Explorer II

I wander on my own whenever I can, but occasionally there are places that I just can't get to.  For most of these situations I hire a private driver;  However, there are some places I just have to live with a package tour. Antarctica appears to be such a place.  There's no tourist industry on the continent, and almost nothing by way of private flights to and from it.  If you're going to go, it will either be to work at a research station or as a passenger on a cruise ship. Having resigned myself to this, I found a cruise, invited my friend Mary along, stocked up on Dramamine, and went forth on a package "expedition" cruise to Antarctica. Two days later, having experienced ten foot seas the crew described as "the calmest they've ever seen", and with the Drake Passage still to go, I boldly set forth to cling tightly to the ground at Port Stanley, and wave a fond farewell to both Mary and the Explorer II as they sailed off to Antarctica without me.

This is the Explorer II at the dock in Ushuaia.  It's quite a pleasant ship, really -- the staterooms are small, but the lounges, restaurants, and service easily live up to four if not five star standards.

It was interesting to see the ships all parked together like this.  It would have been nice to get on-board and compare the interiors of each as well.

If for some reason I ever find myself on a cruise ship again (and don't ask me how that would happen) I would look for one more like this, with plenty of private balconies.

This being an "expedition" cruise, the landings were to be made by Zodiac.

It was nice to know they had backup plans if the main propeller screw failed.

$200?  Cheaper to throw them overboard and let the leopard seals deal with it..

We were thinking this was an odd sort of picture to have on a ship.  But then, if you were in the middle of the desert for months on end, I suppose you won't mind having a picture of the ocean to keep you company. On a somewhat related note, that camel looks unbearably smug.

The tail end of the Explorer II, parked at Port Stanley.  I supposed I could have been disappointed to see her go, but in truth I had already moved on to exploring the Falklands.