Sailing around Cape Horn and through the Drake Passage was a beautiful trip as we headed south into Antarctica unlike the last time I was here and we ran into a storm which was hurricane strength with 70 ft waves. This time it was a sunny day with smooth seas. Antarctica is a beautifully remote place. Words can’t say enough so I will just include photos. When we were near the Palmer Research Station, we brought the 17 researchers onboard the ship (there’s nowhere to dock in Antarctica). They headed straight for the Amsterdam’s version of Starbucks and enjoyed some special coffees. Some took the opportunity to go for a swim in our outdoor pool, others enjoyed services in the spa, a beer at the bar, they all enjoyed the buffet in addition to giving presentations about what their life is like there and what types of research they are doing. On their departure, we loaded them up with “stores” (food) to take back to their homes and enjoy.

The following day, it snowed! I’ve been working onboard ships for 10 years now and this is the very first time I’ve had snow on a cruise ship.

After four days at sea in Antarctica we then headed north towards Stanley, Falkland Islands however there was a storm around the island so we had to skip it and head to Buenos Aires. This was a total of eight days at sea so we were pretty restless by the time we got to Buenos Aires.