I reached Antarctica!
Hey everyone!
I finally landed at McMurdo Station, Antarctica today, around 3:00 pm local time on Friday. I don't have pictures to add the the site yet, when we set up our lab I'll take the time to add them. But, if you'd like to hear about my trip from Chicago to Antarctica in words, here it is:
Chicago: Sunday (day before I left)
I realized I needed a sleeping bag. This is for a week long trip in New Zealand (after I get off of the ice) So I buy one. It doesn't fit into my bag, so I'm very grumpy and sad that I walked all the way to the store (we don't have a car in Chicago!) and then decided not to use it.
Chicago: Monday Morning
I decided to add a few more things to the suitcase I was taking, and as I zipped it up, I noticed the zipper was doing that "skip" thing where it doesn't zip properly. Urgh! I ran back to the store to return the sleeping bag, and then I ran to a luggage store for a new suitcase. I saw an accident on Michigan Avenue as I headed over. Bad omens, I thought. But I was wrong, because everything after that point went well.
Chicago: Monday afternoon
I boarded the plane for a trip to LAX. Granted, it was only in the airport, but it was my first time to California, so it was a bit exciting. I'd left Chicago at 5:00 pm, and arrived in L.A. at 9:30 (Chicago time) So the flight wasn't too long. 4:30 hours and counting.
L.A.: Monday night
From LAX, I had to change to an international airport, so it was nice because I got to walk outside. Then I took an airline called Quantas (spelling?) which was the best airline ever! I think that flight was 12 hours or so (4.5 + 12 = 16:30 hours so far) Anyhow, that flight was so nice they even gave you socks and a toothbrush, not to mention all of the yummy food!
Auckland, NZ: Wednesday morning (NZ time)
I landed in New Zealand, where I had to go through customs (make sure I'm not taking any illegal items into the country) and then I flew on to Christchurch, New Zealand. By this point, I'd stopped counting how long the flights were, but I think it was about 2 hours (16.5 + 2 = 18:30 hours in the air)
Christchurch, NZ (Wed afternoon - Friday morning)
We stayed at a bed and breakfast in Christchurch, NZ. It is a nice town. Very beautiful, lovely arb with gorgeous trees. I bought a very nice sleeping bag (yea!) and it was cheaper, warmer, and more compact that the one in Chicago, so I felt as though I'd done well. We'd go out to eat every night, and we went to museums.
On Thursday afternoon, we were issued our ECW (extreme cold weather) gear. It took forever! I had to try it all on, and if anything didn't fit, we'd have to exchange it. The cool part was that a Nebraska Public Television camera crew was there filming. They even rode the plane with us to Antarctica. So who knows, maybe in Nebraska I'm a star. Anyhow, they gave us so many clothes! Boots, thick socks (3 pairs, I think), 3 pairs of long underwear/shirts (of varying thickness), snow pants, huge snow jacket, a windbreaker, a fleece, 2 pairs of mittens, and I think 4 pairs of gloves, a couple of hats, and huge sunglasses/goggles. Hopefully I'll take a picture for you at some point.
Christchurch, NZ: Friday morning
I woke up at 4:15 am, because I wanted to shower, etc before I caught the plane. We took a shuttle to the airport (it is a US military flight) and we arrived at 6:00 am. I had to put on the ECW gear, which is pretty hot to wear up in NZ. We went to a counter and had ourselves and our gear weighed. Then we sat around and waited for awhile. I had pancakes. They showed us a video about safety in NZ. Then eventually, we went through metal detectors and boarded a bus to get on the plane. We were on the second bus, and in the last seats. When we were getting off the bus, all of a sudden people ahead of us were getting off the plane! So we all had to sit and wait for them to decide to fly. We waited in a barb-wired area! The plane is a C-17. Or C-130, whichever is the big one. (I don't know planes) The smaller of the two is what they'd always used before, and it was a very cramped ride. But this year it was quite cozy. They finally let us on the plane about an hour? later. When we got on, it was very fun to look around. It isn't set up "pretty" like a commercial plane. You could see the wires everywhere, and there were no windows. It was weird not being able to see what was happening with take-off and landing. I was sitting in normal airline seats, which was very nice and new.
We finally took off, and it was a 5 hour flight (18.5 + 5 = 23.5 hours in the AIR!) The flights often "boomerang" or fly all the way down to Antarctica, decide the weather conditions aren't good, and fly all the way back. So we were lucky that we landed on our first try. The plane ride was pretty nice, overall. I got to take pictures, although the boots made it very difficult to walk in. I felt like a clown. They even gave us sack lunches.
McMurdo Station, Antarctica: Friday afternoon
Landing was fun. When we landed, it sounded like snow crunching. The landing site is on sea-ice that floats over a sea. Pretty cool, huh? Apparently the plane depresses the ice 8 inches! When we got off of the plane, it was beautiful! The clouds are thick an low, and the mountains are snowy, and the ice just shined. It was just beautiful.
I've been here for a couple of hours now. I have a dorm room, and I've eaten at the cafeteria. Tomorrow I go through a lot of safety training. I'm so excited!
Now, (if you made it all the way through this, I promise pictures will come soon) I have a question. We are required to wear sunglasses all the time when we are outside in Antarctica. Can you give me two good reasons why?
I finally landed at McMurdo Station, Antarctica today, around 3:00 pm local time on Friday. I don't have pictures to add the the site yet, when we set up our lab I'll take the time to add them. But, if you'd like to hear about my trip from Chicago to Antarctica in words, here it is:
Chicago: Sunday (day before I left)
I realized I needed a sleeping bag. This is for a week long trip in New Zealand (after I get off of the ice) So I buy one. It doesn't fit into my bag, so I'm very grumpy and sad that I walked all the way to the store (we don't have a car in Chicago!) and then decided not to use it.
Chicago: Monday Morning
I decided to add a few more things to the suitcase I was taking, and as I zipped it up, I noticed the zipper was doing that "skip" thing where it doesn't zip properly. Urgh! I ran back to the store to return the sleeping bag, and then I ran to a luggage store for a new suitcase. I saw an accident on Michigan Avenue as I headed over. Bad omens, I thought. But I was wrong, because everything after that point went well.
Chicago: Monday afternoon
I boarded the plane for a trip to LAX. Granted, it was only in the airport, but it was my first time to California, so it was a bit exciting. I'd left Chicago at 5:00 pm, and arrived in L.A. at 9:30 (Chicago time) So the flight wasn't too long. 4:30 hours and counting.
L.A.: Monday night
From LAX, I had to change to an international airport, so it was nice because I got to walk outside. Then I took an airline called Quantas (spelling?) which was the best airline ever! I think that flight was 12 hours or so (4.5 + 12 = 16:30 hours so far) Anyhow, that flight was so nice they even gave you socks and a toothbrush, not to mention all of the yummy food!
Auckland, NZ: Wednesday morning (NZ time)
I landed in New Zealand, where I had to go through customs (make sure I'm not taking any illegal items into the country) and then I flew on to Christchurch, New Zealand. By this point, I'd stopped counting how long the flights were, but I think it was about 2 hours (16.5 + 2 = 18:30 hours in the air)
Christchurch, NZ (Wed afternoon - Friday morning)
We stayed at a bed and breakfast in Christchurch, NZ. It is a nice town. Very beautiful, lovely arb with gorgeous trees. I bought a very nice sleeping bag (yea!) and it was cheaper, warmer, and more compact that the one in Chicago, so I felt as though I'd done well. We'd go out to eat every night, and we went to museums.
On Thursday afternoon, we were issued our ECW (extreme cold weather) gear. It took forever! I had to try it all on, and if anything didn't fit, we'd have to exchange it. The cool part was that a Nebraska Public Television camera crew was there filming. They even rode the plane with us to Antarctica. So who knows, maybe in Nebraska I'm a star. Anyhow, they gave us so many clothes! Boots, thick socks (3 pairs, I think), 3 pairs of long underwear/shirts (of varying thickness), snow pants, huge snow jacket, a windbreaker, a fleece, 2 pairs of mittens, and I think 4 pairs of gloves, a couple of hats, and huge sunglasses/goggles. Hopefully I'll take a picture for you at some point.
Christchurch, NZ: Friday morning
I woke up at 4:15 am, because I wanted to shower, etc before I caught the plane. We took a shuttle to the airport (it is a US military flight) and we arrived at 6:00 am. I had to put on the ECW gear, which is pretty hot to wear up in NZ. We went to a counter and had ourselves and our gear weighed. Then we sat around and waited for awhile. I had pancakes. They showed us a video about safety in NZ. Then eventually, we went through metal detectors and boarded a bus to get on the plane. We were on the second bus, and in the last seats. When we were getting off the bus, all of a sudden people ahead of us were getting off the plane! So we all had to sit and wait for them to decide to fly. We waited in a barb-wired area! The plane is a C-17. Or C-130, whichever is the big one. (I don't know planes) The smaller of the two is what they'd always used before, and it was a very cramped ride. But this year it was quite cozy. They finally let us on the plane about an hour? later. When we got on, it was very fun to look around. It isn't set up "pretty" like a commercial plane. You could see the wires everywhere, and there were no windows. It was weird not being able to see what was happening with take-off and landing. I was sitting in normal airline seats, which was very nice and new.
We finally took off, and it was a 5 hour flight (18.5 + 5 = 23.5 hours in the AIR!) The flights often "boomerang" or fly all the way down to Antarctica, decide the weather conditions aren't good, and fly all the way back. So we were lucky that we landed on our first try. The plane ride was pretty nice, overall. I got to take pictures, although the boots made it very difficult to walk in. I felt like a clown. They even gave us sack lunches.
McMurdo Station, Antarctica: Friday afternoon
Landing was fun. When we landed, it sounded like snow crunching. The landing site is on sea-ice that floats over a sea. Pretty cool, huh? Apparently the plane depresses the ice 8 inches! When we got off of the plane, it was beautiful! The clouds are thick an low, and the mountains are snowy, and the ice just shined. It was just beautiful.
I've been here for a couple of hours now. I have a dorm room, and I've eaten at the cafeteria. Tomorrow I go through a lot of safety training. I'm so excited!
Now, (if you made it all the way through this, I promise pictures will come soon) I have a question. We are required to wear sunglasses all the time when we are outside in Antarctica. Can you give me two good reasons why?
posted by Emily at 2:12 AM
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