There were lots of memorable moments, that's for sure: First sightings of Antarctica, penguins, whales and seals were four of them. The Polar Plunge, I was the second one in, was another. Many of my fellow travelers followed me in. (Damn that water was cold, could not do the swimming I had imagined.) Might sound funny, but as a vegetarian, the vegetarian aspect of all meals was very memorable for me. I became a vegetarian about 40 years ago, but never have I had such delicious and fantastic vegetarian food available to me, buffet style, for two whole weeks. It was wonderful. So many other memorable moments, but my most memorable will always be standing atop that very high hill that we mountaineered up as team of six, plus our intrepid expedition leader, all connected to the same rope. We saw a fantastic avalanche from up on that hill, what a mighty wave it created in the ocean far below as it crashed down the side of that mountain. It was a physical challenge for me to do the climb, I was not sure that, at the age of 68, I could make it, but with the adrenalin that flowed through me and the encouragement of my team, I did it!

Great holiday

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Yeah, the Zodiacs became as familiar as the school bus I used to take to school. All your friends aboard, of on a new adventure everyday. Okay, the Zodiacs were much more fun than that. Getting up close and personal with the inhabitants of the sea: penguins, seals, whales, plankton, etc. every day on your way to an excellent adventure like hiking, visiting a British Post Office (still can't believe that one), but if there is going to be a Post Office in Antarctica, and there is, it of course will be the Brits are going to run it. Still waiting for the postcards we sent to arrive in our friends and families' mailboxes. Okay, they told us it would take 2 months or more, kind of the same speed of delivery that we enjoy with Canada Post.

Expedition team was top drawer, every one of them. They had their areas of expertise, and it was expertise they had truly earned by all of their hard work and love of the Antarctic continent. They were good educators, friendly, motivating and funny. They are all doing very good work adding to the knowledge base of everything that Antarctica is about, passing it on to people like us, who have had our desire enhanced to see that we live on a planet where we take care of the plants, animals and everything else that encompasses the eco-system in which we live. I have never met, or heard of, a team of people with such a strong common bond in seeing that a place, in this case Antarctica, has it story discovered, and told, and remains protected so that it never changes from what it has always been. Being exposed to this adventure, with this expedition team, felt like what I imagine a trip to a different world might be like: sort of the same as our world, but a little better in every way. I think that all of us on this trip came away as a little better people of this planet than we were, a least that is the legacy that I feel I will hold throughout the rest of my life. (As Tammie will tell you, I am not usually this sappy, but this was an exception experience, incomparable to perhaps to any other you might ever have on this planet.)

The good ship Ortelius was perfect. Already talked about the food, best ever, period. Cabins were not fancy, but were very practical, absolutely no complaints. Hey, we hardly spent a waking minute in our cabins, and when I say we, I mean everyone on the good ship Ortelius. The captain and crew did a fabulous job of educating us about all the workings of the ship, and some mariner history in the Antarctic Ocean. Everything aboard was clean and in proper working order, the crew and the Captain well-seasoned. (Yeah I stole that line from a Gordon Lightfoot song, The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, hey we are both Canadians, and I grew up on the shore of Lake Superior, largest lake in the world, where the E. F. sank, so I'm entitled.)

Yes, there is a lot more I would like to tell you about the trip we took to Antarctica, but I will save it for when I become a travel writer in my retirement. (I have been to every state, province and territory in North America, and now I have been to every state, province and territory on Antarctica, more or less.) Just five more continents to go. Here's what I want you to know: GO TO ANTARCTICA, it will be the most enriching experience of your life in my humble opinion. I'm a jaded 68 year old lawyer, and it changed me into a better person, so I am thinking it could do the same for you!

Keep doing what you are doing!

Yes, the way I think about this planet has changed. I went to a wonderful land that I had never imagined I would ever go to, and I am a better person for it. By better person, I mean that I am trying to be a better person to this planet and to all the people on it having taken the trip to Antarctica. I have my late great mother to thank, who left me the money to take this trip. Thanks Mom, RIP you angel.

Don't stop in Buenos Airies on your way to Ushayia, unless you enjoy arguing with cab drivers in a language that you probably do not speak that well. Other than that, you will be fine.

We were very well prepared, had worked on preparation for about a year. WE WERE SUPER PUMPED THE DAY WE LEFT!!

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Within 12 months