Day 6 October 16 '11 Part 2

This is one long glacier. I think it's the Beardmore.

The view was stunning.  Soon we were on the ice runway. Soon I was off the plane into the bright, white, pure world of Antarctica. It was cold, crisp and smelled of nothing. Nothing smelled wonderful-pure, fresh, clean. The sun was so bright and there was so much to take in. The multiple splotches of red parkas against the stark white canvas was even beautiful. I was so enamored with my surroundings, I failed to self portait myself off the plane or by Ivan, nor did I remember to ask anyone to take any of me. I can try and re-enact later.




Ivan the Terra Bus in the background. I'll post a better pic later.




The pointed mountain is Observation Hill (Ob Hill for short) the mountain behind it is Mt Erebus, the most southerly active volcano.

   

 We were shepherded to our transport, IVAN the Terra Bus. All crammed in, we were taken to our welcoming orientation at the Chalet a short 15 minute trip into town, given room assignments and keys and sent off walking to our prospective dorms. The roads were "sanded" with chunks of volcanic rock and stones. Easy to twist an ankle if you aren't careful.

Our baggage would be available for pickup in a few hours, so in the meantime I found my room, picked a bed (choice of 6), and went and got my bedding. I was too tired to make my bed. I just curled up on my bed with my Big Red parka and took a nap.

My bed for the next 4 months



My room has that homey 'orphanage' feel.



A few hours later, I heard someone come in. It was little mousy Chelsea. She and Rosemary from Cordova AK were my roommates to start. They told me our bags were in from the C17 up at building 140 which was also my work office building coincidentally. It was a harsh walk up the hill. The altitude was making me shorter breathed than usual. I’m out of shape but the huffing and puffing that I was experiencing was beyond normal. I thought I was gonna die. Thankfully, there was a shuttle taxi service back to the dorm with all my bags. Unfortunately there were no luggage carts here, so I was schlepping them all by myself 1 or 2 at a time. I was exhausted all over again.

Chelsea was encouraging me to get something to eat before I passed out again. I barely had the energy to make my bed or take care of my stuff. Not that there was anywhere to put them, but that’s a story for another post.

Work starts tomorrow 730am.  I’m already exhausted.

Day 3- October 13 '11

Day 3

Everyone’s tons of bags got loaded on the hotel shuttles and we were headed back to Raytheon for a half day of classes. We would be leaving at noon to go to Denver airport for our flight to LAX. Fortunately for us and other airport personnel, Raytheon has a dedicated counter at American Airlines for Antarctica deployments. It went very smoothly and I did not get charged for my 3^rd bag. BONUS! And thank goodness for luggage carts. I would have been lost and continuously and tremendously  struggling.

Everything went smoothly to LAX. We had about 5 or 6 hours of downtime until our flight, but most used this time to call and talk to family, get acquainted with more people or nap. I did the first 2. I still am struggling with overwhelming sadness and homesickness that is very uncharacteristic of me. Jerry does his best to help shake me out of it, but it still lingers.

I met an IT tech headed to the Ice named Dennis. This was his 12^th season. He was very helpful in explaining the next stages and what to expect. Like most veterans to the Ice, he was looking out for us newbies and making sure we all got to where we were going. I felt fortunate to have his guidance.

While waiting for our flight, a group of us were all congregating in a group and Newt Gingrich came up to us to ask what organization (we obviously looked like we were in one) we were with. When we told him we were going to Antarctica, he thanked us for our support of the scientists here and to have a safe and fun trip and wished us good luck. Newt Gingrich? Really? I sat in LAX for 5 hours and the only recognizable personality I saw was Newt Gingrich? No actors, no musicians, just Newt Gingrich. Thanks so much LA.

Another awesome girl I met was Tricia M. We were known shortly after as Tricia 1 and Tricia 2. We spell our names the same and neither are PAtricia.  We and Dennis decided to grab a bite at the Chili’s down the hall. A little mousy girl who looked to be 13 asked to tag along. I asked Tricia M what the girl’s name was and she told me ‘Charlotte’. Henceforth, I called this girl Charlotte. Later, sitting in a group, I was trying to get her attention. I kept calling her Charlotte and she either was ignoring me or didn’t hear me. She finally turned around and asked if I was talking to her. It was hours later that she finally told me her name was Chelsea- not Charlotte. I felt stupid but she was a nice kid and said it was no problem.