Wet and Aggressive Corella challenges Magpie

Wet and Aggressive Corella challenges Magpie

Sunday 11 March 2012

Sunday Selections





Sunday Selections, brought to us by Kim, of Frogpondsrock, is an ongoing theme where participants post previously unused photos languishing in their files. 

Anyone can join in, just post your photos under the Sunday Selections title, link back to Kim, then add your name to her Linky list at Frogpondsrock.  

As usual I am running with a theme.  This week I am going back (again) to Antarctica.  I am sorry if the cold views are a bit too close to home for bloggers in the Northern Hemisphere.  I fell in love with Antarctica well before I went there, and was deeper in its thrall after my visit.





















83 comments:

  1. These are beautiful. A friend of mine worked as a kitchen hand on the ship the Nella Dan so that she could go to Antartica. How did you come to go there? I am intrigued :)

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    1. Its a long story Kim. Essentially after my mother died I decided that I could use my inheritance sensibly (save for the household modifications/equipment I am going to need) or I could do something I had dreamed of and had not thought possible. I chose the second option and don't regret if for a moment.

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  2. These photos are absolutely breathtaking! I'm glad you didn't spend your inheritance the sensible way. I did and I don't have photos as lovely as these to show for it. Thank you for sharing.

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    1. It was a number of years ago, but the memories are something I hug tightly to my chest.

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  3. That looks colder than I would like!

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    1. Surprisingly it wasn't that cold. Do I take it that you wouldn't have joined me in a dip? Which is another treasured memory.

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  4. Good for you for going there! The worst thing we can die with is the thought of 'if only' or money in the bank for that matter.
    Love your Antarctic pics., the Prof was there a couple of times for experiments but no-one was prepared to take me and now I have even less chance with my dickie heart and commercial aircraft are out for me since they have a tendency to put me into heart failure . . fun, fun, fun.
    Talking of hoarding money, the Prof's dementia is progressing rapidly so I am taking him to Moonta Bay for a change of scene and I can catch some crabs and do a spot of fishing. Ah, bliss at the sea-side.

    I do hope you are keeping on to of whatever it is that has afflicted you. All the very best and thank you for all the mind thoughts you have sent my way recently.

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    1. Arija: Thank you. I am sorry that you missed your chance at Antarctica. Truly beautiful and unspoilt.

      You do have a lot (too much) on your plate at the moment. Enjoy your time at the sea side - such a rejuvenating place.

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  5. Oh such beautiful pictures!!! I love them. I fell in love with Alaska as well... although could not live there 365.

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    1. Cindi: I would love to see Alaska. I don't think I will be able to go there now, but I can continue to dreasm.

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  6. The one place left on my bucket list EC. I have longed to go there since I was a child. Almost made it a few years ago while in OZ...
    Thanks for sharing these pix, they are stunning!!!

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    1. Karen: If the opportunity comes your way again grab it tightly with both hands. I can't begin to tell you how amazing it was.

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  7. The emptiness and the purity just leave me with my mouth hanging open...

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    1. librarygirl: I dislocated my jaw on a daily basis, gobsmacked by beauty everywhere I looked.

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  8. ---Surreal. Beautiful. The photos almost look as if time has stopped there.

    I mean, a place that man has not destoyed yet...

    I Looooove the seals. Are those seals?

    Xx Kisses from Minnesota.

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    1. My Inner Chick: You are right. We haven't destroyed it yet - though from time to time we have made pretty strong efforts.
      It was beautiful, it is beautiful. They are indeed seals. The basking bevy are femal elephant seals. They are beautiful. Their lord and master is not.

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  9. Breathtakingly beautiful landscape-and photos.

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    1. Shae: Welcome and thank you. It is an amazing place. I am so glad that I went.

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  10. There's been some amazing art come out of the Antarctic. You should count your snaps among it.

    Love all the gorgeous colours, particularly the iceberg with a slash of blue sky above.

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    1. Cat Drawings: What a truly lovely thing to say. Thank you. Everywhere I looked there was beauty.

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  11. Oh wow, these are incredible. I can't even pick a favourite, they are all lovely. (Well, maybe the rose-tinted sky one, that is beyond beautiful).

    What a pristine landscape it appears. It makes me sad to think how human activity is changing it and wearing it away.

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    1. Kathy: Thank you. I couldn't think of a favourite day/hour/scene. It was simply amazing. I was horrendously seasick and it didn't matter.

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  12. Those memories have to be prcious! It's like your mom sent you on your dream trip! Kind of like her last wish for you. I am so glad that you took the second option!

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    1. Teresa: Thank you. The memories are indeed precious. Sadly, it would not have been something that my mother would have thought appropriate.

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  13. What wonderful, wonderful photos. Such an amazing place to have visited - I can well understand that you "hug the memories tightly". Recently David Attenborough's "Frozen Planet" has been screening here; it was full of gobsmackingly beautiful photography, against which yours stands up EXTREMELY well! The emptiness, the white, the blue... just wow.
    Thank you so much for sharing these. I went to Alaska when I was 20 - it was interesting but I think you can be satisfied with having been to Antarctica :)
    Have a lovely week - is it cooling down yet?

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    1. Alexia: Thank you. Like Cat Drawings you have me blushing and shuffling my feet. So long as the shot was in focus I don't think you could take a bad shot there. It was beauty from sunrise (10 past Midnight) to sunset( 9 past Midnight). The intervening minute was pretty good too.
      Not really cooling down yet, but there are signs (trees changing colour) that it will happen soon. Have a lovely week.

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  14. Bonza photos. I especially like the 4th photo of the blue iceberg, in the 5th photo the iceberg looks like a submarine with periscope up and finally the 6th photo the iceberg in the top left hand corner looks like an alien spaceship. I think my imagination is really running wild today :-).

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    1. Windsmoke: Thank you. How nice of you to set your imagination loose.

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  15. Oh, I*d love to visit! What amazingly gorgeous shots. I could gaze at them all day long.

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    1. LadyFi: Thank you. It is such an amazing place. Beauty everwhere. One afternoon we travelled though a field os smaller bergs that looked like Monet's Waterlilies, executed in ice. A joy.

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  16. Wow. This scenery is so beautiful it almost doesn't seem real. How lucky you are to have had this experience. I am green with envy.

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    1. Manderley: It really was the trip of a lifetime and I am so glad I did it.

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  17. I had no idea you'd been to Antarctica. I love the craggy peaks in the third photo.

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    1. River: They are spectacular, but I loved it all.

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  18. It is a place I have always wanted to visit, but doubt I will ever get there. How fantastic to have these photos and the memories of the visit. The nice ice blue is just what I needed to see on this hot hot evening here in Perth. xxx

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    1. Kakka: I see your vile hot weather is going to continue. Urk. I dream about Antarctica on hot days here and look longingly at a photo of the ice I have had blown up.

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  19. Wow! No wonder you are enthralled with Antarctica. It's simply beautiful. I don't think I will ever make it there, but you have helped me to see its beauty. Thank you...

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  20. So beautiful - what peace there is in looking at these photographs. I love the seals and how that one seal was calmly looking right at you.

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    1. Lynn: I had a baby seal gumming on my knee which was an amazing experience.

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  21. Top of my "to visit" list, but methinks a fading dream. So a special thanks for sharing these.

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    1. Dave King: If you get the chance, do it. I can't imagine anyone being disappointed.

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  22. That is one very cross creature looking at your camera!

    Beautiful photos, lucky you, to have been able to go there. Although it's not quite as far for you as it would be for me.

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    1. Friko: I had never thought of that seal being cross before so I had to go back and look at it again. I don't think it was cross, just totally disinterested in anything but basking on the beach.

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  23. Fantastic photographs. How I envy you on this trip!

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    1. linda: Thank you. I still have to pinch myself every now and then that I did finally get there.

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  24. magical my friend, thanks for showing us by the hand...


    Aloha from Waikiki
    Comfort Spiral

    >< } } ( ° >

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    1. Cloudia: Thanks - it was magical. Every moment.

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  25. Ooooh that seal's face! When I cover Milly's ears, I swear that she and seals are one and the same....

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    1. Kath: Milly is obviously a very, very beautiful dog. And just as well she doesn't look like the male Elephant Seals - who are less than pretty.

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  26. Amazing photos! Antartica is a place I would love to see for myself one day. Not sure I will ever get there and that's why I am grateful for your photos. So beautiful and I too love that little seal pup's face. Thanks for sharing these, a great way to start my morning.

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  27. I'm so glad you got to go. The iceberg photos are fantastic and mysterious. Do you want to return?

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    1. Strayer: It is an obscenely expensive trip and I don't think my body would let me do it anymore. That said, yes I would love to go. If miracles happened I would like to go later in Summer and perhaps see more whales.

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  28. Dear EC,
    Like "Cat Drawing"and "Alexia" I found your photographs astounding. They deserve a book of their own. The space around the ice bergs reminds me of Japanese art. How wonderful to have been there and to have such good memories. I look forward to your telling us about going into the water. At least from one of your responses I figured you'd done that.

    Two questions: what is the temperature there at this time of year? And has the hole in the ozone layer affected Antartica as it has the Arctic?

    Peace.

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    1. Dee: Thank you so much for your kindness. Going for a swim was something that was presented as an option and I tried to take every option that came my way on the trip. The water was chilly it is true, but it was a quick swim and I am happy to have done it.

      The Antarctic is warming up for Summer. Going there is only an option in summer when enough of the ice melts to allow ships down there. It was probably hovering between 0 and ten degree (C) when I was there. On days with no wind it was pleasant.

      Sadly yes, the hole in the Ozone layer is affecting the Antarctic. And consequently a lot of the wild life is under threat.

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  29. These are gorgeous, I see why you love it there....I think the cold is beautiful if I do not feel it:)

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    1. Kim@Stuff: My version of MS makes me pretty much immune to the cold - I do get cold but it takes a looooong time and very low temperatures. Which made Antarctica and its stunning beauty perfect.

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  30. I'm so glad you did the sensible thing and went on the trip. I love your Antarctic pictures! Here in my part of the Northern Hemisphere we're having a howling storm outside. It's a great soundtrack for looking at these (even though these aren't storm pics, but still...it's a mood thing, I guess).

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    1. Paper Chipmunk: Thank you. I can quite see that a howling gale would suit looking at those photos. When all is said and done some extreme weather went into creating them. I was just lucky enough to be there in the aftermath. There was a big storm on our way down and I spent it throwing up.

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    2. Was that in a plane? Or on the sea? Either way, I taste bile just thinking of it.

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    3. Paper Chipmunk: I flew to Argentina and caught a ship from there to Argentina. I am not a good traveller so I expected to be sea sick. Just not quite that sick. It took four injections to stop me vomiting that first day. And it was still worth it.

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  31. Replies
    1. Starting Over, Accepting Changes - Maybe: (wonderful blog title). Welcome and thank you. It was simply incredible every day.

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  32. So beautiful! And I think it is wonderful that you chose to make a dream come true with your inheritance. That takes courage, when one is generally pragmatic, as I get the feeling you are.

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  33. Blogger is having a hissy fit so I have gone back (temporarily) to a pop up window.

    jenny_o: A pragmatic dreamer? I often take the pragmatic approach, but continue to dream. And I have never regretted for a nano second my decision to go to Antarctica despite the obscene expense.

    NickyHW: Thank you. Stunning place.

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    1. John Wiswell: Thank you. It was a truly gorgeous spot.

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  35. What hauntingly beautiful photos. And when you have your suitcases packed and someone asks that ridiculous question, 'Going anywhere nice?' One can but hope you reply, 'Antarctica'.
    With respect and appreciation, Gary

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    1. Gary: Thank you so much. I would LOVE to go back. A girl can dream. A girl should dream.

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  36. You're very welcome and thanks again for such a superb article with such incredible photos. May your dream become a wondrous reality :)

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  37. Wow!!!!!! Such beauty.
    Thank you
    NicoS

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    1. NicoS: I know you don't like the cold but it was sooooo beautiful.

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  38. Beautiful.

    You said to another, "Sadly, it would not have been something that my mother would have thought appropriate." Something tells me that when they travel over to the other side they instantly find love, acceptance and that includes you and your choices. I can't explain it. I'm not pulling out a God thing on you - its that since Nicole died I've felt things possibly may make sense later.

    By the way I really appreciate you coming by my blog and leaving your sweet comments. =)

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    1. Have Myelin? Thank you. My mother was very angry in the last conversation we had before she died. I had called the ambulance because she was very obviously far from well. She told the paramedics that I just wanted her out of her house. They took her to hospital and she slipped into a coma almost immediately and died that night. I was with her when she died, but we had no exchanges after that last angy one. A sadness.

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  39. what an amazing journey! and to be able to come so up close and personal with seals, i am envious...

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    1. Pia K: It was a truly wonderful experience. And yes, getting close to the seals and the penguins added to the magic.

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