Week 49: Antarctica

On the first day of week 49 we were going to do something VERY exciting. We were going to go on a…. 9 day cruise to Antarctica 🇦🇶!!! I think that the flag looks like a rhinoceros face. Anyway, when we were boarding the ship we got cookies, macarons, and so much more! It was soo nice. If only there was a little bit of privacy for me and I got my own room on a cruise boat that was going to Antarctica. I did! It was even better than mum and dad’s room! It was awesome. It was one very exciting day.

The next day we were in a passage on the way to Antarctica called the Drake Passage. And I would call it the Drake Shake, because man was it rocky 😂. When you walked your feet would go all over the place. I don’t usually use the railing but in this case I needed it. The waves were 4-5 metres big! They were huge. No wonder the ship was rocking. It was hectic. It may have been rocky but it was awesome, and don’t forget the buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner. Real travellers aren’t we 🎒😉😉. It was amazing.

The next day we were very close to Antarctica. Starting to see some icebergs got us quite excited for what was going to happen next. And what happened next was pretty cool. We saw penguins (there were thousands in one colony, and we saw so many colonies) and whales (these whales are extra special because they are the second biggest whale in the world)! It was incredible. Everyone surrounded in this one area to see the amazing views.

The following day we were still on the amazing cruise and having the best of times. We had buffet breakfast, got ready for our big adventure, and boarded the panga. We were exploring the amazing parts of Antarctica. We were in such a small amount but we saw so much. There was so much ice it was hard to see the water. On our boat ride we saw whales, penguins and a lot of ice! It was so cool and we saw the whale’s fluke.

Then we got to stand on Antarctica! When standing on the ice we had a view of the magnificent Gentoo penguins. On this cruise we had a chance of seeing the Adelie penguin, Chinstrap penguin, and a very rare circumstance of seeing the macaroni penguin. I really wanted to see the Macaroni penguin. It was so fun on the snow watching the penguins waddle their way into the water. While seeing penguins there was also a seal in the background. This seal was called a Weddell Seal. Then we headed back to the ship to have a good night’s sleep.

The next day we went on two zodiac (small boat) tours through the huge loud and amazing ice. Seeing humpbacks, penguins and beautiful ice cracking into the freezing cold water was so amazingly beautiful and magnificent. Porpoising penguins, thunder sounds, and even whales made it an amazing day. When the ice cracked it was like there was a thunder storm but 10x the sound. The whales taking breaths was one sight to see, the size was like 2 elephants mixed together, yet we were only seeing less than 1/3 of their huge body. Then there was the penguins waddling around like no one was watching. The squarks were as loud as a million dogs barking at you at once, the porpoising was as high as the moon, and the amazing and adorable sight of their cute little faces. All mixed in one it was amazing.

We were landing on the continent of Antarctica the next day. We were landing on a place that not many people would, on a place that was so cold you had to put as many layers on as much as you body weight (sometimes even more). It was an amazing place that had animals, views, and so much more. When we had landed we saw penguins, great views, and so many HUGE icebergs. The penguins were either swimming, tobogganning or crossing the path that we made. They were most certainly my favourite animal (not counting the leopard seal). Oh! I forgot to tell you about the leopard seal. These little guys are always smiling. I think I know why. They are at top of the food chain in the marine animals. They can relax, but penguins always have to have one eye open 👁️.

Then after our tour mum and dad did a thing called a polar plunge. This is when people dunk you into -1′ water! It was so crazy. After we had lined up for the cold dunk the workers tried to put the belt on me but it didn’t fit. Then they tried it again but it still didn’t work. Then before I could say anything else mum came out of the water and started to say to me “OH MY GOD! THAT IS SOOOO COLD. IT WAS LIKE NEEDLES IN MY HEAD AND AN INSTANT HEADACHE!”. Then the worker came back with a smaller belt. But after mums reaction I did not want to go in. So then I ended up warm and no regrets inside of me.

Anyway, when I woke up the next day there was a letter underneath the door. I picked it up and it said “I am sorry you did not do the polar plunge, because you missed it I wanted to give you $40 USD to spend in the souvenir store”! It was soooo exciting. I got a toy penguin, another toy penguin and a watch. It was an amazing day.

The following day we tried to get out on the zodiac, but we couldn’t! The weather was way too dangerous to go out on a small boat to a crazy place. So we ended up playing cards and chilling at the top deck. It was awesome.

Fun facts

These fun facts are not searched up on the internet like most of the time. Dad, mum and I had our ears on and listened to the fun facts that the crew provided us.

What is the tail on a whale called?

Answer: A fluke.

What is the move called when a penguin slides on it’s belly?

Answer: Tobogganning 😂!

What’s the second biggest whale in the world called?

Answer: A Fin whale. We saw 5 of them.

Can penguins fart?

Answer: No they can not! Lucky guys. They don’t have to be worried the whole time they do yoga 😂!

What is the most important animal in Antarctica?

Answer: Krill. They are very important because all animals eat them. If they weren’t there animals would die very frequently.

What are the 2 apex predators in Antarctica?

Answer: The killer whale and leopard seal.

How much ice of an iceberg is under water?

Answer: 90% is under water!