ushuaia, which would be a very long day but we were anxious to get home.

Bob, Truman, and I went to a coffee shop to get on their wireless, and even though I didn't want to know, I saw that I had 534 emails! I tried very hard not to look at them, since I would not have wireless again until Atlanta airport, about 24 hours away. Texting was reasonable as far as cost, so I was able to text a few people and make plans with my husband about meeting me in Detroit Saturday morning at 9am.

We did some tourist shopping and took photos at a fun mural

At the appointed hour we boarded the bus to go to the airport, only to make a detour back to the ship since one of the passengers realized she left her cell phone charging in her cabin! Two people went to look for it but could not find it, so we proceeded to the airport. It is a beautiful modern airport, not very big but nicely designed with lots of light wood and big windows

Our flight was delayed several hours and we spent quite a lot of time waiting in lines to see about getting a different flight from Buenos Aires since most of us were going to be very tight on time and trying to figure out alternative connections. As time went on people got more upsetm and it looked like the 14 of us on the flight to Atlanta would not make that connection. Since there were so many of us, and quite a few others in a similar situation, the Marathon Tours people were working on what could be done. We boarded, finally, not really knowing if we would make our connections or not. That was a stressful 3 hour flight!

We got to Buenos Aires too late to make our connection, just barely missing it. Fortunately a person from Aerolineas Argentina was waiting everyone and had it all figured out. The 14 going to Atlanta did not have another flight for 24 hours, so we received vouchers for a hotel, food, and a bus was hired to take us back into town and then to the airport the next day. The great thing about travelling with people who have all travelled so much is that we all accepted that we were not getting home soon and made the best of it. The not good thing is we had mostly dirty clothes and were tired and hungry, since it was about 9pm when we figured out what was going on.

We stayed at a hotel right near the big boulevard and in the middle of town. The hotel provided dinner for all of us, and a few of us went to a bar nearby after dinner, just because we had such a crazy day and figured we might as well enjoy another night in Argentina!

and Dave discovered the really big bottles of Stella!

Last day on the ship

The Drake Passage calmed a bit for our final day and the approach to the Beagle Channel and Ushuaia, and more people started venturing out of their rooms, and we could have full meals again for our last day at sea.

 Remarkably, another woman on the ship and I both had some of our mother's ashes along to sprinkle during the trip. Realizing we could not leave anything on the actual ground of Antarctica, we asked the captain about putting the ashes over the side of the ship and into the water, and he said officially he couldn't say yes, but unofficially he said spreading them in the ocean at Cape Horn would be good, since that is a big point for many travellers.

Unfortunately due to the crazy weather we did not go near Cape Horn, so when we realized that we picked a time and told a few people about it and had a small ceremony on the back of the deck. We each said a few words about our mothers. My mother died two years ago at almost 97 years old, and I said what a traveller my mother had been- she went to every state, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Europe, Mexico, Cuba, and many other places, and how excited she was about my trip to Antarctica since she knew how long I had waited. She famously said, when I was going to China, that if she had a chance to go to China she would go to Japan!

It was a very touching ceremony and I was glad to share it with Sally and some of our shipmates. Here are two photos of my part

Drake Passasge, day 2

After a fun time of roller coaster rides all night I enjoyed staying in bed and watching the show from the cabin window: just water -then just sky -then just water-sky etc as the boat rode over big waves. I took a shower and washed my hair, but it was quite an adventure since I had to hold on all the time to the safety bar in the shower.  Later I made a rookie mistake and was in the middle of the cabin and not holding onto anything and suddenly I was thrown backward against the door - ouch! That reminded me I need to hold on ALL THE TIME. Going up and down the stairs was entertaining since everyone had to hold on and sometimes wait for an especially  big wave to pass before continuing.

Meals were handed out and only what you could hold onto, with a limited menu. The dining room chairs had chains to the floor but not all of them were hooked in and frequently during a meal some people would begin sliding away from the table, then back as the wave passed.

 I spent a lot of time on the bridge watching the show. Amazing to see the waves and watch the bow of the ship go way up in the air and then crash down. At dinner the captain announced that we had been experiencing hurricane force winds and 15 foot waves. I really felt like I was getting the full Drake Passage experience!

After dinner we were all feeling a bit giddy and went to the lobby and took lots of silly photos!

April 2, continued

After our amazing whale adventure, which lasted 3 hours, we headed back to the ship and had dinner. During dinner we hit the infamous Drake Passage, and instantly everything started sliding off the tables, glasses and plates were crashing to the floor, chairs were sliding, it was crazy. Trish and I both grabbed for the wine bottle and made  good save! We were about to have the full Drake experience. Here is a photo of my soup tilting-

The ship was rocking and everyone had to hold on all the time, and hold onto our dinner. There was an auction as a fundraiser for ocean study, but the weather kept getting worse, and as soon as the auction was over most people headed to their cabins since the boat was pitching so much. I found it quite exciting and was trying to find others who shared my enthusiasm for wild weather so I headed to the bar, of course!

The only people in the bar were the stalwart bartender and Helen, a great woman and friend. We had a drink and talked and watched the waves. Finally we took pity on the bartender and said we would leave so he could close up, but not until I wrote on the bar chalkboard that Helen and I closed the bar that night!

I finally started winding down and brushed my teeth holding onto the railing by the sink, which was interesting. My berth was perpendicular to the side of the ship so all night I slid back and forth in bed as the ship rocked, and also the up and down feeling of being on a rollercoaster. I loved it!

best whale day ever

April 2
In the morning the weather was too windy and snowing too hard so all morning excursions were cancelled and the Captain moved the ship to find a better spot in a bay. At 3pm we got the announcement to get ready to go in the zodiacs. The water was very calm but had a lot of small pieces of ice. One of the people in my zodia had a waterproof camera duct taped to a ski pole so he could take underwater photographs. In the video link I will send later you can see someone in another zodiac with the same setup for underwater pictures. In this video I am in the zodiac from which the photos and video are being filmed, so what you see is what I saw and it was amazing.

Our zodiac guide was so excited by everything the whales did and told us it was possibly a once in a lifetime experience to have 2 huge humpbacks playing around, under, and so close to our boat for over 30 minutes. At one point a whale rolled over on its back and laid with his fins stretched out, kind of like a "scratch my tummy" pose, Our guide said he could die now, since he had the ultimate whale experience!

I am infamous for saying over and over," I was so close to whales I got whale blow on me THREE TIMES!" but it's true- of course I needed a good shampoo after that, and it didn't smell that good, but it was totally worth it.

 It is hard to put into words the thrill of being that close to the whales. I get the question frequently about if we were afraid or in danger and the answer is that we never were afraid and never felt in danger. The whales would pop their heads up and look to see where we were, then dive under our boat. They were playing and having fun - if you can imagine something 50 feet long and 50,000 pounds "playing"...

i will send the video link and more whale pictures later!

amazing whale video

Here is a link to a video of our whale encounter in Antarctica. This was put together by our zodiac guide, Derek, so what you see is exactly what I saw- it was incredible.  I think there is a bit of the noises of the "blow"on the video but they also made deep sounds that were cool to hear. I will spare you the whale blow smell and liquid that coated my hair and camera!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i-MUsd2U_Q

more penguins and a dangerous seal

After we warmed up from our amazing kayaking experience we dressed in our big red suits again and took zodiacs to Cuverville Island. When we first heard it everyone thought it was "Cougarville Island" and many jokes among our group of "women of a certain age"! When we got to the island we were not sure we would be able to leave the beach and go up on the main part because a seal was blocking our way to the path, and the naturalist said we couldn't go any farther unless the seal moved on its own. I did not hear what kind of seal it was but whatever it was it was fast if it decided to attack and too dangerous to deal with. We all waited, stacked up on the small shore. I guess he finally got tired of seeing so many big red suits staring at him and eventually he begrudgingly, slowly, with many backward looks, edged toward the water and swam away.

We all breathed a sigh of relief and climbed up to the main part of the island. There were penguins everywhere, many more than the first time we saw penguins. They are so funny and cuteand I have way too many penguin photos!

April 1, 2013-kayak day!

Fortunately I was not in the 6:45am kayak group, so I was able to have breakfast and then attend the 30 minute lecture about how to get into our kayak suit - seriously, 30 minutes! The suits cost $1,000 each we were told, and have gaskets at the wrists, ankles, and neck so if you fall in the water the gaskets keep water from getting inside your suit and you float. You won't be particularly warm but you won't sink, either. We also wore life vests over the suits, and neoprene boots. Everyone needed help getting into the suits and making sure the gaskets were sealed, the zippers were locked, etc. It was a long process but finally we were ready.

The kayaks were towed behind our zodiac and we went to a calm bay with beautiful icebergs and humpback whales. One by one we got into our kayaks, which wasn't as hard as I expected - going from the round rubber side of the zodiac you just kind of drop into the kayak. We all paddled around randomly until everyone was in a boat, which took a while but it was a great chance to paddle close to the sheer cliffs and towering ice and snow of Antarctica. We saw whales immediately and it was an amazing viewpoint to be on the water with them, almost eye-level. They are curious and very playful and don't make much of a wake or ripple when they go under water so we never felt in danger. It was incredible! 3 humpbacks played around us for a long time-so cool to hear their noises and see them next to our boats!

We kayaked for 90 minutes and it sleeted on and off, and we could hear rumblings of glaciers, which sounds like thunder. I wasn't cold but with the sleet and then some wind I started getting chilly.

Getting into the zodiac from the kayaks was harder, and I was able to boost myself up enough to get onto the side of the zodiac, but my roommate just dove headfirst into the zodiac and ended up on the floor of the boat! It was funny and then other people decided that was a good way to get out of their kayaks so more people slid into the zodiac!

Easter Sunday, Antarctic Peninsula

A couple of the teens on the ship hid Easter eggs so all day we were finding them in boots, pockets, etc., it was fun.

The first kayak group went out in the morning, and the rest of us took zodiacs to an island to see penguins and seals. The photos will do a better job of relaying how cute the penguins were and how un-interested and bored the seals were by our visit! Penguins have no predators on land, so they are very casual about all of us in our big red suits gathering around. People cannot approach the animals but they can approach us. Since it is the end of the summer in Antarctica the penguins were not very active because they were storing up energy and fat, but we still saw some walking around and being just exactly like you would expect them to be- cute and randomly wandering off one way and then another.

In the afternoon we took another excursion in a bay and rode around in the zodiacs looking at all the amazing iceberg formations. The color is just incredibly blue, and some had holes in them, and all had odd shapes. It was a beautiful day with some sun, temperatures were around 25 - 30 degrees most of the time on the trip, and sometimes there would be snow or sleet but it never lasted long.

Race day, last part

After I got back to the ship the full impact of what I had done, and not done, hit me. I had a hard time dealing with the fact that I didn't do the full marathon. I have never gone into a race thinking I wouldn't finish so even though I knew it was the right decision I struggled with "only" doing the half.

I had a pity party that evening but then knew I had to get over it to enjoy the rest of the trip. The next day I found out that a record number of runners changed to the half from the full, and several people were not allowed to finish due to time constraints.

One of my shipboard buddies was there to complete his seventh continent marathon and he was pulled off the course so he was really disappointed. My roommate got back a long time after I did and she had finished the full but only with the help and encouragement of another runner. It took them 7 1/2 hours and they were not the last ones!

Many people fell frequently including my roommate who fell 4 times, sprained her ankle, had a limp on her knee, and road rash all down one side. Many others had similar stories so I felt lucky to only be sore!

Race day, part 3

When I got back to the center point of the course and started toward the actual research bases the path was smoother but had longer hills, and those were covered with fist-sized frozen rocks which really hurt the neuroma in my foot. The course was poorly marked on this loop, with flags on sticks but the researchers also use flags on sticks to mark their paths, and  there were no arrows at any of the turns.

There was nobody in front or behind me that I could see, so at one point I realized I was at the airport and was not supposed to be there!  I backtracked and found the turn I had missed. Then about a mile later I missed another turn, ran about half a mile and found another woman who couldn't figure out where the race course was, so we backtracked together and found the next turn. We were able to warn some people behind us, and they really appreciated it. I figured I ran an extra 2 miles due to missing the turns.

Back at the center point I used the "bathroom" and got some water and headed out to the first section again. It was as bad as I remembered! My ankle started hurting from all the twisting and almost falling. When I was at the top of a hill the view was wonderful, but I could only look around when I stopped, otherwise I had to keep my eyes on the ground to watch for ice.

When I got near the turnaround I didn't know where it was and had to ask some Russian scientists who happened to be working near the course- they knew what I meant and they pointed around the corner and finally there it was. Slipping and sliding back to the finish I was feeling very disappointed to not do the whole marathon but relieved to be done with tripping and slipping. There were a few support crew at the finish so I got a couple of cheers but otherwise the finish was not too exciting. A friend was working as part of the supporters so I got my camera and she took a photo of me with the big library card. I walked around a bit and saw some penguins and suddenly started getting very cold. I put on my big red overalls and boots and waited until one of the zodiac boats was ready to go back to the boat, then hopped in.

race day, part 2

Because the crew did not have much time to set up due to bad weather, there was only one "bathroom", the blue tarp at the middle of the two out and back sections. With my concerns about intestinal issues that was not good news! We each had to bring 3 water bottles and there were 3 places we could drop them, so they had to be carried the first time we did each of the two sections so we could leave them. The first loop went out about 2.4 miles then back to the start/finish, then the second loop went the opposite way but was about the same mileage.

With only about 60 runners the start was casual, and within the first 1/4 mile I saw someone fall.The course follows paths used by the researchers who drive vehicles with Caterpillar treads to navigate the mud, rocks, snow, water, and hills. Due to the hard freeze the day before, the mud was like cement, and the water, of course, became ice. Running on frozen Caterpillar tread imprints was hard and my toe kept catching on the grooves between the treads. The ice and snow also made it very difficult to run, as did the constant hills, and some places had such big areas of ice that we had to go way around and off the course to get past the worst slippery parts. Most people walked on the really bad parts, and I stopped counting how many times I almost fell.

Early in the race I realized that falling was quite likely for me, and being a small-boned older woman, it would not end well! I didn't want to ruin the rest of my trip by getting hurt, and I certainly didn't want to miss the next week of Antarctica, so I decided to change to the half marathon. I knew that getting tired later in the race would make it even more dangerous for me so I accepted that doing the full race was not a good idea. As it turned out, they had a record number of runners change to the half marathon during the race because it was so difficult and dangerous.

race day, part one

5:30am wake up announcements, breakfast at 6am. The friends at my table were so funny and we were laughing so hard for so early in the morning! A great way to start race day.

We loaded our bags with running shoes, extra gloves, dry clothes to put on after the race, cameras, food, three water bottles, and whatever else we wanted on shore during the race. The temperature was not too bad but it was cold enough that my camera battery wouldn't work unless I warmed it in my hand first, so I opted to not carry my camera during the race.

The race started at Belingshausen Station, a research area on King George Island- there were 4 research facilities-Russia, China, Chile, and Uruguay. There was also an airport which is one reason the race is held there- if anyone gets badly hurt they can be airlifted out. We were all required to have $100,000 medical evacuation insurance, but fortunately nobody needed to use it that day!

Changing into our running gear, we put our water bottles in a row on the ground near the start banner and used the very primitive bathroom- a tarp slung over a rope tied between two rusted out boats, and buckets for toilets.

 Belingshausen Station

before the race started- the blue tarp in the back is the bathroom, but it did get pulled higher before they put the buckets under it!

Drake Passage, days 5-6

Rocking gently to sleep was fine, but in the middle of the night we really hit the Drake Passage and my Nook and notebook slid off the shelf at the head of my berth and onto my bed! Things got a bit rougher but still not too bad. We spent the second day in the Drake having lectures on protocol for Antarctica and getting fitted for our waterproof overalls, parkas, and rubber boots that we will wear during excursions to shore.

After two days of the Drake Passage we headed to King George Island where the marathon would take place. Unfortunately the weather suddenly got much worse, with 40 mph wind and a 20 degree temperature drop. The spray from the boat crashing into the waves was freezing on the deck, and the excursion for the morning was cancelled. We also had the disheartening news that the weather was too bad for the crew to set up for the race, and the race would be delayed if they could not get to the island that day.

Fortunately late in the day they made a mad dash to the island and did what they could to get the course marked etc. We had a "vacuum party" which is the staff inspecting and vacuuming every piece of clothing, running shoes, and bags that we would be taking to the island for the race. The extreme care to not introduce any species or germs to Antarctica is very impressive, and wonderful. We had to disinfect our running shoes and scrape them clean, then put them in our bags since we would wear the rubber boots to get to the island, then change into our running shoes.

my roommate cleaning her running shoes