Page 2 - MILA'S TRAVELOGUE - ANTARTICA

punctuated by a white seascape of ice
ANTARCTICA—A LONG-HELD DREAM COME TRUE
E ver since I was a little girl and learned of the seven
continents, I’ve always dreamed of stepping foot on
all of them. After I realized my dream on the first six,
I have started to quietly search tours of the one and
only continent I have yet to conquer.
And conquer I did, starting on February 21 to March 4, 2019. The
PROLOGUE
journey, which is like no other I took previously, began at SFO
for a seven plus hour flight to Mexico City, Mexico. We crossed
the equator on the downward directions for the fourth time
when we continued our 12-hour flight to Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Buenos Aires is a city I have visited years ago,
it was reassuring that it has remained its
vibrant and friendly self.
With very little sleep for the last 24
hours and after checking in early in
our hotel, I nonchalantly joined an
afternoon walking tour of the city
with my two travel companions.
This City is aptly called the
Paris of South America, rich in
culture and history, buildings
are magnificently European in
architecture and their avenues
are so wide and grand. In the
early evening, we met up with
the other adventurous tourists in
our Group for dinner. Not much
2 3
and then - total nothingness.
There was a short-hike option in this
to write about this day, other than it was good to see what resort town through their Natural
amounted to be familiar places that felt to me like enjoying the
Reserve. I forgo that walk to rest my
warmth of meeting an old friend.
right foot at the restaurant lobby where
We settled in the night at our comfortable hotel which we were served buffet lunch. The day
maintained its architectural legacy of stairway and balconies
with ornate iron works in the famous Recoleta District of before I injured it when I tripped inside
the Cathedral of Jose de San Martin in
Buenos Aires. We got up very early for a flight that will Buenos Aires. The mid-afternoon came
quickly and we proceeded to board our
ship for the Emblematic Antarctica Tour
where after a very delectable French
style dinner, we all started to brace
ourselves for crossing the Drake Passage,
the one waterway that even experienced
and hardened seafarers fear, I think every
tourist who successfully crossed this
passage that took two days deserves a
medal regardless of whether they get
sick during the journey or not.
From this point on, I have a daily
journal with photos and narrative
take us to the southern-most part of the continent of that characterized and detailed my
South America called Ushuaia. It’s a small resort town with worthwhile and unforgettable adventure
mountain peaks that were spectacularly covered with snow. of a lifetime which included seven Ports
it was our gateway to Antarctica and if I did not know any of Call. Antarctica, you are completely
better, I would have concluded that I reached the end of the untamed, unspoiled and inhospitable, Mila Llorente is with Linda Rose Victoire Byers at Air
world. There was really nothing to see if you look farther south but I LOVE YOU! France - KLM Lounge at SFO on Feb. 20, 2019
of it other than the vast, distant and pristine body of water