The Last 31622400 Seconds

The above is the time I have spent in the remoteness of icy Antarctica till 7 AM UTC today, the 3rd of Jan 2009. That was the time in my watch on 3rd Jan 2008 when I was rudely woken up when I felt our ship jolting badly. It was banging repeatedly against the fast ice in order to make mooring space for itself. We had landed on the Princess Astrid Coast of East Antarctica. It was a dream come true for me. I could not believe that I was actually in Antarctica, a land that I could only dream of visiting. Around me was a huge wall of ice surging many meters above the ship. Behind us was the open ocean with hundreds of icebergs standing guard to the continent. The ship was trying to make its way inside the fast ice as far as it could go to moor itself and begin the expedition tasks.

One year later, this is still a dream. I still cannot believe that I am actually here, forget about completing an year. The only difference was that last year I was full of apprehension about what lay ahead. Now I am a lot more relaxed as the time for our departure is just a few days away. As the day of departure draws close, our emotional attachment to Maitri also grows. After all this is the place where I have spent the most memorable days of my life and this is also the place I am least likely to visit again.

In the days gone by, crossed another landmark- one year inside the Antarctic circle. That was on 31st Dec 2008. We realised that we had crossed the Antarctic circle when the sun did not set during the New Year celebrations on board the ship.