Been awhile since I have posted. Life has gotten in the way. Travels have, happily, gotten in the way. Writing has taken a step back. But, I have been thinking about this post for a long time. Since I got off the boat in December, actually.
Antarctica has always been at the back of my mind. I never thought it would be feasible. It is very far away. I don’t really like the cold. And it is so expensive. But I let Antarctica fester in the deep parts of my mind while I thought of other travel.
Then, in July 2017, I heard about an opportunity to go to Antarctica. Girls Love Travel, a Facebook group geared towards women were looking into this! I immediately jumped on the chance to share my interest. Slowly news and information came out. We were going to be going with Oceanwide Expeditions. There would be three dates, activities such as camping, mountaineering, and kayaking would be included, the prices, etc.
What sealed it for me was the fact the second trip ended the day before my 30th birthday. I knew it was a sign. All 7 continents by age 30. My dream trip to Antarctica had to happen.
When the day came to sign up, I was so nervous. I set an alarm for 6pm, this time the sign up was going live. 6pm came, I opened the survey and then froze. I froze for a good 45 minutes before submitting my form. This wasn’t official, I wasn’t putting down money yet. But was I crazy? I hadn’t told anyone. I hadn’t discussed with my family. I’ll worry about that later.’
Then I received the email stating I had gotten accepted for the room I wanted – a quad (it was the cheapest). I needed to put down a non-refundable deposit to secure this trip of a lifetime to Antarctica. And I did it. I put it down and decided to ask work the next for the time off. My dream trip to Antarctica was happening.
I worked hard the next year and half to save the money for the trip. This trip is the reason I started working for VIPKID. I was saving all my money, working countless hours to pay for it. I could not wait! Even if it was a bumpy journey – I was accused of not paying a payment (yay, for receipts), the coordinator I was corresponding with got kicked off the trip, I got added to the Boat 1 trip, despite being on the 2nd trip. But no worries, my dream trip to Antarctica was still happening.
Fast-forward to November 2018. My suitcase had broken in-transit to Buenos Aires and I was scraping it along the streets of Ushuaia. No worries, my dream trip to Antarctica was happening. Many girls on the trip, including my cabin roommate, got caught in the Aerolineas Argentinas strikes, arriving at the eleventh-hour! But no worries, our dream trip to Antarctica was still happening.
We boarded the boat on November 28th without a hitch and set off. We set off on some of the calmest Drake conditions ever. The captain and expedition leaders couldn’t believe how smooth it was. We were extremely lucky…
And that is where our luck stopped. Our weather in Antarctica was terrible. If there is anything you take out of this, know that Antarctic weather is unpredictable and changes in a minute. I thought Chicago was bad, Antarctica is worse!
Day 1 in Antarctica after sailing through the Drake: some people get to get on land to mountaineer, some got to kayak, and the rest (and me) got to go on a zodiak boat cruise. By night, the weather had taken a turn and camping was canceled. Go figure, my night.
Day 2 weather was a bit rough so all morning activities were cancelled. Afternoon, some people got to go kayaking, rest did zodiac. That afternoon, zodiac cruisers actually got to step foot on Antarctica! We visit Almirante Brown Base – an Argentina base. I was the FIRST person off the boat – I almost kissed the ground I was so excited! Woo, my dream trip to Antarctica was happening!
Unfortunately, camping night 2 got to go out for two hours before getting rushed back in due to changing weather.
At this point, my optimism was fading. For three straight days, I had not been put on a list for any activity (besides camping). We were told that it was first come first serve, and as I was one of the first people to sign up I was to be put on lists first. And if activities were cancelled, the group that was supposed to go gets pushed to next day. Guess what, this wasn’t the case.
Day 3, terrible weather due to high winds. We ended up staying on the boat the entire day, without getting off. They offered a happy hour…yay. Except on a rocking boat in the middle of Antarctica was one of the last places I really wanted to drink.
Day 4, still have yet to be put on a list for a stupid activity. I have given up at this point. I have tried talking to our Girls Love Travel rep, my cabin mates had talked to the expedition leader, etc. They all had been put onto a kayaking list, all three except me. Unfortunately, it was cancelled. Another happy hour was offered.
Day 5, I have finally been put on a list! But it was for mountaineering – something I hadn’t initially signed up for. I spent a lot of time trying to get healthier for this trip, losing 45 pounds, getting a rowing machine. Mountaineering has never been my thing- and to do it on snow and ice in Antarctica? YIKES!
But I decided to do it. This could be my only chance to do an activity and make most of the trip. It was one of the hardest things I have ever done in my life! I thought I was going to fall. I thought I may die. I thought I was going to disappoint everyone. I told the mountaineering leader that I am really nervous. She personally tied me to herself and gave me words of encouragement the whole way. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have made it.
I survived mountaineering in Antarctica!
But I did. And, I feel a few times. And I didn’t have my waterproof pants on, so my but was soaking when I sat down. But I accomplished something I never thought I would.
Day 6, all morning activities were cancelled – the day I was scheduled for kayaking. Womp, womp. But that is the nature of this trip. We then headed into the Drake because we heard it was going to be terrible weather. Boy, did we get the Drake Shake – 50 foot waves, insane rocking back and forth. We were sequestered to our rooms for an entire day. I got seasick. A lifeboat almost went overboard. Man. One of the roughest experiences every after coming from that high of mountaineering.
This was supposed to be my dream to Antarcitica, and it wasn’t…
and that’s okay. I have come to terms that this wasn’t exactly how I wanted the trip to go or exactly how it was sold to me. This was a trip of adventures! A trip of activities! A trip of a lifetime. So I was told.
And while it was extremely underwhelming based on not getting everything we thought we would, how I was treated by staff on the boat, and the weather, I learned a lot from this trip. I puked and I cried. I made some amazing friends who went through exactly what I went through. I survived the Drake. I mountaineered for the first (and last) time.
I was nervous to come back and talk to my friends and family since I had been hyping this trip up for so long. But, trips don’t always go according to plan. This has really shaped my view of traveling and I am glad I had the experiences I did and know better going forward.
My dream trip to Antarctica may not have been the dream I realized, but that’s okay. I will go back. I will do better research. I will utilize different resources.
Dreams can be reshaped and redone. Sometimes dreams turnout differently than expected. Don’t let that crush you. Stop putting the pressure on your dreams. And if they don’t go according to plan, IT’S OKAY – just keep dreaming.
