I bought a carpet once – The carpet seller from Istanbul leans forward and grabs my leg, his eyes are shining.  “These are not carpets, my friend, you do not buy a carpet when you come to me, you take away a philosophy.” Continue reading

Antarctica – getting there – Getting to Antarctica was frightening by way of travel and imagination. What do you expect to find? In that terra incognita what unimagined frontier lay for the mind to conquer? Continue reading

Antarctica – still getting there – The Earth turns at this point. That is what went through my mind as we headed out of the Beagle Channel and into the Drake Passage. Continue reading

Antarctica’s first sighting – Bellingshausen – Onward and southward Orlova steamed. Inside the Divergence the air was colder, mercifully the sea was calmer. We were riding on the edge of the world. Continue reading

Antarctica – What Lies Beneath – The things we see on the surface of our lives are but nothing to what lies within. The power that lies beneath the surface is immense and unfathomed. Continue reading

Antarctica – Innocence lost – The penguins are the innocent ones. There is no fear, only friendly curiosity. They are a peaceful and generous lot who live in the foul stench of a remote and cold rookery. Continue reading

Albatross – Majesty of the Southern Ocean – “That is the Wandering Albatross, biggest of them all.  Is that not a sight?”  Oh yes it is, and it is a bird in danger of disappearing forever. Continue reading   

Deception Island Dare – When a dare is fuelled by the courage of the ‘drunken Dutch’ in a rowdy pub you know there is going to be trouble. Continue reading

Antarctica – You’ll never forget the taste of fear – Fear. The taste of fear, not quite the tinny taste of blood, not the salty taste of snot either. Continue reading