Mission Antarctica – A great Adventure

I have always been a dreamer. Going to Antarctica, however, was not part of any dreams or any random thoughts I ever had. But, when I heard about the chance of going to Antarctica on a company sponsored expedition I knew at once that it was once in a lifetime opportunity. Beyond my geography lessons in my school years, I did not know, and did not care, much about the frozen tundra so far south. In the initial spurt of excitement after finding about the expedition, and in my attempt to hide my lack of general knowledge about the continent, I even misspelled ‘Antarctica’ as I tried to google about the continent. Now with the expedition behind me, I am coming to terms with the rare privilege I had and slowly recognizing the wider impact the experience is making on me.

Mission Antarctica for me was an adventure. It was an adventure that stoked all the senses of my body. It was an adventure that allowed me to find more about myself. It was an adventure that has inspired me about the environment around us, and as far as Antarctica. It was an adventure thickened with eleven others from the diverse and dynamic company I work for. What an amazing adventure it was! Like your favorite movie, it allows you to play it scene by scene, over and over again, without ever approaching boredom. Everyday it reveals something new. Every time it teaches something different. At each reiteration, it inspires new ideas. I rode some of the roughest seas. I climbed some of the treacherous slopes at the bottom of the world. I camped out in the cold wilderness of Antarctica. I saw wildlife in the sanctuary of Antarctic waters and Antarctic soil. I experienced first hand the effects of rising temperature of our planet. I enjoyed sceneries that neither words, pictures nor videos can do justice. I felt the cold wind that pierces through layers of clothing. I felt my own sweat freeze against my body. I munched on some of the freshest snow in the world. I drank the purest water right at its origin. I played Ultimate Frisbee on the windiest continent of the world. I went to sleep under the stars, just after listening to the tales from a man who crossed both poles of the world for the first time in human history – from the devil himself. I saw for myself the scene of scattered whale bones, and human bones abandoned together -- an unforgettable imagery reflecting the dreary end to a human enterprise that plundered nature with no regards for tomorrow. I experienced the raw beauty and the raw fury of mother-nature, both in the same breath.

I am so pleased with how well the plot of my adventure came together. The setting for it was purely enchanting. It was set in the far, far land with white powder sands, blue rich waters, floating glass rocks, split tailed water monsters that joyfully spouts water plumes into air, strange birds that won’t fly, but skip around in neatly pressed butler uniforms, and ever elusive warmth that swings between freezing and frozen. Like a generous host, Antarctica welcomed me well and served me a feast of experiences that exceeded my expectations. Through them it communicated. Sometimes in a wild explosion that is so hard to keep it to yourself. But, mostly in a subtle way, like a secret look exchanged between two good friends; a lot communicated, but hardly any words uttered. As a result of it all I left the continent mesmerized, inspired, changed and committed. At the same time, I left feeling apprehensive, wondering what will happen to this unspoiled, but fragile, land in the coming years. Would humankind raid the last cupboard of the world in desperation as we dry up the resources elsewhere or would we correct our ways long before and thus preserve the last wilderness of the world for the generations to come.