Serious business today. Lots of preparation for our coming Antarctic landings. Fittings for our expedition jacket, waterproof pants and muck boots. Briefings on biosecurity arrangements. We had to take all our landing-on-shore gear to be inspected for potential biohazards. The governments of the Falklands and South Georgia Islands are fanatically rigorous about keeping their environments pristine. Avian Flu is a current threat.
We got to meet our Captain today - Joergen Cardestig, the Senior Officers and the scientific staff. This is a group of about 25 men and women from all around the world, doing scientific studies of many different types. There was a young woman from Melbourne and a young man from Greenland, as well as scientists from France, UK, Spain, Denmark and more. A truly multicultural staff. They were all equally passionate about science, the environment and their speciality fields of study. Christopher was the "birdman". We saw him prowling the decks at all hours, searching the skies for the different seabirds. Of which there were many.
We were able to find time to explore our ship. As an expedition vessel, smaller than the more familiar Viking ocean fleet. But very stable in the water (so far!). Decor is similar - that cool Nordic chic.
Stephen had a mandatory kayak briefing - a few squats apparently!
We both went to the binoculars workshop. Such a lot to learn about this useful device.
Lots of seabirds to view on our travels. When we were sitting in the Aula (auditorium), we could see a magnificent albatross circling the ship. Its wingspan up to 3.5 metres.
We unexpectedly dined at Manfredi's restaurant that evening. Thank you to Jim and Lauren Davenport from the Atacama Desert Extension. They have a suite, and are thus entitled to a group booking at Manfredi's.
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