12-29-2007...Boarding and the Drake

Well, today we boarded the Orlova and the ship is so cute. ( Our ship is front right, and don´t be fooled by the enormous piece of metal in the back... only 8 decks for us.) We´re in a triple on the 4th so hopefully the movement won´t be too bad. There is a forward lounge for meetings and a huge dining room near the stern, and the amenities aren´t too bad for a 150 person boat. The boat is manned solely by Russians and it is interesting to hear their random sayings over the speakers while the captain is talking to the crew. As we were pulling away from Ushuaia after the National Park Tour, were were all very excited. We stood up on the top deck to watch the city slowly fade away as the ship gave 3 horn blasts for farewell.

We had the captain´s dinner and they call it the ¨March of the Penguins¨because all of the officers are in their uniforms. The captain is adorable, he can barely speak any English at all. Captain Igor. We sailed through the Beagle Channel and the water was very calm, but once we left the protection of the land and entered the Drake Passage, we were bombarded by waves. This passage is known to haven´t the roughest waters in the world, and of course, I had a little bit of nausea. I am avoiding sea sickness at all costs because the group will dub the first person to give in ¨Ralph¨.

We had our life boat drill and Phil is in charge of our group. We call him Dr. Phil or Phil Collins, both jokes he doesn´t think are too funny. He is British from Manchester and has wintered over in Antarctica for 33 months...ugh. We have the ¨party¨life boat if we go down with my IPOD speakers. Matt and I are going to tag team the boat, there is a little over 100 passengers, shouldn´t be hard to meet them all. I´m sure it will be a fun little exercise of our outgoingness.

The crew is really nice and each one has such an amazing expertise. We have a historian, ornothologist, marine biologist, geologist, and even plant pathologist. The first day on the boat was nice and calm, and the temperature never got too cold. Also, we went into the bridge with the 2nd mate, Sergey and the Helmsman, Andre, they showed us all the navigational tools. The maps are awesome and all of the radar equipment is fascinating. I did not sleep too well last night, the movement and noises of the ship kept me from total relaxation, but at least I was able to lay down for a few hours.