Antarctica's White Wilderness Day 4

DAY 4 - Sunday, January 17, 2016 - Flight to Ushuaia; Tour of Ushuaia; Prison Museum Visit

The alarm went off at 5:00 am and we took our luggage to the front lobby at 5:30 and then went for breakfast. Everyone was on time and we walked our bags out to the bus, as there were several groups that needed porter assistance.

Vic helped the driver load the bags and the process went very quickly. The bus left for the international airport a few minutes before 6:30. Because it was early Sunday morning, there was no traffic.

On the way to the Ezeiza International Airport in Buenos Aires, Seba gave us more information about the education system and the concerns about illegal immigration. All children born in Argentina are issued a national identification number that serves them their whole lives.

He also explained the compulsory voting regulations. Everyone over 18 is required to vote or they pay a fine if they do not.

Seba gave us all our boarding passes before we reached the airport. He explained the procedures for checking in so there were no delays. We were fortunate that there were no charges for checking more than 33 pounds. Flexibility seems to be a wonderful custom in Argentina.

After an hour at the gate, the agent called our flight at 8:10. A shuttle bus took us to another set of jet ways and we boarded our Airbus 330 for the three-hour flight. Gennie had called Aerolineas Argentinas a few months before trip to see if we could get a seat closer to the front of the aircraft.

When we got on board we were pleasantly surprised to find we were located in the first class section; Row 5, seats A and B. The lesson being, it never hurts to ask!

Departure time was supposed to be at 8:50. The doors closed and we backed away at 8:54. We were on our way to Ushuaia, Argentina, the “City at the End of the World".

The flight was 3 hours and 30 minutes, a distance of 1,474 miles. Driving time would have been over 32 hours according to Google Maps. The temperature in Buenos Aires was 72 degrees when we left the hotel at 6:30. When we landed in Ushuaia, it was only 42 degrees with winds gusts of 20 mph.

Landing in Ushuaia was exciting, the right side of the aircraft must have come as close as 100 yards to the sharp and jagged peaks of the southernmost Andes Mountains. How spectacular!

On the left side of the aircraft we could see the Beagle Channel over the choppy water and the fluffy clouds, with great views of the small islands in the Channel.

There were four flights that had come into the Ushuaia - Malvinas Argentinas International Airport within 20 minutes of each other so the baggage claim area was a zoo. It took about an hour for our bags to come out but by 1:00 we were on the bus. After collecting our Green Team, we met Valerie, our guide and Carlos, our bus driver.

The four Grand Circle groups were each staying at different hotels, had separate buses, and we all had our own individual tour directors. Imagine the logistics of managing all of the reservations!

The rooms were not ready when we arrived in the Ushuaia so we had a short tour and learned more about this departure city for ships leaving for Antarctica. Valerie told us about herself and her guiding experiences in this area of the world.

She advised us of the cold and predominate winds that blow so fiercely in the summers. “Dressing like an onion” was her good advice to start this adventure.

We drove through the Mission District where the first settlers, the British Anglicans, came to convert the natives to Christianity. Our first stop was at the original airport overlooking Ushuaia Bay. We took time for a Green Team group photo - the temperature was dropping and the wind was gusting at 30+ mph.

Valerie gave us a gastronomical tour of San Martin Street pointing out places for lunch and for the specialty here – King Crab. There was only one main street, with shops catering to tourists who forgot mittens, hats, or just discovered they would need an extra fleece jacket.

When we got to the Cilene del Faro Hotel, we got our keys and received our tall waterproof Wellington boots for the wet landings from the zodiac to the islands of Antarctica. There was about 90 minutes for us to settle in for just one night and set up our computers.

At 3:00 we met the group in the lobby for a short walk to the Military Prison Museum. Ushuaia began as a former penal colony for dangerous prisoners transferred from other parts of Argentina. The prison had a horrendous reputation rivaling the British facility in Tasmania and the French in Devil’s Island.

We spent an hour looking through the exhibits and pondering the terrible conditions for the prisoners in this confinement. The prison was closed in 1947 and added to the naval base that is still in operation today.

We had an early dinner at Tante Sara on the main street. Most restaurants do not open until 7:30 pm but many coffee shops like this offer sandwiches and pizza. We had the pizza and friends had the sandwiches earlier. The portions were generous but the bill was pricey. All the way at the end of the world and in a tourist town, one can hardly expect anything else.

At 7:00 we came back to the hotel to complete the journal and to try to listen to the Broncos vs. Steelers playoff game.

It is light very late here, but we pulled our blackout curtains and tried to get a good night’s sleep so we would be rested and for our trek in Tierra del Fuego National Park in the morning and beginning our Antarctica Expedition later in the afternoon.

Accommodations: Cilene del Faro Hotel - Meals: B