Antarctica Day 3

I could hardly believe there could be so much more to see and experience today, after two full days in this incredible land.

The pictures this morning come from the Antarctic Sound and Hope Bay.

Our morning stroll brought us past the Brazil station, and a huge rookery of Adelie penguins.

Antarctic penguin species include Emperor, the heaviest and largest at an average weight of 65 pounds and 46 inches; the King, who can dive over 800 feet, averages 38 inches and 33 pounds; the Gentoo, the fastest swimmer but smaller at 12 pounds and 27 inches;the Adelie, the most numerous of the species here, at 11 pounds and 27 inches; and finally, the Chinstrap, easily identified by the black stripe running below their chin, averaging 10 pounds and 27 inches.

The rookery of Adelies

The station

Later in the morning, close to noon, we came upon an area with a big bunch of penguins - I think the Gentoo - swimming in the water and hanging out on an iceberg. They are just a hoot!!!

One of my favorites - arm in arm - or is it flipper in flipper??

Close to noontime, we came upon a ginormous iceberg. The captain got as close as he could, and some of my pictures include the ship in it so you can get some perspective on the sheer enormity of the berg. A photography team went out in a tender to grab some photos of the ship against the berg. And to see some penguins. They have to suit up in special gear so as to not transfer any bacteria or other biological species with them. This is required in the Antarctic.

Tonight was Chinese New Year!!! The dining room was decorated, the staff was in full costume, and we had a great evening!

Of course, the penguins were dressed

We have an exceptional expedition team on board. There's an ice pilot (haven't seen him, but we know he's here - he spends a lot of time up in the bridge, obviously), Lou Sanson, who has run New Zealand's Antarctic Research Program, and has worked in Antarctica for over 35 years; Noel Miller, an artist and writer from Brisbane, Australia who has been to the Antarctic Peninsula 35 times - he loves to tell the stories about Shackelton and Scott the the photographers who accompanied them; and Professor Craig Franklin, a zoologist, conservation biologist and a professor in Biological Sciences at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. A fourth lecturer and author, Peter Carey also provides great information. If I'm not mistaken, Peter is also running the expedition program for Holland America. He and Craig Franklin co-authored a fantastic book (gifted to us by Holland America during this voyage) called Antarctica Cruising Guide. The book is almost like an encyclopedia, with photographs of all the wildlife one can see here, stories and descriptions of various expeditions to Antarctica, etc. It's a terrific resource.

These four gentlemen give lectures at least twice a day during our days between Punta Arenas and where they will disembark in Buenos Aires, over two weeks! They also have provided much of the commentary while we have been sailing through the various channels and bays here in Antarctica.