Viking Polaris: Day 10! Since last night, we made it from Antarctic waters to the two-thirds point across the Drake Passage. Overnight, I continued powering through my cold. The waves last evening were bigger than our first transit but I didn’t feel sick. However, I taken some seasickness pills because the folks in Guest Services had told me that some crew members used them to help sleep. During the night, I decided to check out whether they worked - I only woke up once all night so they might have been effective. At 0645, I opened up my blinds to see a pleasantly sunny day with only a few whitecaps. Once I was ready to leave my cabin (0810), I had to hold on to the railing to climb up to Deck 5 (to reach the World Cafe). Initially, I started eating a pretty normal breakfast (eggs, fruit, beans, hash browns, pastry) but then I remembered that I'd been wanting to try the special waffles at Mamsen’s. The inspiration turned out to be a good one - I only had about half a waffle but I found it to be much lighter than the kind I typically have at hotels. At 0845, I made my normal walking rounds through the ship. I felt like a drunken sailor, with all the rolling! Along the way, I looked for books in the ship's extensive library, met many of my cruise friends and watched the crew as they conducted at-sea drills. On the way past Guest Services, I picked up more sea-sickness pills and a hard-copy of the “Viking Daily”. During all of this walkabout, my assessment was that the waves were a bit rougher than the southbound leg but bearable overall. So, maybe, we got Drake Lake again? Still have one more sleep before we reach landfall - then we’ll know… At 0955, I passed by The Hide (0955), and spent time watching the big waves crashing over the windows. The Chief Engineer was giving his briefing again in the background (he sounded almost the same as the day when I'd attended). Even though I only managed to capture a few seconds of water covering the windows, the unique space near the bow (and close to the waterline) made for an interesting perspective! I returned to my cabin at about 1030 and watched some more of the Enrichment Videos I’d missed previously (“Whaling”, by Ewa; “Ice Fish”, by Rorie; “Port Lockroy”, by Bridie from UK Antarctic Heritage Trust; part of “The Seals of Antarctica”, by Rorie). At 1200, I went to lunch (pizza, empanadas, veggies) at the World Cafe. I didn't tarry long because I had a Galley Tour scheduled! At 1245, I went to Guest Services and met the rest of the passengers who were going and, at 1300, we began our tour in the kitchen behind Manfredi’s (Deck 1). We were guided by Ernesto and learned a lot about food preparation, crew morale and Viking Hospitality logistics. Along the way, we also learned about the complicated (but efficient) food-services onboard, including crew selection and training processes. Before we were finished, we visited Deck A to learn about food storage. Afterwards (1345), I went up to the World Cafe to sample a tasty blueberry crepe with Dulce de Leche (mmm…) that another passenger had told me about during the tour. Next, I proceeded to Expedition Central for the last part of a Penguin Counter Workshop. Before returning to my room, I walked (more like staggered) around on a few decks to get some steps. In my cabin, I reviewed documents that described the disembarkation process and did some blogging. I started to read a book I’d taken from a shelf in The Library (“Troy and its Remains”, by Heinrich Schliemann) but the motion of the waves made me sleepy. With nothing planned for a little while, I dozed for a little bit. I had my alarm set but ultimately didn't need it - by 1615, I was on my way to the rendezvous point for my scheduled tour of the Bridge of “Polaris”. Leaving from Deck 1 (Guest Services), we traveled to Deck 6 and were allowed to visit the conning stations for “Polaris”. The Captain was our tour guide and he showed us a LOT of interesting equipment, control panels and an amazing “bird’s eye” view of the ocean. There were all kinds of interesting engineering, navigational, crew coordination and morale issues discussed - overall, an excellent experience! As we were wrapping up (1700), I got to talking to some other sailors (one was a Navy Sub XO and the other was a Coast Guard Icebreaker crewman). We were all impressed by the crew, ship and cruise line. On my way back to my room, I did some more walking and met up with Steve and Regina. We talked for a little bit but then they asked if I was planning to join the Viking Farewell Reception at 1730. After they described what it was, I decided that is shouldn't be missed. I headed to the Aula and barely arrived in time. The crew showed us a wonderful movie about our cruise (I learned later that this was not shared outside of this one showing because of the legal complications of media rights). This event was also an opportunity to thank the Captain and the 250ish crew members (from 46 countries) and we all gave them a standing ovation. Returning towards my room (1750), I picked up two more Viking Antarctica Expedition patches for my ND friend (Kelly). Next, I got ready for my dinner reservations at Manfredi’s. At 1900, I sat down in “my” corner seat (good for people watching) for my third and last meal at the wonderful Italian restaurant. Like each previous time, I had a small portion of several entrees, appetizers and meat/fish dishes: Caprese salad, pasta fagioli, lasagna and grill tuna. Delicious! All of this was accompanied by some nice (big) pours of Frescobaldi Pater Sangiovese wine. Mega and Satria (my "regular" servers) pulled off one more miracle and brought me some Baked Alaska from one of the other eating venues - it tasted great. Wonderful meal and service! Afterwards, I made some more rounds and talked with lots more people. At 2130, I stopped by The Hide to take part in an interactive presentation (by Rorie) called “Sounds of Antarctica” (animals). While there, I had a glass of very good cognac but ended up leaving before the event was over. I also skipped another dance party event and retired to my cabin. Read and watched movies until going to bed (2230). Since I was feeling better by that point, I never took the seasickness medicine. Definitely was not bored today! There are probably going to be a few more “you have to try this” things but I believe I’ve already maximized the experiences since I got here. Regardless, I’m very sad that this amazing journey at sea will end tomorrow…
