Forrest Brown » At Sea

At Sea – Aurora Expeditions – Day 18

Forrest — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 22:11:23 +0000

Aurora Expeditions, the travel company that organized and managed this voyage is Australian, so most of the passengers and many of the things on the ship were Australian. One famous (or possibly infamous) Australian food that made the voyage with us was Vegemite, which is yeast extract produced as a by-product of beer manufacturing. Vegemite is most commonly used as a spread on toast or crackers.

I’ve tried quite a few strange foods in other countries so I thought I should give the Vegemite a try. I scooped out a decent sized glob of the thing dark brown Vegemite and was getting ready to spread it on my toast when all the Australians at my table all started warning me that it was way too much and that all I needed was the thinnest of coating of Vegemite. I heeded the warning and gave my toast just the barest of coatings. The Vegemite had a strong, funky smell when you get close to it, so I was a bit nervous about taking a bite out of my toast. The first couple bites were not too bad, but then again, I could barely taste that Vegemite. The paper thin coating just wasn’t going to do if I wanted the full Vegemite experience. So I spread a bit more Vegemite on my toast. Now I could really taste it. It has a strange, salty, unpleasant taste that wasn’t doing anything for me. It wasn’t spit it out of my mouth horrible, and I finished my slice of toast, but it also wasn’t something I really enjoyed. Maybe as some point, I will give it a second chance.

Vegemite and Toast

In the evening there was a final recap and drinks in the bar where people told stories of some of the things that had impressed them on the voyage. Gag awards were also given out by the Aurora Expeditions staff and the Captain. I received the “Alien Antennae Award: Best Reception”. People who’ve been skiing or in cold weather with me will know why I received it, everyone else will just have to wonder.

At Sea – Aurora Expeditions – Day 17

Forrest — Wed, 24 Nov 2010 21:57:21 +0000

We’re crossing the Drake Passage on our way back to Argentina and today was probably the roughest seas we’ve had on this voyage, but compared to how rough the Drake Passage can be, I guess it’s not too bad.

View from the bridge of the Polar Pioneer. From here you can really see how much the Polar Pioneer is rocking back and forth.

At Sea – Aurora Expeditions – Day 13

Forrest — Sun, 21 Nov 2010 05:22:20 +0000

The third day at sea after leaving South Georgia. I’m still trying to sort out the thousands of photos I have taken so far on this trip, but I did spend some time on deck shooting some photos of the sea birds.

Cape Petrels

Cape Petrel

During dinner, after almost three days at sea and 779 miles we pass Elephant Island, our first sighting of Antarctica. Just a barren, rugged rock and ice.

Southern Giant-Petrel flying in front of Elephant Island

At Sea – Aurora Expeditions – Day 12

Forrest — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 17:58:12 +0000

The food on the Polar Pioneer maybe is not 5 star restaurant quality, but it has been good, with a nice variety from day to day. I have the feeling that I’m going to gain weight this trip.

There was a lot to pick from for breakfast. Usually there were eggs, bacon or sausages, toast, oatmeal

Cereal, yogurt, toast and juices.

Lunch could be soup, sandwiches or something along those lines. This is a Traditional Russian Borsh from the day we were served all Russian food. It was really good.

Dinner was a main dish and a couple of sides.

Green-beans as one of the side items.

Potatoes

And most importantly, dinner always was followed by dedsert.

At Sea – Aurora Expeditions – Day 11

Forrest — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 04:49:56 +0000

We’re at sea for the next three day as we head to the Antarctic Peninsula. I’ve started to go through the photos I’ve taken so far, but other then the some videos and lectures going on in the lecture room there’s not a lot happening. Since I had shown what the cabins were like in earlier post, I thought I would show a few photos from other parts of the Polar Pioneer.

Panorama of the bridge on the Polar Pioneer

Panorama of the back deck on the Polar Pioneer.

Panorama of one of the dinning rooms on the Polar Pioneer

The Kitchen on the Polar Pioneer

At Sea – Aurora Expeditions – Day 6

Forrest — Sat, 13 Nov 2010 19:21:48 +0000

We’re still at sea heading for South Georgia Island, so I thought I would show what the cabins are like. The Polar Pioneer has several different types of cabins, I’m staying in a Twin Public. So, the room has two beds (I’m sharing with Phil, one of the other Americans), a desk, storage, and a sink, but no toilet or shower. It’s not the Hyatt, but it’s clean, fairly comfortable and does the job.

There’s six toilets and three showers along the hallway outside our room, which is plenty, there’s never really any waiting to take a shower.

At Sea – Aurora Expeditions – Day 5

Forrest — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 18:08:22 +0000

Today and tomorrow are at sea as the Polar Pioneer heads for South Georgia Island. So far the seas have been fairly calm and I think most people are getting used to the rocking and rolling of the ship.

The view from the bridge of the Polar Pioneer.

Many of the photographers spend time out on the deck trying to shoot the sea birds. Getting good photos of the birds in flight can be tough under normal conditions, having the ship rocking and rolling under you adds another level of difficulty.

Black-Browed Albatross

Southern Giant-Petrel

At Sea – Aurora Expeditions – Day 2

Forrest — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 16:39:38 +0000

Today was our first full day at sea. We’re heading to the Falkland Islands, but it’s going to be tomorrow morning before we get there, so today it’s just ocean for as far as we can see. Today was mostly spend getting used to life on the ship and the motion of the ocean. The seas are pretty calm, but we still feel the movement of the ship, It’s probably rocking side to side a couple of degrees several times every minute. I’ve been taking seasickness pills and they must be working because I’m feeling pretty good except maybe a little drowsy. But a couple of people haven’t been doing so well and there’s been a few cases of spontaneous stomach purges.

Barf bags lined the hallways, ready for use at a moments notice.

Since it’s a small ship, options for things to do are a little limited. People spent time relaxing and getting to know each other. The photographers spent time sorting through their photos or taking new photos of the sea birds that can be seen flying by our ship to check us out.

Some of the photographers took over the bar to go through their photos.

For a while there was even a small group of dolphins playing in the bow wake of the ship that some people were able to get photos of. Also, the Aurora Expeditions staff has short lectures scheduled throughout the trip to talk about the history and wildlife of the place that we’ll be visiting.

Dolphins playing in the bow wake.