We're woken by the usual NZ voice... followed by a dinki-di Aussie with lots of Aussie references. Yes, it's Australia Day. And some people -- passengers and crew -- think that we need to celebrate.
Nice, really. I say, Our ygoinmay torriite? The German couple look confused.
Every announcement has some Australian accent and Aus music to support it. The chefs do rather well... Not that "Aussie cuisine" exists but they took advice.
Lunch is hamburger, close enough to a barbeque. Salads are grated carrot, grated cheese, sliced tomato, beetroot. With mayonaisse (proper tinned stuff, not fancy egg stuff) and tomato... relish. Close enough. I demonstrate the correct style: eat salad first, take out the slippery lettuce leaf, eat the hamburger then wipe hands. Finish with a few leaves of lettuce -- to clean the hands and face. It's all about the correct sequence.
Deb is in the cabin, I'm on deck. A passenger sticks his head in the cabin door -- it is open -- just to check out the biggest cabin. He's surprised to see Deb still inside. I'm thinking, we may have to organise an "open day". I know that I would like to see the biggest cabin on the ship. (If we weren't already in it.)
We have a compulsory briefing on Antarctica. Reminders of what to do and not do. For example: We're now south of the 60th parallel, so no dropping *anything*, either in the sea or in the ice.
Deb goes to a documentary on the Antarctic treaty, its creation and the results. Interesting, Deb says. I read a bit in an Antarctic guide book. Interesting enough.
I'm expecting today to be booooring. But ! Just when I've finished another book... and Deb is at her documentary... We spot our first iceberg !
Everything goes on pause while we all ogle the iceberg. It's amazing :-) The Captain circles it a couple of times. We all take photos. Then it's back to a book and a documentary.
One of the passengers -- a travel agent -- organises some sort of Aus-themed entertainment in the usual pre-dinner bar gathering. Deb & I play rummy in our cabin.
Another delicious dinner. (Though: The lunch salads were particularly attractive (to me) because they were plain. Most ship salads -- and all the meals -- are "complete", with dressing already added. The fresh salads were particularly enticing *because* they were fresh and plain. Just for a change.)
Dinner ends, there's another iceberg sighting. Further out, a big flat one, and with the sun behind it. Not such a rush to view it, it's not "the first".
A brief flurry of very light snow! Well, very very very light... but snow :-) Temperature on deck is a few degrees above zero. Very chilly when the wind blows. Definite hat and gloves and puffy jacket weather. Except for one passenger who is still wearing short shorts. Hmmm.
And the extra good news... We've had fine weather since leaving Macquarie Island. We've gained a day on our schedule, so an extra day to putter along the edge of Antarctica. We'll start to the west, then back east, this *may* give time for the ice to clear towards Mawson's base.
Minor good news: The gps tracker has been up on deck a couple of times. So it *may* have mapped our position.
And a bit more: I've have details of email costs so far. These blog posts are not *too* expensive. So I will no longer send just a short version. Good for me, less effort, and [good or bad, you decide] for any blog readers :-)
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