Drake Passage – Day 3: An Antarctic Farewell
DRAKE PASSAGE
Day 3: An Antarctic Farewell
March 14, 2023
Our last day was one marked by many mixed feelings. As happy as we were to be back and continue with our trips and keep exploring, it kinda felt like we had left a piece of ourselves back in Antarctica.
After our last breakfast aboard our beautiful red lady, we proceeded to the Expedition Lounge one final time, where we’d be called down to the second deck for disembarkation. Here, most of us had to say goodbye to each other, with some having flights in a couple of hours and others staying in Ushuaia for the night. Thankfully, I had assumed I’d be in need of a rest day after such an adventure and, turns out, I was absolutely right. You’d think being stuck on a ship for days on end would make one want to go out and about the second they’d land. Instead, most of us felt exhausted and drained from the expedition. Perhaps it was the overstuffing ourselves at every meal or the residual shakiness from the Drake – whatever it was, we all felt tired and ready to rest on dry, unmoving land.
It was here that I said goodbye to Clara and Megan, both of them flying to the US on the same day. Then we all waited for our names to be called out. When it was finally my turn, I grabbed my bags, swiped my card one last time, and just like that, I was back in Ushuaia. I hugged the crew members, thanking them for the wealth of knowledge they had passed on to me, for the passion they showed for their work, and for everything they had done for us. I told Heidi she was my favourite and, when I faced Jonathan, I couldn’t help but tell him that he had been right – that I did feel like a changed man. That’s when I got all choked up and came dangerously close to bursting into tears.
Goodbye Antarctic Gang!
Once I had settled back at the hostel I’d been staying in before the expedition, I didn’t have much time to process my thoughts, as I quickly found myself rushing to a café to meet Olivia, Nico, Steph, Mike, and a few others for one last cup of coffee.
You could tell we were back in civilised land mostly cause everyone was on their phones by this point – catching up with the real world whilst starting the task of sharing their unreal experience. I didn’t mind that though. I felt all talked out, to be honest. I had no idea how to put everything I felt into words just yet.
And so, after some idle chit-chat, we bid each other adieu, promising, like always, to meet again someday in the future. Goodbye, Antarctic Gang, and thank you for the memories.