Submitted by Anonymous on Sat, 03/10/2012 - 17:51
Forums
Seafloor Organisms and Changing Ocean Conditions in Antarctic

Hi Ms. Herrmann! It sounds like you've been having a good trip home so far--was Arctowski your last stop until Brazil? I love hearing about the giant petrels. It must be amazing to be the only person in the world studying this bird longterm! The Antarctic Treaty is pretty amazing too. It seems like such a triumph of science in some way. Do you know if there have been any problems enforcing the treaty since it was ratified? I've returned from my lovely time in Florida now (we were near Fort Myers, on the Gulf Coast side of the state), and the trip back made me think of you making your way home. Are you travelling with a completely different group of people on the LMG this time than when you came, or are there a few familiar faces? I hope everything is going well; I can't imagine travelling for that long! Mila

Sun, 03/11/2012 - 05:17

Nell Herrmann

Hi Mila,Yes, Arctowski was our last stop until we arrived in Punta Arenas (last night). I'm still on the ship for one more day and will move to a hotel tomorrow. My string of flights home doesn't begin until 3-14, so I'm a little bit restless particularly because it is rainy today. I left the ship around 8:30 a.m. to take a walk around Punta Arenas and learned that nothing is open on Sunday here. I did make friends with 3 stray dogs, though, and they kept me company on my 3 mile loop. I ran into a fellow shipmate while out; he had the same idea as me- to get out and move! We walked back together and were both soaked completely as we got back on the ship. There are some familiar faces on the ship (some I met on the way down and some I met at Palmer Station); the new folks are the ones we picked up at Copa (the penguin group), but they are leaving today. As I've said a million times everyone I've met is great.
As far as the Antarctic Treaty goes, I don't think there have been any problems enforcing it; what's interesting is that each country is responsible for enforcing the treaty for itself. There isn't any larger body that oversees and enforces the rules of the treaty.
I'm glad you had a good time in Florida. Sunshine is the best.
See you soon,
-Ms. Herrmann