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25 November, 2001Nov 25th- The Best Sunday in Antarctica! What an amazing day this was!! I will write about part of it today and the rest of it tomorrow. There is just too much to put in one journal! Part One: I signed up for a trip to go to Cape Evans to see Captain Scott's Terra Nova hut from his fatal expedition to the Pole, and to visit the ice caves that are close by. Little did I know that I was in for an extra special treat. We all loaded into a vehicle called a Delta. The Delta was designed for transporting passengers over the sea ice and snow. The Navy used to use these during Operation Deep Freeze. I got to sit up front on the way. Our driver, Tom, told us that first we were going to visit the Barnes Glacier. I couldn't believe my eyes as we approached it. The most beautiful and massive site was before me! There aren't words to describe it. As I stepped out of the Delta and headed towards the glacier, someone said, "Look, a penguin!" Sure enough, in the distance was an Adelie penguin waddling along all alone. I instantly turned on my camera and began walking towards him. He saw us and curiously came towards us. Soon I was getting closer and closer to him. I was hoping that I'd get a chance to get up close. Everyone gathered around to take pictures of this adorable Adelie. Most people stood there for a few minutes and then went on to walk towards the glacier. Do you think I did that? No way. I stayed with that penguin long enough to take 120 pictures of him! It took a while, but I actually got to within two feet of him! I was lying on the ground talking to him in the voice I use when I'm talking to Jakedog. As I talked, he would open his eyes wider. People were saying that he liked hearing my voice. After a while, I was alone with the penguin. I just lay there, starting to get a bit cold, snapping pictures of this most beautiful and wondrous creature. Then I began singing to him. I sang a song that my Nana used to sing to me when I was little: "My Bonnie lies over the ocean. My Bonnie lies over the sea. My Bonnie lies over the ocean. Oh bring back my Bonnie to me… " This was the most wonderful feeling for me, singing a lullaby to a little precious penguin. Finally I decided to get up because I was getting cold. By now a few people had gathered back around the penguin. I started to walk away from him, still with the camera pointed, when all of a sudden he got sick! I actually got a picture of this. You'll see it down below. (I had to include it for my students to see!) The poor little bird didn't feel so well. I'm sure my singing had nothing to do with it! I pulled myself away from the Adelie and headed towards the glacier. I will let the pictures take over from here. Tomorrow I will tell you about the rest of my day. Enjoy!
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