Antarctica, anyone?

I don't know if it's because it's that time of the year, but I've noticed a lot of tours to Antarctica lately. And you know what? Apparently it's not as cold as you think. 

About 10 years ago, cruises to Alaska started becoming fashionable. Now, Antarctica is the place to go. One company which organises trips to Antarctica is G Adventures, which has been around since 1990. Their Antarctica Classic tour from Ushuaia, Argentina to the Antarctic Peninsula promises sightings of orca, humpback and minke whales, leopard seals and Adélie penguins...that's right, just like The Amigos in 'Happy Feet' .

Roux Wikimedia Commons

Tours are conducted in the summer months from November to March. The temperature on the Antarctic Peninsula at that time of year is in the region of  2°C, which actually isn't too bad if you think about it. Yes, of course it's cold but it's not something that can't be sorted out with proper attire.  

G Adventures recommends the following for the trip: a warm winter jacket, waterproof pants, tall Wellington boots, hats and mitts. There an option to rent outerwear in Ushuaia but the company doesn't recommend it as there's no guarantee that these items will be available when you need them.

I've always preferred cold weather to hot. I don't sweat as much, my skin isn't so oily and my hair behaves better as well. (Yes, I sound very superficial but there you go). There's also something beautiful about a snow-covered  landscape - the world looks clean and new and ready for anything. I can almost smell the freshness in the air in these photos: 

Andrew Mandemaker

Vincent van Zeijst, Wikimedia Commons

Jan Will

So who's up for Antarctica this year? If you are, click here for some amazing photographs. If you don't like looking at photos of snow, at least go there for the penguins :)