Photos of Antarctica – A place few of will see
Back in February, my wife and I had the trip of a lifetime. For free – by speaking on board a cruise ship. We flew to Chili and got began the voyage. Then we sailed through the many inlets in Chili. The last stop there was Ushuaia. It is the kick-off for Antarctic Trips. We saw the Falklands and Buenos Aires before flying home. 23 days.
Normal cruise ships cannot get folks on the island any more, since many ships got stuck in the ice shelf. So we “only” got to within 1/4 mile of the Palmer Station….one of three American sites. To get to walk around for two shots of 3o-minutes each, you need to pay big bucks and get on a real ice-breaker ship.
We passed Cape Horn, then two days south in “Drake’s Passage.” It is one of the worst seas to traverse. It took Magellan 88 days and he still didn’t make it westbound. Our seas were like a lake with NO rough water.
Learn more about cruise openings to South America.
We learned a lot about the early explorers…Amundsen, Scott and Shackleton. I’m preparing a talk on them to add to my collection of over 50.
Oh, I snagged this trip….why don’t you? We only had to pay airfare. But you have to be accepted by an agency – we help. Make talks that are fun to older people who are retired and on vacation. Infotainment. We teach all this – no worries you will be “qualified.”
So, now with that background, here are the promised photos.
Typical routing to the south pole
Fellow passengers clicking away.
The Titanic hit one this big.
Glaciers slowly entering the sea
Apartment building-sized Icebergs
More photos of exotic places – get there for free–> give talks!
Here are more photos of places we’ve been to on cruises. We haven’t paid for a cruise since we were dating in the 80’s. My first (and only) wife does none of the adventures I do. Hiking, scuba, biking etc. She’s a knitter. OK…..I guess opposites attract. It’s been 33 years. Sigh.
The one thing we found out early on is that we like cruising. Everything is in one place for 2 weeks. No packing up daily as you move around. I am NOT a Rick Steves fan of the way he goes. One rollaway and a train ticket. Sorry. I like more than 2 pair of boxers.
So here’s a sampler of some places YOU can get to. Want to give it a go? We can teach you how. Many of our graduates keep reading this blog for poop about on the industry. Newbies are also welcome. When you want to take the leap and sail for free – this is the place to come.
SEE more Turkey photos
We teach – you do. . .aka DYI. Do it yourself. A 2-hr seminar will give you the roadmap to follow to get assignments. Like to talk? – share what you know more about than most people.
It’s fun.
And now the show.
Hagia Sophia Turkey
Obelisk taken by Turks from Egypt
Where Mary lived after Christ’s death
Site where St Paul gave his Epistle to the Ephesians
Our room for trip to Turkey
So there’s a tease to Turkey. We are so glad that we went back then. It’s going to be risky to go to many parts of Turkey with the Islamic Terrorists…aka ISIS…killing everyone who is an “infidel”. Sad
I’ll post pix of other locations in future blogs
Comments? Want to take our class? Sail for free!
Cruising to Italy – Rome is a must-see bucket list place. Go for free by speaking!
I’ve been to Rome three times .. for free…by speaking on a ship. And I’d go back if selected to give one of my award-worthy talks. In fact, we are leaving soon for a trip Rome-Greece-Istanbul.
I took my sister there last time since you can take another person and my wife was working. You don’t dock in Rome…the port is called Civitavecchia. This about a 2-hour bus ride to Rome. I was picked as an escort so even that tour was free. The job as an escort is just to count heads on the ship. Once we arrived, we were free to be normal tourists.
We were quite pleased in that all the good stuff is a short walk apart. We didn’t take a cab anywhere and saw the best sights. St. Peter’s Basilica lives up to its reputation. Pure opulence. A tip when visiting the actual Vatican – get there at noon – tourists get hungry and the line was acceptable.
the pieta
When you walk thru it, it’s hard not to wonder why the church that preaches – “help the poor” does not sell all those works and donate.
Swiss guard at Vatican
The Coliseums and the old senate site: the Pantheon are well-preserved and worth a stroll. The catacombs were neat also. There are seven hills, but I could not really see them. The Tiber River runs through the city.
IMHO, one of the dumbest things was the walk to see the Trevi Fountain. It was in a famous movie last century. Toss three coins in the fountain…Zzzzz.
Watch out for the traffic. I once rented a car and drove thru the city – worse than Boston!!
Tune in for more fables.