Local resident visits Antarctica
Dr. Sunita Puri visited Antarctica in December 2010.
Antarctica is not a popular vacation spot.
But, for one local resident, it was the trip of a lifetime.
Sunita Puri, a doctor at the MedCare clinic on Madison Boulevard, visited the Earth’s southern most continent in December 2010.
It was incredible,” Puri said. “I’m planning to go again.”
Puri took a 12-day cruise to Antarctica that departed from Ushuaia, Argentina.
She said visiting Antarctica was something she had always wanted to do.
“It was something different, something adventurous,” Puri said.
There were only 89 other passengers onboard because Antarctica only allows small ships, according to Puri.
“That’s how it stays so pristine,” Puri said.
Puri experienced the landscape firsthand through land excursions. The cruise ship anchored twice a day for three to four hours so passengers could travel on land via smaller motorized boats called zodiacs.
She said her favorite part of these excursions was seeing the wildlife, especially the penguins.
While onboard the ship, Puri attended lectures on the environment, glaciers, whales, climate change and birds.
She said her favorite thing she saw while in Antarctica was the glaciers.
“Standing by a glacier was an incredible experience,” Puri said.
She said she was joined on her adventure by people of all nationalities and ages, as passengers on the cruise ranged from 14 to 85.
“Age has nothing to do with it,” Puri said.
Puri described the continent as “paradise on Earth.”
“I’m planning to go back,” Puri said.
Scroll down to read Puri’s first-hand account of her trip.
PARADISE ON EARTH
BY DR. SUNITA PURI
There is something very special, almost spiritual about Antarctica. I could not escape the “little voice.” The world’s largest ice mass can be found in Antarctica. Ice covers 99 percent of the landmass except some rocky coastal area and tallest mountain peaks. It is quite magical to get close to the icebergs, especially when the sun is shining and glistening on the ice water like millions of sparkling diamonds.
I was standing on the deck of the ship at 1 a.m., gazing at the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula in the golden glow of the midnight sun. The scenery was so impressive that I stared with stunned silence. There was nothing to say. Is it not amazing what God can do with his color palate? God started painting the sky again with different shades of color at 3 a.m. sunrise. Yes, there were 22 hours of sunshine in Antarctica. It was summer in Antarctica. The weather is very unpredictable. It is very windy at times.
Antarctica is not as difficult to reach as it sounds. The incredible journey begins and ends in the southernmost city at the bottom of the world, Ushuaia, Argentina. Ushuaia nestles between the dramatic summits of the Andres and the Beagle channel. The Drake Passage is a filter of 600 miles of famously rough water called “Drake shakes.” It separates South America from Argentina. It is one of the reasons Antarctica remains such a pristine place. Ten to 30 feet water waves are common in the Drake Passage, but when I saw the glaciers I forgot about the rough water!
Antarctica is the fifth largest of the seven continents. It is a land of snow-capped mountains, dramatic rock formations, ice fjords and floating giant icebergs. Ice cliffs, ice shelves, ice sheets, glaciers, pancake ice and packed ice dominate the scenery. Pancake ice looks like lily pads, which become curled at the edge as they collide with each other. Extensive brash ice and growlers reflect their amazing colors on the water.
In the winter, sea ice freezes. When the temperature warms in the spring, ice breaks off and the pieces begin to move with wind. Most of an iceberg is under the water. There exist cathedrals of ice that are charged with mystical blue lights, which seem like an “out of earth” experience. There is an international agreement that protects the entire continent of Antarctica. Antarctica is a natural reserve devoted to peace and science. It is politically neutral.
Every cruise ship to Antarctica carries a fleet of zodiac crafts, which are sturdy and inflatable. They are hulled, and are used to reach inaccessible wildlife and scientific sites. Initially, getting in and out of a zodiac with cameras becomes an often hilarious attempt at stepping ashore. Then it becomes second nature.
The most famous inhabitant of Antarctica is the penguin. These birds do not fly; however, they are superb swimmers that move with ease and grace. They breed on the land or ice surface along the coast and islands. Penguins incubate eggs in a nest of pebbles, just out of pecking range of each other. During spring, baby chicks are born and thousands of them are seen everywhere. I was sitting on a rock at Neko Harbor Island and three seals were sleeping peacefully on the ice. Beyond them across the impressive blue water was a colossal glacier cracking and caving in the sunshine. Two whales cruised by in the open water; their distinctive blows clearly visible to the naked eye. Behind me was a vertical mountain of weakened rocks, which provided a home and nesting place for countless birds. Hundreds of penguins on the nearby beach and rocks were enjoying playing in the water; they are not afraid of human presence. Seals were floating on ice slabs. They were watching us with their brown eyes as curiously as we were watching then. It was breathtaking.
In Antarctica there are so many places like this. It is the wildlife and scenery that explain the white continent’s allure. A penguin tried to clamber up my snow boots. I cruised among the icebergs bluer than sky. I watched humpback whales so close that I could identify them by the shape and color of the tail. I photographed a seal sliding off a chunk of ice, swimming menacingly towards a zodiac before disappearing in the blue water behind us. Three whales surfaced and put on a good show for more than 30 minutes.
I truly experienced a “paradise on earth.” Traveling to Antarctica is something that “grabs” you. It is a spiritual adventure. You can barely comprehend the power and beauty of nature that makes Antarctica so addictive.
